RESTRICTED  
  
G/MA/M/62  
 
14 April 2016  
(16-2124)  Page: 1/13  
Committee on Market Access    
 
MINUTES OF THE COMMITTEE ON MARKET ACCESS  
29 SEPTEMBER 2015 
CHAIRPERSON: MS. KRIZIA MATTHEWS (PANAMA) 
 
Subjects discussed                   Pages 
 
A.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 1996 (HS96) CHANGES TO 
SCHEDULES OF CONCESSIONS (L/6905 AND WT/L/756) – STATUS REPORT ................... 2  
B.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 2002 (HS02) CHANGES TO 
SCHEDULES OF CONCESSIONS USING THE CTS DATABASE (WT/L/605 AND 807) 
– STATUS REPORT ............................................................................................................ 2  
C.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 2007 (HS07) CHANGES TO 
SCHEDULES OF CONCESSIONS USING THE CTS DATABASE (WT/L/673 AND 
WT/L/830) - STATUS REPORT ......................................................................................... 2  
D.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 2012 (HS2012) CHANGES TO 
SCHEDULES OF CONCESSIONS USING THE CTS DATABASE (WT/L/831) - STATUS 
REPORT ............................................................................................................................ 3  
E.  EXTENSION OF TH E HS2002 WAIVER .......................................................................... 3  
F.  EXTENSION OF TH E HS2007 WAIVER .......................................................................... 3  
G.  EXTENSION OF TH E HS2012 WA IVER ......................................................................... 3  
H.  OPERATION OF THE INTEGRATED DATABASE (IDB), INCLUDING STATUS OF 
SUBMISSIONS (G/MA/IDB/2/REV.42), AND THE CTS DATABASE - REPORT BY THE SECRETARIAT ........................................................................................................... 3
 
I.  NOTIFICATIONS PURSUANT TO THE DECISION ON NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES FOR QUANTITATIVE RESTRICTIONS (G/L/59/REV.1), REPORT FROM THE SECRETARIAT (G/MA/QR/3) .......................................................................... 5
 
(1) 2014-2016 Notifications ................................................................................................ 5  
(2)  Summary of the Stat us of Notifi cations .......................................................................... 6  
J.  DRAFT DECISION DERESTRICTING THE HISTORICAL BILATERAL 
NEGOTIATING DOCUMENTATION OF THE TOKYO ROUND (G/MA/W/115/REV.1) ............ 6  
K.  KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN - CUSTOMS DUTIES ON CIGARETTES – STATEMENT 
BY SWITZE RLAND ............................................................................................................ 7  
L.  PAKISTAN - DISCRIMINATORY TAXES - STATEMENT BY THE EUROPEAN 
UNION ......................................................................................................................... .... 7 
M. COLOMBIA - EXCISE TAXES ON ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES – STATEMENTS BY 
THE UNITED STATES AND THE EUROPEAN UNION ............................................................ 8  
N. ARGENTINA – TAX DISCRIMINATION AGAINST IMPORTED VEHICLES – 
STATEMENT BY THE EUROPEAN UNION ............................................................................ 9  
O. DRAFT REPORT (2015) OF THE CO MMITTEE TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE 
IN GOODS (G/MA/SPEC/55) .......................................................................................... 10  G/MA/M/62 
 
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  P.  ELECTION OF THE VICE-CHAIRPERSON ..................................................................... 10  
Q.  OTHER BU SINESS ..................................................................................................... 10  
-  Haiti – Import restrictions ......................................................................................... 10 
-  Nigeria – Import restri ctions on mackerel ................................................................... 12 
-  Date of the next meeting .......................................................................................... 13 
 
The Committee adopted the agenda as reproduced in WTO/AIR/MA/2 with the inclusion of the 
following items under Other Business:  "Haiti – Import restrictions", "Nigeria – Import restrictions on mackerel", and "Date of the next meeting."  An annotated agenda was circulated in JOB/MA/121.  
 
