G/RO/N/189  
 
13 December  2019 
(19-8642) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Rules of Origin  Original: English  
 
 
NOTIFICATION UNDER A RTICLE  5 AND PARAGRA PH 4 OF 
ANNEX  II TO THE AGRE EMENT ON RULES OF OR IGIN  
NON-PREFERENTIAL AND  PREFERENTIAL RULES OF ORIGIN  
1.  According to Article  5.1 of the Agreement on Rules of Origin, each Member shall provide to 
the Secretariat, within 90  days after the date of entry into force of the WTO  Agreement for it, 
its rules of origin, judicial decisions, and administrative rulings of general application relating to rules 
of origin in effect on that date. If, by inadvertence, a rule of origin has not been provided, the 
Member concerned shall provide it immediately after this fact becomes known. Article  5.2 of  the 
Agreement provides, moreover, that during the period referred to in Article  2, Members introducing 
modifications, ot her than de minimis  modifications, to their rules of origin or introducing new rules 
of origin, shall publish a notice to that effect at least 60  days before the entry into force of the 
modified or new rule in such a manner as to enable interested parties to become acquainted with 
the intention to modify a rule of origin or to introduce a new rule of  origin, unless exceptional 
circumstances arise or threaten to arise for a Member.  
2.  Furthermore, paragraph  4 of Annex  II to the Agreement on Rules of Origin envisages that 
Members shall promptly provide to the Secretariat their existing or new preferential rules of origin, 
including a listing of the preferential arrangements to which they apply, judicial decisions, and 
administrative rulings of general applica tion relating to their preferential rules of origin. In this 
respect, the Committee on Rules of Origin further agreed that notifications made to the Committee 
on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA) or the Committee on Trade and Development (CTD) could 
also su ffice to discharge Members' notification obligations under the Agreement on Rules of Origin 
(G/RO/M/59). As a result, the Committee agreed that notifications which had been initially received 
by the CRTA or the CTD should also be circulated by the Secretar iat to the CRO. Information 
regarding such notifications, including related to preferential rules of origin, can also be obtained 
through the WTO  database on regional trade agreements ( http://rtais.wto.org ) or the WTO  database 
on preferential trade agreements ( http://ptadb.wto.org ). 
3.  With reference to these rules, the following notification has been received:  
VANUATU  
A. NON-PREFERENTIAL RULES OF ORIGIN  
In Accordance with Article 5.1 of the Agreement on Rules of Origin for members to notify its rules 
of origin, judicial decisions and administrative rulings of general application, the Government of 
Vanuatu notifies the Secretariat that it does not maintain non -preferential rules of origin.  
B. PREFERENTIAL RULES O F ORIGIN  
With reference to Article 5.1 and paragraph 4 of Annex II of the Agreement on Rules of Origin, the 
Government of Vanuatu herby provides to the Secretariat legal instruments relating to its 
preferential rules of origi n together with a short description of its application.  
1. Melanesian Spearhead Group Trade Agreement (MSGTA2)  
The revised Melanesian Spearhead Group Trade Agreement came into force in 2005. Under 
Article 13 of the MSGTA, goods will be granted a MSGTA origin status and preferential 
treatment if they comply with the RoO as detailed in Annex III of the Agreement. For  goods G/RO/N/189  
 
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  to qualify, originating goods must either be (i) wholly produce/obtained or (ii) sufficiently 
transformed as set out in the MSGTA  
The documentary evidence which must be supplied by the exporter in one MSGTA party to the 
importer in another, in orde r to claim that the goods are originating, is the MSGTA certificate 
of origin (CoO) called the MSG Form "A". 
The full text of the Agreement can be accessed through the MSG official website :  
- https://www.msgsec.info/wp -content/uploads/MSGTrade/2005 -27-oct-msg-trade-
agreement -2005.pdf  
2. Pacific Island Country Trade Agreement (PICTA)  
The Pacific Island Trade Agreement entered into force in 2003. Und er Article 5.1 of the PICTA, 
goods will be granted PICTA originating status if they comply with the RoO as detailed in 
Annex 1 of the Agreement. To qualify for PICTA preferences, originating goods must either be 
(i) wholly produced/obtained or (ii) undergo ne substantial transformation as set out the 
agreement.  
The documentary evidence, which must be supplied by the exporter in one PICTA Party to the 
importer in another to support a claim that the goods are originating, is the PICTA Certificate 
of Origin, Fo rm "FIC1" attached as Annex IV to the agreement.  
The full text of the Agreement can be accessed through the WTO Regional Trade Agreements 
Database at : 
- http://rtais.wto.org/UI/PublicShowMemberRTAIDCard.aspx?rtaid=582  
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