TN/TF/W/187  
 
26 February 2013  
(13-1020)  Page: 1/9  
Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation  Original: English  
 
 ARTICLE 1: PUBLICATION AND AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION 
 
COMMUNICATION FROM THE UNITED STATES 
 
The following communication dated 25 February 2013 is being circulated at the request of 
the United States. 
 
  
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SUGGESTED REVISIONS 25 FEBRUARY 2013 
Rev.14 Suggested Revisions Comments 
Article 1:  Publication and Availability of 
Information   
1. Publication    
1.1 Each Member shall promptly publish 
the following information in a non-
discriminatory and easily accessible manner in order to enable governments, traders and other interested parties to become 
acquainted with them:   
(a) Importation, exportation and transit 
procedures (including port, airport, 
and other entry-point procedures) and required forms and documents;   
(b) Applied rates of duties and taxes of any 
kind imposed on or in connection with 
importation or exportation;   
(c) Fees and charges imposed by customs 
and other [border][governmental] 
agencies on or in connection with 
importation, exportation or transit; (c)    Fees and charges imposed by customs 
and other [border][governmental] 
agencies on or in connection with importation, exportation or transit; The scope of the commitment remains those fees and 
charges applicable to “importation, exportation or transit”, 
regardless of which Member agency is imposing.   
 Proposing to delete [border] and unbracket the term 
‘governmental’.  Some Members have expressed comfort 
with emphasizing that the agencies concerned are “governmental.”  “Border” is probably redundant, given 
scope of commitment to importation, exportation, and 
transit.    As an alternative, we could also consider deleting reference 
to “customs”, “border” and “governmental”.  The scope of 
the commitment remains those fees and charges applicable to “importation, exportation or transit”, regardless of which 
Member agency is imposing.   This formulation would read:  
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(c)    Fees and charges imposed by customs and other 
[border][governmental] agencies on or in connection with 
importation, exportation or transit;  
(d) Rules for the classification or valuation 
of products for customs purposes;   
(e) Laws, regulations and administrative 
rulings of general application relating 
to rules of origin;   
(f) Import, export or transit restrictions or 
prohibitions;   
(g) Penalty provisions against breaches of 
import, export or transit formalities;   
(h) Appeal procedures;   
(i) Agreements or parts thereof with any 
country or countries relating to 
importation, exportation or transit;   
(j) Administrative procedures relating to 
the imposition of tariff quotas 
[including quota size, in and out of quota rates, opening dates, allocation methods, licensing procedures and 
requirements, levels of utilization, and 
additional terms and conditions, including any requirements imposed 
by state-importing authorities or other 
government bodies]. (j) Administrative p Procedures relating to 
the administration imposition of tariff 
quotas [including quota size, in and out 
of quota rates, opening dates, allocation 
methods, licensing procedures and 
requirements, levels of utilization, and 
additional terms and conditions, including 
any requirements imposed by state-
importing authorities or other 
government bodies]. 
 
 In the April 2012 open-ended consultations, we came very 
close to agreement on removing the bracketed text- and 
leaving the opening phrase. However, it was clear that the opening phrase in (j) did not capture well what Members are seeking to achieve in this paragraph. Here Members clarified 
their wish to set out the procedures related to the 
administration of tariff quotas- rather than related to the 
imposition of tariff quotas, the latter being well provided for 
in existing agreements. 
 The alternative “Procedures relating to the imposition and 
administration of tariff quotas.” drew widespread support 
but a few Members believed that “imposition and” should be deleted.    
Now that Members have had additional time to consider, is 
deletion of “imposition” acceptable, whereby the text would read as proposed in column 2?   
  
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1.2 Nothing in these provisions shall be 
construed as requiring the publication or 
provision of information other than in the 
language of the Member except as stated in paragraph 2.2.   
2. Information Available Through 
Internet   
2.1 Each Member shall [to the extent 
possible] make available and update as appropriate the following through the 
internet: 2.1 Each Member shall [to the extent 
possible] make available and update as 
appropriate the following through the 
internet: The deletion of “to the extent possible” is meant to be read 
in tandem with the new flexibility provided below in the form of: 
 
