RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/TF/M/13 
15 May 2006 
 (06-2366) 
Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation  
  
 
SUMMARY MINUTES OF THE MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard
 
on 5-7 April 2006  
 
Chairman:  Mr. Tony Miller (Hong Kong, China) 
  
1. The Chairman
 explained that the main purpose of th e meeting was to provide delegations 
with another opportunity to contribute on the agreed agenda of the Group, both in terms of offering 
new input and reacting to the contributions previo usly received.  Furthermore, Members would be 
invited to admit relevant intern ational organizations, including the IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, WCO and 
the World Bank, to attend the next meeting of the Group on an ad hoc basis. 
2. The agenda was adopted . 
A. CONTRIBUTIONS ON THE AGREED AGENDA OF THE NEGOTIATING GROUP  
3. The Chairman  invited delegations to contribute on the Group's agenda. Members would have 
noticed the airgram setting out its traditional elem ents, reflecting the various components of the 
negotiating mandate.  Work in those areas had conti nued since the last session, leading to a great 
number of new contributions. "New" might actually not be the best way to qualify them, as they largely built on previous submissions, consolida ting suggestions and build ing on relevant ideas.  
4. Delegations would have probably seen most of those papers, thanks to the useful practice of 
informal pre-circulation amongst Members ahead of a session. At the same time, he was conscious of 
such previews not being a substitute for formal react ion and preparation time, which remained a bit on 
the short side this time in light of the papers' late submission.  
5. To make up for that fact and to ensure best use of scarce meeting time beyond preliminary 
statements, he wished the session to commence with an informal exchange, allowing delegations to 
raise questions and obtain clarification at the unofficial level.   
6. The informal discussion would then be followed by a formal one, providing Members with an 
opportunity to present statements they wished to make for the record, both with respect to new 
submissions and proposals previously received.  To avoid repetition in the introduction of 
contributions and to allow for a focus on each paper w ithout having to engage in a confusing series of 
jumps from formal to informal mode, he proposed a procedure whereby presentations  of proposals 
would be considered formal and reflected in th e minutes despite them taking place under the informal 
chapeau.  The initial reactions  to those papers would, however, re main informal and therefore off the 
record.  In other words, the NG would consider the introduction  of new proposals to fall under the 
formal category of contributions for the purposes of r ecord taking, despite bein g made in the informal 
part of the session, while reactions  to the papers would remain informal in all respects.    TN/TF/M/13 
Page 2  
 
  7. Within the presentation of those new papers, he  suggested a thematic approach, grouping 
submissions by similar topic as listed in the comp ilation document.  Special room would then be 
given for cross-cutting proposals, especially the ones on the key pillars of S&D and TA&CB.  The 
opting for that particular sequence was mostly dictat ed by technical considerations, such as translation 
matters. The late arrival of certain submissions unfor tunately did not allow for their availability in all 
official languages, making it advisable to start with  the logistically fully processed ones.       
8. The representative of the United States
 introduced document TN/TF/W/89, remarking that,  in 
a sense, it was not a new proposal.  The US had put forward a clarification or working document that 
laid out some of the elements it had previously proposed.   
9. The present proposal on Internet publication had two elements. First, the US took note of the 
fact that there were already requirements under GA TT Article X for publication of laws, regulations 
and rulings of general application.  What the Unite d States was proposing with regard to that existing 
commitment was that there would be an alternative way to meet it, which would be on the Internet in 
terms of publication.  The purpose of that proposal  was to acknowledge that, while many used the 
respective federal gazette systems to publicize, that  was very expensive.  In the United States, the 
costs represented thousands of dol lars per page.  The US proposal was that there could be an 
alternative way to meet that current commitment fo r publication, which would be through the Internet. 
10. The second component pertained to some basic information in the form of importation 
requirements.  That was not really clear currently  in terms of Article X’s publication requirements, 
which made reference to regulati ons and rulings of general appli cation.  It would be a great 
improvement if Members would commit to pub lication of their importation requirements.  
Furthermore, it would be of enormous practical  value if Members would commit to put this 
information on the Internet.  The information w ould then be available particularly for small 
enterprises. The intention of the proposal was to pr ovide something very practical and it would render  
a significant result. 
11. The paper merely attempted to set out those elem ents.  They had already been referred to in a 
previous US proposal with much more surrounding information.  The US now put forward the core 
elements.  There were also elements Members had to do further work on, specifically as regards SDT 
and TA.  The paper set out some ideas in a very conc rete and succinct form.  They were not meant to 
be exhaustive, but represented matters Members sh ould discuss.  The proposal was intended to be 
something that just took Members’ work forward.   It was necessary eventually to achieve more 
substantive discussions of each of the proposals.  Th e present paper, as well as others, were an attempt 
to further that work. 
12. He recognized that many countries had already made some efforts towards Internet 
publication and that Internet publication would im pose an additional cost to many developing 
countries.  That should be taken into account. 
13. The representative of Canada  introduced document TN/TF/W/80, explaining that it had been 
developed with a view to crystallize the currently available proposals.  Members were at a point 
where they had a series of proposals covering numerous topics.  Over 50 proposals had been put forward by Members on Trade Facilitation.  Natura lly, there were some proposals that touched on 
elements covered in other proposals.   Canada had considered it useful to use the central document of 
the negotiations, the Secretariat’s compilation in its latest revision, to try to extract the common 
themes on advance ruling and to group them toge ther.  The purpose of the present short paper on 
advance ruling was to consolidate the various pro posals on advance rulings tabled in the Negotiating 
Group in order to draw out the common elements  and highlight which issues required further 
discussion.  Canada also considered it important to outline, in a preliminary way, the possible options 
for TA&CB and SDT.  The paper ha d been developed jointly with Australia and the United States and  TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 3 
 
 
  was hoped to function as a springboard for a more substantive discussion on the possible 
commitments on advance rulings. 
14. The first section identified the six core elemen ts of what Canada saw as the skeleton of 
commitments on advance rulings.  When talking ab out advance rulings, the sponsors were talking 
about a document that was issued in writing in a time-bound manner.  It was issued to a person with a 
justifiable cause, be it an exporter, an importe r or a producer, that had made a written request 
accompanied by relevant factual and supporting materi al.  The applicant to an advance ruling could  
withdraw at any time his request or amend it prior to  it being issued as a ruling.  The ruling was valid 
for a specified period of time, as long as the releva nt facts and conditions remained the same and until 
such time as a ruling was modified or revoked by the issuing authority.  The advance ruling recipient 
was provided with a notification in cases of modifi cation or revocation.   And it would be provided 
with reasons for it.  Finally, there was need to have  adequate treatment of confidential information.  
Those were the common elements contained in the seven proposals that had been made by various 
delegations on advance ruling.  
15. There were elements that still required further discussion, reflecting also the questions that 
had been raised in the past by delegations.  For in stance, was the scope of advance rulings limited to 
tariff classification? Did it include valuation, duty drawback or other aspects?  With respect to 
transparency of advance rulings, should there be a requirement to have those rulings published?  
There were differences of views among Members.  Probably the most significant aspect was that 
Members had to define how TA&CB and SDT would work.  It had to be properly assessed.  That 
could only be done on the basis of further discussi ons among Members, examining the specific details 
and specifics of potential commitments on advance rulings.  Consideration of TA&CB and SDT had 
to be based on individual Member's analysis of wher e they stood at that moment and what would be 
their needs in terms of technical assistance and cap acity building in the future in connection with 
envisaged specific commitments.  
16. The representative of the European Communities  presented document TN/TF/W/94, 
explaining that his introductory remarks on this pape r would apply also to the three other submissions 
sponsored by the Communities to some extent.  Th e Chair had been correct in remarking that, 
although there were a number of new submissions, the content of most of them was in fact not new, 
but essentially a compression of various proposals already made in the past.  The proposals made by the EC and a number a co-sponsors on fees and charges fell into that category.   There were no new 
innovative ideas in the paper.  At that point in the negotiating process, the EC considered it opportune 
to not have major new ideas but to try to consolidat e and compress into a more easily readable short 
format the proposals that had been made in the past  and that appeared in the compilation document.   
17. The current paper simply sought to present in a more shortened and justifiable form proposals 
the EC had made in the past.  Article VIII of the GATT  recognized the need to reduce the number 
and diversity of fees and charg es for import and export but gave no guidance as to how that need 
should be discharged.  Firstly, the present proposal , among other things, gave more precision as to 
how in practice the reduction of the number and dive rsity of fees and charges could be accomplished.  
Secondly, the proposal sought to codify the outcom e of previous dispute settlement panels on the 
question of fees and charges and which kind of fees fo r import and export were or  were not legitimate.  
Thirdly, the submission proposed to fine-tune or cl arify a little further the provisions of Articles VIII 
and X in respect of the imposition of fees and charges, the proportionality of fees and charges for 
trading transactions and on their publication and a dvance information on new fees and charges.  There 
was  nothing particularly innovatory about the proposal.  It only reflected ideas that had already been circulated in the NG.  The EC considered it useful  to add to the WTO Rules Book those clarifications 
and improvements on the question of fees and ch arges, which were still a major concern and 
preoccupation for traders around the world. TN/TF/M/13 
Page 4  
 