A.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 1996 (HS96) CHANGES TO SCHEDULES OF 
CONCESSIONS (L/6905 AND WT/L/756) – STATUS REPORT 
1. The Chairperson recalled that there were two procedures which had been used by Members 
to introduce HS96 changes to schedules of conce ssions. The general procedure contained in GATT 
document L/6905 dated October 1991 and the specific one contained in WTO document WT/L/756 dated 29 May 2009.  It might be recalled that under the first one, Members had to transpose their 
own schedules, whereas under the second one the Secretariat transposed the schedules of 
64 developing countries and LDCs. 
2. There were three Members whose schedules were pending under either one or the other of 
these procedures. These were the files of Bangladesh, South Africa and Venezuela.  The 
Secretariat and Bangladesh had been in contact earlier this year to discuss next steps. In the case 
of South Africa, questions were raised by a delegation concerning the changes in the binding status of some tariff lines in HS chapters 04, 33 and 35.  South Africa had indicated that they were 
looking into these questions and had met with the Secretariat in order to make progress on the 
issue.  In the case of Venezuela, the Secretariat had resent the relevant documentation so it could 
be examined in capital.   
3. The Committee took note of the statement.  
B.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 2002 (HS02) CHANGES TO SCHEDULES OF 
CONCESSIONS USING THE CTS DATABASE (WT/L/605 AND 807) – STATUS REPORT  
4. A member of the Secretariat (Jurgen Richtering) reported on the status of work on the HS02 
transposition files. A revised full report was issued as JOB/MA/42/Rev.16 on 15 September 2015. 
The status of the HS02 transposition exerci se after the multilateral review held on 
28 September 2015 was the following: 111 HS02 files were certified; 5 HS02 files were released 
for multilateral review and had received comments from other Members; one draft HS02 file had 
been completed and sent to Members for their first review; one Member had circulated its schedule in HS02; 14 Members were not affected by the transposition as seven had acceded in HS02 and 
six had acceded in HS07. 
5. The Committee took note of the Secretariat report.  
C.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYST EM 2007 (HS07) CHANGES TO SCHEDULES OF 
CONCESSIONS USING THE CTS DATABASE (WT/L/673 AND WT/L/830) - STATUS 
REPORT 
6. A member of the Secretariat  (Jurgen Richtering) reported on the status of work on the HS07 
files.  A revised full report was issued as JOB/MA/104/Rev.10 on 15 September 2015.  The status 
of the HS07 transposition exercise after the mu ltilateral review held on 28 September 2015 was 
the following: 95 HS07 files were certified; seven HS07 files had their transposition approved in the multilateral review process; three HS07 files were released for multilateral review and had 
received comments from other Members; six draft HS07 files had been completed and sent to 
Members for their first review;  14 draft HS07 files remained to be prepared; seven Members were not affected by the transposition as they had acceded in HS07. G/MA/M/62 
 
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  7. The Committee took note of the Secretariat report.  
D.  INTRODUCTION OF HARMONIZED SYSTEM 2012 (HS2012) CHANGES TO SCHEDULES 
OF CONCESSIONS USING THE CTS DATABASE (WT/L/831) - STATUS REPORT 
8. A member of the Secretariat (Jurgen Richtering) reported that the Secretariat had begun 
work for the HS2012 transposition exercise and that  only one submission had been received for 
the HS2012 transposition. This submission had been made by the United States on 3 October 2012.  
9. The Committee took note of the Secretariat report.  
E.  EXTENSION OF THE HS2002 WAIVER  
10. The Chairperson recalled that a number of Members had been given an extension, through 
the form of a "collective decision", to introduc e HS2002 changes domestically and to subsequently 
introduce these changes in their respective schedul e of concessions, and to undertake negotiations 
if required. The last waiver decision was contained in document WT/L/945 and would expire on 31 December 2015.  She proposed that the Committee agree to extend the waiver for another 
year, until 31 December 2016, so that interested Members could finalize their HS2002 procedures.  
11. The Committee agreed to forward the draft wa iver decision granting the extension as 
contained in document G/C/W/715 to the Council for Trade in Goods for appropriate action.     
F.  EXTENSION OF THE HS2007 WAIVER  
12. The Chairperson recalled that a number of Members had been given an extension, through 
the form of a "collective" decision,  in order to introduce HS2007 changes domestically and to 
subsequently introduce these changes in their respective schedule of concessions, and to 
undertake negotiations if required. The last waiver decision was contained in document WT/L/946 
and would expire on 31 December 2015.  She proposed that the Committee agree to extend the waiver for another year, until 31 December 2016.  She also noted that the procedures for some of 
the Members in the annex were about to be certified, in which case the waiver would not be 
necessary.  
13. The Committee agreed to forward the draft wa iver decision granting the extension as 
contained in document G/C/W/716 to the Council for Trade in Goods for appropriate action, and to 
instruct the Secretariat to remove from the annex the Members with a certified file. 
G.  EXTENSION OF THE HS2012 WAIVER 14. The Chairperson recalled that a number of Members had been granted an extension, 
through the form of a "collective" decision, in order to introduce HS2012 changes domestically and 
to subsequently introduce these changes in their respective schedule of concessions, and to undertake negotiations if required. The last waiver decision was contained in document WT/L/947 
and would expire on 31 December 2015.   She proposed that the Committee agree to extend the 
waiver for a year, until 31 December 2016.   
15. The Committee agreed to forward the draft wa iver decision granting the extension as 
contained in G/C/W/717 to the Council for Trade in Goods for appropriate action.   
H.  OPERATION OF THE INTEGRATED DATABASE (IDB), INCLUDING STATUS OF 
SUBMISSIONS (G/MA/IDB/2/REV.42), AND THE CTS DATABASE - REPORT BY THE SECRETARIAT  
16. The Chairperson drew the Committee's attention to document G/MA/IDB/2/Rev.42 which 
contained the status of submissions to the IDB.   
17. A member of the Secretariat (Jurgen Richtering ) reported that, regarding IDB submissions, 
since the circulation of the Status of Submissi ons document, G/MA/IDB/2/Rev.42, the Secretariat 
had not received any new submission. Also on IDB dissemination, the database contained G/MA/M/62 
 
