WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/COMTD/N/6/Add.4 
10 April 2008 
 
 (08-1641) 
Committee on Trade and Development Original:   English 
  
 
GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES 
 
Notification by Norway
 
 
Addendum  
 
 
 The following communication, dated 8 April 2008, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of Norway. 
 
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FURTHER IMPROVEMENTS IN NORWAY'S  
GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES (GSP) 
 
Duty-free and quota-free market access (DFQF-MA) for all goods from all the Least 
Developed Countries (LDCs) was implemented as  part of Norway's GSP from 1 July 2002.1   
On 1 January 2008 Norway implemented several changes in its GSP.  From that date the 
provision establishing DFQF-MA for all goods from  all the 50 LDCs is extended to include 
14 low-income countries that are not part of the LDC group.  This means that 64 low-income 
countries are now given DFQF-MA into Norway for all their goods.2   
The improvement of Norway's GSP from 1 Ja nuary 2008 is the result of a comprehensive 
Government review, initiated with the aim of increasing Norway's imports from the developing 
countries and in particular from the LDCs and other low-income countries.  
The review was based on a study from an independent consultant3, selected after public tender 
based on the WTO's Government Procurement Agreem ent (GPA) rules for government procurement.  
As part of the review a working group with repr esentatives from relevant ministries and directorates 
issued a report in April 2007 with fifteen r ecommendations for improvement of the GSP scheme4.  
After a public hearing of this report, including re levant institutions and civil society organisations 
                                                      
1 Norway has made four previous notifications to the WTO on its GSP (in 1995, 2000, 2001 and 2005). 
However, the implementation of DFQF-MA from 1 July 2002 was not notified at that time.  
2 The only low-income countries without LDC status th at are not included in this provision are the four 
countries with a population that is not below 75 millio n inhabitants, which is the UN population criteria for 
LDC status. 
3 Norwegian Institute of Interna tional Affairs, paper 680: "The fu ture of Norway's GSP system" 
(available in English). 
4 Report from the Ministry of Foreign Affair s: "Utviklingslandenes markedsadgang til Norge" 
(available in Norwegian only). WT/COMTD/N/6/Add.4 
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  (CSOs)
5, the Government endorsed the recommendati ons and the Parliament made necessary 
decisions as part of the State Budget for 2008. 
A basic consideration of the review was to develop a consistent GSP based on objective 
criteria for selecting the countries that are include d in the scheme as well as for differentiating 
between countries given DFQF-MA and countries give n ordinary GSP treatment.  The solution that 
was chosen was to base the GSP land list on the list of recipients of official development assistance 
(ODA) from the OECD's Development Assistance Committee (DAC).  
The Government's review led to the following decisions:    
1. The OECD's DAC list of ODA recipients shall be used as the basis for establishing the land 
list of Norway's GSP.6  
2. Based on the DAC list, 11 new countries are included in Norway's GSP from 
1 January 2008.7 
3. Countries and territories not included in the DAC list are taken out of Norway's GSP. 
4. A country entering into a free trade agreemen t (FTA) with Norway in accordance with GATT 
Article XXIV is normally taken out of Norway 's GSP when the FTA is entering into force.8 
5. DFQF-MA for all goods is extended by including 14 low income countries in addition to the 
50 LDCs, based on the DAC list.9 
6. The preference margin for ordinary GSP countri es is increased by 20 percentage points within 
the WTO minimum access quotas for agricultural products. 
7. Norway's tariff duties are zero on an MFN basis for almost all industrial goods.  However, 
tariffs remain (in the range of 5-15 per cen t) for a few textile products, and there is a 
particular exception list for these products in No rway's GSP (for the ordinary GSP countries).  
It was decided, at this stage, not to reduce further the MFN tariffs or the GSP exception list 
for textiles.10 However, the exception list has no longer effect for the 14 low income countries 
that are given DQF-MA from 1 January 2008. 
                                                      
5 Written comments from the hearing as well as other relevant documents are published in a report 
from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (available in Norwegian only). 
6 The DAC list is dividing the ODA recipients into f our groups:  least developed countries, other low 
income countries, lower middle income countries and territories, upper middle income countries and territories. 
The list is normally revised every third year.  The current list was effective from 2006. 
7 Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ky rgyz Republic, Georgia, Moldova, Tajikistan, 
Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan.  
8 An exception is being made for the five members of Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU). The 
agreement between the SACU countrie s and the EFTA countries including Norway will enter into force on 
1 May 2008.  This agreement establishes a particular li nk to Norway's GSP, where th ere are special provisions 
for Botswana and Namibia based on their former LDC status and where Lesotho receives DFQF-MA as LDC. 
9 The 14 countries are:  Cameroon, Congo (Rep.), Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Korea (Dem. Rep.), 
Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Zimbabwe.  All 
these countries have populations below 75 million inhabitants, which is one of the UN criteria for LDC status.  Four low income countries with populations above 75 million are not included. 
10 The GSP exception list for textiles was reduced in  2005, ref. notification in WT/COMTD/N/6/Add.3.  WT/COMTD/N/6/Add.4 
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  8. There is made one change in the rules of origin in Norway's GSP in order to simplify import 
procedures.11  
9. Further simplifications in the rules of origin w ill be considered in the future within the close 
cooperation with the European Union and Switzerland in this field. 
10. The two safeguard provisions of Norway's GSP as of 2007, which have never been used, are 
merged into one provision in order to simplify the system.  In the fu ture a decision by the 
Government will be necessary in orde r to use the safeguard provision. 
11. At this stage no changes are made in the GSP quotas (which are in place for some agricultural 
products). 
12. Efforts will be made to assist the GSP countri es, and in particular those countries that are 
given DFQF-MA, in meeting the requirements for GSP treatment under Norway's GSP 
system.12 
13. With the aim of increasing the use of the tr ade possibilities created by Norway's GSP there 
will be made information efforts, by improved and more accessible internet pages, printed 
material, and meetings/seminars in the LDCs and other low income countries. 
14. There will be made efforts, as part of Norway's Action Plan on Aid for Trade, to stimulate the 
use of the possibilities created by DFQF-MA.13 
15. The Government's review will be followed up by  a study, by an independent consultant, on 
possibilities and limitations for developing countries' exports to Norway.    
Further information on Norway's GSP can be f ound on the web site of the Government of 
Norway.14   
 
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11 The change implies that a factura declaration from  the exporter is accepted as a replacement for the 
ordinary certificate of origin for import value below NOK 100 000 (formerly NOK 25 000). 
12 The requirements include the provisions of current customs stamps and names of relevant authorities. 
13 Norway's Action Plan on Aid for Trade was introd uced at the WTO Global Review of Aid for Trade 
in November 2007 and is accessible on the Government's internet pages (see footnote 14).  The printed version 
is available in English and Norwegian. 
14 www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/ud , then choose "trade policy" in the menu, and afterwards "trade 
preferences for developing countries".  The web page is also accessible from the front page of WTO web site.