INDONESIA – IMPORTATION OF HORTICULTURAL PRODUCTS, ANIMALS AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS REQUEST FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL BY THE UNITED STATES
Document: REQUEST FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL
Date: 15 March 2013
Document codes: WT/DS455/7
Complainant: U.S.
Respondent: Indonesia
Third parties: Australia, China, Canada, EU, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Paraguay, Thailand, Argentina, New Zealand
Dispute stage: Panel
Agreements cited: Art. X:3(a), XI:1  GATT 1994Art. 4.2  AgricultureArt. 3.2, 3.3  Import Licensing

INDONESIA – IMPORTATION OF HORTICULTURAL PRODUCTS,
ANIMALS AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS
REQUEST FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL BY THE UNITED STATES
 The following communication, dated 14 Ma rch 2013, from the delegation of the
United States to the Chairperson of the Disput e Settlement Body, is circulated pursuant to
Article 6.2 of the DSU.

 On January 10, 2013, the United States requested consultations with the Government of
Indonesia ("Indonesia") pursuant to Articles 1 and 4 of the Understanding on Rules and Procedures
Governing the Settlement of Disputes ("DSU"), Article XXII of the General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade 1994 ("GATT 1994"), Article 19 of the Agreement on Agriculture ("Agriculture
Agreement"), and Article 6 of the Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures ("Import Licensing
Agreement"), concerning certain measures imposed by Indonesia on the importation of
horticultural products, animals, and animal products. 1 The United States held consultations with
Indonesia on February 21 and 22, 2013. Those consultations unfortunately did not resolve the
dispute.

1 IMPORT LICENSING REGIME FOR HORTICULTURAL PRODUCTS
Indonesia imposes a non-automatic import licensing regime for horticultural products
pursuant to which an importer must complete multiple steps prior to importing a horticultural
product into Indonesia. These steps include, first, an importer must obtain a Horticultural Product
Import Recommendation ("RIPH") 2 certificate from the Ministry of Agriculture. When issuing the
RIPH certificate, the Ministry of Agriculture consid ers factors such as production and availability of
similar products domestically, domestic consumptio n of the product, and po tential of the imported
product to distort the market. Second, an importer must apply to receive a designation as a
Producer Importer of Horticultural Products or Registered Importer of Horticultural Products from
the Ministry of Trade. Third, for each imported product, the importer must apply to the Minister of
Trade for import license by submitting the RIPH certificate and the designation.

The United States understands that the means through which Indonesia has maintained this
licensing regime include:

 Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 13 of Year 2010 Concerning Horticulture
("Law 13");

 Regulation of the Minister of Agricu lture Number 60/Permentan/OT.140/9/2012
Concerning Recommendation on the Importation of Horticultural Products ("MOA
Regulation 60");

 Regulation of the Minister of Trad e Number 30/M-DAG/PER/5/2012 Regarding
Provisions on Import of Horticultural Products ("MOT Regulation 30");

1 WT/DS455/1.
2 Rekomendasi Impor Produk Hortikultura.

 Regulation of the Minister of Trade Numb er 60/M-DAG/PER/9/2012 Regarding Second
Amendment of Regulation of the Minister of Trade Number 30/M-DAG/PER/5/2012
Regarding Provisions on Import of Horticultural Products ("MOT Regulation 60");
as well as any amendments, replacements, related measures, and implementing measures to
date.
The United States considers that these measures are inconsistent with Indonesia's
obligations under the following provisions of th e GATT 1994, the Agriculture Agreement, and the
Import Licensing Agreement:

 Article X:3(a) of the GATT 1994, because Indonesia does not administer the import
licensing regime in a uniform, impartial, or reasonable manner.
 Article XI:1 of the GATT 1994, because the import licensing regime constitutes a
prohibition or restriction on imports, other than in the form of duties, taxes, or other
charges.
 Article 4.2 of the Agriculture Agreement, because the import licensing regime
constitutes "measures of the kind which ha ve been required to be converted into
ordinary customs duties" which Members may not maintain, resort to or revert to
under that Agreement.
 Article 3.2 of the Import Licensing Agreement, because the import licensing regime
includes non-automatic import licensing procedures that have trade-restrictive or -
distortive effects on imports additional to those caused by the imposition of any
restriction that these requirements purport to implement; because the non-automatic
import licensing procedures are broader in scope and duration than any measure they
are used to implement; and because these procedures are more administratively
burdensome than absolutely necessary to administer any such measure.
 Article 3.3 of the Import Licensing Agreem ent, because Indonesia has not published
sufficient information for other Members and traders to know the basis for granting
and/or allocating licenses.
2 IMPORT LICENSING REGIME AND QUOTAS FOR ANIMALS AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS
Indonesia imposes a non-automatic import license regime and quotas for animals and
animal products pursuant to which an importer must complete multiple steps prior to importing an
animal or animal product into Indonesia. These steps include, first, importers must receive an
Import Approval Recommendation ("RPP")
3 from the Ministry of Agriculture to import animals or
animal products. After receiving the RPP, the importer must then apply for an import license with
the Ministry of Trade. The Ministry of Trade on ly allows the importation of the product if, among
other factors, domestic production and supply of the product do not meet "demand for public
consumption at reasonable price."
4

Indonesia's government sets the quotas for animals and animal products twice a year. The
Ministry of Agriculture allocates the quotas, specifying the quantity of each animal and animal
product allocated to each importer.

The United States understands that the means through which Indonesia has maintained
these measures include:

 Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 18/2009 on Animal Husbandry and Animal
Health ("Law 18");

3 Rekomendasi Persetujuan Pemasukan.
4 MOT Regulation 24, Art. 3(2).

 Regulation of the Minister of Agricu lture Number 50/Permentan/OT.140/9/2011
Concerning Recommendation for Approval on Import of Carcasses, Meats, Edible Offals
and/or Processed Products Thereof to Indonesia Territory ("MOA Regulation 50");
 Regulation of the Minister of Trade Number 24/M-DAG/PER/9/2011 Concerning
Provisions on the Import and Export of An imal and Animal Product ("MOT Regulation
24");
as well as any amendments, replacements, related measures, and implementing measures to
date.

The United States considers that these measures are inconsistent with Indonesia's
obligations under the following provisions of th e GATT 1994, the Agriculture Agreement, and the
Import Licensing Agreement:

 Article X:3(a) of the GATT 1994, because Indonesia does not administer the import
licensing regime in a uniform, impartial, or reasonable manner.
 Article XI:1 of the GATT 1994, because the import licensing regime and the quotas
constitute a prohibition or restriction on imports, other than in the form of duties,
taxes, or other charges.
 Article 4.2 of the Agriculture Agreement, because the import licensing regime and the
quotas constitute "measures of the kind which have been required to be converted into
ordinary customs duties" which Members may not maintain, resort to or revert to
under that Agreement.
 Article 3.2 of the Import Licensing Agreement, because the import licensing regime
constitutes a non-automatic import licensing procedure and has trade-restrictive or -
distortive effects on imports additional to those caused by the imposition of any
restriction that these requirements purport to implement; because the non-automatic
import licensing procedures are broader in scope and duration than any measure they
are used to implement; and because these procedures are more administratively
burdensome than absolutely necessary to administer any such measure.
 Article 3.3 of the Import Licensing Agreem ent, because Indonesia has not published
sufficient information for other Members and traders to know the basis for granting
and/or allocating licenses.

Therefore, the United States respectfully requests, pursuant to Article 6 of the DSU, that the
Dispute Settlement Body establish a panel to examine this matter, with standard terms of
reference as set out in Article 7.1 of the DSU.