  18. The representative of Hong Kong, China (HKC), as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/94
, said that 
HKC was one of the proponents to support clarifyi ng and improving GATT Articles VIII  and X on 
fees and charges.  HKC's ideas in that regard was contained in document TN/TF/W/31.  The intention 
of the current short paper was to collaborate w ith Members with similar proposals and, more 
importantly, to stimulate and facilitate discussions by  all WTO Members.  The paper was very much a 
working document and by no means final.  There were some areas requiring further discussions and 
elaboration.  It would be improved when mo re comments and suggestions were received. 
19. The representative of Switzerland  introduced submission TN/TF/W/85, recalling that the 
discussions on trade facilitation in the WTO did not take place in a vacuum.  The importance of trade facilitation had been recognized in the early stages of  global trade and technical work on TF had been 
ongoing for over half a century.  The GATT, the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), 
the International Civil Aviation Organization and th e International Road Transport Union had been 
the first international organizations to start important  work in 1947.  Other international organizations 
(International Maritime Organization, World Cust oms Organization etc.) had quickly joined that 
movement. Those activities were responses to the demands made by the International trading 
community and their operators. 
20. In the context of TF, it was not only important to recognize the work done by other 
specialized organizations but also to acknowledge th e practical importance of international standards 
in global trade.  Members had discussed the issu e already in the Negotiating Group.  Switzerland 
wished to just recall three aspects:   (i) International standards reflected some common view of the 
majority of members on TF issues.  Switzerland’s research had shown that WTO Members were 
represented in the vast majority of relevant intern ational organizations.  It was essential that one did 
not reinvent the wheel in the NG; (ii) Small- a nd medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) would benefit 
most from complying with only one standard instead of complying with many different ones;  (iii) 
The electronic environment in which traders operate d naturally "imposed" the use of international 
standards, namely with regards to trade documents. 
21. The proposals made so far on international st andards as well as the discussions Members had 
had in the NG had mainly focused on four areas of pa rticular interest for the use of international 
standards.  Those were:  national/regional import, export and transit procedures;  the alignment of 
national/regional trade document formats such as th e UN Layout Key or UNeDocs;  the alignment of 
national/regional data elements in trade documents;  the electronic exchange of trade data by using for 
instance the UN/EDIFACT. 
22. The proponents of the present paper had identif ied the need to also engage in broader 
discussion on how to draw on work done by internati onal organizations and to integrate international 
standards in the WTO work on TF.  As for methodol ogy, there would seem to be three approaches.  
The level of specificity in respect of concrete standards depended on the choice of approach.  One 
approach was a general obligation to use internati onal standards where they existed with some limited 
exceptions.  Those exceptions could either be decided in the Agreement itself or at national level, but 
in the latter case, some guidance had to be gi ven concerning the use of exceptions.  A second 
approach could be a reference to the relevant international organizatio ns that had developed 
international standards such as Standards develope d based on the UN Layout Key.  A third possibility 
was a reference to provisions in other internationa l Agreements.  In that case, a mechanism should 
deal with obsolete and new standards.  It was impo rtant to acknowledge two things in that context.  
First, the proponents did not think that those three approaches were mutually exclusive.  A 
combination of them might be feasible.  Second, ad opting that approach did not mean in any case that 
any WTO Member had to become a signatory to an y of those international treaties, even though 
Switzerland would of course encourage that.  Finall y, Switzerland was ready to engage in a discussion 
on the pros and cons of various op tions and looked forward to heari ng the views of other Members on 
the issue of international standards which it believed to be key to the TF negotiations.    TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 5 
 
 
  23. The representative of Korea, as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/85 , fully supported the basic ideas 
contained in the paper.  The use of the WCO Data Model should be incorporated as a reference at a 
later stage because that model greatly enhanced the harmonization and standardization of customs 
data requirements.  Under that model, the names and definitions of data requirements required by 
customs authorities would be harmonized to eliminate ambiguity for traders.  It would also enable a 
seamless data flow between exportin g and importing countries.  Therefore, rather than simply listing 
the conventions of international or ganizations, stating specific intern ational standards could be more 
meaningful.  Concerning the level of commitment, ther e were three options suggested in this paper.  
Clearly, Korea shared the same view that the three options were not mutually exclusive. At the same 
time, Korea had some preference for the second form  like the one applied with respect to the SPS 
Agreement, which stipulated specific internationa l agreements for reference while maintaining the 
general principles to adopt.  But Korea was of c ourse open to other opti ons which depended on the 
provisions, if necessary.  
24. The representative of Switzerland  presented submission TN/TF/W/92, explaining that it was  
based on the contributions by various countries su ch as Japan, Mongolia, Chin ese Taipei, Peru, Korea, 
EU, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland.  It w as also based on the written questions by Egypt and 
India and had taken on board the general discussion th at had taken place in the NG.  The paper dealt 
with two measures that aimed at reducing the admi nistrative burdens of traders: the acceptance of 
copies of originals and of information contai ned in commercial documents such as business-to- 
business information, invoices, bills of lading and the like.  Before entering into discussions on 
whether copies should be accepted instead of original s, the first thing to do was that customs should 
only require those documents which were really necessary to permit control.   
25. On the question of acceptance of copies instead of  originals, the key issue to be addressed was 
the legitimate requirement by customs to take measur es that limited fraudulent actions by traders.  To 
do that, originals were sometimes indispensable, but there were situations where originals were not 
necessary to ensure the proper function of customs.   Switzerland had identified two situations where 
copies could be accepted.  One was commercial docum ents such as invoices, bills of lading and the 
like.  The second situation related to instances wh ere government agencies already held originals and 
where multiple government authorities were involved.   Of course, customs could always call for 
originals if they had reason to do so. 
26. The paper also dealt with electronically launc hed documents which had been authenticated 
through customs by electronic signatures or proced ures.  In that case, the electronic document was 
deemed to be the original.   
27. On the acceptance of commercially available in formation, customs and other border agencies 
should be able to forego certain information, namely  on supporting documents available in the context 
of commercial transactions.  That could be done when the supporting documents and the 
commercially available information were clearly established and the information was presented.   
28. India had made the interesting observati on about whether the requirement to accept 
commercially available information would not undermine the effort of using standardized documents.  
As a proponent of the idea of basing trade documen ts on international standards such as the UN 
Layout Key, it was certainly not Switzerland’s inte ntion to undermine those efforts.  It was not 
unusual that information was required, namely on supporting documents that were used for cross-
checking but that did not represent the core informat ion required.  In those cases, information on the 
bill of lading or invoices, should suffice.   
29. The paper finally introduced two issues that had not extensively been discussed yet.  The first 
was to allow, if appropriate, for certain supporting documents not to be presented to customs, such as 
in the case of a dangerous goods declaration being just  mentioned with a reference number.  In some TN/TF/M/13 
Page 6  
 
