WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/BOP/N/67 
2 April 2009 
 
 (09-1660) 
Committee on Balance-of-Payments Original:   Spanish 
  
 
NOTIFICATION UNDER PARAGRAPH 9 OF THE UNDERSTANDING 
ON THE BALANCE-OF-PAYMENTS PROVISIONS OF 
THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON 
TARIFFS AND TRADE 1994 
 
Communication from Ecuador
 
   The following communication, dated 30 March 2009, is being circulated at the request of the delegation of Ecuador. 
 
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  Ecuador hereby presents an updated version of  Annex 1 of its notification concerning the 
adoption of restrictive import measures fo r balance-of-payments purposes (WT/BOP/N/65
1 and 
WT/BOP/N/65/Rev.12).  This updated version, relating to Resolution No. 466 of the Foreign Trade 
and Investment Council of Ecuador, repl aces Annex 1 of documents WT/BOP/N/65 and 
WT/BOP/N/65/Rev.1.  
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1 In English and French only. 
2 In Spanish only.  WT/BOP/N/67 
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  RESOLUTION NO. 466 
 
THE FOREIGN TRADE AND INVESTMENT COUNCIL 
 
WHEREAS: 
 
Pursuant to Article 283 of the Constitution of the Re public of Ecuador, the economic system is social 
and supportive and seeks to "guarantee the production and reproduction of material and immaterial 
conditions which allow for a good standard of livi ng", and, pursuant to Article 284, one of the 
objectives of economic policy is "to maintain eco nomic stability, meaning the maximum level of 
production and employment sustainable over time"; 
 The Republic of Ecuador, as a member of the A ndean Community (CAN), in accordance with the 
provisions of the Cartagena Agreement of 1969 and its subsequent amending Protocols, and of the 
Latin American Integration Association (LAIA), in  accordance with the provisions of the Treaty of 
Montevideo of 1980, and as a signatory party to other integration and trade agre ements and treaties, is 
required to meet its legal obligations  under these agreements and treaties; 
 The Republic of Ecuador, having been, since 1996,  a contracting party to the World Trade 
Organization (WTO), a multilateral body based on  the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 
(GATT) 1947 and subsequent ame ndments thereto, in particul ar the 1994 Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the World Trade Organization, is required to meet its obligations under these 
Agreements;  Article XVIII, Section B, of the General Agreem ent on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1947 provides that 
a contracting party to that Agreement, if experien cing balance-of-payments difficulties and needing to 
maintain the implementation of its programme of eco nomic development, may restrict the quantity or 
value of imported merchandise, provided that the import restrictions instituted do not exceed those necessary to forestall the threat of, or to stop,  a serious decline in its monetary reserves; 
 The Understanding on the Balance-of-Payments Pr ovisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs and 
Trade 1994  of the World Trade Organization (WTO) clarifies the provisions pertaining to the 
establishment of safeguards for balance-of-pay ments purposes, procedures for consultations, 
notification and documentation, a nd conclusions of consultations; 
 Decision No. 563 of the Commission of the Cartag ena Agreement, published in Official Gazette 
No. 940 of 25 June 2003 and containing the codified text of the Cartagena Agreement, provides, in 
Article 95 of Chapter XI ("Safeguard Clauses"), that member countries may adopt measures to restore 
equilibrium in their balance of paymen ts, including on an emergency basis; 
 Decision No. 389 of the Commission of the Cartag ena Agreement, published in Official Gazette 
No. 211 of 17 July 1996, establishes the Regulations governing the implementation of the balance-of-payments safeguard clause, which aut horize temporary exemption for Andean Community 
member countries from the commitments assumed unde r the liberalization programme and set forth 
the procedures for the application of th is clause to intra-subregional trade; 
 Article 1(a) of  Resolution No. 70 of the LAIA Committe e of Representatives provides for the 
application of the Regional Safeguards Regime to re store equilibrium in the balance of payments of 
LAIA member countries; 
 Executive Decree No. 592, published in the supplement to Official Journal No. 191 of 15 October 2007, includes tw o Annexes, the second of which contains a "List of Subheadings Subject WT/BOP/N/67 
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  to Tariff Deferral" and has been amended by several of the Ecuadorian government's Executive 
Decrees, instruments which constitute Ecuador 's current applied national import tariff; 
 Article 11(j) of the Foreign Trade and Investment Law (LEXI), published in Official Journal No. 82 
of 9 June 1997, authorizes the COMEXI to apply temporary safeguard measures to correct anomalous 
situations concerning imports, in accordance with  the rules and procedures of the World Trade 
Organization (WTO);  On 16 January 2009, in the Foreign Trade and Investment Council (COMEXI) meeting room, a voluntary agreement was concluded between the g overnment of the Republic of Ecuador and a 
number of representative groups of domestic importers  with a view to safeguarding the balance of 
payments.  In that agreement, the parties acknowle dged the need to restrict imports in order to 
mitigate the effects of the global crisis and its adverse impact on the domestic economy;  The Foreign Trade and Investment Council (COMEX I) in plenary session examined the Central Bank 
of Ecuador's report establishing the existence of a sev ere deficit in Ecuador's balance of payments for 
2009, a situation which requires that imports be re duced immediately by two billion one hundred and 
sixty-nine million United States dollars (US$2,169,000,000.00) in order to re-balance the external sector and preserve the macroeconomic balance need ed to maintain the adequate and sustainable 
growth of the Ecuadorian economy;  
Pursuant to Article 13 of the Foreign Trade and I nvestment Law, the Foreign Trade and Investment 
Council (COMEXI) in plenary session examined and una nimously approved the technical reports by 
the Ministry of Industry and Competitiveness (MIC) and the Ministry of Foreign Relations, Trade and 
Integration (MRECI), which recommend the adoptio n of a balance-of-payments safeguard under the 
terms established by the international trade agreem ents and conventions to which Ecuador is party; 
 
