RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/VAL/M/49 
31 May 2010 
 (10-2947) 
Committee on Customs Valuation  
  
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF 6 MAY 2010 
 
Chairman:  Mohammed Saeed (Pakistan)
 
   The agenda proposed for the meeting, circ ulated in WTO/AIR/3551 was adopted as follows: 
 
 
I.
 REPORT OF THE WORK OF THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON 
CUSTOMS VALUATION .......................................................................................................1  
II. INFORMATION ON IMPLEMENTATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF 
THE AGREEMENT.................................................................................................................2  
A. NOTIFICATION OF NATIONAL LEGISLATION ................................................................................2  
III. INFORMATION ON THE APPLICATION OF DECISIONS OF THE 
COMMITTEE ON CUSTOMS  VALUATION......................................................................8  
IV. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ..................................................................................................8  
A. INFORMATION ON TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ...............................................................................8  
B. ARTICLE 20.3  TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRADE -RELATED TECHNICAL 
ASSISTANCE ............................................................................................................................... .8 
V. FOURTH, FIFTH, SIXTH, SEVENTH, EIGHTH, NINTH, TENTH, 
ELEVENTH, TWELFTH, THIRTEE NTH, FOURTEENTH, AND 
FIFTEENTH ANNUAL REVIEWS OF  THE IMPLEMENTATION AND 
OPERATION OF THE CUSTOMS VALUATION AGREEMENT ...................................9  
VI. PRESHIPMENT INSPECTION .............................................................................................9  
VII. PARAGRAPH 12 OF THE DOHA MINISTERIAL DECLARATION 
(WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1):  IMPLEMENTATION-RELATED ISSUES................................10  
VIII.  OTHER BUSINESS................................................................................................................1 0 
A. DATE OF THE NEXT MEETING ....................................................................................................10  
IX. ELECTION OF OFFICERS..................................................................................................10  
 
_______________ 
 
 I. REPORT OF THE WORK OF THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON CUSTOMS 
VALUATION 
1.1 The observer of the World Customs Organization
 reported on the activities of the Technical 
Committee on Customs Valuation at its 30th session, held on 12 to 16 April 2010.  This report is 
contained in Annex I.  
 G/VAL/M/49 
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  1.2 The representative of the European Union
 appreciated the WCO's marking of the 30th 
anniversary of the WTO Agreement on Customs Va luation, and the opportunity it presented for 
reflecting on how the Technical Committee could continue  to carry its work forward in the future.  He 
was encouraged to hear that customs administrations  wanted to continue to improve their capacity to 
implement this Agreement because it formed the basis for many other agreements dealing with trade 
in goods.   In this sense, it was good to hear that  the WCO Technical Committe e was keen to ensure 
that it continued to be relevant, and to refresh delegations on how it was working.  His delegation 
believed that the WCO was still the key place to work  with Members on implementation.   The unique 
mandate given to the WCO by the WTO, to ensure uniform interpretation and uniform application of 
the Agreement, was a big challenge which it was st riving to meet and it was good that they continued 
to reflect on whether there was a need for rebalanc ing or recalibrating what they were doing or how 
they were doing it.     1.3 His delegation was familiar with the T echnical Committee's deliveries, such as the 
Compendium.  However, looking at the full ma ndate, perhaps there were areas with which the 
Committee was dealing less.  In fact, the drafters of  this Agreement had the foresight to list the tasks 
necessary to keep the Agreement properly alive and ab le to be implemented.  These were included in 
the list of tasks given to the WCO in Annex II C (a)(b)(c) of the Agreement.  His delegation 
encouraged the WCO to continue its reflections and to report to the Committee at a later stage so that 
this Committee might give additional, focused guidance.   
1.4 The representative of the United States
 understood that the thirtieth anniversary of the 
Agreement was successful and raised some interes ting issues.  His delegation also agreed with the 
representative from the EU that the Technical Co mmittee should consider whether it could undertake 
work in more areas in order to further uniformity , interpretation and application of the Valuation 
Agreement.  His delegation encouraged the WC O and the Technical Committee to review the 
responsibilities listed in Annex II, pa ragraph 2 of the Valuation Agreem ent, in particular paragraph B 
and C relating to studying procedures and practices and preparing reports on the technical aspects of 
the operation and status of the agreement.  His dele gation would like the WCO to report back to this 
Committee at its next meeting on the results of this discussion.  1.5 The observer of the World Customs Organization
 was encouraged by the interest and the 
positive comments.  He noted that one question to consider was timing since the Technical Committee 
would only have one more session this year which w ould be just after the next meeting of the WTO 
Committee.  Therefore, it was not clear if the T echnical Committee could have a full discussion on the 
points raised by the WTO Committee's next meeting.   The procedures would have to be initiated and 
the Technical Committee would attempt to report back  to this Committee at the  earliest appropriate 
time when it had an opportunity to discuss with its full membership.   
 1.6 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and of the report. 
 