  cases, customs had access to international data ba nks where they could check that number and get 
hold of the originally deposited certification.  Of c ourse, traders had to hold this information available 
to customs.  The second issue was that a translation of the partic ular supporting documents should not 
be required, except when necessary,  to process the goods declaration. 
30. Switzerland acknowledged that the issue of accep ting commercially available information and 
of copies was very technical, because one had to  draw the line between measures to reduce the 
administrative burdens of traders and those to preven t fraud in the case of copies, and also draw the 
fine line between measures to reduce administrative bur dens of traders and customs efficiency.  That 
was why further discussion would be necessary to ensu re that this fine line was properly drawn.  
Switzerland would continue to work on the submi ssion with the proponents a nd was happy to engage 
in discussions with any delegation. 
31. The representative of Korea
 introduced a Non-Paper on the introduction of a Single 
Window/One-Time Submission on behalf of all co -sponsors.  A number of Members, including 
Japan, Mongolia, Chinese Taipei, Peru, Turkey, EC , Chile, Canada, Singapor e, Thailand and Egypt, 
had already submitted proposals on the issue of Single Window.  The main purpose of a Single 
Window was to allow traders to lodge required info rmation and documents with a single entry point 
on a one –time basis.  That would clearly reduce ad ministrative burdens and costs for traders.  What 
Korea had listed in the present paper as key elem ents were the elements that constituted a 
fundamental and common part of establishing a single window/one-time submission based on prior proposals.  More complicated issues that required further clarification through discussions among Members were presented as “elements for further discussion”. 
32. Korea had identified three key elements from Me mbers’ prior work.  The first was that the 
fundamental mechanism of a single window in itself was that all documents and data requirements for 
exportation and importation were subm itted one time only to a single entry point and distributed to all 
relevant authorities.  The second was the coordi nation among the relevant authorities, which was 
prerequisite for effective implemen tation and possible introduction of information technology.  Third, 
Korea presented the use of high-tech informati on and communication technology as something that 
was not a pre-condition for single window, although one could expect enhanced trade facilitation if 
information and communication technology was introduced. 
33. Another part of the paper presented seven elemen ts which were suggested to require further 
clarification.  Of the seven, the last three were re lated to the so-called cross-cutting issues, which were 
built-in flexibilities, SDT, and TA&CB.  In that cont ext, Korea would like to draw Members' attention 
to one of the suggested flexibilities, a phase-in approach for implementation from normal customs 
procedures to progressive extension to more specific ones.   
34. Other elements requiring further discussion were (i) the use of international standards, for 
example UNCEFACT, the WCO Revised Kyoto Convention or the IMO Convention; (ii) a single point of decision-making for the release of cargo; (iii) the means of achieving a single window 
submission environment, including the option of using electronic forms; and (iv) notifying a single 
window through the Secretariat to Members.  The proposal was not a final one.  Korea was looking for Members' active discussions and input on tho se elements which needed further discussions.  
35. The representative of Singapore, as a co-sponsor of the Non-Paper
, was pleased to know that 
there had been many constructive proposals on Si ngle Window to date from both developed and 
developing countries.  Based on the discussions in the Negotiating Group so far, there was general 
acceptance that the introduction of Single Window  with documentation and data requirements for 
exportation and importation being  submitted one-time only to a single entry point and distributed to 
all the relevant authorities, could bring significant be nefits to traders by minimizing the incidence and  TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 7 
 
 
  complexity of import and export formalities and in decreasing and simplifying import and export 
documentation requirements. 
36. Bearing in mind Ministers' instructions to the NG in Hong Kong and in an effort to take the 
negotiations forward, the paper identified a wo rking definition of a Single Window and common 
elements in the various proposals in the Single Win dow to date.  The paper highlighted that a Single 
Window did not necessarily imply implementation and use of high tech information and 
communication technology, although facilitation could be enhanced if  relevant ICT technologies were 
identified and adopted.  From Singapore's own experience in implementing Single Window, 
Singapore recognized that its implementation was an  ambitious and resource- intensive undertaking.  
Flexibilities, SDT and TA&CB woul d be essential components of an y commitment in that area.  
Singapore believed that any implementation of a Single Window would have to take into account each 
Member's unique requirements and conditions a nd should take place through a progressive phase-in 
approach.  For developing countries and LDCs, there could be SDT in the form of longer 
implementation time, temporary exemptions and partial application of commitments, which was 
highlighted in the paper.  With regard to TA&CB,  assistance could be provided in identifying specific 
needs and priorities, human resources training, and by building up coordination capacity between 
agencies. 
37. The representative of Japan, as a co-sponsor of the Non-Paper , said that the concept of Single 
Window/One-Time Submission was not new to th e WTO Agreements.  The Agreement on Import 
Licensing Procedures already stipulated the idea of  a one-time submission in its Article 1.6.  
38. The representative of the European Communities  presented submission TN/TF/W/90, saying 
that it represented a shortened and simplified form of a proposal the EC  had made in the past.  Among 
other things, the EC considered it to be an importa nt outcome to the negotiations to see an end to the 
use of pre-shipment inspection (PSI) systems for o fficial purposes.  Twenty years ago, PSI systems 
had been introduced to substitute for non-functioning or poorly f unctioning customs administrations 
in a small number of countries.  Sometimes, they ha d been introduced as part of an overall set of IMF 
or other loan conditionalities.  When PSI practices and systems were introduced into certain countries 
they had been intended to be of a temporary natu re.  The countries using PSI should have had some 
kind of exit strategy for the use of PSI.  Secondly, th ere had been the intention to have some form of 
progressive strengthening or building-up of the custom  administrations so that they would have been 
able at a given point in time to replace the PSI pr ovider, and for the PSI system to be eliminated. 
39. Unfortunately, the reality was that many PSI comp anies seem to be there to stay.  Clearly, PSI 
companies had no obvious economic interest in prom oting their own abolition.  Members had to take 
a position on that question in the WTO, given that  PSI was intended to be a temporary fix, pending 
the building-up of f unctioning customs.  The proposal was to  see the progressive elimination of PSI 
for official purposes, subject to parallel support in  terms of TA to build-up the capacity of local 
customs administrations where it was lacking.  No t only did some WTO Members still use PSI, but 
there were also one or two countries in the process of accession to the WTO who were using PSI or 
on the verge of doing so.  That would have rather da maging effects on trade interests.  It was also for 
that reason that it was important to foresee the elim ination of PSI for official purposes, coupled with 
the requisite development aid to build-up customs where that was necessary. 
40. The representative of the European Communities  presented submission TN/TF/W/88, noting 
that it was a very brief and self-explanatory paper.  The EC did not see any rationale for the practice 
of  mandatory use of customs brokers to carry out  customs release and clearance procedures on behalf 
of importers, as it was a reality in a few countries.  The market should be left more to itself to deal with that.  Traders themselves should have the unfe ttered right if they wished to carry out all the 
procedures necessary to process consi gnments to deal with import or export declarations and traders 
should not have to be required under the laws of a country to channel their work through customs TN/TF/M/13 
Page 8  
 
  brokers.  It was a simple proposal that would be of great interest to many companies, large and small, 
around the world. 
41. The representative of Uganda
 introduced submission TN/TF/W/86 on consularization, 
thanking its co-sponsors for the assistance with mainst reaming that very important issue.  Uganda was 
also thankful to delegations who had introduced other proposals, most of which were a clarification of 
previous submissions.  Uganda further appreciated the approach proposed by the Chair that would 
give Members more time for discussion.  The informal mode helped Members to have more focused discussions.  Uganda was also thankful to other Members for the continued engagement and support 
they had shown for Uganda’s proposal TN/TF/W/22 on the requirements for consularization within 
the context of Article VIII of GATT.   
42. Most of Uganda’s traders who participated in  exportation, fell in the SME category.  They 
operated on low budgets and could not afford to meet unnecessary requirements such as those 
envisaged under consularization.  Having to fulfil such requirements inflated their production costs, 
and rendered their products  uncompetitive, thus putting them out of business. 
43. It was along the same rationale that Uganda would like to seize the opportunity to spell out its 
expectations regarding that commitment to the Negot iating Group in clearer terms.  It was a necessary 
next step for the negotiations, particularly as Me mbers prepared to move to a text-based stage. 
44. In a nutshell, Uganda, and the co-sponsors of th e proposal called for a prohibition of requiring 
consular transactions.  It was proposed that th ere should be no consular transactions, including 
consularization-related fees and charges, required in connection with impor tation or exportation of 
goods, as the case might be. 
45. It was further proposed that documentation of goods intended for export, should not, as a 
condition of exportation, be subject to inspection, re view, supervision, certification or approval of any 
kind, by the consul or representative thereof, or be  subject to any fee or charge related to such 
processes. 
46. For purposes of clarity, the paper also provided a definition for a "consular transaction" also 
known as "consularization" or "legalization" as th e requirement that goods intended for export to a 
Member must first be submitted to the supervisi on or certification by the consul, or representative 
thereof, of the importing Member in the territory  of the exporting Member, for the purpose of 
obtaining consular invoices or consular visas for commercial invoices, manifests, shippers' export declarations or consul "verification" of othe r elements of customs documentation required in 
connection with importation or export ation such as valuation or origin. 
47. In order to avoid circumvention, it was proposed that any wording eventually adopted 
prevented such an outcome particularly in cases where Members might simply appoint an agent, 
possibly in a third country, charged with similar functions of consularization.  An example could be where a Member required that goods for importation or exportation must be "consularized" in a territory other than of the exporting Member, su ch as by an Embassy that served a number of 
countries. 
48. True to the spirit of these negotiations, the proposal  also stressed the need to clearly define 
elements of SDT, including the need for TA&CB following individual needs assessments.  Uganda 
hoped that its communication assisted Members in better understanding the proposal and once again called on their support for the suggestion contained therein.  
49. The representative of the United States, as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/86
, noted the 
commonality of interest, particularly with regard to small enterprises.  Much of Members’ work  TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 9 
 
