WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/L/741 
2 December 2008 
 (08-5883) 
General Council 
18-19 December 2008 Original:   English/ 
 French 
 
 
CANADIAN TARIFF TREATMENT FOR COMMONWEALTH 
CARIBBEAN COUNTRIES 
 
2008 Report of the Government of Canada on the  
Trade-Related Provisions of CARIBCAN  
 
 
 The following communication, dated 1 December 2008, is being circulated at the request of 
the Delegation of Canada.  
_______________ 
 
Introduction 
 
 CARIBCAN is an economic and trade development assistance program for the 
Commonwealth Caribbean countries and territories esta blished as a result of a commitment by Canada 
at the Commonwealth Heads of Governme nt meeting in Nassau in October 1985. 
 
 The objectives of CARIBCAN are to enhance Commonwealth Caribbean trade and export 
earnings, improve the trade and economic development prospects of the region, promote new 
investment opportunities, and encourage enhanced economic integration and co-operation.  The main 
feature of CARIBCAN is the unilateral extension by  Canada, beginning on 15 June 1986, of duty-free 
access to the Canadian market for most comm odities originating in Commonwealth Caribbean 
countries.   On 28 November 1986, a decision by the Contracting Parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) waived un til 15 June 1998, the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 1 of the 
General Agreement, "only to the extent necessary to permit the Government of Canada to provide 
duty-free treatment to eligible imports of Comm onwealth Caribbean countries benefiting from the 
provisions of CARIBCAN, without being required to extend the same duty- free treatment to like 
products of any other contracting party" (L/ 6102).  On 15 December 2006 the WTO extended the 
CARIBCAN waiver until 31 December 2011 (WT/L/ 677).  The conditions associated with the 
CARIBCAN waiver remain unchanged. 
 
 This report is being made in accordance with paragraph 3 of the WTO waiver of 
15 December 2006 and Article IX of the WTO Agreement. 
 
Country Coverage 
 
 The Customs Tariff  lists 18 countries or dependent territori es which are eligible to receive the 
duty-free benefits accorded under CARIBCAN:  Anguilla, Antigua-Barbuda,  Bahamas, Barbados, 
Belize, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, 
Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Christopher (St. Kitts) and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, 
Trinidad and Tobago, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.   No additions or deletions from this list have 
occurred since CARIBCAN was enacted on 15 June 1986.  WT/L/741 
Page 2  
 
  Product Coverage  
 
 There have been no amendments to CARIBCAN product coverage since the changes made in 
February 1998.   
 Today, product exclusions from the duty-free provisions of CARIBCAN are:  
 - Goods of HS Chapters 50 to 65 inclusive; - Goods covered by tariff items with “over acc ess commitment” rates of duty established in the 
“tariffication” process . 
 
Rules of Origin  
 
 The rules of origin for the purposes of the Commonwealth Caribbean Countries Tariff 
(CCCT) treatment are set out in regulations  enacted pursuant to Section 24 of the Customs Tariff . 
 
 To qualify for the duty-free treatment accorded  to Commonwealth Caribbean countries, at 
least 60 per cent of the ex-factory price of the goods as packed for shipment to Canada must originate 
in one or more beneficiary countries or Canada.  The 60 per cent qualifying content may be cumulated 
from various CARIBCAN bene ficiary countries or Canada.  Th e goods must be finished in the 
beneficiary country in the form in which they are imported into Canada.  Pursuant to the Proof of 
Origin Regulations, either a duly completed Certific ate of Origin, Form A, or a written statement of 
origin signed by the exporter, must be presented to Customs at the time of release, accounting or 
refund.  
Trade under CARIBCAN  
 
 Canada-CARIBCAN trade statistics are annexed in a series of tabl es to this report and include 
2007 trade data.  In general, these trade statistics indicate that:  - In 2007, 97 per cent of total Canadian imports from CARIBCAN beneficiaries entered 
Canada free of duty.  As shown in Annex III,  $831 million of this trade entered under MFN 
free rates while $11.3 million entered duty-free under General Preferential Tariff (GPT).  
$173.6 million of this trade entered under the preferential CARIBCAN tariff (CCCT).  Annex IV shows the top twenty-five commod ity imports benefiting from the CARIBCAN 
preference.   
 
