. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/TBT/N/CHE/120 
10 December 2009  
 (09-6410) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:  SWITZERLAND
  
If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):     
2. Agency responsible:  State Secretariat for Economic Affairs 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be  indicated if different from above :    
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [ X ], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:   
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicab le, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Timber and timber 
products made out of solid wood: HS 4403, 4404, 4407, 4409, 4401 (without 4401.3000), 
4402, 4406, 4408, 4418.5000 and 4418.6000 (only shingles; posts and beams made out of 
solid wood), 9401 (only seats made out of solid wood), 9403 (only furniture made out of solid wood); Products falling under the following tariff lines as long as they are made out of 
solid wood: 4414, 4416, 4417, 4419, 4420, 4421, 7009. 
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Draft ordinance of 
the Federal Council on the declaration of timber and timber products and corresponding 
implementation regulation of th e Federal Department of Ec onomic Affairs (2 documents; 
8 pages; available in German, French and Italian)     
6. Description of content:  The new ordinances provide for a duty of declaration for timber 
and timber products at the point of sale. The d eclaration includes origin (country of harvest, 
possibility to indicate more than one country or “origin unknown”) and type of wood (trade 
name must be indicated on or next to the product, it must be possible to detect the corresponding scientific name, possibility to declare “mixed wood” for derived timber 
products, possibility to indicate more than one species or genus). The scope is very limited 
in a first stage (only timber and timber products  made out of solid wood), but it shall be 
extended in the future taking into account deve lopments at the international level. Small 
enterprises with single-unit or small series productions can declare on an annual basis (based on the purchases of the previous year). Recycling products, packaging and complex 
derived wood products will not be  subject to declaration in the future. As far as composed 
products are concerned, the three heaviest pa rts (made out of different species) of these 
products must be declared.  
7. Objective and rationale, including the natu re of urgent problems where applicable:  
Information of the consumer, (SR 944.0)  G/TBT/N/CHE/120 
Page 2  
 
  8. Relevant documents:   Law of 5 October 1990 on the information of consumers   
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:      June 2010. 
  July 2011 (transitional period of 12 months). 
10. Final date for comments:  60 days from the date of notification 
11. Text available from: National enquiry point [ X], or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addresses,  if available of the other body:   And can be 
downloaded here:  
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2009/tbt/che/09_4333_00_f.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2009/tbt/che/09_4333_00_x.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2009/tbt/che/09_4333_00_x2.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2009/tbt/che/09_4333_01_f.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2009/tbt/che/09_4333_01_x.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2009/tbt/che/09_4333_01_x2.pdf