or transparency regarding the applicable measures and the uncertainty associated with the actual authorization of the services provision. An additional problem for services suppliers accessing multiple markets is the heterogeneity in regulation, the most pressing example of which is the difference in the number and types of documents required to apply for a business visa or differences in social security regulations and labor market tests in importing countries (which may be among the most burdensome regulation that importing countries resort to). Finally, these costs are accentuated by limitations on duration of stay associated with visas, which again differ by importing country, as they necessitate multiple re-applications especially in the case of frequent services suppliers.

**Table 5**

# **Trade barriers versus trade facilitation measures**

|**Trade barrier**|**Trade facilitating measure**|
|---|---|
|Labor market tests for work permits and quotas<br>on serviceproviders|Reducing costs and processing time for business<br>visa applications|
|Nationality/citizenship/permanent<br>residency<br>required for license topractice|Introducing visa on arrival|
|Foreignprofessionals required to retrain locally|Allowinge-visa or online visa applications|
|Membership in the professional association<br>closed to foreigners|Granting multiple-entry visas|

Source: Singhal (2019) There are three potential channels for lowering trade costs pertaining to MNP and facilitating Mode 4 trade. First, to completely eliminate or sufficiently reduce unnecessarily restrictive formal (explicit) barriers to Mode 4 trade. Secondly, to attenuate the prevalence of regulatory heterogeneity across countries for given sectors or activities. Thirdly, to take actions to lower compliance and administrative costs for service suppliers. A case in point is India’s waiver of visa fees for tour guides and language teachers from LDCs under the LDC Services Waiver, wherein the objective is to provide unilateral preferences to semi- and unskilled Mode 4 laborers in LDCs. While the first channel would classify as trade liberalization, channels two and three would constitute trade facilitation.

Using the data collected by the OECD for 45 countries as a part of their STRI database, Singh (2019) analyzes the nature and characteristics of services trade facilitation-related measures. Distinct from the measures _prima facie_ restrictions such as licensing systems, onerous visa requirements, or labor market tests, the OECD STRI data also includes 16 measures that relate to providing regulatory transparency for MNP. This is illustrated by discussing various attributes related to business visa applications, all of which translate into costs for service suppliers (see table 6). Singh (2019) finds that the average cost of obtaining a business visa is slightly higher at US$87 for logistics services compared to the sample average of US$84 for the countries covered by the OECD STRI database; for all the other sectors these monetary costs are lower than the sample average.

Similarly, in 2017 the average number of documents needed to obtain a business visa was 9 (the OECD average is a little higher at 10 and the non-OECD lower at 7). Nineteen of the 45 countries were found to have the number of documents required greater than the average, with Austria and France both needing the most at 16 and the UK the least at 2. At the same time, there is considerable heterogeneity in the types of documents that are required to be submitted in support of a business visa or work permit applications. The visa processing time (in number of days) in 2017 varied from as high as 32 for Canada and as low as 1 for Japan. The average for the sample was found to be 13, with the OECD average higher at 15 and the non-OECD lower at 9. Interestingly, 21 of the 45 countries (all OECD) needed 15 days on average to process a business visa, which could be a reasonable target, especially for the five countries at the top of the distribution (Canada, Turkey, Israel, Costa Rica and 13