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  1971 country-periods covering all WTO Members and six acceding countries (Algeria, Bahamas, 
Belarus, Iran, Liberia and Serbia), and were now av ailable on the IDB websites.  On the format of 
the reported circulated in the G/MA/IDB/2/Rev document series, he observed that the current format contained all yearly submissions from 1996, which included 20 columns/years (1996 to 
2015) plus the name of member and the type of da ta submitted (tariff or imports).  It appeared 
that the maximum number of columns for the printed format had been reached and that any additional column would require very small fonts and would be barely legible.  In addition, 
Members were now more inclined to notify additional information on their non-MFN tariff regimes.  
The Secretariat believed that adding an indicator on non-MFN tariff regimes notified to the IDB would add value to the document and, for this re ason, proposed that the document in its current 
format (i.e. with all years) would only be available electronically in the WTO website.  For the 
paper document, the Secretariat suggested to include only the latest 10 years, with additional 
columns reflecting the non-MFN tariff regimes notified.  In case approved by the Committee, the Secretariat planned to circulate the new format as of 2016.   
18. Concerning technical assistance missions, since the last meeting of the Committee in 
May 2015, the following technical assistance activities had been delivered by the Secretariat:  RTPCs for English speaking countries in Africa, Latin America, and Central Asia/Eastern Europe; 
Advanced Trade Policy Courses in Geneva; RTA co urse in Geneva; and Regional Workshop on 
Market Access (Barbados). 
19. The Secretariat noted that, despite a number of decisions which had been taken by the 
Committee, compliance with IDB notifications was far from perfect due to a variety of reasons. The 
framework agreement on IDB notifications, which had been adopted by the Committee in 
July 2009 (G/MA/239), had created a basis for facilitating the integration of other official data sources, subject to Members' approval. Although this amendment had helped to bridge some of 
the notification gaps, the procedure was time consuming and had led to significant delays in the 
updating of the IDB.  Many developing country Members were still facing difficulties in obtaining the information from domestic sources and notifying in a timely manner. In order to make further 
improvements, the Secretariat had approached UNCTAD and its Automated System for Customs 
Data team (ASYCUDA) to explore possible ways in which the reporting of tariff and import 
statistics to the WTO could be built into th eir well-known customs system.  ASYCUDA was 
implemented in 97 countries and territories worldwide, including in many developing countries and 
most LDCs.  There were currently 43 WTO Members that used the latest version called ASYCUDA 
World, of which 16 were LDCs.   Of these 43 Memb ers, only about one third had notified tariff and 
import data to the IDB, with lower compliance for the most recent years. Among the LDCs using 
ASYCUDA, only one out of five had reported tari ff data to the IDB for the year 2014.  The 
Secretariat informed Members of its plan to use ASYCUDA in order to assist Members in complying with their notification requirements. The idea was to facilitate the processing of tariff and 
aggregated import information through a software module that had to be developed.  A national 
contact point at the customs authority could then easily and periodically generate a database output file, through a common visual interface, which would be designed to comply with the IDB notification requirements.  In this regard, a tw o-phase project was envisaged, which would first 
focus on import duties and, secondly, on import statistics. Once the software module had been 
developed, it could then be deployed as a pilot project in a few Members.   Members with an interest in the project were asked to contact Mr . Thomas Verbeet from the Economic Research and 
Statistics Division.  The Secretariat was interested, in particular, in Members that would be willing 
to use this software module to help comply with their notification requirements. At the same time the Secretariat had started to look for financial support from interested delegations in order to 
develop and deploy this software module.  
20. Regarding the CTS database, the Secretariat informed the Committee that it currently had 
132 electronic files with information on the schedules of concessions (CTS files) of all WTO Members.  These files were available on the Members' website.  Of these files, 97 CTS files were 
available in HS07, 28 in HS2002, and 7 files were still in the HS96 nomenclature, using the 
previous CTS format.  They would be updated to the new format once their HS02 changes had 
been certified.   
21. The Committee took note of the report and agreed to amend the report circulated in the 
G/MA/IDB/2/Rev document series as proposed by the Secretariat. G/MA/M/62 
 
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  I.  NOTIFICATIONS PURSUANT TO THE DECI SION ON NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES FOR 
QUANTITATIVE RESTRICTIONS (G/L/59/REV.1), REPORT FROM THE SECRETARIAT (G/MA/QR/3) 
22. The Chairperson recalled that there were two i ssues under this agenda item: the review of 
notifications received and the report on the status of notifications.  
(1) 2014-2016 Notifications - China (G/MA/QR/N/CHN/3) 
 