II. INFORMATION ON IMPLEMENTATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE 
AGREEMENT 
A. NOTIFICATION OF NATIONAL LEGISLATION  
2.1 The Chairman  recalled that Article 22 of the Agreem ent on Customs Valuation (hereafter, the 
Agreement) required each Member to inform th e Committee of any changes in its laws and 
regulations relevant to the Agreement, and of an y changes in the administration of such laws and 
regulations.  In addition, the Decision on Notifi cation and Circulation of National Legislation, 
adopted by the Tokyo Round Committee, required each Member to notify its legislation to the 
Committee.  He suggested that, under this sub- item, the Committee take up the legislations in 
sequence as listed in the agenda.  He further reca lled that the notification of legislation by the  G/VAL/M/49 
 Page 3 
 
 
  Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu had been presented to the 
Committee.  However, the examination of this no tification remained suspended since the Committee's 
meeting on 4-5 November 2002 pending resolution of  the difference in views between the parties 
involved on notifications across the WTO.    
- Bahrain 
 
2.2 The Chairman
 recalled that it had been agreed to re vert to the examination of Bahrain's 
legislation at this meeting pending responses to qu estions posed at the last meeting by the United 
States.  These questions were circulated in document G/VAL/W/181.  Responses from Bahrain were 
received yesterday and circulated in document G/VAL/W/191.  
 2.3 The representative of the United States
 said that his delegation had only just received the 
responses and would examine them in detail.  He w ould come back to the Committee if his delegation 
had further questions. 
 
2.4 The representative of Bahrain  said that his delegation would be open to receiving additional 
questions once this first set of responses were examined.  2.5 The Committee took note
 of the statement made and agreed  to revert to the notification of 
Bahrain at its next meeting. 
 
 - Belize 
 
2.6 The Chairman  recalled that the Committee had agreed to revert to this notification following 
questions posed to Belize by the United States an d Canada.  These questions were circulated in 
documents G/VAL/W/175 and G/VAL/W/176, respectively.  Belize had responded to some of these 
questions in document G/VAL/W/183.  However, th e United States had more questions which were 
circulated in document G/VAL/W/188.    2.7 The representative of the United States
 said that his delegation was still waiting for responses 
to the questions it had posed and which were  circulated in document G/VAL/W/188.   
 
2.8 The representative of Canada  noted that her delegation did receive responses to its questions 
but supported the US in their request for responses to their questions on the interpretative notes and on 
incorporating in the Belize legislation Article 16 of Customs Valuation Agreement.   
2.9 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting.  
 - Cambodia 
 
2.10 The Chairman
 drew Members' attention to Cambodia's recent notification in document 
G/VAL/N/1/KHM/1.  Specifically, Cambodia had s ubmitted Articles 18 to 24 of the Law on Customs 
which was adopted by the National Assembly on the 22nd June 2007 and ratified by the Senate in its 
entire form and legality on the 10th July 2007;  and Prakas No. 387 on "Customs Valuation of 
Imported Goods", including the Annex to the Prakas.    
2.11 The representative of the United States
 thanked Cambodia for notifying the Committee of its 
customs valuation legislation. His delegation sough t clarification in a couple of areas;  it would 
submit its questions in writing but requested that they  be included in the report of the meeting as well.   
Article 18 of the Customs Law made two references to  a provision in Article 51 and part of Article 53 
of this Law. However, since these provisions were  not included in the document, it was unclear to G/VAL/M/49 
Page 4  
 