 
  related to that.  It was a situation small ente rprises both in Uganda and the United States were 
particularly affected by.   
50. The representative of Switzerland  announced her delegation’s in tention to co-sponsor the 
submission.  Switzerland recommended de legations to look at the definiti on of consularization.  It was 
important to know the precise coverage of the pr oposal.  The definition given in TN/TF/W/86 made 
clear that one did not talk about all consular fees.  It did not include non trade-related areas but merely 
covered trade facilitation issues.   
51. The representative of Canada  introduced document TN/TF/W/83, explaining that it was an 
attempt to consolidate previous proposals.  Basical ly, there were three proposals that had been made 
on the matter, by Canada, by Peru, and by the EC .  There was also a very useful paper submitted 
earlier by Norway sharing its national experience, a very concrete example of how border agency 
coordination could work.  What had been done in the case of the present paper was to work together 
with partners to outline elements of what could constitute principles for border agency coordination.   
52. The first aspect in terms of facilitating trade w as that it was important that all authorities and 
agencies involved in border or in import and export c ontrols to facilitate trade encouraged cooperation 
and coordination.  But beyond that cooperation in th e work of those authorities, another important 
element was to promote compatible import and expo rt data and documentation requirements of those 
agencies involved in border controls. 
53. Another important aspect of border agency coordination related to the promotion of the 
convergence of controls to a one stop shop, with a view to establishing, to as great an extent as 
possible, a single location for one-time documentary physical verification of consignments by all 
these agencies.  It had some commonalities with a Single Window.  It was a convergence towards the 
objective of a Single Window without necessarily requiring the establishment of a Single Window.  It was important to consider that there was a way to come very close to a Single Window without 
actually setting up a Single Window.  It was a location where one could do almost all processing in a very timely fashion by moving from one window to another.  Technically speaking, it was not a 
Single Window, but it was getting very close to it. 
54. The last point the sponsors of the proposal were identifying in  those elements was to stress 
the fact that when talking about border agency co ordination, the efforts of coordination could take 
place on one side of the border, but they could e ffectively also take place across the border.  The 
sponsors of the proposal had their own experience in that regard.  Canada, sharing a very long border 
with a major trading power south of its border with ve ry significant daily flow of trade had found it to 
really ease trade if one coordinated, to the extent possible, the activities across the border, even in co-
location.  That was another element the sponsors of the proposal would suggest Members to envisage in the context of the negotiations to have the possibility of developing commitments that would 
encourage and promote coordination among agencies both on one side of the border and across the 
border. 
55. The sponsors of the proposal had indicated that they were open to consider a variety of 
options in terms of SDT as well as TA&CB.  The au thors of the paper were talking about principles or 
good regulatory practices.  In order to implemen t commitments in that area it was less the IT 
equipment or infrastructure that was needed.  Rather , it was often an adjustment in the mindset of the 
authorities and agencies involved in border controls.  Canada looked forward to further discussing the 
proposal.  
56. The representative of New Zealand, as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/83
, said that the proposal 
highlighted the importance of overall coordination,  implementation and monitoring of future trade 
facilitation measures.  Like Canada, New Zealand be lieved that the principles in the proposal might TN/TF/M/13 
Page 10  
 
  also be relevant to other measures which required su ch border agency coordination, in particular the 
Single Window/One-time submission of trade documentation and enquiry points proposals. 
57. The representative of Japan
 introduced a Non-Paper on Pre-a rrival Processing, noting that it 
was also authored by the EC, Korea, New Zealand,  Switzerland, and Chinese Taipei.  The regime was 
well known as one of the effective trade facilitatio n measures and had already been adopted by a 
number of developed and developing  Members because it was easy to implement by using existing 
facilities and resources.  It could be also applie d to various trade procedures other than customs 
procedures.  The Non-Paper elaborated the basic con cepts of pre-arrival processing and introduced the 
key elements which were drawn from existing proposals by Members.  It also identified the elements that needed further discussions among Members. 
58. In the normal procedure, importers were require d to submit an import declaration to customs 
after cargoes arrived, even if they had all the n ecessary documents and information beforehand.  To 
handle such situation with certain flexibility, pre-arrival processing regimes had been widely 
introduced. It was a function allowing traders to  submit import documentation and other required 
information before the arrival of goods so that customs and other relevant border agencies could 
conduct documentary examination in advance.  In cases where it was decided that no further 
examination was required, goods might be  released immediately upon arrival. 
59. Pre-arrival processing could expedite the rele ase of goods while reserving the right of the 
authorities to conduct further examination where ne cessary and while maintaining appropriate border 
control with the use of the risk management concep t.  The benefits of the regime had been widely 
recognized in relevant intern ational organizations.  For example, the WCO Revised Kyoto 
Convention required customs to introduce the regime.  Japan believed that it was beneficial to draw 
on such relevant international st andards and practices as a basis for the regime.  Japan had introduced 
the regime in 1991.  In 2004, usage rate of th e regime was 28 per cent for sea cargoes and 54.8 per 
cent for air cargoes.  According to the time release su rvey, the average time of release with the use of 
the regime was 30 per cent less than  without the use of the regime. 
60. Regarding the implementation costs of the regi me, since it merely required to change the 
timing of an import declaration submission, it coul d be implemented by using existing facilities and 
resources.  The use of IT was not a pre-condition.  Therefore, it should not incur substantial costs. 
61. While Japan believed that the regime could be introduced at a minimal cost burden, Japan 
shared the concerns over the implementation capacity  of some Members who had not yet adopted the 
regime.  Therefore, SDT, including progressive implementation of commitments and TA to assess the 
situation and to identify individu al specific needs and priorities we re the elements identified for 
further addressing.  In addition, Japan had been providing TA to developing-country officials in the area of customs procedures, including pre-arriva l processing and was willing to continue this.  
62. The representative of Switzerland, as a co-sponsor of the Non-Paper
, recalled the previously 
raised question concerning legitimate objectives.  On that issue, which was addressed by the proposal 
in section (b), second bullet, Switzerland saw "the u se of international standards as a basis for pre-
arrival processing".  There might be some cases wher e one could deviate from that like circumstances 
where Articles XX or XXI of the GATT would apply. 
63. The representative of the European Communities  confirmed his delegation’s intention to co-
sponsor the document.  Pre-arrival processing was a major facilitation measure which did not in itself 
require automation or any sophisticated use of IT.    
64. The representative of Pakistan  said that his delegation wished to be added to the list of co-
sponsors of the Non-Paper.   TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 11 
 