23. The Chairperson drew Members' attention to the notification by China, which had circulated 
in G/MA/QR/N/CHN/3.  She recalled that the United States had raised questions at the last 
meeting, and that China had indicated that they would be transmitted to capital. 
24. The representative of the United States recalled that his delegation remained interested in 
getting answers and was ready to meet with China to explain further the questions.  Since the 
questions were in the record of the last meeting, he considered that it was not necessary to repeat 
them.  
25. The representative of China thanked the United States for its questions.  With regard to the 
measures concerning export quotas on some industrial raw materials, China believed that the WTO 
not only advocated free trade, but also respected Members’ sovereignty over natural resources by 
permitting them to take necessary measures to protect the environment and its resources. For the past few years, China had kept reforming and improving the management of its resource products and aimed at the conservation of the environmen t and exhaustible natural resources. She stressed 
that China would continue the scientific administration and protection of its resources in a 
WTO-consistent manner in order to allow for fair competition and achieve sustainable development. 
26. The representative of the United States thanke d China for the oral response.  However, the 
United States wanted to highlight that part of the question that had been asked was very specific 
and requested that China identified which subparagraphs of Article XX constituted the basis for its 
justification.  He had not heard the answer to that question and continued to be interested in what 
China had to say in that regard. 
27. The representative of China recalled that her delegation had not received written questions 
from the last meeting and requested the United Stat es to submit follow-up questions together with 
the original questions.  They could even be e-maile d so they could be transmitted back to capital. 
28. The representative of the United States indi cated that he would submit the questions in 
writing so they could be transmitted back to capital. 
29. The representative of the European Union welcomed the notification that had been 
submitted by China. After an in-depth assessment,  the EU sought for additional clarifications.  
Firstly, China had previously stated that the subm itted notification covered the period 2012-2014.  
The EU asked China when it expected to submit the outstanding notification covering the period 
2014-2016, for which the deadline had been 30 September 2014. Secondly, the EU wanted to receive additional information on a number of measures. China had informed the DSB last May 
that export quotas on rare earths, tungsten and molybdenum had been removed. He asked 
whether China could confirm this and also clar ify which was the export licensing mechanism 
applicable since May 2015, if any.  In addition, he asked whether there had been any new MOFCOM-GCA Joint Announcement and requested Chin a to submit the relevant documentation.  
The EU further noted that the export quota on molybdenum figured both under Measure No 17 and 
Measure No 20, and asked China to clarify what was the difference between the two measures.   
With reference to measure No 18 (Export quota, licensing and state trading administration) and 
No. 19 (Export Licensing and state trading administration), the EU requested a brief description of 
these measures and, if possible a copy of th e Joint MOFCOM and GCA Joint Announcement 2013, 
No. 96.  With reference to measure No 18, the EU asked China how the global quota was determined and, secondly, what was the rational fo r indicating Article XVII of the GATT as the legal 
basis to justify this quantitative restriction.  La stly, on measure No 18, for the part of the export G/MA/M/62 
 
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  quotas related to agricultural products (maize, ra ise, cotton, etc.), the EU asked China to clarify 
whether it intended to notify these meas ures to the Committee on Agriculture under 
Article 12:1(b) of the Agreement on Agriculture.  The EU looked forward to receiving an updated 
notification covering the period 2014-2016 and reserved its rights to submit additional detailed 
questions. 
30. The representative of China thanked the Euro pean Union for raising very comprehensive 
questions.  Because she had been unable to follow the detailed questions, she requested the 
European Union to submit them in writing so that they could be transmitted to capital.  She noted 
that China might be able to provide an answer at the next meeting. 
31. The Committee agreed to revert to this notification. 
- Japan (G/MA/QR/N/JPN/2 and G/MA/QR/N/JPN/2/Rev.1) 
 
32. The Chairperson recalled that Japan had submitted a revised notification which, 
unfortunately, had not been processed on time for this meeting.  Because of this situation, she 
proposed to revert back to this no tification at the next meeting.  
33. The Committee agreed to revert to this notification. 
- Philippines (G/MA/QR/N/PHL/1) 
 
34. The Chairperson recalled that, at the last meet ing, Switzerland had requested the Philippines 
for more information on the products covered by measure number 11, concerning Presidential 
Decree No. 34.  The Philippines had replied that it had made a big effort to identify the products 
with HS codes, but that it had not been possible in all cases.   
35. The Committee took note of this notification. 
(2)  Summary of the Status of Notifications  
36. The Chairperson drew the Committee's attention to document G/MA/QR/3 entitled "Status of 
Notifications under the Decision on Notification Procedures for Quantitative Restrictions 
(G/L/59/Rev.1)".  This document had been prepared by the Secretariat pursuant to paragraph 7 of 
that Decision.  
37. The representative of the European Union re gretted that only few WTO Members were in 
compliance with the notification’s requirement in G/L/59/Rev.1. A large number of Members had 
not yet submitted any notification.  Transparency was a key aspect of the WTO and the EU had 
been raising the issue of notification compliance in several other WTO Committees. He urged those 
Members who had not done so to submit their notifications in due time.  The EU stood ready to discuss any matter of compliance with notification obligations and how transparency could be 
improved. 
38. The Committee took note of document G/MA/QR/3. 
J.  DRAFT DECISION DERESTRICTING TH E HISTORICAL BILATERAL NEGOTIATING 
DOCUMENTATION OF THE TOKYO ROUND (G/MA/W/115/REV.1) 
39. The Chairperson recalled that, at the last meeting, the European Union had requested 
additional time to undertake its internal review process. The Committee had agreed, on an 
ad referendum  basis, to send the draft Decision to the General Council through the Council for 
Trade in Goods.  In a communication dated 7 Se ptember 2015, the European Union had informed 
the Secretariat that its internal procedures had been concluded and that it was now in a position to derestrict the documents.  Therefore, the Committee had already agreed with such derestriction.  
However, the draft decision reported 1 August 2015 as the date of derestriction, which would not 
make sense when the General Council considered it later in the year.  For this reason, the Secretariat had prepared a revised document where the date had been changed to 
15 December 2015.  This was the only modification to the document.   G/MA/M/62 
 