- Total Canada-CARIBCAN trade (exports plus  imports) has grown from Can$881 million in 
1997 to $1.8 billion in 2007.  The value of Ca nadian imports from the region has risen from 
$537 million in 1997 to more than $1.0 billion in 2007.  The value of Canadian exports to 
CARIBCAN countries has risen from $344 milli on in 1997 to $769 million in 2007. 
 
Statistical Annexes:  
 
Annex I: Total Imports form CARIBCAN Beneficiaries 1997 - 2007  Annex II: Total Canadian exports to  CARIBCAN Beneficiaries 1997 - 2007 
 
Annex III: 2007 Imports from CARIBCAN Beneficiaries by Tariff Treatment 
 Annex IV: Top 25 Merchandise Imports from CA RIBCAN Beneficiaries which entered Canada 
under the CARIBCAN Duty-Free Tariff Treatment (CCCT) in 2007  
   WT/L/741
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Total Canadian Imports from CARIBCAN Beneficiaries 1997 – 2007                                                                                                                                       Annex I 
 (thousands of Canadian dollars)          
Country 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 
Anguilla 41 7 8 9 10 13 8 27 145 153 149 
Antigua - Barbuda 1,256 2,698 402 10,380 340 954 748 579 558 407 564 
Bahamas 8,056 22,002 25,959 14,003 13,785 16 ,941 48,149 55,652 56 ,816 23,274 63,303 
Barbados 13,736 11,722 10,652 7,375 9,118 7,543 6,282 8,508 7,368 13,615 8,117 
Belize 12,737 8,263 14,027 9,868 3,739 6,381 4,501 8,325 9,651 9,558 10,959 
Bermuda 3,751 7,602 19,689 17,614 2,369 3,803 1,655 12,511 17,738 16,783 3,192 
British Virgin Islands 199 615 614 1,376 1,324 501 1,146 1,785 2,699 4,120 1,994 
Cayman Islands 624 1,070 654 522 27,571 3,818 2,242 1,108 441 280 314 
Dominica 1,390 1,910 1,642 1,698 775 944 358 313 775 253 398 
Grenada 1,112 1,067 1,602 1,523 1,037 1,476 1,082 1,259 944 957 701 
Guyana 203,375 203,107 192,020 197,800 209,474 225,368 201,099 197,704 147,206 142,093 161,534 
Jamaica 257,507 256,384 201,074 197,727 324,783 270,927 264,871 346,608 393,028 418,261 370,906 
Montserrat 341 28 248 94 113 267 453 238 104 542 222 
St. Christopher (Kitts) and Nevis 4,426 4,494 5,120 4,399 6,121 7,458 8,722 8,185 7,868 8,798 4,270 
St. Lucia 1,287 1,595 580 1,413 237 411 266 366 512 164 313 
St. Vincent and the Grenadines 137 200 152 404 310 619 124 123 125 297 568 
Trinidad & Tobago 26,215 34,157 73,688 72,327 195,141 166,704 232,921 156,281 237,073 307,597 413,473 
Turks & Caicos Islands 338 686 1,823 1,647 1,007 2,347 7,980 6,871 7,525 6,917 5,146 
Total: 536,630 557,608 549,954 540,178 797,254 716,475 782,607 806,443 890,576 954,069 1,046,123 
            
Source :  Statistics Canada.           
Notes :  A dash (-) indicates  that an amount is ni l or negligible.          
  