  what the reference pertained.  His delegation, therefore, requested that Cambodia provide both 
provisions to the Committee.  Additionally, his de legation requested an explanation regarding the 
meaning of the provisions containe d in Paragraphs A and B of Arti cle 18 of the Customs Law which 
read: "when an audit, investigation, inspection or  examination undertaken unde r this Article finds any 
fraudulent activity, a Notice may be issued for th e goods under investigation, within a period no 
longer than 10 years from the original date of regi stration of the customs declaration".  His delegation 
wondered if there was a penalty provision.  His dele gation also had concerns regarding the wording of 
the definition of identical and similar goods, speci fically, provision C of those definitions.  His 
delegation believed that the phrase " on behalf of" should be deleted fro m this provision.  Article 15 of 
the WTO Valuation Agreement allowed for goods produ ced by different persons to be taken into 
account only when there were no identical or simila r goods produced by the same person as the goods 
being valued.  However, by including the phrase "on behalf of," did the Article allow for someone 
other than the person who produced the goods being valued to produce the goods in the definition of  
identical or similar?  Additionally, his delegati on was concerned that the current definition did not 
allow for the consideration of goods produced by a person not related to the producer of the goods 
being valued in situations where no identical or similar goods were produced.  Could Cambodia 
indicate if Article 15.2(e) was included elsewhere in its legislation?  His delegation would also 
appreciate an explanation of the meaning of the Prakas 31(e), and the reason for the phrase "unless the 
goods were imported into Cambodia" added to the provision.  It was concerned about the language 
contained in Prakas 32 which appeared to allow fo r different valuation treatment of certain goods 
which Customs considered sensitive or high risk go ods.  This Prakas seemed to allow the Customs & 
Excise Department to decide which goods to refrain  from applying the new valuation rules, provided 
the Ministry of Economy and Finance agreed.  His de legation sought an explanation of this provision 
and under what circumstances it would be used.  Fi nally, it encouraged Cambodia to also submit its 
responses to the check list of issues.   
2.12 The representative of the European Union
 said that his delegation was still reviewing the 
Cambodian legislation and may revert  with questions at the next mee ting.  As preliminary comments, 
he noted the interesting structure of the legislati on – first, the law started with provisions known as 
Prakas which set out mainly the essentials of the methods  of valuation.  Secondly, the other part of the 
law was actually a reproduction of the WTO Agreemen t itself, possibly in its entirety.  His review 
would focus mainly on the first section of the legislati on, or the Prakas.  With respect to the treatment 
of related parties and transfer pricing, he reca lled that the Agreement said that, instead of going 
through various proofs, the importer had the choice of showing a standard proof called a test value.  Unfortunately, a number of countries in their legisla tion tended to make a requirement totally against 
the intent and the provision of the WTO Agreement.  In this Prakas, there seemed to be a different 
structuring of the WTO rule and he would have some  questions on this.  Also, in Prakas 11, there was 
a detailed listing of adjustments to be made to the transaction value.  This listing included, for 
example, acquisitions and leases of goods which were   produced in a supply chain.  This was highly 
technical and his delegation might like to pose questions on this.   2.13 The representative of Cambodia
 said that when the laws were drafted, all considerations were 
taken into account to ensure that the law, as well as the implementing regulation, was consistent with 
the WTO Agreement on Customs Valuation.  He suggested that the US and EU questions be 
submitted in writing and he would send them to his capital to revert with responses as soon as 
possible.  2.14 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting.   
  G/VAL/M/49 
 Page 5 
 
 
   - China 
 
2.15 The Chairman  recalled that at the last meeting, it was agreed to revert to China's notification 
in G/VAL/N/1/CHN/5 at this meeting.  The United States had posed questions to China at the May 
2008 meeting and these were circulated in G/VAL /W/168 and Corr.1.  China had responded to these 
questions in document G/VAL/W/184.  
 2.16 The representative of the United States
  had some additional follow-up questions to which it 
would appreciate written responses.  His delegation con tinued to have serious concerns that China had 
not actually included all of the interpreted notes in its legislation.  It was troubled by its response that 
the notes were " virtually reflected in the rul es".  His delegation would be circulating written 
questions immediately following the meeting a nd looked forward to receiving China's written 
responses.  2.17 The Committee took note
 of the statement made and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting. 
 
 - Egypt 
 
2.18 The Chairman  recalled that at the last meeting it was agreed to revert to Egypt's legislation 
and responses to the checklist of issues.  The Unite d States and Canada had posed questions to Egypt 
at the October 2007 meeting which were circulated in document G/VAL/W/166.  Egypt circulated its 
responses in document G/VAL/W/169.  Further questi ons from the United States had been circulated 
in document G/VAL/W/175 to which Egypt circulated responses in document G/VAL/W/177.  At the last meeting, the US posed three additional questions which were circulated in document 
G/VAL/W/188.  Egypt responded to these questions in document G/VAL/W/189.  
 
2.19 The representative of the United States
 was pleased to inform the Committee that his 
delegation had no further questions for Egypt at this time.  2.20 The representative of Canada
 said that her delegation was satisfied with Egypt's response to 
the US question on the right of appeal and the issue of arbitrations.  Therefore, it also informed the 
Committee that it had no further questions. 
 2.21 The representative of Egypt
 thanked both delegations for their statements.    
 2.22 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and agreed  to conclude the examination of 
Egypt's notification. 
 