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  40. The Committee agreed to introduce the modification as contained in document 
G/MA/W/115/Rev.1 and to forward it to the Co uncil for Trade in Goods for appropriate action. 
K.  KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN - CUSTOMS DUTIES ON CIGARETTES – STATEMENT BY 
SWITZERLAND 
41. The Chairperson recalled that this agenda item had been included at the request of 
Switzerland. 
42. The representative of Switzerland recalled that, concerning the customs duties on cigarettes, 
they had recently received information from Bahrain based on which they had sent additional 
questions. Switzerland thanked Bahrain for its efforts to provide information on this issue and indicated that they were confident that a mutually satisfactory solution would soon be found. 
43. The representative of the Kingdom of Bahrain thanked Switzerland for raising this issue and 
appreciated their cooperation on this matter. Bahrain would continue to consult with the Swiss 
delegation with a view to answering their inquir ies. He hoped to reach a mutually satisfactory 
solution that could rectify the issue and assure that Bahrain remained consistent with its WTO 
obligations. 
44. The representative of the European Union recalled that his delegation had systemic interest 
on the issue, so they were pleased to hear about the good cooperation taking place.  His 
delegation looked forward to receiving more information and possibly a solution. 
45. The Committee took note of the statements. 
L.  PAKISTAN - DISCRIMINATORY TAXES - STATEMENT BY THE EUROPEAN UNION 
46. The Chairperson recalled that this agenda item had been included at the request of the 
European Union. 
47. The representative of the European Union wa nted to express his delegation's concern 
regarding what appeared to be discriminatory taxation between products imported into Pakistan 
and like domestically manufactured goods. Under Pakistan's Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) 
1125, which related to domestic sales taxes covering a large number of products destined for both industrial use and retail sale, imported finished goods ready for use by the general public were 
charged a 17% sales tax. On the other hand, like locally manufactured goods in retail sale were 
charged a sales tax of 5%.  European companies had complained that this discriminatory treatment and higher sales tax rate on imported pr oducts had negatively affected their exports to 
Pakistan. This had particularly affected EU exports of leather, leather articles, and leather 
footwear. All these products had seen their ex port figures decrease between 2013 and 2014 in a 
situation where overall EU exports to Pakistan were increasing.  To date, the EU had received no explanation from Pakistan on why SRO 1125 impo sed discriminatory treatment between imported 
and locally manufactured products. Instead, his delegation had learned with disappointment that 
Pakistan intended to maintain this discriminatory treatment until 2017, when SRO 1125 was planned to be eliminated.  While the EU could appreciate that the review of all SROs was a 
substantial undertaking in the context of the reform  of Pakistan's tax regime, it could not be used 
as grounds for continued discrimination contrary to WTO rules. Therefore, the European Union 
requested Pakistan to expeditiously take the nece ssary action to ensure that any discriminatory 
treatment of imported goods in the application of its sales taxes was removed and brought fully in 
line with Pakistan's WTO obligations.  
48. The representative of Pakistan thanked the European Union for having raised this issue in 
this Committee. It had always been Pakistan's preference to discuss these issues in the Committee 
which was best suited to deal with the relevant technical subject at issue, rather than other fora, 
like the CTG.  Concerning the SRO, the government of Pakistan had already begun negotiation with Brussels at the bilateral level. He was optimistic that the issue could be resolved and that he 
could report progress at the next Committee meeting. He requested the European Union delegate 
to deepen their bilateral engagement and looked forward to finding the way forward as quickly as 
possible.  The government of Pakistan was already undertaking a series of reforms and this issue was on the top of its agenda. G/MA/M/62 
 
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  49. The representative of the United States thanke d the European Union for placing this item on 
the agenda.  They shared a long-time concern with regards to Pakistan’s recourse to SROs that 
disproportionally increased the price on certain imported items by means of a sales tax, which resulted in a much greater price for imported items than on domestic items.  His delegation 
welcomed Pakistan's response, its commitment to comply with its obligations, and its effort to 
address this situation as a priority.  The United States had raised the issue with Pakistan on several occasions, and they were interested to see that this practice ceased expeditiously. 
50. The representative of Chinese Taipei thanked the European Union for bringing the matter to 
the attention of the Committee. Pakistan was one of Chinese Taipei's major export markets. For 
the sake of greater transparency and predictability , Chinese Taipei urged Pakistan to speed up the 
reform. 
51. The representative of Switzerland expresse d a systemic concern on this issue and 
encouraged Pakistan to provide more information to the European Union.  He also encouraged 
further discussion on the issue and hoped that it could be resolved as soon as possible.  
52. The representative of Pakistan thanked all the interested Members.  He reiterated Pakistan's 
seriousness in resolving this issue as quickly as possible.  He urged all Members with a concern to 
deepen their bilateral engagements.  His dele gation was always open for discussion, and his 
capital was firmly committed to respecting the multilateral rules.  He concluded by reiterating that 
the committees were the best forum for discussing these issues.  
53. The Committee took note of the statements.   
M. COLOMBIA - EXCISE TAXES ON ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES – STATEMENTS BY THE 
UNITED STATES AND THE EUROPEAN UNION  
54. The Chairperson recalled that this agenda item had been included at the request of the 
United States and the European Union. 
55. The representative of the United States expressed his delegation's concern regarding 
Colombia’s taxation of alcoholic beverages, which appeared to benefit domestic production by 
applying a lower rate per percentage of alcohol on the spirits that were locally produced, and 
higher rates on imported spirits.  In addition to its existing WTO obligations, Colombia had 
committed, through a trade agreement with the United States, to ensure that its taxation of alcoholic beverages would observe national treatment principles within four years after entry into force of such agreement.  That was by May 2016.  The United States was disappointed to have 
seen no affirmative action with respect to these taxation measures.   In the context of Colombia’s 
accession to the OECD, the Colombian Government had stated that it was strongly committed to reform the taxation of alcoholic beverages and that  it expected to put them forward in the near 
future.  Colombia was an important market for the relevant U.S. industry, and these measures 
appeared to put exported products at a disadvanta ge.  The United States requested that Colombia 
addressed this matter expeditiously.  In particular, the United States requested to receive 
information regarding what specific actions had been taken in order to address this concern, as 
well as the anticipated timeline for such actions.   The United States looked forward to receiving a 
response from Colomb ia on this matter. 
56.  The representative of the European Union was increasingly concerned about Colombia's use 
of the consumption tax as a means to protect and promote its domestic production of spirits.  More 
specifically, this concerned Colombia's application of a higher fiscal burden on a group of imported distilled spirits with respect to that of locally produced ones.  Additionally, the EU had concerns 
about the marketing restrictions applied to imported spirits, in particular in the Departments 
empowered to establish fiscal monopolies over the production, introduction, and commercialisation of spirits.  The European Union had raised these concerns bilaterally with Colombia on a large 
number of occasions but, unfortunately, without any result to date.  The EU also requested 
Colombia detailed information on what timely actions it would take to ensure that all discriminatory treatment was removed. 
57. The representative of Canada supported the statements from the European Union and the 
United States.  As his delegation understood the situation, Colombia had a legal commitment to G/MA/M/62 
 
