MULTILATERAL AGREEMENTS ON TRADE IN GOODS

Members hereby agree as follows: 

PART I: GENERAL PROVISIONS 


ARTICLE I Definition of a Subsidy


1.1 For the purpose of this Agreement, a subsidy shall be deemed to exist if: 

(a)(1) there is a financial contribution by a government or any public body within the territory of a Member (referred to in this Agreement as"government"), i.e. where: 

(i) a government practice involves a direct transfer of funds (e.g. grants, loans, and equity infusion), potential direct transfers of funds or liabilities (e.g. loan guarantees); 

(ii) government revenue that is otherwise due is foregone or not collected (e.g. fiscal incentives such as tax credits); 1/
FN 1 In accordance with the provisions of Article XVI of GATT 1994 (Note to Article XVI) and the provisions of Annexes I through III of this Agreement, the exemption of an exported product from duties or taxes borne by the like product when destined for domestic consumption, or the remission of such duties or taxes in amounts not in excess of those which have accrued, shall not be deemed to be a subsidy. 

(iii) a government provides goods or services other than general infrastructure, or purchases goods; 

(iv) a government makes payments to a funding mechanism, or entrusts or directs a private body to carry out one or more of the type of functions illustrated in (i) to (iii) above which would normally be vested in the government and the practice, in no real sense, differs from practices normally followed by governments; 
or
(a)(2) there is any form of income or price support in the sense of Article XVI of GATT 1994; 

and

(b) a benefit is thereby conferred. 

1.2 A subsidy as defined in paragraph 1 shall be subject to the provisions 
of Part II or shall be subject to the provisions of Part III or V only if 
such a subsidy is specific in accordance with the provisions of Article 2. 

ARTICLE 2  Specificity

2.1 In order to determine whether a subsidy, as defined in paragraph 1, is specific to an enterprise or industry or group of enterprises or industries (referred to in this Agreement as "certain enterprises") within the jurisdiction of the granting authority, the following principles shall apply:

(a) Where the granting authority, or the legislation pursuant to which the 
granting authority operates, explicitly limits access to a subsidy to 
certain enterprises, such subsidy shall be specific. 


(b) Where the granting authority, or the legislation pursuant to which the 
granting authority operates, establishes objective criteria or conditions 
2/ governing the eligibility for, and the amount of, a subsidy, 
specificity shall not exist, provided that the eligibility is automatic 
and that such criteria and conditions are strictly adhered to. The 
criteria or conditions must be clearly spelled out in law, regulation, or 
other official document, so as to be capable of verification. 

FN 2 Objective criteria or conditions, as used herein, mean criteria or 
conditions which are neutral, which do not favour certain enterprises over 
others, and which are economic in nature and horizontal in application, 
such as number of employees or size of enterprise. 
(c) If, notwithstanding any appearance of non-specificity resulting from 
the application of the principles laid down in subparagraphs (a) and (b), 
there are reasons to believe that the subsidy may in fact be specific, 
other factors may be considered. Such factors are: use of a subsidy 
programme by a limited number of certain enterprises, predominant use by 
certain enterprises, the granting of disproportionately large amounts of 
subsidy to certain enterprises, and the manner in which discretion has 
been exercised by the granting authority in the decision to grant a 
subsidy. 3/ In applying this subparagraph, account shall be taken of the 
extent of diversification of economic activities within the jurisdiction 
of the granting authority, as well as of the length of time during which 
the subsidy programme has been in operation. 



FN 3 In this regard, in particular, information on the frequency with 
which applications for a subsidy are refused or approved and the reasons 
for such decisions shall be considered. 
2.2 A subsidy which is limited to certain enterprises located within a 
designated geographical region within the jurisdiction of the granting 
authority shall be specific. It is understood that the setting or change 
of generally applicable tax rates by all levels of government entitled to 
do so shall not be deemed to be a specific subsidy for the purposes of 
this Agreement.



2.3 Any subsidy falling under the provisions of Article 3 shall be deemed 
to be specific. 



2.4 Any determination of specificity under the provisions of this Article 
shall be clearly substantiated on the basis of positive evidence. 








Part II: Prohibited Subsidies
ARTICLE 3 
Prohibition



3.1 Except as provided in the Agreement on Agriculture, the following 
subsidies, within the meaning of Article 1, shall be prohibited: 



(a) subsidies contingent, in law or in fact, 4/ whether solely or as one 
of several other conditions, upon export performance, including those 
illustrated in Annex I; 5/ 


FN 4 This standard is met when the facts demonstrate that the granting of 
a subsidy, without having been made legally contingent upon export 
performance, is in fact tied to actual or anticipated exportation or 
export earnings. The mere fact that a subsidy is granted to enterprises 
which export shall not for that reason alone be considered to be an export 
subsidy within the meaning of this provision. 
FN 5 Measures referred to in Annex I as not constituting export subsidies 
shall not be prohibited under this or any other provision of this 
Agreement. 
(b) subsidies contingent, whether solely or as one of several other 
conditions, upon the use of domestic over imported goods. 



