INF/ECOM/2  
 
25 March  2019 
(19-1859) Page: 1/3 
 Original: English  
 
JOINT STATEMENT ON E LECTRONIC COMMERCE* 
COMMUNICATION FROM  NEW ZEALAND  
The following communication, dated 11 April 2018, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of New Zealand.  
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  New Zealand is pleased to participate in the exploratory work toward future WTO negotiations 
on trade -related aspects of electronic commerce under the WTO Joint Statement on Electronic 
Commerce at Buenos Aires (WT/MIN(17)/60). This submission is without pr ejudice to New Zealand' s 
participation in the exploratory work and future negotiations, and any future submissions to either 
process.  
1.2.  Connectivity is a crucial driver of New  Zealand’s eco nomic growth and development. As a small, 
open economy highly depende nt on trade, information and communications technology has helped 
us connect economical ly and socially to the world. Electronic commerce has been an important tool 
for increasing the participation of MSMEs, women and rural communities in trade and global v alue 
chains, thereby helping spread the benefits of trade more evenly throughout our communities. 
Connectivity and electronic commerce ha ve also positively impacted New Zealand consumers by 
diversifying the range of products available, and by helping lower  prices by increasing competition.  
1.3.  Electronic commerce is already an important and long -standi ng element of the WTO's work. 
There are general rules, commitments and frameworks established by the WTO that apply to both 
physical and digital trade, and there  has been consideration of specific questions raised by electronic 
commerce since Ministers adopted the Declaration on Global Electronic Commerce in May 1998.  
1.4.  Since that time, the evolution of the internet and digital technology had a transformative impact  
on the global economy and the nat ure of international trade. WTO Members, both developed and 
developing, have been making efforts to address the public policy challenges that this transformation 
presents, while also seeking to fully realize its benefits a nd the opportunities it presents for inc lusive 
trade and development. The WTO needs to engage constructively in this discussion too, or risk being 
seen to be falling behind global developments an d commercial trade realities.  
1.5.  New Zealand therefore considers  it is timely to look at clarifying existing rules and developin g 
additional rules on the trade -related aspects of e lectronic commerce at the WTO. Rules can improve 
legal certainty and transparency of frameworks, coordinate regulatory approaches, help main tain 
open markets, increase consumer security, privacy and trust, and promote a facilitatory and more 
inclusive trade environment.  
2  PROCESS  
2.1.  A lot of general work has been done on electronic commerce at the WTO already, from both a 
theoret ical and technical standpoint. We encourage Members to continue drawing on existing 
submissions and other resources under the 1998 Electronic Commerce Work Programme, but we 
                                                
* This document was originally circulated as JOB/GC/ 175 dated 11 April 2018.  INF/ECOM/2  
 
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  should not duplicate the general d iscussion that occurs there. What is needed under this exploratory 
process is a more precise set of submissions that describe specific policy issues that can be addressed 
throu gh potential new trade rules.  
2.2.  Submissions should describe a trade related electronic commerce policy problem or 
opportu nity, and a proposed solutio n. 
2.3.  If multiple submissions are received on related topics, we encourage Members to consider the 
topics as a group so that different approaches can be compar ed and connections identified. While 
participants should be encouraged to make submissions in advanc e of meetings to allow for others 
to fully consider the ideas therein and prepare to engage, there should be no formal cut -off on 
submissions and Members must be free to make submissions throughout the process.  
2.4.  We continue to support discussions being hel d in an open, inclusive and transparent manner, 
and invite Members who share our goal of future WTO negotiations on the trade -related aspects of 
electronic commerce to join us. As we progress, we will bring discussions back into the br oader 
multilateral se tting.  
3  POSSIBLE TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION  
3.1.  In developing new rules for electronic commerce at the WTO, New Zealand seeks a balanced 
approach between addressing the interests of business and consumers in taking full advantage of 
the opportunities available in th e digital age, as well as incorporating safeguards to protect the 
interests of users of electronic commerce in areas such as privacy, secu rity and confidentiality.  
3.2.  Drawing on our own FTA experiences with both developed and developing Member partners, 
and w ithout prejudice to further topic s we may suggest in future, New Zealand suggests the following 
initial and non -exhaustive list of topics for consideration under the Joint Statement process:  
3.1  Trade facilitation provisions  
• Domestic electronic transactions fr amework : Such provisions aim to establish a basic 
framework for electronic contracting that coheres with international best practice in the form 
of the relevant well established UNCITRAL or UN documents. The nature of cross -border 
electronic transactions m eans that a degree of commonality is desirable to ensure there are 
no major differences in regulatory approach that might impede electronic commerce across 
and between different jurisdictions.  
 
