. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  RESTRICTED 
G/MA/TAR/RS/45/Add.2 
14 December 2011  
 
(11-6473) 
Committee on Market Access Original:   Spanish 
  
 
RECTIFICATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS OF 
URUGUAY ROUND SCHEDULES 
 
Schedule LXXXVII – El Salvador 
 
Addendum 
 
  The following communication, dated 6 December 2011, is being circulated at the request of 
the delegation of El Salvador. 
 
_______________ 
 
  In connection with Schedule LXXXVII, tariff concessions and commitmen ts of El Salvador 
annexed to the GATT 1994, and in accordance with th e procedures for modification and rectification 
of Schedules of tariff concessions contained in the Decision of 26 March 1980 (BISD 27S/25), the 
Republic of El Salvador submits herewith a draft rectification for the purpose of correcting an error 
contained in the Schedule.   The involuntary technical error relates to ta riff subheading 8523.30 - Cards incorporating a 
magnetic stripe (band).  The error occurred when El Salvador submitted its schedule of commitments 
undertaken under the Information Technology Agreement (ITA).
1  The product concerned, which is 
not covered by that Agreement, was mistakenly incl uded owing to an error in the Spanish version of 
the Schedule.  This change does not alter El  Salvador's commitments under the Information 
Technology Agreement.  
 Detailed explanatory notes and a table containing  the draft rectification are reproduced in the 
appendix.  
_______________ 
  
 If no objection is notified to the Secretariat within three months from the date of this 
document, the rectifications and modifications of  Schedule LXXXVII – El Salvador will be deemed 
to be approved and will be formally certified. 
                                                      
1 It should be pointed out that this Schedule will enter into force for El Salvador once the internal 
formalities for ratification by the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador have been completed. G/MA/TAR/RS/45/Add.2 
Page 2  
 
  APPENDIX 
 
Rectification of Schedule LXXXVII – El Salvador 
  1. Explanatory note 
 
 The Information Technology Agreement (ITA)  was adopted at the Singapore Ministerial 
Conference in December 1996.  The parties to the Agreement undertook that:  (1) All products listed 
in the Declaration should be included in its acceptance;   (2) all tariff rates for such products should be 
reduced to zero;  and (3) all other customs duties a nd charges should be bound at zero also.  In this 
connection, the ITA clearly defines two ty pes of product covered by the Agreement: 
  (a) All products classified (or classifiable) with Harmonized System (1996) ("HS") 
headings listed in Attachment A to the Annex to the Declaration;  and 
 
 (b) all products specified in Attachment B to  the Annex to the Declaration, whether or 
not they are included in Attachment A. 
  A review of the said attachments clearly shows that tariff subheading 8523.30 (cards incorporating a magnetic stripe (band)) is not included in Attachment A to the Annex to the 
Declaration, nor does it correspond to any of the produc ts described in Attachment B.  In other words, 
the parties to the ITA entered into no tariff reductio n commitment in respect of cards incorporating a 
magnetic stripe (band).   Since El Salvador submitted changes to its tari ff commitments in the context of the ITA, and 
tariff item 8523.30 is not included anywhere in that Agreement, it is clear that El Salvador committed 
a technical error in submitting the schedule of commitments contained in document G/MA/TAR/RS/45.  Consequently the bound level of  this tariff item and the other concessions should 
revert to the level contained in the correspondi ng bound tariff commitments, in accordance with the 
results of the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations.  He nce, the final bound tariff rate for this tariff 
item should read 40 per cent instead of zero per cent.  The remainder of the rectification of this item 
should be read in accordance with the changes set out in Section (b) of this attachment (see below). 
  This change does not alter El Salvador's  commitments under the Information Technology 
Agreement.  2. Draft rectification of Schedule LXXXVII – El Salvador 
 
HS96 Product 
description Basic duty 
rate Bound duty 
rate Period of 
application 
From/To Initial 
negotiating 
rights Other duties 
and charges 
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 
8523.30.00 Cards 
incorporating a 
magnetic stripe 
(band)  % 40% 1995/2004   
 
 
__________