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  reform its excise taxes and alcoholic beverages so  that they did not discriminate against imported 
products.  He understood that this commitment had not been yet met.  Canada was also interested 
in receiving a status update on the on-going reform process, and encouraged Colombia to 
reinforce its efforts to complete the requ ired reforms as quickly as possible.  
58. The representative of Japan expressed his delegation's concern and interest on this item, 
and noted that Japan was closely following it. 
59. The representative of Colombia thanked the de legations that had requested the item to be 
placed on the agenda, as well as the four interventions which had been made.  With respect to the 
concerns on the taxation of alcoholic beverages, it was Colombia's intention to review the situation and to respect not only its WTO commitments but also its obligations under the various FTAs that had been mentioned. The authorities in Colombia had worked at all levels and with other 
government agencies with a view to developing a WTO compatible proposal. As was well-known by 
those concerned, Colombia had submitted earlier in the year a proposal to Congress along these lines.  The domestic political sensitivities were well-known to those familiar with the issue. To date 
the Colombian Congress had not adopted the proposal.  For this reason, the Colombian 
government was holding domestic consultations in order to obtain the necessary support from Congress, and had had the technical support from the Treasury and the Trade Ministry.  In keeping 
with the program of work that had been laid down by the Office of the President, once consensus 
had been reached at the technical level, it would be shared with the interested parties.  He was confident that this could be done shortly. 
60. The Committee took note of the statements.   
N. ARGENTINA – TAX DISCRIMINATION AG AINST IMPORTED VEHICLES – STATEMENT 
BY THE EUROPEAN UNION 
61. The Chairperson recalled that this agenda item had been included at the request of the 
European Union. 
62. The representative of the European Union expressed its concern regarding the overtly 
discriminatory treatment of imported cars in Argentina.  Under provisions which had been 
introduced on a temporary basis by Decree 1243/2015, different internal tax rates had been 
applied to imported vehicles rather than to nation ally produced ones. This measure also applied to 
motorcycles and boats.  The European Union had raised bilaterally these concerns with Argentina's delegation but, unfortunately, had not received any appropriate response to date.  The EU 
requested Argentina to provide detailed information on what timely actions it would take in order 
to ensure that the taxation of vehicles was brought in line with Argentina's international obligations. 
63. The representative of Canada supported the in tervention by the European Union.  As a 
producer and exporter of automobiles, and from  a systemic perspective, Canada was concerned 
about Argentina's dual taxation system in the automobile sector and its impact on the importation 
of higher value vehicles into Argentina.  Canada would appreciate an explanation from Argentina 
as to how these measures were cons istent with its WTO obligations.  
64. The representative of the United States thanke d the EU for placing this item on the agenda. 
Like previous speakers, the United States was closely monitoring this issue. 
65. The representative of Japan expressed its concern about Argentina's tax scheme and noted 
that his delegation was closely following this issue. 
66. The representative of Switzerland expresse d systemic concerns regarding Argentina's 
internal taxes.  His delegation considered that it was not consistent with Article III of the GATT and 
asked Argentina to bring it into compliance with its WTO obligations. 
67. The representative of Turkey expressed his dele gations interest on the issue and noted that 
they were following the issue very closely. G/MA/M/62 
 