  WT/L/741 
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Total Canadian Exports to CARIBCAN Beneficiaries 1997-2007                                                                                                                                               Annex II 
 (thousands of Canadian dollars)          
Country 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 
Anguilla 881 1,007 673 651 2,802 1,301 802 1,215 1,559 1,564 1,386 
Antigua - Barbuda 9,384 8,492 11,402 10,727 10,434 7,970 17,273 15,534 14,968 68,527 17,174 
Bahamas 21,610 24,513 26,301 26,018 27,706 33,245 28,883 30,392 59,949 51,275 91,210 
Barbados 37,193 36,396 41,087 33,783 29,104 33,629 41,979 44,769 55,729 59,411 55,216 
Belize 9,847 3,760 3,332 2,598 3,505 5,079 5,271 5,425 6,347 8,693 6,395 
Bermuda 39,177 40,165 42,973 34,540 34,715 107,599 42,945 59,301 66,405 68,131 59,035 
British Virgin Islands 3,417 2,628 28,743 60,187 2,240 2,167 2,129 2,637 2,786 3,672 2,057 
Cayman Islands 1,369 12,266 8,127 8,286 63,858 6,807 7,671 10,738 22,374 33,523 55,092 
Dominica 1,840 3,236 5,560 4,436 2,671 2,614 7,668 4,967 4,585 5,456 4,531 
Grenada 3,321 4,901 4,839 4,023 3,142 4,450 5,868 6,056 6,956 6,550 5,928 
Guyana 10,671 9,968 14,655 8,073 8,068 10,373 9,536 10,603 15,330 22,968 25,710 
Jamaica 86,937 98,032 96,699 99,815 121,933 158,212 124,650 163,755 144,312 142,636 190,138 
Montserrat 149 81 83 289 214 291 300 434 510 364 252 
St. Christopher (Kitts) and Nevis 2,011 5,675 10,646 9,633 16,147 27,036 12,059 3,982 5,380 7,101 8,753 
St. Lucia 8,729 11,493 12,524 9,683 7,375 7,804 7,423 8,059 7,020 11,494 15,083 
St. Vincent and the Grenadines 4,063 3,676 4,633 4,906 3,941 3,743 5,874 5,130 6,978 9,830 9,767 
Trinidad & Tobago 102,544 129,703 161,936 110,822 156,222 136,808 125,507 121,475 141,525 178,797 210,182 
Turks & Caicos Islands 537 1,379 2,357 2,341 2,366 2,933 10,372 7,182 8,258 12,387 11,556 
Total: 343,680 397,371 476,570 430,811 496,443 552,061 456,210 501,654 570,971 692,379 769,465 
            
Source :  Statistics Canada.           
Notes :  A dash (-) indicates th at an amount is ni l or negligible.  Includes Ca nadian domestic exports only.     
  WT/L/741 
 Page 5 
 
 
   
 
Annex III (i) 
       
Duty Free  2007 Imports from CARIBCAN Beneficiaries by Tariff Treatment 
 
(in Canadian dollars)      
Country Total Imports MFN Free GPT Free Caribcan 
(CCCT) 
Free Total Free Total 
Free as 
% of 
Total 
Import
s 
Anguilla 149,218 49,021 - - 49,021 33 
Antigua and 
Barbuda 564,452 452,931  
- 95,689 548,620  
97 
Bahamas 63,303,182 57,902,406 21,374 3,759,018 61,682,798 97 
Barbados 8,117,371 804,156 5,008,179 1,930,990 7,743,325 95 
Belize 10,959,266 9,959,179 177,638 390,042 10,526,859 96 
Bermuda 3,191,860 2,159,801 2,288 17,492 2,179,581 68 
Br. Virgin Is. 1,994,140 189,761 1,174,883 27,539 1,392,183 70 
Cayman Islands 313,670 293,330 - 57 293,387 94 
Dominica 397,720 252,968 - - 252,968 64 
Grenada 700,604 459,523 227,925 141 687,589 98 
Guyana 161,534,285 155,650,082 3,658,132 1,580,565 160,888,779 100 
Jamaica 370,905,519 345,070,336 283,343 14,365,118 359,718,797 97 
Montserrat 222,068 107,691 - - 107,691 48 
St. Christopher 
(Kitts) and Nevis 4,269,808 3,630,021 2,589 - 3,632,610 85 
Saint Lucia 313,127 132,255 - 47,863 180,118 58 
Saint Vincent/Gren. 568,191 552,237 - - 552,237 97 
Trinidad and 
Tobago  
413,472,762  
248,236,389  
700,906  
151,433,612  
400,370,907  
97 
Turks/Caicos Is. 5,146,420 5,142,755 - - 5,142,755 100 
Total 1,046,123,663 831,044,842 11,257,257 173,648,126 1,015,950,225 97 
         
Source : Statistics Canada.      
Notes :  A dash (-) indicates  that an amount is ni l or negligible.      
 WT/L/741 
Page 6  
 
   
Annex III (ii)
       