 Deleting “including appeal procedures” in 
2.1(a); and 
 Moving 2.1(c) to 2.3, which is not a “shall” 
commitment. 
 The revision is intended to make the provisions remaining 
under 2.1 more acceptable on a "shall" basis. 
(a) A description of its importation, 
exportation and transit procedures [, 
including appeal procedures][, that informs [governments and traders and 
other interested parties] of the practical 
steps needed to import and export, and for transit.] (a) A description of its importation, 
exportation and transit procedures [, 
including appeal procedures][, that informs 
[governments and traders and other 
interested parties] of the practical steps 
needed to import and export, and for transit.] Propose deleting the phrase  “including appeal procedures”.  
Key trade facilitative benefit is to provide the practical steps 
to traders, particularly SMEs, of how to trade with another country.   
Propose deleting the brackets around “that informs 
governments and traders and other interested parties of the practical steps needed to import and export, and for 
transit.”  In past discussions, there was wide support among 
Members for describing this requirement as the “practical 
steps” a trader needs to know to import and export.  The idea is to convey that information that will allow a trader to 
engage in import and export.  For this, the trader does not 
need to know the details of every law and regulation.  The description may be general in nature, but should be 
practical and provide useful guidance on how customs 
procedures normally work.   
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(b)    The forms and documents required for 
importation into, exportation from, or 
transit through the territory of that 
Member.   
[(c) [Relevant trade-related legislation] [(c) [Relevant trade-related legislation] Move to 2.3, but change “legislation” to “laws and 
regulations” consistent with 1.1 and language in Articles III and X of the GATT 1994 and Article III of the GATS.  
(d) Contact information on enquiry points. (d)  (c) Contact information on enquiry 
points. Renumber “(d)” to “(c)”. 
2.2 Whenever practicable, the description 
referred to in subparagraph 2.1(a) shall also be made available in one of the official 
languages of the WTO.   
2.3. Members are encouraged to make 
available further trade-related information 
through the internet, including items referred to in paragraph 1.1. 2.3. Members are encouraged to make 
available further trade-related information 
through the internet, including trade-related 
laws and regulations and other items 
referred to in paragraph 1.1. While laws and regulations are already addressed through 
the reference to paragraph 1.1, given the interest on the 
part of some Members to maintaining a specific reference to trade-related laws and regulations under 2.1, recommend a 
compromise of mentioning the terms under 2.3, whereby 
Members are encouraged to provide such information.   
3. Enquiry Points   
3.1 Each Member [shall] [within its available 
resources] establish or maintain one or more 
enquiry points to answer reasonable enquiries 
of governments, traders and other interested parties on matters covered by paragraph 1.1 
as well as to provide the required forms and 
documents referred to in subparagraph 1.1(a).   
 
[3.2 [Developing] countries which are Members of a customs union or involved in regional integration [Shall] [may instead] 
have the option of establishing and operation 
one or more enquiry points at the regional level1. The establishment and operation of a 
notified regional enquiry point would satisfy 
the requirements for the establishment and operation of a national enquiry point under 
paragraph 3.1.] 
 [3.2 [Developing] countries which are 
Members of a customs union or involved in 
regional integration [Shall] [may instead] 
have the option of establishing and 
operation one or more enquiry points at the 
regional level1. The establishment and 
operation of a notified regional enquiry point 
would satisfy the requirements for the 
establishment and operation of a national 
enquiry point under paragraph 3.1.] 
 Recommend using Alternative 2, as cleanest form of the 
text. 
While there are remaining concerns with “involved in a 
regional integration”, which can cover any RTA arrangement 
of countries, it is recognized that some countries continue to work towards the creation of a customs union, and in the 
interim, pooling resources to create a common enquiry point 
may be most cost effective.  As long as the enquiry point can fulfill the requirements of 3.1, regional configurations, 
whether or not within a customs union, may be appropriate.  
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Alt2: [3.2. Members of a customs union or 
involved in a regional integration may 
establish enquiry points at the regional level 
to satisfy the requirement of 3.1.] Alt2: [3.2. Members of a customs union or 
involved in a regional integration may 
establish or maintain common enquiry points 
at the regional level to satisfy the 
requirement of 3.1 for common procedures.]  However, if there are concerns over RTAs among countries 
without common borders utilizing this provision, alternatives 
may be:  
 “or other regional arrangement”  
 or delete reference to customs union and to 
regional integration, stating: “Members in the 
same region may establish . . .” 
Add “for common procedures” at the end of paragraph 3.2. 
 
This would clarify that the enquiry points would be common 
for those common procedures.  Members may also consider 
dropping “for common procedures” if there is  consensus on more flexibility for common enquiry points to cover different 
customs practices across the participating Members. 
3.3 Alt.1 [Members will not require the payment of a fee for answering enquiries.] 
[and/or providing forms and documents] Fees and charges, if any, for answering enquiries and providing required forms and documents, 
shall be limited in amount to the approximate 
cost of services rendered. Any such fees and charges shall be the same for nationals of the 
Member concerned and for any other 
Member, except for the cost of delivery.  
Alt.2 [Members will not require the payment 
of a fee for answering enquiries.] [and/or providing forms and documents] Fees and charges, if any, for answering enquiries and 
providing required forms and documents shall 
be limited in amount to the approximate cost of services rendered. Each Member shall 
ensure that where copies of forms and 
documents are requested by other Members or by traders and other interested parties in 
other Members, they are supplied at the 
same price, if any, which shall, apart from the 3.3 Alt.1 [Members will not require the 
payment of a fee for answering enquiries.] 
[and/or providing forms and documents] 
Fees and charges, if any, for answering 
enquiries and providing required forms and 
documents, shall be limited in amount to the 
approximate cost of services rendered. Any 
such fees and charges shall be the same for 
nationals of the Member concerned and for 
any other Member, except for the cost of 
delivery. 
 