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  68. The representative of Argentina thanked the European Union and the other delegations that 
had taken the floor.  He had taken note of the issues raised which would be transmitted to 
authorities in capital for an appropriate response. As an initial reaction, he clarified that this was a transitional measure which had been put in place in order to deal with a temporary problem 
affecting a particular problem of industries involved. As a result, it was necessary to temporarily 
modify certain aspects of Law No. 24.674, which deals with internal taxation, until 31 December of 2015.  In 2014, after some years of growth, the Argentinean car industry suffered a 28% drop in 
sales with respect to 2013, which was largely the result of a contraction of 8% in the Brazilian 
market in the same year, and reduced from 3.8 to 3.5 million units.  Argentinean car exports to Brazil had dropped by almost 21% in 2014 and 29% in these months of 2015. This industry was 
an import job generator in Argentina's economy an d involved almost 32 thousand jobs.  Given the 
drop in production and the risk of unemployment, the Argentinean government had decided to 
amend the relevant law on a temporary basis.  
69. The Committee took note of the statements.   
O. DRAFT REPORT (2015) OF THE CO MMITTEE TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN 
GOODS (G/MA/SPEC/55)  
70. The Chairperson recalled that the Committee was required to submit annually a report on its 
activities to the Council for Trade in Goods.  A draft report covering the activities of the Committee 
since its last meeting was circulated in document G/MA/SPEC/55.  The delegation of New Zealand had already identified an error in page 7, which sh ould be corrected.  Besides correcting this error, 
the report would need to be updated in light of today's meeting.   
71. The representative of India drew Members' attention to paragraph 8 of the draft report, 
which dealt with a decision on the notification procedures on quantitative restrictions. This 
paragraph also mentioned the organization of a dedicated session on QR notifications and made a 
link to a proposed workshop on import licensing procedure that was to be held in October. It was 
India's understanding that the Committee on Import Licensing Procedures had not yet taken a decision on whether to hold such workshop. Therefore, he considered there was a factual error in 
the last sentence of this paragraph that had to be corrected.   
72. The representative of Brazil fully supported th e intervention of India and acknowledged that 
there was no decision concerning a workshop in October. 
73. The representative of India noted that it was a fact that the Committee had agreed in one of 
the meetings to a dedicated session as the EU had proposed.  For this reason, he proposed to stop 
the sentence after this part and delete the remaining part of the sentence. 
74. The representative of the European Union stated that he could agree to the Indian proposal.  
75. The Chairperson proposed to request the Secret ariat to update the draft report based on 
these discussions and to fax it to Members, who would have one week for providing comments.  In 
the absence of comments, the report would be ap proved.  In case of editorial changes, these 
would be introduced directly by the Secretariat.  Finally, in case of more substantive changes, the 
Secretariat would circulate a revised draft and provide an additional deadline for comments. 
76. The Committee agreed to the proposal by the Chairperson. 
P.  ELECTION OF THE VICE-CHAIRPERSON 
77. The Committee elected Katarzyna Stecz (Polan d) as Vice-Chair of this Committee. 
Q.  OTHER BUSINESS 
- Haiti – Import restrictions 
78. The representative of the Dominican Republic expressed her country's concern because the 
Ministry of Economy and Finance of Haiti had recently announced that, from 16 September 2015, 
the importation of 23 goods would only be possible by  sea or air.  Moreover, only the ports in Port G/MA/M/62 
 
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  aux Princes and Cap Haitian would be allowed. This meant that the importation of these goods 
were subject to a double restriction. First, it would not be possible to import these goods into Haiti by land.  Secondly, within the authorized means of transport, in other words maritime or air transport, only two ports could be used. Products affected by these restrictions included wheat 
flour, grey cement, edible oils, soap, powdered detergent, polietilene packaging, drinking water, 
paint products for cars, cooking butter, shortening, metal structures for building, pastas, expanded metals and sheets, PVC tubes, powder drinks, fizzy  drinks, beer, snacks, ground corn, mattresses, 
heavy construction machinery, plastic household utensils, and biscuits. These products 
corresponded to approximately 574 six-digit tariffs lines of the Harmonized System.  As one of Haiti's major trading partners, the Dominican Republic was deeply concerned by these measures, which did not seem to be compatible with WTO rules.  In particular, they would be in violation of 
Article XI:1 of the GATT 1994, because they involved  a prohibited import restriction. The Appellate 
Body had clarified on numerous occasions that Article XI:1 prohibited measures with a restrictive effect on imports, and this was exactly what was happening with these measures. Due to 
geographical proximity and logistical reasons, land transportation was of critical importance to 
transport products originating in the Dominican Republic into Haiti.  Therefore, these measures had a significant restrictive effect on the Dominican Republic's ability to export these kinds of 
goods into Haiti.  Furthermore, Haiti's measures would also be inconsistent with the freedom of 
transit obligation under Article V of the GATT 1994.  The measures could affect goods exported from the Dominican Republic to a third country in case they had to transit through Haiti. The Dominican Republic was unable to see how such measures could be justified under WTO Rules. For 
these reasons, the Dominican Republic fully reserved its rights and urged Haiti to enter into a 
dialogue with a view to finding a mutually satisfactory solution and to ensure that the Dominican Republic and other WTO Members did not see their trade restricted.  
79. The representative of Haiti thanked the Dominican Republic for having raised this specific 
trade concern. First of all, he informed the Committee that the measures which had been 
mentioned by the Dominican Republic had been adopted on a provisional basis.  The government 
of Haiti had no intention of violating WTO rules and most notably the principle of 
non-discrimination.  The Dominican Republic was asked to take note that, five years after the 2010 earthquake that had destroyed most of the country's infrastructure, Haiti had suffered a 
considerable loss in the public treasury due to problems with customs.  Damages to the customs 
infrastructure at the border were part of the cause of this problem.  In the framework of the 
measures adopted for fiscal year 2015-2016, which would begin on 1 October, the Government of Haiti had taken those decisions with a view to fighting smuggling and to minimize customs tax 
losses. These were exceptional circumstances, and the measures were not aimed at any particular 
trading partner. All trading partners would receiv e the same treatment, following the principle of 
non-discrimination.  Indeed, the ports which had been selected for customs clearance were those 
that had the necessary infrastructure and that wo uld ensure Haiti's capacity to combat smuggling 
and to control the quality of imported products, irrespective of where they came from.  These 
measures would be in place until customs authorities in Haiti had the necessary infrastructure in other places. He reiterated Haiti's commitment to the multilateral trading system, and assured the 
Committee that Haiti would do everything necessary to accelerate the procedures in the ports that 
had been mentioned.  
80. The representative of Panama noted that he had listened very carefully to the concerns 
which had been raised by the Dominican Republic, as  well as Haiti's reply.  He had taken note, in 
particular, of Haiti's commitment to quickly find a solution in a manner that was agreeable to all. He also noted that his government was monitoring this situation and would follow-up on its 
progress.  Panama was disappointed to see a dispute between two developing countries in the 
region, in particular given the close trade ties they had with the rest of the region.  This meant that the situation could go beyond the Hispaniola Island. Panama urged the two Members concerned to quickly hold bilateral consultations with a view to finding an appropriate solution 
according to their WTO rights and obligations. 
81. The representative of Ecuador thanked the Dominican Republic and Haiti for discussing this 
issue. She invited both parties to engage as so on as possible in a friendly and constructive 
dialogue with a view to settling this matter promptly.  Ecuador considered it very important that 
the multilateral trading system was respected by it s Members and that the exercise of their rights 
was subject to following the proper procedures. G/MA/M/62 
 