In exercise of the powers conferred on it by  the Foreign Trade and Investment Law, 
 
HEREBY DECIDES THE FOLLOWING: 
 
Article 1 .- A balance-of-payments safeguard that is of general application, non-discriminatory 
towards imports from all countries, including those with which Ecuador has existing trade agreements 
which recognize tariff preferences, and of a temporar y nature, for a period of one (1) year, is hereby 
established under the following terms:  
(a) Application of an ad valorem  surcharge, in addition to the applied national tariff, to 
imports of the goods listed in Annex I to this Resolution; 
(b) application of a specific surcharge, in a ddition to the applied national tariff, to 
imports of the goods listed in Anne x II to this Resolution;  and 
(c) establishment of quotas, thereby restricting the value of imports of goods, under the 
terms set forth in Annex III to this Resolution. 
The application of this balance-of-payments safe guard includes the establis hment of an exemption 
from the application of the Andean Community's  liberalization programme and from the tariff 
preferences agreed within the framework of the La tin American Integration Association (LAIA) and 
in the Economic Complementarity and Partial-Scope Agreements to which Ecuador is party.  Both 
this safeguard and the current national tariff shall therefore be applied to these imports. 
 
Article 2 .- The Ecuadorian Customs Corporation is respons ible for incorporating this safeguard into 
the Integrated Foreign Trade System (SICE).  WT/BOP/N/67 
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  For the purposes of the implementation of Article 1(a) and (b) of this Resolution, this safeguard shall 
apply exclusively to imports for consumption, while  in the case of Article 1(c), it shall apply to 
imports effected under any customs regime, excep t for inward-clearance formalities under previous 
customs regimes, and imports under the in-bon d assembly (maquila) and industrial warehousing 
regime. 
 
Article 3 .- With regard to the application of the quantitative restriction on imports established in 
Annex III to this Resolution, the COMEXI Executive Commission is responsible for distributing the 
relevant quotas, in accordance with the provisions of  Article XIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs 
and Trade (GATT) 1947, and for adopting any supplementary provisions required for the application 
of this safeguard. 
 Article 4 .- This safeguard shall not apply to imports  effected as relief consignments, donations from 
abroad for eligible entities, household items, goods  for use by the disabled, samples with no 
commercial value, categories A and B of the courier system, passenger luggage, and imports effected 
by any entity covered by the Law on Diploma tic Immunities, Privileges and Exemptions. 
 This exemption shall not, however, apply to imports  effected by national diplomats, imports under 
categories C, D and F of the courier system (excep t for didactic and pedagogical works), and taxable 
goods entering the country through international passenger terminals. 
 
Article 5 .- The Ministry of Industry and Competitiv eness (MIC) is responsible for the ongoing 
monitoring and assessment of the application of this safeguard and its effects on the external sector of the Ecuadorian economy, and is re quired to submit, on a quarterly basis, or more frequently if 
considered necessary, the relevant technical report to the COMEXI in plenary session for its 
consideration. 
 
In the event that the application of this safeguard fa ils to result in the contraction of trade needed to 
re-balance the external sector of the economy or leads to distortion that adversely and excessively 
affects the development of any productive activity or sector, the Ministry of Industry and Competitiveness may submit the case to the COMEXI  Executive Commission for its consideration 
and shall present a proposal for the amendment of  the respective Annex, through the adoption of a 
corresponding resolution. 
 Article 6 .- The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Integration, with the support of any external 
legal advisory services that it deems necessary to cont ract, is responsible for providing notification of 
this safeguard and for preparing and holding co nsultations and other similar mechanisms, in 
accordance with the procedures and deadlines set forth in the various international trade agreements 
and conventions to which Ecua dor is a signatory party. 
 Article 7 .- A standing Ad Hoc Group, attached to the COMEXI, comprising delegates from the 
Central Bank of Ecuador (BCE), the Ministry of Finance (MF), the Ecuadorian Customs Corporation 
(CAE), the Ministry of Economic Policy Coordinati on and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and 
Integration (MRECI), coordinated by the Ministry  of Industry and Competitiveness (MIC), is hereby 
established to support the implementation of the activ ities described in Articles 3, 5 and 6 of this 
Resolution, and shall submit regular reports on the e volution of this measure and its effects to the 
Foreign Trade and Investment Council (COMEXI) in plenary session.  
The Internal Revenue Service, the Ministry of To urism, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, 
Aquaculture and Fisheries, and any other government  body considered relevant, shall be called upon 
to participate in the standing Group where necessary.  WT/BOP/N/67 
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  This Resolution was adopted by the Foreign Tr ade and Investment Council (COMEXI) in special 
plenary session on 19 January 2009 and shall enter into force upon publication in the Official Journal. 
   
Susana Cabeza de Vaca Rubén Morán Castro 
CHAIRPERSON, COMEXI SECRETARY, COMEXI 
 
  
 
Rafael Correa Delgado 
CONSTITUTIONAL PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC 
 
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