Alt.2 [Members will not require the payment 
of a fee for answering enquiries.] [and/or 
providing forms and documents] Fees and 
charges, if any, for answering enquiries and 
providing required forms and documents 
shall be limited in amount to the 
approximate cost of services rendered. Each 
Member shall ensure that where copies of 
forms and documents are requested by 
other Members or by traders and other 
interested parties in other Members, they Recommend using Alternative 3, as cleanest form of the 
text. 
 
Formulation reflects compromise between those who do not want any fees, and those who want to be able to charge 
fees on a wider range of  transactions.  The suggested 
revision places some limits, requiring that no fees shall be charged for basic, non-complicated enquiries and 
encouraging no fees for providing  answers to all other 
enquiries and providing forms and documents.  For any enquiry that is not a basic enquiry, and for providing forms 
and documents, the amount shall be limited to the 
approximate cost of services rendered.   
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cost of delivery, be the same for the nationals 
of the Member concerned or of any other 
Member. 
 Alt.33 [Members shall not require the 
payment of a fee for answering enquiries.] 
[and/or, to the extent possible, for providing forms and documents]. Fees and charges, if 
any, for answering enquiries and providing 
required forms and documents, shall be limited in amount to the approximate cost of services rendered.] are supplied at the same price, if any, which 
shall, apart from the cost of delivery, be the 
same for the nationals of the Member 
concerned or of any other Member. 
 
Alt.33 [Members shall not require the 
payment of a fee for answering basic 
enquiries.] [and/ or, to the extent possible, 
for Members are encouraged not to require 
the payment of a fee for all other enquiries, 
including providing forms and documents]. 
Each Member shall limit the amount of its F 
fees and charges, if any, for  answering all 
other enquiries and providing required forms 
and documents, shall be limited in amount 
to the approximate cost of services 
rendered.] 
3.4 The enquiry points shall answer enquiries and provide the forms and documents within a reasonable time period set by each Member, which may vary depending on the 
nature or complexity of the request.   
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  Clean Text: 
 
Article 1:  Publication and Availability of Information 
 1. Publication 
 
1.1 Each Member shall promptly publish the following information in a non-discriminatory and easily accessible manner in order to enable governments, traders and other interested parties to 
become acquainted with them: 
 (a) Importation, exportation and transit procedures  (including port, airport, and other entry-
point procedures) and required forms and documents; 
(b) Applied rates of duties and taxes of any kind imposed on or in connection with importation 
or exportation; 
(c) Fees and charges imposed by customs and other governmental agencies on or in connection 
with importation, exportation or transit; 
(d) Rules for the classification or valuation of products for customs purposes; 
(e) Laws, regulations and administrative rulings of general application relating to rules of origin; 
(f) Import, export or transit restrictions or prohibitions; 
(g) Penalty provisions against breaches of import, export or transit formalities; 
(h) Appeal procedures; 
(i) Agreements or parts thereof with any country or countries relating to importation, 
exportation or transit; 
(j) Procedures relating to the administration of tariff quotas. 
1.2 Nothing in these provisions shall be construed as requiring the publication or provision of 
information other than in the language of the Member except as stated in paragraph 2.2. 
 2. Information Available Through Internet 
 
2.1 Each Member shall make available and update as appropriate the following through the 
internet: 
 
(a) A description of its importation, exportat ion and transit procedures, that informs 
governments and traders and other interested parties of the practical steps needed to import and export, and for transit. 
(b) The forms and documents required for importation into, exportation from, or transit 
through the territory of that Member. 
(c) Contact information on enquiry points. 
 
2.2 Whenever practicable, the description referred to in subparagraph 2.1(a) shall also be made 
available in one of the official languages of the WTO. 
 
2.3. Members are encouraged to make available further trade-related information through the internet, including trade-related laws and regulations and other items referred to in paragraph 1.1.  
3. Enquiry Points 
 3.1  Each Member [shall] [within its available resources] establish or maintain one or more 
enquiry points to answer reasonable enquiries of governments, traders and other interested 
parties on matters covered by paragraph 1.1 as well as to provide the required forms and documents referred to in subparagraph 1.1(a).  
 
3.2.  Members of a customs union or involved in a regional integration may establish or maintain common enquiry points at the regional level to satisfy the requirement of 3.1 for common procedures. 
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  3.3. Members shall not require the payment of a fee for answering basic enquiries.  Members are 
encouraged not to require the payment of a fee for all other enquiries, including providing forms 
and documents. Each Member shall limit the amount of its fees and charges, if any, for  answering 
all other enquiries and providing required form s and documents, to the approximate cost of 
services rendered. 
 
 
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