 - Nigeria 
 
2.23 The Chairman  recalled that it had been agreed to reve rt to Nigeria's notification at the last 
meeting.  The United States and Canada had posed some questions to the Nigerian delegation which 
had been circulated in documents G/VAL/W/175 and G/VAL/W/176, respectively.   
 2.24 The representative of the United States
 said that his delegation continued to be interested in 
the questions that it put to Nigeria in document  G/VAL/W/175, and requested that this item remain 
open until those questions had been addressed. 
 
2.25 The representative of Canada  said that her delegation was also awaiting responses to its 
questions contained in document G/VAL/W/176.  G/VAL/M/49 
Page 6  
 
  2.26 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting.  
 - Norway 
 2.27 The Chairman
 recalled that at the last meeting of th e Committee, it had been agreed to revert 
to Norway's notification circulated in document  G/VAL/N/1/NOR/2.  The United States had posed 
some questions to Norway which were circulated in document G/VAL/W/188.  2.28 The representative of Norway
 said that she could not update the Committee on the matter but 
would do so at the next meeting.   
 2.29 The Committee took note
 of the statement made and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting.   -  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 
 
2.30 The Chairman
 recalled that, at the last meeting, it had b een agreed to revert to this notification 
at this meeting.  The United States had posed ques tions to the delegation of Saint Vincent and the 
Grenadines which had been circulated in document G/VAL/W/181.  
2.31 The representative of Sain t Vincent and the Grenadines
 orally presented his delegation's 
responses.  He would provide any written informatio n at a later date.  In relation to question 4b from 
the US, in practice, goods were normally released on a surety deposit or bond for valuation decisions.  
A draft harmonized legislation was currently being examined in his Government, to be implemented 
by July 2010, which would take into consideration th e above concerns.  The issue of confidentiality in 
question 1 was covered in Section 6 of the Custom s Control and Management Act, No. 14 of 1999  
under the obligation of secrecy by customs officials.  In relation to question 3, all laws and regulations 
were published in the Government Gazette which w as available on subscription.  Judicial decisions 
were recorded and were available at the Registry as a matter of public record.  Administrative rulings 
were recorded and were available on request b ecause some departments were in the process of 
developing a website.  It was expected that all cu stom laws, regulations, d ecisions and rulings would 
be published on the website. 
 2.32 The Committee took note
 of the statement made and agreed  to revert to this notification at its 
next meeting.   - Thailand 
 
2.33 The Chairman
 recalled that, at the last meeting, it had b een agreed to revert to this notification 
at this meeting.  The United States had circulated questions to Thailand in G/VAL/W/128 and Thailand's replies were circulated in G/VAL/W/ 130.  Follow-up questions from the United States 
were circulated in document G/VAL/W/143 of November 2004.  Thailand's responses to these 
questions were circulated in document G/VAL/W /158.  Additional questions from the European 
Union and the United States regarding Thailand's va luation of alcoholic beverages imports were 
circulated in document G/VAL/W/160, and from th e Philippines regarding Thailand's valuation of 
cigarettes in G/VAL/W/164.  Following this, the Un ited States circulated additional questions on the 
legislation in G/VAL/W/165.  Thailand submitted re sponses which were subsequently circulated in 
document G/VAL/W/174.  Lastly, the United States posed additional questions to Thailand which 
were circulated in document G/VAL/W/181. At the last meeting, Thailand responded to these 
questions which were circulated in document G/VAL/W/190.     G/VAL/M/49 
 Page 7 
 
 
  2.34 The representative of the United States  was still in the process of reviewing the responses  
recently received.  He noted that in the response to question 5, Thailand stated that "the Customs 
Department had already abolished this." Obviously if something w as being abolished, and this was 
being done by amendment, his delegation would be pa rticularly interested in that activity and to see 
the results in due course. 
 
2.35 The representative of Thailand  said that his delegation looked forward to receiving any 
follow-up questions in writing so they could be  forwarded to the capital for responses.   
 2.36 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and agreed  to revert to this notification at its 
next meeting. 
 
 - Tunisia 
 
2.37 The Chairman  recalled that, at the last meeting, the United States had posed some questions to 
Tunisia on its notification.  These had been circulated in document G/VAL/W/188. 
 2.38 The Chairman
 proposed that, as Tunisia was not in the room, the Committee revert to this 
matter at the next meeting.  2.39 The Committee agreed
 to revert to this notification at its next meeting. 
 