 
  65. The representative of the United States  introduced proposal TN/TF/W/91, explaining that it 
was a streamlined version of an earlier proposal.  The US had also attempted to make one addition.  A 
workshop had been conducted by the United States with regard to its proposal pertaining to 
commitments regarding express shipments, where it ha d become clear that there had to be a greater 
understanding that what the US was proposing was not some sort of special gift, but an arrangement 
almost in terms of a contract.  The US had attemp ted to capture that in the second bullet which spoke 
of the creation of a mutually acceptable arrangement  with provided for adequate infrastructure, 
financial security and advance information in return  for the procedures the US was talking about in 
the context of the present proposal.  
66. The US was cognisant that the proposal was perh aps more complicated than others.  On the 
other hand, there was an extraordinary opportuni ty presented through its implementation.  Small 
businesses utilized it and it was increasingly important  to creating a manufacturing base.  Express 
shipments had also been shown to advance or wo rk around infrastructure difficulties.  For all those 
reasons, the US intended to conduct another worksh op, which would be announced.  The US wished 
to advance the discussions on the proposal, whic h was simply a tool to advance the work. 
67. The representative of Korea  introduced a Non-Paper on Risk  Management.   A number of 
Members had already taken a great interest in the t opic.  As an introduction and to deepen Members’ 
understanding on risk management, it should be recalled that, according to the WCO Risk Management Guide, risk management referred to the systematic application of management 
procedures and practices providing customs and other relevant border agencies with the necessary 
information to address movements or consignments  which presented a risk.  That clarified the 
fundamental concept and mechanism of risk manageme nt.  The document also described that the main 
purpose of risk management was for border agencies  to achieve trade facilitation while maintaining 
appropriate border controls. 
68. Korea had identified three common elements of risk management from Members' proposals.  
First, the establishment of a differentiated inspection mechanism based on the risk level.  It meant to 
concentrate on examination of high-risk of goods and facilitate the movement of low-risk goods in 
order to achieve the best allocation of limited r esources and maximum benefits.  Secondly, Members 
were encouraged to use international standard s and practices as a basis for risk management 
procedures except for legitimate objectives pursued.  Third, it was specified that risk management 
should not be used as a disguised discrimination and obstacle to trade. 
69. The paper also identified elements for further discussion, such as (i) the scope of customs and 
other data for analyzing risks, what kind of data  could be used in each category (classification, 
valuation, origin of goods etc.); (ii) continued m onitoring/revision of risk profiles, since there was 
always the possibility of a change in their nature, level or significance.  One had to adopt new risk 
profile and to analyze and monitor those change d conditions in order to achieve the maximum 
effectiveness of risk management system; (iii) SDT and TA.  Risk management, in principle, did not 
necessary entail huge costs to Members for implemen tation.  However, Korea, to some extent, 
recognized that some Members might need TA&CB to implement.  That could be discussed further.  
Korea welcomed any comments or questions from Members to the paper. 
70. The representative of the European Communities
 introduced document TN/TF/W/87, saying 
that Article VIII of the GATT recognized the desi rability of reducing the incidence of import and 
export formalities but gave no guidance as to how that might be done and did not require it to be done.  
Like many others, the proposal was aimed at ma king a particular provision of Article VIII more 
operational.  The EC was of the view that author ized trader arrangements were extremely valuable 
and important facilitation measures because such arrangements achieved the objectives of better 
security and border controls and be tter facilitation measures.  The EC shared the view expressed by 
China that authorized trader systems or arrangeme nts formed increasingly an important component of TN/TF/M/13 
Page 12  
 
  countries' overall risk management approach.  Many Members, although not all, at various levels of 
development, had begun to introduce authorized trad er systems and measures to the point that one 
could now see them in several LDCs.  The Revi sed WCO Kyoto Convention recognized the concept 
of authorized traders as a valuable trade fac ilitation measure in one of its new standards. 
71. What the EC meant by authorized trader  systems was, with some variations and new answers, 
the common feature of an arrangement to pr ovide additional trade facilitation measures for 
companies, for traders who were compliant and had a good track record of compliance with customs requirements.  Such systems rewarded compliance by , for example, providing for faster release of 
goods, reduced levels of physical inspection by the customs or perhaps the right to pay customs duties 
periodically rather than on a consignment-by-cons ignment basis. Those were obviously benefits for 
trade for honest compliant traders.  Authorized  trader systems were also a value to customs 
administrations themselves because they reduced th e need for physical intervention by the customs on 
individual shipments and allowed that customs concentrated their inevitably sparse resources on 
controlling high risk shipments within the framewo rk of an overall risk management strategy. 
72. Authorized trader programmes were beneficial for trade, saved customs resources and 
improved border protection and physical security.  Th e specific proposal that the EC and the other co-
sponsors were putting forward was that each WTO Member would make a commitment to introduce over time an authorized trader mechanism.  The EC ag reed that that would take time and that capacity 
building would be essential for some small developi ng countries to implement these arrangements.  
Not all authorized trader systems could, or should, be identical.  The scope of them, the criteria for 
eligibility of traders and the actual kinds of additi onal facilitation given to authorized traders would 
differ from Member to Member.  It was not feasible to try to harmonize these across the board.   That 
was not being proposed.  Rather, the EC proposed the establishment through a WTO provision of some minimum basic features that should be common to all Members' authorized trader systems.  
And, in that respect, it would be feasible to indicat e the very basic types of additional facilitation that 
would be granted to authorized traders.  Four su ch facilitation measures were mentioned in the paper 
itself, namely more rapid release of goods, a lower incidence of physical inspections, facilitations with 
regard to the way of paying the duty, and simplified documentation a nd data requirements. 
73. A second element of the proposal was that Me mbers would commit to ensure that, when 
introducing authorized trader arrangements, th e eligibility criteria were fair, neutral, non-
discriminatory and were transparent and published. Any company capable of demonstrating its ability 
to comply with those objective criteria should be el igible.  The EC would not want to see a situation 
where Members established authorized trader systems whose criteria were such to effectively exclude 
for example all small- and medium-sized companies.  That was not the objective of the systems.  The 
EC would like to see a basic criteria in the provision s to ensure that compan ies irrespective of their 
size, origin and the like, would be able to appl y on fair terms for an authorized trader status. 
74. To some extent, the concept of an authorized trader system could deal with one issue and 
concern raised earlier, notably on the question of  express shipments and the interest of express 
carriers.  One way to satisfy the particular trad e needs of the express sector was through authorized 
trader systems.  That was perhaps one element worth considering.  At the previous meeting, the Indian 
delegation made a proposal on a number of issues, in cluding the proposal that within a customs union, 
authorized traders recognized by one member of th e customs union should be recognized by the other 
members of that customs union.  Obviously, that w as an issue which would be particularly relevant 
for the EC.  The EC was currently discussing legi slation in the Council on exactly that issue. 
Therefore, the EC could, in principle, approach the Indian proposal in a positive light. 
75. The representative of Canada
 presented document TN/TF/W/84, saying that it had been tabled 
in an effort to consolidate previous proposals that had been made on the separation of release from 
clearance.  It contained also proposals on other m easures to simplify release and clearance.  The main  TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 13 
 
