RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/REG80/3
19 June 2000
(00-2458)
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements Original:  English
AGREEMENT BETWEEN POLAND AND LATVIA
Communication from the Parties
The following communication has been received from the Permanent Mission of the
Republic of Poland with the respect that it be distributed to the WTO Members.
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I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE AGREEMENT
1. Membership, Dates of Signature, Ratification and Entry into Force
On 28 April 1997 the Republic of Poland and the Republic of Latvia signed the Free Trade
Agreement.  This Agreement was applied provisionally since 1 April 1998.
The Agreement was ratified by the Republic of Poland on 22 March 1999 and by the
Republic of Latvia on 30 October 1997.  The Agreement entered into force on 1 June 1999.
The Agreement was notified in WTO by the Republic of Poland on 29 September 1999
(document  WT/REG80/N/1).
2. Type of Agreement
The Agreement creates a free-trade area in conformity with the definition set out in
Article XXIV:8(b) of GATT 1994 within a period ending at the latest on 1 January, 2001.  The full
plans for the reductions to zero tariffs on substantially all the trade between the Parties are contained
in the relevant articles of the Agreement and in the relevant annexes and protocols.
3. Scope
The Free Trade Agreement provides the framework for future relations between the
Republic of Poland and the Republic of Latvia.
The Agreement covers all trade in industrial products (Chapters 25-97 of the Harmonized
System, HS), and substantially all trade in agricultural products (HS Chapters 1-24).  The products
covered are products originating in the Republic of Poland and the Republic of Latvia according to
the rules of origin laid out in the Agreement.
The agricultural products covered by the Agreement are those listed in Annexes A to E to
Protocol 2 of the Agreement.WT/REG80/3
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Article 12.2 of the Agreement provides that the Parties shall examine periodically, within the
framework of the Joint Committee, the possibilities of granting each other further concessions in trade
in agricultural products.
The Agreement also contains provisions, inter alia, on state monopolies, competition,
state-aid, government procurement, protection of intellectual property and others.
4. Trade Data
Total trade between Poland and Latvia in 1996 – 1999
(US$)
Imports from Poland to Latvia
(according to Latvian statistical data)Imports from Latvia to Poland
(according to Polish statistical data)
Total Agricultural
productsTotal Agricultural
products
1996 59,461,099 13,566,041 16,722,728 793,555
1997 87,318,147 18,248,613 19,545,598 1,033,199
1998 112,223,367 26,316,912 29,541,781 1,826,794
11 months of 1999 129,215,869 29,683,359 28,851,129 4,387,731
II. TRADE PROVISIONS
1. Import Restrictions
Industrial products
In accordance with Article 4.2 of the Agreement and as prescribed in its Protocol 1, customs
duties on all originating goods listed in HS Chapter 25-97 except those listed in Annex I to the
Agreement and those listed in Annexes A, B1, B2, C1, C2, D, E and F to Protocol 1 of the
Agreement, shall be abolished on the date of entry into force of the Agreement.
Customs duties on products listed in Annexes A and E to Protocol 1 of the Agreement were
progressively reduced by the Parties in accordance to the timetables listed in Protocol 1 of the
Agreement and finally eliminated by 1 January 1999.
Customs duties on products listed in Annexes C1 and C2 to Protocol 1 of the Agreement were
progressively reduced by the Republic of Poland in accordance to the timetables listed in Protocol 1of the Agreement and finally eliminated by 1 January 2000.
Customs duties on products listed in Annexes D and F to Protocol 1 of the Agreement shall be
progressively reduced by the Parties in accordance to the timetables listed in Protocol 1 of the
Agreement and finally eliminated by 1 January 2001.
Customs duties on products listed in Annexes B1 and B2 shall be progressively reduced by
the Republic of Poland in accordance to the timetables listed in Protocol 1 of the Agreement and
finally eliminated by 1 January 2002.
For each product the basic duty to which the successive reductions set out in the Agreement
are to be applied are the most favored nation rate of duty applicable on 1 January 1997.  However if,after entry into force of the Agreement, any tariff reduction is applied on an erga omnes  basis, inWT/REG80/3
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particular reductions resulting form the tariff agreement concluded as a result of the Uruguay Round
of multilateral trade negotiations, such reduced duties will replace the basic duties.
The Parties to the Agreement abolished, in their industrial product trade, all charges having an
effect equivalent to customs duties on imports on the date of entry into force of the Agreement.  Theprovisions concerning the prohibition and abolition of customs duties on imports also apply to
customs duties of a fiscal nature.
All quantitative restrictions on imports and measures having equivalent effect are abolished
on the date of entry into force of the Agreement except as provided for in Annex III (a limited number
of products).
Agricultural products
The Parties to the Agreement granted each other concessions specified in Protocol 2.
2. Export Restrictions
The Parties to the Agreement abolished in their trade all customs duties on exports and
charges having an equivalent effect.
All quantitative restrictions on exports and measures having equivalent effect are abolished
on the date of entry into force of this Agreement except as provided for in Annex IV (a limited
number of products).
3. Rules of Origin
The rules of origin and cooperation in customs administrative procedures are contained in
Article 16, Protocol 3 to the Agreement and Deci sions No. 1/99 and No. 2/99 of the Joint Committee
of the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Poland and the Republic of Latvia.  The rules
of origin settled in these documents are applied between the European Communities and countries
that signed the Association Agreements.  These documents contain provisions on a bilateral
cumulation of origin between the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Latvia, and the Pan-European
diagonal cumulation of origin.
