WT/L/957   
 
 
30 July 2015  
(15-3937)  Page: 1/4  
   
 
 ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN 
DECISION OF 27 JULY 2015 
 
 The General Council, 
 
 Having regard to  paragraph 2 of Article XII and paragraph 1 of Article IX of the 
Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (the "WTO Agreement"), and the 
Decision-Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the WTO Agreement agreed by the 
General Council (WT/L/93), 
  Conducting  the functions of the Ministerial Confer ence in the interval between meetings 
pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article IV of the WTO Agreement, 
 
 Taking note  of the application of the Republic of Kazakhstan for accession to the 
WTO Agreement dated 29 January 1996, 
 
 Noting  the results of the negotiations directed toward the establishment of the terms of 
accession of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the WTO Agreement and having prepared a Protocol on 
the Accession of the Republic of Kazakhstan,  
 Decides  as follows: 
1. The Republic of Kazakhstan may accede to the WTO Agreement on the terms and conditions 
set out in the Protocol annexed to this Decision. 
 
 
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  PROTOCOL ON THE ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN 
Preamble 
 
 The World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO"), pursuant to the approval 
of the General Council of the WTO accorded under Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO Agreement"), and 
the Republic of Kazakhstan (hereinaft er referred to as "Kazakhstan"),  
 
 Taking note of  the Report of the Working Party on the Accession of the Republic of Kazakhstan 
to the WTO Agreement reproduced in document WT/ACC/KAZ/93, dated 23 June 2015 (hereinafter 
referred to as the "Working Party Report"),  
 Having regard to  the results of the negotiations on the accession of Kazakhstan to the 
WTO Agreement,   
 Agree  as follows: 
PART I - GENERAL 
 
1. Upon entry into force of this Protocol pursuant to paragraph 8, Kazakhstan accedes to the 
WTO Agreement pursuant to Article XII of that Agreement and thereby becomes a Member of the 
WTO.   
2. The WTO Agreement to which Kazakhstan accedes shall be the WTO Agreement, including 
the Explanatory Notes to that Agreement, as rectified, amended or otherwise modified by such legal instruments as may have entered into force before the date of entry into force of this Protocol.  This Protocol, which shall include the commitments referred to in paragraph 1175 of the Working Party 
Report, shall be an integral part of the WTO Agreement. 
3. Except as otherwise provided for in paragraph 1175 of the Working Party Report, those 
obligations in the Multilateral Trade Agreements annexed to the WTO Agreement that are to be 
implemented over a period of time starting with the entry into force of that Agreement shall be 
implemented by Kazakhstan as if it had accepted that Agreement on the date of its entry into force.  
4. Kazakhstan may maintain a measure inconsistent with paragraph 1 of Article II of the 
General Agreement on Trade in Services (hereinafter referred to as "GATS") provided that such a measure was recorded in the list of Article II Exemptions annexed to this Protocol and meets the 
conditions of the Annex to the GATS on Article II Exemptions. 
 
PART II - SCHEDULES 
 
5. The Schedules reproduced in the Annex to this Protocol shall become the Schedule of 
Concessions and Commitments an nexed to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 
(hereinafter referred to as the "GATT 1994") and the Schedule of Specific Commitments annexed to the GATS relating to Kazakhstan.  The staging of the concessions and commitments listed in the Schedules shall be implemented as specified in the relevant parts of the respective Schedules. 
 
6. For the purpose of the reference in paragraph 6(a) of Article II of the GATT 1994 to the date of 
that Agreement, the applicable date in respect of the Schedules of Concessions and Commitments 
annexed to this Protocol shall be the date of entry into force of this Protocol.  WT/L/957 
 
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  PART III - FINAL PROVISIONS 
 7. This Protocol shall be open for acceptance, by signature or otherwise, by Kazakhstan until 
31 October 2015 or such later date as may be decided by the General Council. 
 
8. This Protocol shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the day upon which it shall 
have been accepted by Kazakhstan.  
 
9. This Protocol shall be deposited with the Director-General of the WTO.  The Director-General of 
the WTO shall promptly furnish a certified copy of this Protocol and a notification of acceptance by 
Kazakhstan thereto pursuant to paragraph 7 to each Member of the WTO and to Kazakhstan.    
10. This Protocol shall be registered in accordance with the provisions of Article 102 of the Charter 
of the United Nations.    
 Done at Geneva this twenty-seventh day of July, two thousand and fifteen, in a single copy in 
the English, French and Spanish languages, each text being authentic, except that a Schedule annexed hereto may specify that it is authentic in only one of these languages, and the Working 
Party Report is authentic in English only. 
 
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ANNEX 
SCHEDULE CLXXII – THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN 
Authentic only in the English language. 
(Circulated in document WT/ACC/KAZ/93/Add.1) 
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SCHEDULE OF SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS ON SERVICES 
LIST OF ARTICLE II EXEMPTIONS 
Authentic only in the English language. 
(Circulated in document WT/ACC/KAZ/93/Add.2) 
__________