 - Ukraine 
 
2.40 The Chairman  recalled that at the last meeting it had b een agreed to revert to this notification 
at this meeting.  The European Union supported by  the United States, had posed some questions to 
Ukraine which had now been circulated in docum ent G/VAL/W/179.  Ukraine had provided response 
to these questions which had been circulated in document G/VAL/W/182.  Both the European Union 
and the United States had further questions for Uk raine on its notification.  The EU posed its 
questions orally and the US circulated them in document G/VAL/W/188.    2.41 The representative of Ukraine
 regretted that its responses might not have been clear or 
comprehensive enough, and asked that the US and EU present their questions more precisely.  She 
would send them to the capital for responses as soon as possible.  2.42 The representative of the European Union
 said that his delegation would revise its questions 
and present them in writing and was grateful that Ukraine was prepared to respond to more precise 
questions. He noted the importance of Member's legislation, but stressed that it was in the 
implementation of the legislation that the issues to be addressed arose.  This had to be kept in mind 
because his delegation believed that it would have to continue to work with Ukraine through this 
process but also through informal discussions at the customs level.    2.43 The representative of the United States
 said that his delegation wa s looking forward to written 
responses to the questions posed at the last meeti ng and circulated in  cocument G/VAL/W/188.  If 
the questions were not clear, his delegation would engage with the delegation of Ukraine for their 
further clarification.  2.44 The Committee took note
 of the statements made and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting. 
 G/VAL/M/49 
Page 8  
 
  III. INFORMATION ON THE APPLICATION OF DECISIONS OF THE COMMITTEE 
ON CUSTOMS VALUATION 
3.1 The Chairman
 recalled that under this agenda item, the Committee noted any new 
notifications of application of the Decisions of the Committee on Customs Valuation on, first,  the 
"Treatment of Interest Charges in the Customs Value of Imported Goods” and, second, the “Valuation 
of Carrier Media Bearing Software for Data Processing Equipment", both adopted by the Committee 
and contained in document G/VAL/5.  Since the last meeting, there had not been any new 
notifications.    3.2 The Committee took note
 of this information. 
 
IV. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE 
A. INFORMATION ON TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  
4.1 The Chairman  recalled that, under this item, the Secretariat informed Members of the 
technical assistance activities carried out under the auspices of the WCO.  Document 
G/VAL/8/Add.22 contained the most recent information compiled by the Technical Committee on 
Customs Valuation of technical assistance activities carried out by Members as well as by the WCO 
Secretariat.    B. A
RTICLE 20.3  TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRADE -RELATED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  
4.2 The Chairman  recalled that the Committee’s Work Pr ogramme on Technical Assistance for 
Capacity Building as Regards the Implementation and Administration of the WTO Agreement on 
Customs Valuation was contained in document G/VAL/W/82/Rev.1.  The Customs Valuation 
technical assistance was now incorporated in the WTO-wide technical assistance program. The 
2010 – 2011 TA Plan was being implemented presently .  This Plan foresaw five regional activities on 
Market Access Issues which would include customs valuation training as one of the areas covered.  
Four such activities were scheduled for 2010 and thre e were scheduled for 2011.  In addition, requests 
for technical assistance on customs valuation could be made at any time by individual Members and 
would be met by a national activity designed to meet the needs of the recipient.  In December 2009, the WTO financed a mission to Grenada for technica l assistance on customs valuation.  The training 
was carried out by a technical attaché from the Wo rld Customs Organization.  In January, another 
such mission to Barbados was financed by the WT O and carried out by a technical attaché from the 
World Customs Organization.  The WTO also planned to hold a national activity on customs 
valuation in Samoa in June of this year.    4.3 The representative of the European Union
 wanted to note the continued importance of 
technical assistance and capacity building to ensu ring the capacity to implement the Agreement.  
While discussing possible new WTO commitments, it w as important not to lose touch with the fact 
there was still scope and need  for assistance and capacity bu ilding regarding the existing 
commitments.  There was a continued need for deve lopment officials to review how to administrate 
the rules in the modern business and technological environment.  His delegation appreciated that the Committee looked at this matter from time to time.   Members were clearly delivering impressive 
results in the WCO and individually as well, with individual countries delivering specific 
implementation or operational tools for implementation of this Agreem ent.  He gave the example of 
India providing tools to some African countries.  This kind of TA was obviously very good and his 
delegation would be interested to know what was the real impact, scope, coverage of some of these 
specific tools.  He knew that there were different  database tools available or proposed and other 
packages developed by other international organi zations.  The EU was contributing to technical 
assistance capacity building in terms of customs support,  customs modernization, and rules.  He added  G/VAL/M/49 
 Page 9 
 