Dutiable  2007 imports from CARIBCAN Beneficiaries by Tariff Treatment  
 (in Canadian dollars)       
Country Total 
Imports MFN 
Dutiable GPT 
Dutiable Caribcan 
Dutiable Total 
Dutiable Total 
Dutiable as 
% of Total 
Imports 
Anguilla 149,218 100,197 - - 100,197 67 
Antigua and Barbuda 564,452 15,832 - - 15,832 3 
Bahamas 63,303,182 1,377,792 242,592 - 1,620,384 3 
Barbados 8,117,371 359,444 14,602 - 374,046 5 
Belize 10,959,266 406,150 26,257 - 432,407 4 
Bermuda 3,191,860 1,012,279 - - 1,012,279 32 
Br. Virgin Is. 1,994,140 591,329 10,628 - 601,957 30 
Cayman Islands 313,670 20,283 - - 20,283 6 
Dominica 397,720 87,112 57,640 - 144,752 36 
Grenada 700,604 13,015 - - 13,015 2% 
Guyana 161,534,285 645,463 43 - 645,506 0% 
Jamaica 370,905,519 11,164,666 22,056 - 11,186,722 3 
Montserrat 222,068 114,377 - - 114,377 52 
St. Christopher 
(Kitts) and Nevis 4,269,808 637,198  
-  
- 637,198 15 
Saint Lucia 313,127 133,009 - - 133,009 42 
Saint Vincent/Gren. 568,191 5,074 10,880 - 15,954 3 
Trinidad and Tobago 413,472,762 13,090,594 11,261 - 13,101,855 3 
Turks/Caicos Is. 5,146,420 3,665 - - 3,665 0 
Total 1,046,123,663 29,777,479 395,959 0 30,173,438 3 
       
Source : Statistics Canada.      
Notes :  A dash (-) indicates  that an amount is ni l or negligible.      
 
  WT/L/741 
 Page 7 
 
 
   
Annex IV
   
Top 25 Merchandise Imports from CARIBCAN Beneficiaries which entered Canada Under 
CARIBCAN Duty-Free Tariff Treatment (CCCT) in 2007  
(in Canadian Dollars) 
HS 
Tariff Description Imports under 
CARIBCAN 
Treatment 
(CCCT) 
29051100 Methanol (methyl alcohol) 148,511,719 
22084010 Rum 12,418,600 
03061100 Rock lobster and other sea crawfish ( Palinurus spp ., Panulirus spp. , 
Jasus spp. ) 3,745,270 
20089930 Akalas, akees, anchovy pears, apple-pears, avocados, bananas, banana 
chips (thin banana slices fried or otherwise prepared whether or not 
salted, sweetened or otherwise fla voured), bread fruit, carambolas, 
chayotes, cherimoyas (Jamaica apples)…. 858,998 
21039020 Mixed condiments and mixed seasonings 852,646 
22071010 Undenatured ethyl alcohol >= 80% vol for use in the manufacture of 
spirituous or alcoholic beverages 732,693 
85369091 Other: Junction boxes; 
Receptacle boxes of metal 616,055 
20059990 Other [Other vegetables and mixtures of vegetables] 606,835 
22021000 Waters, including mineral waters and aerated waters, containing added 
sugar or other sweetening matter or flavoured 596,964 
19059049 Other biscuits [Containing less than 25% by weight of wheat] 501,576 
21039090 Other [sauces] 500,360 
07149090 Other [Arrowroot, salep, Jerusalem artichokes and similar roots and 
tubers with high starch or inulin  content, fresh, chilled or dried, 
whether or not sliced or in the form of pellets; sago pith] 417,241 
39174090 Other [fittings] 328,132 
19053122 Sweet biscuits containing 25% or more by weight of wheat, in 
packages of a weight not exc eeding 1.36 kg each, over access 
commitment 314,468 
22029090 Other [nectars] 222,497 
22089099 Other [spirituous beverages] 210,598 
22042110 Wine, of an alcoholic strength by volume not exceeding 13.7% vol 127,514 
04063010 Processed cheese, not grated or powdered, within acces s commitment 123,718 
22029049 Other [beverages containing milk] 121,254 
20089990 Other [Berries, berry pulp, other fruit and pulps] 110,934 
09109910 Curry; dills seeds; other, neither crushed nor ground 109,486 
17049090 Other [Sugar confectionery (including white chocolate), not containing 
cocoa , not including chewing gum, whether or not sugar-coated] 97,868 
22087000 Liqueurs and cordials 84,325 
19053121 Other biscuits [Containing 25% or more by weight of wheat] 83,407 
20098019 Other juice of single fruit 80,705 
   
Source :  Statistics Canada import data.  
 
  
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