./.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SCM/W/532 
2 March 2005 
 (05-0872) 
Committee on Subsidies  
and Countervailing Measures  
 
 
 
DRAFT PROCEDURE FOR REVIEW 
OF 2005 NEW AND FULL NOTIFICATIONS 
 
Note from the Chairman  
 
 
 The following draft procedures for the review of 2005 new and full subsidy notifications will 
be on the agenda for adoption at the Committee's regular meeting commencing on 14 April.  These 
procedures, as they appear below, are identical, except for dates, to those adopted for the review of 
1998, 2001 and 2003 new and full notifications. 
  The Chairman would, however, invite Members to consider the possibility of abbreviating the 
timeframe referred to para graph 2 of the draft procedures to seventeen (instead of nineteen) weeks, 
and to consider consequential m odifications to the timeframes refe rred to in paragraph 3 so that 
written questions would be submitted to the notifying Member and to the Secretariat not less than 
thirteen (instead of fifteen) weeks before the date  of the meeting at which a notification is to be 
reviewed, and written responses would be submitted not less than four (instead of six) weeks before 
the date of that meeting.  
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1. Pursuant to Article 25.1 of the SCM Agreem ent, 2005 new and full subsidies notifications 
must be submitted by 30 June 2005.   Because delays in notification would make it difficult for the 
Secretariat to translate and circulate notifications in a manner which would allow the procedures set forth below to operate, the Committee consider s it important that all Members respect the 
30 June 2005 deadline for submission of notifica tions as well as the deadlines for the question and 
answer procedure set out below.  
2. The 2005 new and full subsidy notif ications will be reviewed in sp ecial meetings to be held in 
conjunction with the regular meetings of the SC M Committee in Autumn 2005, Spring 2006 and (if 
required) Autumn 2006.  The length of the special meetings will be determined by the Chair in light of the number and extent of the notifications schedul ed for review.  Only notifications distributed in 
all three WTO working languages not less than ninet een weeks before a meeting may be reviewed at 
that meeting.   
3. The review of new and full notifications w ill be held on the basis of a written procedure, 
i.e. on the basis of written questions and
 written answers provided before the meeting.  Written 
questions shall be submitted to the notifying Member and to the Secretariat not less than fifteen weeks 
before the date of the meeting at which a notificati on is to be reviewed, and written responses shall be 
submitted not less than six weeks before the date of  that meeting.  Members desiring clarification of 
answers, identifying issues for discussion or otherwise following up on written responses are 
encouraged to submit follow-up questions in writing in advance of the meeting.  Written answers to 
follow-up questions are required only where the fo llow-up questions are submitted in writing.   G/SCM/W/532 
Page 2  
 
 4. The written procedure is intended to avoid th e repetition of lengthy questions and answers in 
the meeting and to allow the Committee to (a) fo llow-up in areas where the written answers were 
unclear and (b) discuss issues identified as a result of the written procedure.  The result should be 
shorter and more focused meetings where meaningful discussion could occur. 
5. In order for this format to be effectiv e, two conditions must be fulfilled.  First
, questions and 
answers need to be provided on a timely basis.  Thus, a Member is not required to provide written 
answers in advance of a meeting where the questions  were provided after the deadline had passed.  On 
the other hand, a Member that fails to provide wr itten answers within the specified time period shall 
provide full oral answers at the meeting itself.  Second , the purpose of the written procedure is to 
allow better discussion in the meetings, not to re place the meetings.  Meaningful discussion can only 
occur if the responsible officials are present; thus , Members should make maximum efforts to bring 
appropriate capital-based officials to the reviews of their notifications.  
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