 
  that it was important to make sure that cust oms valuation remained covered in the more 
comprehensive packages of technical assistance and capacity building.    4.4 The Committee
 took note of the statements made and the information presented. 
 V. FOURTH, FIFTH, SIXTH, SEVENTH, EIGHTH, NINTH, TENTH, ELEVENTH, 
TWELFTH, THIRTEENTH, FOURTEENTH, AND FIFTEENTH ANNUAL REVIEWS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION AND OPERATION OF THE CUSTOMS 
VALUATION AGREEMENT 
 5.1 The Chairman
 recalled that at the May 2009 meeting of the Committee, the Indian delegation 
had informed the Committee that his delegation had decided to lift the reservation on minimum values 
entered under paragraph 3 of the Protocol to the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the 
GATT 1994, and in paragraph 2 of the WTO Agreement.   In light of this, in preparation for the 
October 2009 Committee meeting, the Secretariat updated all of the annual reviews from 1998 to 
2008 in anticipation of their consideration for adoptio n.  Also at the October meeting, the Committee 
was to consider the 2009 report for adoption.  Howe ver, at the October 2009 meeting, the delegation 
of India informed the Committee that his dele gation still maintained its position regarding the 
adoption of the Annual Reviews.  Therefore the Comm ittee was unable to adopt them at this meeting. 
 5.2 He added that during the interim, he held so me informal consultations with some interested 
Members with the aim of trying to find language to  resolve this matter.  Unfortunately, these efforts 
did not bear fruit.  He was, therefore, in the ha nds of Members as to how they would like to proceed 
on this matter.   He believed that India would agree that Annual reports from 2010 onwards should not 
pose a problem for his delegation given the Indian  delegation's statement that it had lifted its 
reservation on minimum values in 2009.  With respect  to the agenda item dealing with the annual 
reviews from 1998 to 2009, he considered that it di d not serve the Committee to maintain this item on 
its agenda indefinitely without any clear progress or e volution in its consideration.  It was clear that 
there would not be a convergence of views on this matter and that both sides would continue to maintain their positions.  Therefore, he proposed th at one way to proceed would be to suspend this 
item on the agenda until such time as a solution was found.  At that time, the item could be taken up 
again and dealt with.  In the meantime, these draft annual reviews would remain unadopted and 
simply as draft documents.   
 5.3 The Committee so agreed
. 
 
VI. PRESHIPMENT INSPECTION 
6.1 The Chairman  recalled that Preshipment Inspection was a standing item on the agenda of the 
Committee on Customs Valuation.  He drew attenti on to the most recent update of the notifications 
received from Members under Article 5 of the Agre ement on Preshipment Inspection.  It was 
contained in document G/PSI/N/1/Add.12.  At our last  meeting, the United States said that it still had 
not received responses to the questions that it had posed to Indonesia on its new preshipment inspection programme.  These were circulated in documents G/VAL/W/167 and G/VAL/W/180.   
 
6.2 As the delegation of Indonesia w as not present, the Committee took note
 of the information 
presented.  G/VAL/M/49 
Page 10  
 
  VII. PARAGRAPH 12 OF THE DOHA MINISTERIAL DECLARATION 
(WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1):  IMPLEMENTATION-RELATED ISSUES 
 - Paragraph 8.3 of document WT/MIN/(01)/17  
 
7.1 The Chairman
 recalled that the General Council, at its  meeting in December 2002, authorized 
the Committee to continue its work under the exis ting mandate in paragraph 8.3 of the Decision on 
Implementation-Related Issues and C oncerns, and to report back to the General Council once its work 
had been completed.    7.2 The representative of the United States
 reiterated his delegation's position that the appropriate 
venue to continue this discussion was in the Ne gotiating Group on Trade Facilitation given that trade 
facilitation was currently being examined in proposals that contained elements similar to the one that 
was contained in the document submitted by India.  7.3 The representative of India
 stressed his delegation's position that these two bodies had 
separate mandates.  In this Committee, the issu e regarded operationalizing the July 2004 mandate 
under paragraph 8.3 of the Doha Declaration.  Even  though a similar subject was covered by the work 
of another body, this did not prevent this Committe e from examining this work .  It was specific to 
customs valuation which was dealt with here.  7.4 The Committee took note
 of the statements and agreed  to revert to this matter at its next 
meeting.  He invited the incoming Chair to carry  out informal consultations on this matter, as 
necessary.  
VIII.  OTHER BUSINESS 
A. D
ATE OF THE NEXT MEETING  
8.1 The Chairman  informed the Committee that the next meeting was scheduled for 
Friday, 22 October 2010.     
 