• Paperless trading : Such provisions seek to ensure that trade administration documents (e.g. 
for customs clearance) are available electronically,  and accepted electronically. This allows 
online trade to be fully conducted online, and enhances the ability of geographically dis tant 
service suppliers and manufacturers to participate in online trade.  
 
• Electronic authentication and recognition of e -signatures : The use of electronic 
authentication mechanisms is a key piece of underlying architecture to enable online 
transactions. Parties to contracts need to be able to meet the legal requirements to make a 
binding contract, and in some cases domestic legislation (for example requiring a physical 
signature in all instances) co uld stand in the way of this. New Zealand notes that e -
signatures were identified as one of the top three issues facing developing countries and 
LDCs in accessing the internet as part of the 2017 OECD/WTO Aid -for-Trade Monitoring and 
Evaluation Exercise.1 
 
3.2  Customs duties moratorium  
• Permanent extension of the mor atorium on the imposition of customs duties on electronic 
transmissions : Such provisions would make permanent the temporary moratorium on 
customs duties on electronic transmissions agreed by the WTO in 1998, and continually 
renewed since then. Making the m oratorium permanent provides certainty and predictability 
                                                
1 See "Digital Connectivity and E -commerce:  Joint OECD -WTO Aid -for-Trade Monitoring and Evaluation 
Exercise for the Global Review 2017 " (WT/COMTD/AFT/W/72 ), paras . 41 - 42. INF/ECOM/2  
 
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  for businesses and consumers, and is consistent with the WTO 's mandate for trade 
libera lisation. In orde r to pre -empt any concerns, New Zealand suggests making clear that 
this would not interfere wi th Members ' right to impose interna l taxes, fees or other charges.  
 
3.3  Consumer focused provisions  
• Online consumer protection : Such provisions seek to ensure that Members have minimum 
legal frameworks in place to prevent the use of misleading or deceptive pra ctices that cause 
harm to consumers engaged in online commercial activities, and provide for rights of redress 
against suppliers and manufacturers if goods or services are not of acceptable quality.   Part 
of the future success of electronic commerce hinge s on increasing consumer trust and 
ensuring consumer rig hts are adequately protected.  
 
• The protection of personal information of users of electronic commerce : Such provisions 
require Members to establish or maintain a legal framework to protect personal in formation 
of electronic commerce users. This ensures that consumers and businesses can have greater 
confidence transferring personal information to other jurisdictions as they can be assured 
that it will receive a comparable (or at least sufficient) level of protection once it is there. 
Promoting greater commonality in approach around robust privacy standards is trade -
enabling as it reduces regu latory complexity for traders.  
 
• Measures to address SPAM : Such provisions seek to ensure Parties will have measure s in 
place to deal with unsolicited commerci al electronic messages (SPAM). These messages can 
undermine consumer trust and confidence which is a necessary pre -requisite for electronic 
commerce. Rules that protect consumers from unsolicited electronic commu nications will 
contribute to consumer and business confidence in a wider use of electronic commerce.  
 
4  CONCLUSION  
4.1.  New Zealand thanks the co -convenors of this process for the opportunity to make submissions, 
and encourages all part icipants to engage actively. New Zealand looks forward to receiving 
submissions from other Members, and stands ready to engage constructively on all topics put 
forward for consideration as pa rt of this preparatory process.  
 
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