 
  idea of the proposals was to provide a mechanis m for the release of goods in cases where custom 
matters such as the determination of tariff classi fication, or origin were still in question.  The 
proposals did not deny customs authorities the right  to inspect goods for reasons such as ensuring 
compliance with health and safety requirements, with sanitary and phytosanitary standards, the 
prevention of contraband, the fight against drug trafficking, and the like.  The legitimate rights of 
customs were fully safeguarded.  What the sponsors of the proposal were trying to do was to find 
ways that could further facilitate the expeditious release of goods. 
76. The paper was structured in two parts.  The fi rst part was based on proposals that had been 
initially submitted by the EC, Australia, Canada, the US and Peru.  The current proposal was that, 
subject to the prescribed documents being presented, a guarantee of some kind (it could take the form 
of a security or other forms such as cash, certified checks, etc. could be provided by the trader to 
allow for the release of goods.  The second part su ggested some other measures to simplify release 
and clearance.  They were based on proposals that  had been submitted by Chinese Taipei, Korea, 
Peru, the EC, and jointly by China and Korea.  Delegates could see that there were other ideas in 
terms of how one could, for example, make use of  a mechanism for release of goods with post release,  
reconciliation of documents or duties payable, how one could help trade or allow traders to make 
periodical declarations or duty payment as opposed to separate duty payment on each transaction, and to allow traders to have clearance procedures comple ted at their premises, subject to conditions based 
on risk management and to resource constraints. 
77. For all those proposals, the paper indicated a va riety of options in terms of SDT and TA&CB 
that Canada would be open to consider. They c ould include transition periods and TA&CB based on 
needs assessment.  Canada looked forward to further discussions on that set of proposals. 
78. The representative of Switzerland, as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/84
,  wished to make a link to 
the submission previously discussed.  The second bullet of the document's section on "other measures 
to simplify release and clearance", offered typical ex amples of treatment that authorized traders could 
receive.  That might be useful fo r delegations to take into account. 
79. The representative of Paraguay  presented document TN/TF/W/81, recalling that since the 
beginning of its work, the NGTF had generated mo re than 80 different communications.  Large and 
small delegations from all parts of the globe ha d contributed to the negotiating process.  The 
characteristic dynamism of the TF negotiations cons tituted a concrete sign of  the general importance 
attributed to trade facilitation and the desire on the part of all Members to arrive at a very satisfactory and balanced agreement in that area.   
80. For that to be possible, it was necessary to have a package of measures and SDT that would 
make it possible for developing countries and LDCs to  draw maximum benefits from the results of the 
negotiations.  But at the same time, they should not have to take on board obligations that weakened 
capacities.  In the absence of  such SDT, a lot of countries would be reluctant to negotiate obligations 
as they wanted to avoid repeating the error of taking on board commitmen ts that exceeded their 
possibilities.  
81. Annex D offered the basis for the creation of an innovative architecture that allowed every 
Member, independent from its level of development, to improve the structures to support its trade and 
allowed it to benefit from TF measures enacted by ot her countries as well.  In order to stimulate the 
discussion on how one could operationalize the inte rrelationship between the various elements in 
Annex D, and to direct work towards construc ting just, realistic and balanced S&DT, 18 Latin 
American countries had presented document TN/TF/W/41.   Some of the co-sponsors of that document 
had also authored the new submission, which d eepened the treatment of the ideas contained in 
TN/TF/W/41 and at the same time proposed an SDT mechanism for developing and LDC countries in 
the area of trade facilitation. TN/TF/M/13 
Page 14  
 
  82. The process that gave rise to the presentation of document TN/TF/W/81 had involved a 
number of long working sessions and discussions and a lot of brainstorming by more than 10 delegations.  The resulting communication was based on a lot of thinking, but was not a definitive 
answer to the question of how to deal with the qu estion of SDT within the fra mework of the result of 
the negotiations.  It should be interpreted as work in progress, open to any idea capable of improving 
it.  The sponsors wanted to see the NG continue d ealing with the theme in a focused way while also 
looking at new pathways. 
83. Document TN/TF/W/81 was broken down into four chapters.  In the first chapter, the 
sponsors looked at some preliminary considerations .  The second chapter looked at the aim of the 
proposal.  Chapter three dealt with the SDT mechanis m that could be applied within the framework of 
the negotiations on a step-by-step basis.  In chap ter four, the sponsors looked at some preliminary 
text, seeking to exemplify the way in which the prop osal could take shape in a number of operational 
disciplines in the area of SDT.  The inclusion of th e last chapter was meant to satisfy the Ministers’ 
mandate to move into text-based negotia tions in all areas of the negotiation. 
84. TN/TF/W/81 also contained some annexes in order to facilitate the understanding of the 
various themes looked at in the document.  Th e proposed mechanism encompassed four different 
stages:  (i) self-assessment of capacity; (ii) notifica tion; (iii) capacity development/ building;  and (iv) 
measurement of the obtaining of further capacity.  The proposal was based on the premise that the 
capacity of a Member would determine the vari ous commitments it could take on within the 
framework of the upcoming agreement on trade facilitation.  Each Member would only become 
committed commensurably with this capacity.  It was going to be necessary to measure the capacity in 
the light of the various obligations.  The self-assess ment would be carried out before the entry into 
force of the agreement.   
85. The sponsors of the document wanted to see to it that Members did not take on more 
responsibilities than they could actually handle. Once the self-assessment had been carried out before 
the entry into force of the agreement, every deve loping Member and every LDC would then notify the 
WTO the obligation it would not be able to take on until the capacity was there.  They would also  
notify the various obligations that would be complie d with within a time-frame that would be set out 
in the notification.  The obligations that a Member did not include in its notification would be binding 
starting from the entry into force of the agreement.  The commitments that were taken on board within 
a time-frame would become mandatory as of that time.   In order for Members to take on their further 
responsibilities, Members would develop plans for cap acity building.  Those plans and projects could 
be executed thanks to the backing of international,  regional and other bodies providing support.  The  
focal points of those plans must also be notified to the WTO.  Once the information plans had been 
implemented, there would have to be a verification mechanism that would be part and parcel of the 
project so as to make it possible to assess the capaci ty of the Member.  That mechanism would be 
formed by the receiving Member, the donor and the executing body. 
86. If it was seen that a Member had the capac ity to assimilate further commitments, a 
notification should be made to the WTO.  From th e date of the notification, the Member would be 
obliged to comply with that obligation within three years after the entering into force of the 
agreement.  Members that were not able to subm it their plans for capacity building to comply with 
one or several obligations would communicate that to  the supervisory body of the agreement.  That 
body would then make the necessary arrangements fo r those Members to obtain the necessary backing 
or support.  The notification that would be ma de by Members within that framework would be 
published on the Members' website of the WTO.  Th e purpose of the exercise w as transparency in the 
application of the agreement and to make it possible for people to be aware of the state of advancement of the various measures. Members s hould be able to develop the capacity necessary to 
take on further commitments in the framework of the agreement.  TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 15 
 
 
  87. The paper did not set out all structures and f unctions related to the proposed mechanism in 
detail.  While it was a necessary topic of discussi on, the sponsors had decided to first focus on 
constructing a mechanism and then look at the va rious details once the negotiations had reached a 
sufficient point of advancement.  As mentioned by  the United States at the last session, nobody would 
be dealing with the question of SDT if not Me mbers themselves. Members had to work on it on a 
factual basis.  The present proposal could provide th at basis.  The authors hoped for Members to draw 
a maximum benefit from it and to put in place the va rious schemes for rules that could be positive for 
everyone. 
88. The representative of Chile, as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/81 ,  associated his delegation with 
the statement by Paraguay.  Chile wished to ta ke the opportunity to express the reasons for co-
sponsoring the document.  Chile had been a demandeur  in trade facilitation long before the 
negotiations had begun, and had a st rong interest in seeing an ambitious outcome in the area.  Chile  
had interest and expectations to try to take on a ll of the obligations derived from the negotiations and 
obviously wished to see most other WTO Members, both developed and devel oping, take on most of 
these obligations from the very beginning as well.   At the same time, Chile was aware of the 
difficulties many developing countries had in implementing all obligations they wished  to take on in 
the negotiations.  That reality had been recognize d by Ministers in the Hong Kong Declaration.   
Consequently, Chile, together with a group of de veloping countries from the region, was proposing a 
procedure which sought to take those difficulties in to account and tried to enable developing countries 
to participate more pro-actively in the negotiations. 
89. Chile was not talking at the moment about the specific aspects of the procedures which 
Paraguay referred to, but would simply like to stress that the proposal was a very serious attempt, and 
a very valuable one, to contribute to the discussi ons in the NG.  The co-sponsors of the document 
were all Latin American countries, but it was perfec tly possible to apply the procedures to realities in 
other regions and other developing countries.  Chile hoped to have good discussions on the proposal 
and that one could learn from the comments of ot her Members, both developed and developing.  
90. The representative of Honduras, as a co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/81 , associated his delegation 
with the paper and supported the statement made by Paraguay.  The Nego tiating Group had a mandate 
from Ministers on the issue of SDT.  Members had to be creative and get good results on the matter 
and the paper intended to do that.  It included id eas which could be improved and perfected by the 
Membership. 
91. The representative of China  introduced submission TN/TF/W/82, saying that, when 
negotiating multilateral rules, the traditional roadmap was usually the negotiation of rules as the first 
step, followed by the settlement of relevant issues  with regard to implementation.  However, the 
negotiations on trade facilitation were somewhat diff erent from other negotiations in that the result of 
trade facilitation negotiations might be technically more complicated to implement.  Given their 
limited resources and comparatively low levels of development, one of the major concerns of some 
developing Members was that the commitments th ey had to undertake might be well beyond their 
implementation capability and that the promised technical assistance and capacity building support might not be sufficient to meet their needs.  In add ition, they might be confronted with the prospect of 
dispute settlement cases for not honouring their commitments.  
92. Based on those observations, China, India, Pa kistan and Sri Lanka submitted the proposal 
TN/TF/W/82 on the process of trade facilitation nego tiations.  In view of the concerns described, 
rather than struggling through the negotiating pr ocess, the sponsors proposed to take up those 
concerns and solve relevant issues in parallel w ith the rule drafting process so as to lay a good 
foundation for text-based negotiations.  Those issues were basically the ones Members had to address 
in the establishment of all trade facilitation rules.  They were (i) the arrangement of commitments for 
developing Members, (ii) the provision of techni cal assistance and capacity building support, and (iii) TN/TF/M/13 
Page 16  
 