IX. ELECTION OF OFFICERS 
9.1 The Chairman  informed the Committee that the Chairm an of the Council for Trade in Goods 
had carried out informal consultations on a slate of names for appointment of Chairpersons of 
standing bodies in accordance with the established Gu idelines for Appointment of Officers.  On the 
basis of consultations, she had proposed that  the Committee elect Tamás VATTAI (Hungary) as 
Chairperson, for 2010.  He, therefore, proposed  that the Committee elect Mr. Tamás Vattai by 
acclamation.  
9.2 The Committee elected
 Mr. Vattai by acclamation.   
 9.3 The meeting was adjourned.      
_______________ 
  G/VAL/M/49 
 Page 11 
 
 
  ANNEX I 
 
Report to the Committee on Customs Valuatio n on the work of the Technical Committee on 
Customs Valuation and related activities of the WCO Secretariat 
 
 Since the last meeting of the Committee on Cu stoms Valuation, the Technical Committee on 
Customs Valuation (Technical Committee) held its 30th Session from 12 to 16 April 2010, at the 
WCO Headquarters in Brussels.  The meeting w as attended by a total of 62 countries and 
5 International Organizations.  
 
WCO Policy Commission 
 
 The 62nd Session of the Policy Commission was held in Brussels from 7 to 9 December 
2009, during which it deliberated upon issues impacting on Customs administrations and affecting the future work of the WCO. These issues included Gl obally Networked Customs, risk assessment, the 
global economic downturn and its impact on Custom s revenues, WTO negotiations, trade facilitation 
measures, the impact of regional trade agreements, capacity building and the role of Customs in the 
21st Century. 
 
Technical Assistance/Capacity Building Activities  
WTO National Valuation Workshop in Grenada  
 The WTO Secretariat organized and funded a four-day National Valuation Workshop from 7 
to 10 December 2009 in St. George, Grenada. One Technical Attaché from the WCO Tariff and Trade 
Affairs Directorate conducted the workshop. 
 
WTO National Valuation Workshop in Barbados 
 
 A 3-day National Valuation Workshop was orga nized and funded by the WTO Secretariat in 
Barbados from 18 to 20 January 2010. One Techni cal Attaché from the Tariff and Trade Affairs 
Directorate conducted the Workshop, which cove red valuation methodology, controls and 
introduction to PCA and risk based approach. 
 
JICA Project on Capacity Development of East African Customs Administrations 
 
 JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency ) organized and funded a project on Capacity 
Development of East African Customs Administrati ons in Nairobi, Kenya from 18 to 29 January 2010 
on Customs valuation. One Technical Attaché from the Tariff and Trade Affairs Directorate conducted the workshop, along with an officer from the Japanese Customs Administration, on 
Valuation from 25 to 29 January. A total of five  countries from the region participated in the 
workshop.  WCO Revenue Package Workshops  
 Since November 2009, the Secretariat has been  conducting a series of Workshops in the six 
WCO Regions under the title of the “Revenue Packag e”.  This programme was set up to address the 
concerns of many Members in relation to declin ing revenue returns in the context of the global 
economic downturn and falling duty ra tes in general.  Although this  initiative covers all aspects 
relevant to revenue collection, Customs Valuati on is a major theme of the programme.  To date, 
Workshops have been held in five of the six WCO Regions (North Africa & Middle East (Rabat, 
Morocco), East & Southern Africa (Kampala, Uganda), Asia Pacific (Cheonan, Korea), Americas and G/VAL/M/49 
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  Caribbean (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) and Europe (Skopje, fYROM); the final Workshop 
will take place in Togo at the end of Ma y for the West and Central Africa Region.  
  Through these Workshops, administrations ar e being encouraged to access and utilise the 
many tools and instruments which are already provided by the WCO, in addition to correctly applying 
the WTO Valuation Agreement and associated texts.  Furthermore, the WCO is asking 
administrations to identify the key areas where furt her help is needed. Valuation is the topic which 
most developing country administrations have ra ised as posing more difficulties than any other 
Customs regime.    
 The Secretariat is now compiling and anal ysing the results of these Workshops and 
considering next steps in terms of providing furthe r guidance, assistance and capacity building in the 
key areas, particularly in respect of undervaluation issues faced by developing countries, a number of whom are still relying on pre-shipment or destination inspection companies.  
 WCO Fellowship Programme 
 
 The Valuation Sub-Directorate conducted the 51st WCO Fellowship Programme for one 
French speaking fellow from Haiti  who had chosen Customs Valuation as his field of study from 8 
February to 19 March 2010 . 
 