The normal criteria for defining the origin of products have been retained and includes
provisions for non-originating materials that have  been sufficiently transformed to be considered
originating.  The processing requirements are list ed on product-by-product in Annex II to Protocol 3.
The rules of origin settled in Decisions are essentially based upon the existing rules contained
in the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement, traditionally considered to be the most advanced
rules in force in European preferential trade.
The "no-drawback rule" has been introduced in order to avoid circumvention of the tariffs and
to ensure that customs duties applicable to third countries are paid somewhere within the zone
(EEA/EFTA/Associated Countries).
The rules of origin are completely in line with the Common Declaration with Regard to
Preferential Rules of Origin as set out in the Final Act of the Uruguay Round.WT/REG80/3
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5. Safeguards
5.1 Balance-of-payments difficulties (Article 32)
Article 32 of the Agreement enables application of restrictive measures to protect the
balance-of-payments in accordance with the WTO rules.
5.2 Structural adjustment (Article 28)Customs duties on imports applicable in the Party introduced by structural adjustment
measures concerning infant industries, or certain sectors undergoing restructuring or facing serious
difficulties may not exceed 25 per cent ad valorem  and should maintain an element of preference.
The total value of imports of the products which are subject to these measures may not exceed
15 per cent of total imports of industrial products during the last year for which statistics are available.
5.3 General safeguards (Article 27)
Where any product is being imported in such increased quantities and under such conditions
as to cause or threaten to cause serious injury to domestic producers of like or directly competitive
products in the territory of the importing Party, or serious disturbances in any related sector of the
economy or difficulties which could bring about serious deterioration in the economic situation of a
region, the Party concerned may take appropriate measures under the conditions and in accordancewith the procedure laid down in Article 31.
5.4 Specific safeguards (Article 14)If, given the particular sensitivity of agricultural markets, imports of products originating in a
Party, which are subject of concessions granted under the Agreement, cause serious disturbances in
the market of the other Party, the Party concerned may immediately enter into consultations to find an
appropriate solution.  Pending such a solution, the Party concerned may take measures it deems
necessary.
6. Anti-dumping and Countervailing Measures
The Parties to the Agreement may take only anti-dumping measures (Article 26) in
accordance with Article VI of the GATT 1994 under conditions and in accordance with the
procedures laid down in Article 31 to the Ag reement and the WTO Agreement on Implementation of
Article VI of the GATT 1994.
7. Subsidies and State-aid
Any aid granted by a Party to the Agreement which distorts or threatens to distort competition
by favoring production of certain goods, is incompatible with the Agreement (Article 23).  These
provisions, however, do not apply to agricultural products.
8. Sector-Specific Provisions
Sector specific provisions are contained in Chapter II of the Agreement which is relevant to
agricultural products.  This chapter defines the scope of the products, the manner of exchange ofconcessions between the Parties, the use of specific safeguards, and the application of sanitary and
phytosanitary measures.WT/REG80/3
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III. GENERAL PROVISIONS OF THE AGREEMENT
1. Exceptions and Reservations
1.1 General exceptions
The Agreement does not preclude the use of prohibitions or restrictions on imports, exports or
goods in transit which are justified on the grounds of public morality, public policy or public security,
the protections of health and life of humans, animals or plants and environment, the protection of
culture, the protection of intellectual property or rules relating to gold or silver or conservation of
exhaustible natural resources, if such measures are made effective in conjunction with restrictions on
domestic production or consumption.  Such prohibitions or restrictions should not constitute a means
of arbitrary discrimination or a disguised restriction on trade between the Parties.
1.2 Security exceptionsNothing in the Agreement prevents a Party from taking any measures which it considers
necessary to prevent the disclosure of information contrary to its essential security interests and forthe protection of its essential security interests or  for the implementation of international obligations
or national policies.
4. Relations with Other Trade Agreements
The Agreement does not preclude the Parties from entering into other free trade arrangements
to the extend that these do not negatively affect the trade regime of the Parties and in particular the
provisions concerning rules of origin provided for by the Agreement.
5. Institutional Framework
The single joint body under the Agreement is Joint Committee which meets at least once a
year.  The Joint Committee is authorized to supe rvise the implementation of the Agreement and its
administration.
IV. OTHER PROVISIONS
Other provisions of the Agreement refer to the following:
Article 17:  Internal taxation - no practices or measure of an internal fiscal nature are applied
by the Parties, implying directly or indirectly  discrimination against the products of the Parties.
Article 20:  State monopolies of commercial character - existing monopolies of this nature
should be adjusted by the 1 July 1999 so that no discrimination will exist between nationals of the
Parties.
Article 22:  Rules of competition concerning undertakings - these prohibit the abuse of certain
practices and the dominant position of certain enterprises which may affect the trade between the
Parties
Article 24:  Government procurement - liberaliz ation of the government procurement markets
is an objective of the Agreement.WT/REG80/3
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Article 25:  Protection of intellectual property - should be in respect to obligations arising
from the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and other
conventions, signed by the Parties.
Article 33:  Evolutionary clause - this provision is the basis for a future deepening and
extension of coverage of the Agreement.
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