  the applicability of the dispute settlement mechanis m.  The basic idea was that since they were 
tangible issues that gave deep impact on the decisions to be taken by Members during the negotiations, Members would have to deal with them sooner or later.  It might be better to face up to 
them now rather than later to make the decision-making effort smoother and easier.  Of course, it was up to the Negotiating Group to decide as to when to  take them up.  The proposal was submitted to flag 
the issues. 
93. Proposal TN/TF/W/82 also illustrated some po ssible options to solve the three issues 
described.  However, as stated in the paper, tho se were just ideas to give Members some food for 
thought during the work process.  It was without pr ejudice to any new options that might be identified 
in the future and to the position of any Members on a specific option.  According to a Chinese saying, 
one had to "throw out a brick to attract a jade".  Others might come up with valuable opinions.  China 
would be more than happy if the proposal could serve to  be such a "brick".  It was believed that with 
concerted efforts of the NG, Members would finally come up with a result of the negotiations that was 
beneficial to all Members.  China welcomed co mments from other Members and would be happy to 
discuss them further.  
94. The representative of India, as a co-sponsor TN/TF/W/82
, supported China's statement and 
wished to reiterate that the objective was not to be  overly prescriptive.  It was suggested, as an option, 
for Members to identify commitments for which th ey would require longer implementation periods, 
or technical assistance, or both.  Additionally, ther e could be different levels  of standard to which a 
Member committed.  For instance, publication of Rules and Procedures could be done in different 
ways such as via Internet, official gazettes, newspa pers, or even circulation through trade associations 
etc., depending upon what constituted the most e ffective means of communicating the information. 
95. Similarly, Members could have different levels of risk management or different standards for 
measuring cargo clearance time.  India hoped that the proposal would also help in focusing the need 
for technical assistance.  Another objective was an attempt to suggest a less onerous and legalistic 
dispute settlement mechanism.  The suggested mechan ism was also hoped to be useful in other areas 
of the negotiations, such as non-tariff barriers. 
96. The representative of Pakistan, as co-sponsor of TN/TF/W/82 , wished to compliment China's 
introduction by sharing the thinking which had gone into the preparatory stages of the proposal. 
97. It was an admitted fact that the WTO Member ship offered a diverse landscape.  That was 
equally true for different Members' different le vels of implementation capacity.  Some Members 
might be resource starved to reach a level in trad e facilitation they would like to achieve.  Various 
Members had shared their concerns regarding SDT fo r the proposed measures.  It was against that 
background that the paper proposed a "modular" appro ach for commitments.  The intention was clear.  
The sponsors would like that every Member had to  contribute, but proportionate with its ground 
realities and capacity to implement.  The "basic mo dule" would contain those elements which could 
be implemented by all Members as "the least common denominator".  That module comprised the 
majority of the proposed measures.  The other modules could be opted -n by  Members who had the 
capacity to implement.  Others, however, could link it to the provision of TA&CB.  The intention of 
the proponents was not to shy away from the commitmen ts, but to take a considered decision before 
making a commitment so that it was transparent a nd predictable and successfully implemented at the 
promised time.  What was proposed was that all Me mbers had the same finishing point, but a different 
starting point.   
98. While the submission proposed a modular appro ach for different measures, it also had in 
mind different levels within the same measure, a c oncept which had been termed as "temporary partial 
application of commitments" by Australia, Canada, and the US in their proposal TN/TF/W/80.  He 
wished to mention two areas: in the context of a dvance rulings, tariff classification could be in one  TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 17 
 
 
  module, valuation in the other, and drawback in ye t another.  Similarly, in case of publication, the 
publication in the official gazette could be done in  one module and Internet publication in another.  
The publication of Trade Law and Procedure and Cu stoms law and procedure could be in one module 
whereas the publication of administrative and judici al decisions could be in another.  The objective 
was to commit what could be implemented fully and in a timely manner. 
99. Annex D provided that developing countries shall not be required to implement those 
measures for which they lacked implementation capacity .  China's, India's, Pakistan's and Sri Lanka's 
proposal was not intended to reinforce that aspect.  Rather, the proposal sought to improve implementation capacities that could lead to commitments and their implementation.   Those who had 
the resources must try to build such capacities.  Pa kistan appreciated the sens itivities attached to this 
issue, including the sovereignty in decision-making to pick a country by the donor itself.  Even for 
international financial institutions, there were certain working procedures.  It was not suggested to  
circumvent them.  The sponsors were also clear that the WTO was not a development agency and did 
not have sufficient human resources to deliver such an important and sensitive task.  Pakistan just 
wished to flag this issue so  that Members could discuss it wh ile working towards text-based 
negotiations, lest it was said that Members collectiv ely failed to take on the responsibility which could 
have improved the trading disciplines of the world. 
100. The application of the DSU to any future agreemen t was another issue to be flagged.  Pakistan 
was convinced that the DSU provided the "security and predictability" to all WTO Agreements.  The 
issue was flagged to avoid negative implicati ons on the negotiating process and the congenial 
atmosphere Members had created during the last one and a half years.  If any such discussion could 
provide comfort to delegates to come on board, Pakistan would appreciate that.  It was up to the 
Membership to discuss details further.  But all of  those issues had to be discussed, as ignoring them 
could act as a disincentive.  Pakistan wanted to move forward, but also wanted to take every one 
along, especially those who were comparatively less privileged. 
101. The representative of Zambia, speaking on behalf of the LDCs
, said that as Members were 
aware, the negotiations on trade facilitation were launched on the premise that their outcome would 
provide developmental bene fits for developing countries, especially the LDCs.  These developmental 
benefits were supposed to be achie ved through the clarification and improvement of the provisions of 
GATT Articles V, VIII  and X, as one pillar of the negotiating mandate, and, as the other pillar, the 
provision of adequate TA&CB s upport to developing and least-developed countries before, during 
and after the negotiations.  
102. In carrying out these tasks, an appropriate bala nce must be properly sought – one that took 
into account the needs of LDCs with respect to such TA&CB before, and during the negotiations so 
that they could effectively participate and negotiate and also to ensure that the development objectives 
of the negotiations were met.  This implied that during the negotiations  and before text-based 
negotiations got under way, assistance-focused TA&CB support must, at the very least, be adequately 
provided to those Members that needed it.  
103. Members could not, therefore, expect those Members who had not identified their trade 
facilitation needs or priorities due to institutional or domestic capacity constraints to sufficiently 
comprehend the complexities and implications of the negotiations and participate on an informed 
basis.  The urgency of providing this assistance was very clear. 
104. Furthermore, despite submissions from the ACP Group in document TN/TF/W/73 and the 
African Group in documents TN/TF/W/33 and TN /TF/W/56, among others, on how the mandate of 
this important issue, that was clearly stipulated in Annex D of the July Framework, could be made 
operational, there had been little or no positive movement  in this area.  That was rather unfortunate 
because, securing effective and adequate TA&CB in the course of the negotiations and in the TN/TF/M/13 
Page 18  
 