Private Sector Workshops  
 The fifth Private Sector Workshop on Custom s Valuation and Transfer Pricing was conducted 
on 24 and 25 November 2009 at the WCO, by provi ding blended training along with e-learning on 
Customs valuation and Transfer Pricing issues to  representatives from the Private Sector. Experts 
from the WCO, EU and the Belgian Tax Administ ration served as resource persons for the event. 
Another similar event will follow on 15 and 16 June 2010.   
30
th Session of the Technical Committee 
 
 At its 30th Session from 12th to 16th April 2010 the Technical Committee discussed the 
following technical issues: 
 
• Technical questions on Royalties and License Fees  submitted by Brazil, Canada, Colombia and 
Japan.  This concerns Article 8.1 (c) of the WTO Agreement which sets out the conditions on 
which a royalty or licence fee is to be include d in the Customs value. Large sums are often 
involved in respect of these fees, typically involving trademarked brand names where the seller of 
the goods is not the licence holder.  These discu ssions have been progressing for five years 
however the Technical Committee has conflicting views on how this matter should be addressed 
and to date it has not been possible to reach con sensus on various texts of draft instruments which 
aim to provide advice on this issue.  These discussions will continue at the 31st Session.  
 
• Customs Valuation of imported electricity (Brazil). The TCCV expressed different opinions in 
relation to whether or not the valuation elements  identified should be included in the customs 
value. As there was no prospect of reaching a consensus position on these points, the discussions 
have now been closed.   
 
• Further discussions took place on the issue of rela ted party transactions and Transfer Pricing.  
There is currently a lot of interest from the trad e sector in obtaining clear guidance in this highly 
complex area.  It concerns the question of to wh at extent a transfer price used for direct tax 
purposes by multinational enterprises can be used as  the basis for customs value.  The Technical  G/VAL/M/49 
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  Committee agreed that it would concentrate on ex amination of the key principles and issues 
which could be developed into an instrument of  the Technical Committee.  The OECD is also 
involved in these discussions.  
 
• A question from Japan on the addition of “assists” under Article 8.1 (b) of the Agreement was 
discussed. 
 
• A new technical question has been submitted by the Belarus administration concerning the 
valuation of industrial waste. Belarus, alt hough not yet a WTO Member, is a Member of the 
WCO and attends the Technical Committee in th e capacity of an observer and informed the 
Committee that they seek to apply the WTO Va luation Agreement as closely as possible. The 
Technical Committee agreed at the 30th Session that this question could be examined at the next 
Session, as it would potentially be of interest  and benefit to all WTO and WCO Members.  
  Other routine issues pertaining to technical  assistance undertaken by the Secretariat and 
Members and other administrative items were also discussed.  
 A special Theme Meeting was held during the 30
th Session. One session was devoted to the 
topic of advance rulings for valuation which focused  on some best practices of certain administrations 
and the benefits of providing certainty to the tr ading community in advance of importing goods.  
  Also as part of the Theme Meeting, a whole day was devoted to a celebration of the 30
th 
anniversary of the WTO Valuation Agreement (ori ginally the GATT Valuation Agreement).  This 
was taken as an opportunity to take  stock and look back at the lessons  learnt over the past 30 years 
and also to look forward to future challenges for Customs valuation.  
  Some thought-provoking presentations and discu ssions took place and a number of interesting 
views were aired.  These included: seeking ways to refresh and improve the efficiency of the 
Technical Committee, confirming the importance a nd need to strengthen and build-up valuation 
knowledge, both within Customs administrations and the business community and, promoting the 
need for an open dialogue between Customs and the trade.  It was recognised that although there was 
no challenge to the high level principles and me thodology of Customs valuation, the Agreement 
would probably differ in several respects if draf ted in today’s commercial environment, given the 
dramatic changes which have taken place over the past 30 years.  The Technical Committee 
reconfirmed its commitment to maintaining a stro ng relationship with the WTO and the Customs 
Valuation Committee and looks forward to meeting future challenges together, as they arise.   
 
Staff matters 
 
 Finally, the WCO is very sad to report the r ecent demise of Mr Antoine Manga, Director of 
Tariff and Trade Affairs following an illness. Mr Ma nga was respected for his in depth knowledge of 
customs valuation in particular and was for many  years a well-known figure in the international 
Customs environment, representing both the WCO and his home administration of Cameroon. He was 
very effective in highlighting the particular pr oblems faced in the sub-Saharan African region in 
relation to the successful implementation of th e WTO Valuation Agreement and will be missed by 
many in the Customs community.    As an interim measure, until a new Director is elected in June 2011, the Valuation sub-
Directorate will report directly to the Deputy Secretary General.   
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