Section 148p. 148

PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW COMPENDIUM VOLUME II

agreement

and

any

enlargement

or any significant

modification of that agreement to the Council for Trade

in Services. They shall also make available to the Council

such relevant information as may be requested by it. The

Council may establish a working party to examine such

an agreement or enlargement or modification of that

agreement and to report to the Council on its consistency

with this Article.

(b) Members which are parties to any agreement referred

to in paragraph 1 which is implemented on the basis of a

time-frame shall report periodically to the Council for

Trade in Services on its implementation. The Council may

establish a working party to examine such reports if it

deems such a working party necessary.

(c) Based on the reports of the working parties referred to

in subparagraphs (a) and (b), the Council may make

recommendations to the parties as it deems appropriate.

8. A Member which is a party to any agreement referred

to in paragraph 1 may not seek compensation for trade

benefits that may accrue to any other Member from such

agreement.

ARTICLE V bis

Labour Markets Integration Agreements

This Agreement shall not prevent any of its Members

from being a party to an agreement establishing full

integration 2 of the labour markets between or among

the parties to such an agreement, provided that such an

agreement:

(a) exempts citizens of parties to the agreement from

requirements concerning residency and work permits;

(b) is notified to the Council for Trade in Services.

ARTICLE VI

Domestic Regulation

1. In sectors where specific commitments are undertaken,

each Member shall ensure that all measures of general

application affecting trade in services are administered in

a reasonable, objective and impartial manner.

2. (a) Each Member shall maintain or institute as soon as

practicable judicial, arbitral or administrative tribunals or

procedures which provide, at the request of an affected

service supplier, for the prompt review of, and where

justified,

appropriate

remedies

for,

administrative

decisions

affecting

trade

in

services.

Where

such

procedures are not independent of the agency entrusted

with the administrative decision concerned, the Member

shall ensure that the procedures in fact provide for an

objective and impartial review.

(b) The provisions of subparagraph (a) shall not be

construed to require a Member to institute such tribunals

or procedures where this would be inconsistent with its

constitutional structure or the nature of its legal system.

3. Where authorization is required for the supply of a

service on which a specific commitment has been made,

the competent authorities of a Member shall, within a

reasonable period of time after the submission of an

application considered complete under domestic laws

and regulations, inform the applicant of the decision

concerning

the

application.

At

the

request

of

the

applicant, the competent authorities of the Member shall

provide, without undue delay, information concerning the

status of the application.

4. With a view to ensuring that measures relating to

qualification

requirements

and

procedures,

technical

standards and licensing requirements do not constitute

unnecessary barriers to trade in services, the Council for

Trade in Services shall, through appropriate bodies it may

establish,

develop

any

necessary

disciplines.

Such

disciplines shall aim to ensure that such requirements

are, inter alia :

(a) based on objective and transparent criteria, such as

competence and the ability to supply the service;

(b) not more burdensome than necessary to ensure the

quality of the service;

(c) in the case of licensing procedures, not in themselves

a restriction on the supply of the service.

5. (a) In sectors in which a Member has undertaken

specific commitments, pending the entry into force of

disciplines

developed

in

these

sectors

pursuant

to

paragraph 4, the Member shall not apply licensing and

qualification requirements and technical standards that

nullify or impair such specific commitments in a manner

which:

(i)

does

not

comply

with

the

criteria

outlined

in

subparagraphs 4(a), (b) or (c); and

(ii) could not reasonably have been expected of that

Member at the time the specific commitments in those

sectors were made.

(b) In determining whether a Member is in conformity

with the obligation under paragraph 5(a), account shall

be

taken

of

international

standards

of

relevant

international organizations 3 applied by that Member.

6. In sectors where specific commitments regarding

professional services are undertaken, each Member shall

provide

for

adequate

procedures

to

verify

the

competence of professionals of any other Member.

ARTICLE VII

Recognition

1. For the purposes of the fulfilment, in whole or in part, of

its standards or criteria for the authorization, licensing or

certification of services suppliers, and subject to the

requirements of paragraph 3, a Member may recognize

the education or experience obtained, requirements met,

or

licenses

or

certifications

granted

in

a

particular

country.

Such

recognition,

which

may

be

achieved

through harmonization or otherwise, may be based upon

an

agreement

or

arrangement

with

the

country

concerned or may be accorded autonomously.

2.

A

Member

that

is

a

party

to an agreement or

arrangement of the type referred to in paragraph 1,

whether

existing

or

future,

shall

afford

adequate

opportunity for other interested Members to negotiate

their accession to such an agreement or arrangement or

to negotiate comparable ones with it. Where a Member

accords

recognition

autonomously,

it

shall

afford

adequate

opportunity

for

any

other

Member

to

demonstrate

that

education,

experience,

licenses, or

certifications obtained or requirements met in that other

Member's territory should be recognized.

3. A Member shall not accord recognition in a manner

which

would

constitute

a

means

of

discrimination

between countries in the application of its standards or

criteria for the authorization, licensing or certification of

services suppliers, or a disguised restriction on trade in

services.

4. Each Member shall:

(a) within 12 months from the date on which the WTO

Agreement takes effect for it, inform the Council for Trade

in Services of its existing recognition measures and state

whether such measures are based on agreements or

arrangements of the type referred to in paragraph 1;

(b) promptly inform the Council for Trade in Services as

far in advance as possible of the opening of negotiations

on an agreement or arrangement of the type referred to

in paragraph 1 in order to provide adequate opportunity

to

any

other

Member

to

indicate

their

interest

in

participating in the negotiations before they enter a

substantive phase;

(c) promptly inform the Council for Trade in Services

when it adopts new recognition measures or significantly

modifies existing ones and state whether the measures

are based on an agreement or arrangement of the type

referred to in paragraph 1.

© Compiled by RGL

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