  implementation phase after the negotiations (i.e. implementation-related TA&CB) was an essential 
element in the negotiations. 
105. The recently circulated text-oriented proposals by some Members seemed to indicate that the 
negotiations were now entering the drafting of new ru les or obligations with regard to GATT Articles 
V, VIII and X.  It was the view of the ACP Group th at this move might be premature because the cost 
implications of proposed measures had not yet b een fully assessed.  Moreover, the general lack of 
commitment to provide adequate and timely TA &CB support would make it difficult for LDCs and 
other developing countries to benefit from the outcome of such negotiation. 
106. The Chairman
 moved the meeting back into formal mode  and asked whether there was any 
item a delegation wished to raise for the record. Time  would also be given at this stage for reactions 
on earlier proposals from the last meeting.   
107. The representative of India  commented on several proposals previously made. 
108. With respect to TN/TF/W/79 by Armenia, Canada, EC, Japan, the Kyrgyz Republic, 
Mongolia, New Zealand, Paraguay, and the Republic of Moldova, India welcomed the comprehensive 
proposal on Article V. India recognized that it ha d many positive features and supported them. India 
had raised a few concerns on some aspects of the pa per, such as the principle of non-discrimination 
during the last meeting and had a few more observati ons on the submission.  The first one related to 
the proposal to publish ‘justification and basis’ fo r fees and charges as well as for laws, regulations, 
requirement and procedures concerning transit. It w as not clear to India how that commitment could 
be fulfilled. India also felt that such a requireme nt would be onerous. Furt hermore, India sought a 
clarification that the commitment to publish fees and charges would be limited only to government 
charges.  
109. The second observation related to the proposal under the heading reduction/simplification of 
formalities. India sought a clarification regarding the second tiret of the proposal concerning use of 
commercially available information, documents and da ta, including as part of a transit declaration. 
Did the proposal seek to introduce a principle that a goods declaration for transit could be substituted 
by a commercial document, in cases where it had all th e relevant details? India would have difficulty 
in agreeing to such a proposition. In India's unders tanding, filing of a trans it declaration should be a 
mandatory requirement and could not be substituted by commercial documents of the operator. 
However, India agreed with the principle that the details of the declarati on should be drawn from the 
commercial documents. India also had a reservation under the third tiret, namely, adoption of a Single 
Window for traffic in transit. That was a resource intensive requirement. Also, its value was not so 
obvious as minimal agencies were involved in  clearance of goods under transit.  
110. The third observation related to the bullet ‘P romotion of regional transit agreements or 
arrangements’. India supported the principle of prom oting bilateral and regional transit arrangements 
and felt that Members would be bound to act accordi ng to such arrangements. Hence, India felt that 
the additional proposal under that bullet, namely , “Members shall not enforce unilateral rules 
affecting traffic in transit which were not in accordance with the bilateral or regional transit 
agreements or arrangements in which they partic ipate”, was superfluous and should be deleted. 
111. The fourth observation related to the bullet under ‘simplified treatment’. In India's experience, 
transit procedures were very simp lified and rarely needed detailed intervention of customs authorities 
at the points of transit. Hence, India did not feel  the need to have a mandatory commitment for all 
Members to provide for a system of extending authorized trader status. India instead suggested that 
the establishment of an authorized trad er status scheme could be considered where necessary.   TN/TF/M/13 
 Page 19 
 
 
  112. The fifth observation related to the bullet d ealing with ‘Bonded transport regime and 
guarantees.’ India sought clarification of the term ‘customs debt.’ In India's understanding, it should 
also include the notion of fines and penalties that could potentially be levied in case the conditions of 
transit were not fulfilled, in cluding diversion of goods en route . Hence a system of fixation of the 
amount of bond and guarantee had to recognize the principle that this could be inclusive of the 
elements of fine and penalty. In India's understanding, this would c onstitute part of what had been 
referred to in the proposal as ‘customs debt.’  India looked forward to hearing the proponents 
understanding on this issue. 
113. The sixth observation related to the bullet dea ling with Freedom of Transit and routes most 
convenient for international trans it. India had consistently expressed  its reservation regarding giving 
the traders the right to choose the route most conveni ent for international transit. India felt that this 
would alter the fundamental balance currently provided under Article V:2 which recognized that 
“there shall be freedom of transit throug h the territory of each contracting party, via the routes most 
convenient for international transit …”  The most convenient route had to be chosen in consultation 
between transit giving and transit receiving countri es by taking into account considerations such as 
infrastructure, adequate control points, etc. Indi a had serious reservations in altering this balance 
completely in favour of the operator. However, I ndia was willing to recognize the principle that an 
operator could have the freedom to choose between those routes which had been mutually agreed 
between transit giving and transit receiving countries as international transit routes.  
114. The seventh observation related to the same bullet and concerned the proposal that “no 
distinction shall be made which was based on the choi ce of means of transport, the flag of vessels, ..” 
India had earlier presented examples under which treat ment between means of transport could be 
different based on how secure a mode of transpor t was – such as a closed train wagon and an open 
truck. Similarly, risk to revenue could be bette r covered when transport was through a government-
owned transport system (such as railways) and thr ough private means (such as trucks). On account of 
the considerations, India suggested that one shou ld qualify this proposal at the end with the phrase 
“except what was reasonable to safeguard leg itimate public interest and public revenue.” 
115. With respect to proposal TN/TF/W/70 by Chile , India had made certain observations during 
the February 2006 meeting. India had two additional ob servations on this paper.  The first related to 
Section IV concerning the proposal on a webpag e. Chile had proposed several elements for 
publication on a webpage. Amongst them, India had a reservation on the suggestion to publish rulings 
on customs related issues on the web site. As India had pointed out earlier, a large number of judicial 
rulings were issued by various judicial fora su ch as the Tribunals, High Courts and the Supreme 
Court. These were easily available in the public domain through private publications. It would be 
onerous and resource intensive to also publish all the rulings on the website. India therefore suggested 
to look at a more liberal transparency requirement for publication of rulings. Furthermore, India did not understand the difference between ‘documents ’ and ‘formats’ suggested for publication on the 
web page. 
116. The second observation related to the proposal on confidentiality under paragraph 10. The 
proposal seemed to suggest establishing a register specifying circumstances under which trade-related 
regulations would be kept confidential. India wa s not very clear as to what circumstances could 
necessitate keeping a regulation confidential. In fact, a regulation could be made operational only if it 
was publicly available.  India looked forward to clarifications on all these issues.  
117. The Chairman  observed that Members had reached the end of very useful discussions.  A lot 
of ground had been covered by goi ng over the proposals.  He had seen further evidence of a refining 
of thoughts, the collation of proposals and a narro wing down and focusing on the operational side of 
commitments.  He sensed a fair degree of comfort in  the NG with respect to the types of commitments 
Members would ultimately be looking at.  That was excellent.  One had seen late starters turn into TN/TF/M/13 
Page 20  
 
  front runners with two papers on cross-cutting issues , which was remarkable.  He had not thought to 
see SDT as the first area to benefit from bottom-up text-based proposals.  It posed an interesting 
challenge to those working on the article-related papers.  He hoped that, over the coming weeks or 
months, Members would be working toge ther to surprise him further.   
118. Thanks were due to Members for having produced  so much work.  When commenting in the 
TNC about  the need to pick up the pace, he had not realized just how far ahead of him Members 
already were.  
119. The Negotiating Group took note
 of the statements made. 
B. AD HOC ATTENDANCE OF RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS , INCLUDING THE 
IMF,  OECD,  UNCTAD,  WCO  AND THE WORLD BANK, AT THE NEXT MEETING OF THE 
NEGOTIATING GROUP  
120. The Chairman  suggested inviting relevant internati onal organizations, including the IMF, 
OECD, UNCTAD, WCO and the World Bank to attend th e next formal meeting of the NG on an ad 
hoc basis, as provided for in the Work Plan. 
121. It was so agreed . 
C. OTHER BUSINESS  
122. The Chairman  addressed the issue of the Group's next meeting, recalling Members' agreement 
on holding additional sessions on 6-7 June and 24-26 July.  Judging from Members' feedback on the 
work ahead, he sensed that more time would be re quired than the meetings slotted in so far. He 
therefore proposed to have two informal inte r-sessional meetings on 11- 12 May and 10-11 July. 
Furthermore, he strongly encouraged Members to engage in discussions amongst themselves.  
123. It was so agreed . 
124. The meeting was adjourned . 
 
__________