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  82. The representative of Guatemala thanked the Dominican Republic for including this item 
under other business, as well as Haiti for providing a response.  Guatemala urged both countries to 
find a mutually satisfactory solution to this problem. Guatemala would be following the issue, because it could become a systemic problem in the region. 
83. The representative of El Salvador expressed interest on the matter and hoped that Haiti 
would provide more information in order that she could better understand the effects of these 
measures on trade. 
84. The representative of Mexico shared the conc erns that had been raised by the Dominican 
Republic concerning the restrictions on land transportation on 23 products.  Although Mexico 
acknowledged that Haiti was dealing with an exceptional situation, his capital was assessing whether these measures could have adverse e ffects on Mexican companies operating in the 
Dominican Republic.  These included, in particular, companies dealing with food stuffs and 
construction materials, including cement.  Like others, he urged the two parties to meet with a 
view to settling this matter as soon as possible.  
85. The representative of Colombia indicated that his delegation had taken note of the concerns 
that had been expressed by the Dominican Republic as well as Haiti's response.  He trusted that 
this matter would be solved amicably, in particular given the importance that trade had for both of 
them, and the fact that both were closely linked developing countries. 
86. The representative of Haiti indicated that he had taken due note of comments made.  He 
said that the government of Haiti was certainly willing to enter into a dialogue to solve this matter, 
and thanked all delegations that had taken the floor on this issue. 
87. The Committee took note of the statements.   
- Nigeria – Import restrictions on mackerel 
88. The representative of Chile noted that Chilean exporters were concerned by restrictions on 
the importation of frozen mackerel into Nigeria.  Numerous decisions by the Nigerian authorities 
had blocked access to foreign currency for commercial operations.  In addition, no new import licences for this product would be issued.  Chile hoped that Nigeria would review the situation in a 
way that Chilean exports of this product into Nigeria could resume.  
89. The representative of Uruguay added his voice to the concern that had been expressed by 
Chile, because Uruguay's exporters had faced similar problems.  He asked Nigeria to provide more 
information on this matter. 
90. The representative of Iceland recalled that his delegation had raised this issue in other WTO 
fora in numerous occasions.  Iceland continued to have a systemic concern on these measures. 
Iceland had met bilaterally with Nigeria, and would continue to raise this issue should the 
measures continue. 
91. The representative of European Union noted th at his delegation shared Chile's concerns. 
European companies were also facing these problems.  He hoped that Nigeria would soon reverse 
this situation and allow normal business to take place. 
92. The representative of Norway also shared the concerns that had been raised by Chile.  As 
others had said, Norway looked forward to receiving some clarifications from Nigeria on this issue. 
Her delegation would approach Nigeria bilaterally.  
93. The representative of Nigeria thanked Chile for raising this matter in the Committee.  Since 
he was getting this information from Chile for the first time, he wanted to indicate that the points 
had been well noted.  He requested Chile to kindly submit in writing their oral presentation so that 
it could be transmitted to Abuja for appropriate response from capital.  He would also inform Chile 
on any update or information received from capital on this matter.  His delegation was working hard to resolve the matter appropriately, as already been indicated in bilateral discussions. G/MA/M/62 
 
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  94. The representative of Chile thanked Nigeria fo r the information that had been provided. For 
the record, she noted that, although it was true that the issue had been raised for the first time in 
this Committee, it had been submitted previously in a series of other fora in the WTO.  It was the first time in this Committee, but not the first time that this issue had been raised.  
95. The representative of Nigeria indicated that his delegation had taken note of the point.  
96. The Committee took note of the statements.   
- Date of the next meeting 
97. The next formal meeting of the Committee was provisionally scheduled for 19 April 2016.  
The next informal multilateral review session for HS transpositions was scheduled for 17 March 2016. 
98. The meeting was adjourned. 
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