3.2 A Member shall neither grant nor maintain subsidies referred to in 
paragraph 1. 



ARTICLE 4
Remedies 



4.1 Whenever a Member has reason to believe that a prohibited subsidy is 
being granted or maintained by another Member, such Member may request 
consultations with such other Member. 



4.2 A request for consultations under paragraph 1 shall include a 
statement of available evidence with regard to the existence and nature of 
the subsidy in question.



4.3 Upon request for consultations under paragraph 1, the Member believed 
to be granting or maintaining the subsidy in question shall enter into 
such consultations as quickly as possible. The purpose of the 
consultations shall be to clarify the facts of the situation and to arrive 
at a mutually agreed solution. 



4.4 If no mutually agreed solution has been reached within 30 days 6/ of 
the request for consultations, any Member party to such consultations may 
refer the matter to the Dispute Settlement Body ("DSB") for the immediate 
establishment of a panel, unless the DSB decides by consensus not to 
establish a panel. 



FN 6 Any time-periods mentioned in this Article may be extended by mutual 
agreement.





4.5 Upon its establishment, the panel may request the assistance of the 
Permanent Group of Experts 7/ (referred to in this Agreement as the "PGE") 
with regard to whether the measure in question is a prohibited subsidy. If 
so requested, the PGE shall immediately review the evidence with regard to 
the existence and nature of the measure in question and shall provide an 
opportunity for the Member applying or maintaining the measure to 
demonstrate that the measure in question is not a prohibited subsidy. The 
PGE shall report its conclusions to the panel within a time-limit 
determined by the panel. The PGE's conclusions on the issue of whether or 
not the measure in question is a prohibited subsidy shall be accepted by 
the panel without modification.



FN 7 As established in Article 24. 
4.6 The panel shall submit its final report to the parties to the dispute. 
The report shall be circulated to all Members within 90 days of the date 
of the composition and the establishment of the panel's terms of 
reference. 



4.7 If the measure in question is found to be a prohibited subsidy, the 
panel shall recommend that the subsidizing Member withdraw the subsidy 
without delay. In this regard, the panel shall specify in its 
recommendation the time period within which the measure must be withdrawn. 




4.8 Within 30 days of the issuance of the panel's report to all Members, 
the report shall be adopted by the DSB unless one of the parties to the 
dispute formally notifies the DSB of its decision to appeal or the DSB 
decides by consensus not to adopt the report. 



4.9 Where a panel report is appealed, the Appellate Body shall issue its 
decision within 30 days from the date when the party to the dispute 
formally notifies its intention to appeal. When the Appellate Body 
considers that it cannot provide its report within 30 days, it shall 
inform the DSB in writing of the reasons for the delay together with an 
estimate of the period within which it will submit its report. In no case 
shall the proceedings exceed 60 days. The appellate report shall be 
adopted by the DSB and unconditionally accepted by the parties to the 
dispute unless the DSB decides by consensus not to adopt the appellate 
report within 20 days following its issuance to the Members. 8/


FN 8 If a meeting of the DSB is not scheduled during this period, such a 
meeting shall be held for this purpose. 

4.10 In the event the recommendation of the DSB is not followed within the 
time-period specified by the panel, which shall commence from the date of 
adoption of the panel's report or the Appellate Body's report, the DSB 
shall grant authorization to the complaining Member to take appropriate 9/ 
countermeasures, unless the DSB decides by consensus to reject the 
request. 


FN 9 This expression is not meant to allow countermeasures that are 
disproportionate in light of the fact that the subsidies dealt with under 
these provisions are prohibited. 
4.11 In the event a party to the dispute requests arbitration under 
paragraph 6 of Article 22 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding ("DSU"), 
the arbitrator shall determine whether the countermeasures are 
appropriate.10/



FN 10 This expression is not meant to allow countermeasures that are 
disproportionate in light of the fact that the subsidies dealt with under 
these provisions are prohibited. 


4.12 For purposes of disputes conducted pursuant to this Article, except 
for time-periods specifically prescribed in this Article, time-periods 
applicable under the DSU for the conduct of such disputes shall be half 
the time prescribed therein. 


Part III: ACTIONABLE SUBSIDIES

ARTICLE 5
Adverse Effects 



No Member should cause, through the use of any subsidy referred to in 
paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 1, adverse effects to the interests of other 
Members, i.e.: 



(a) injury to the domestic industry of another Member; 11/



FN 11The term "injury to the domestic industry" is used here in the same 
sense as it is used in Part V. 
(b) nullification or impairment of benefits accruing directly or 
indirectly to other Members under GATT 1994 in particular the benefits of 
concessions bound under Article II of GATT 1994; 12/



FN 12 The term "nullification or impairment" is used in this Agreement in 
the same sense as it is used in the relevant provisions of GATT 1994, and 
the existence of such nullification or impairment shall be established in 
accordance with the practice of application of these provisions. 
(c) serious prejudice to the interests of another Member. 13/ 



FN 13The term "serious prejudice to the interests of another Member" is 
used in this Agreement in the same sense as it is used in paragraph 1 of 
Article XVI of GATT 1994, and includes threat of serious prejudice. 


This Article does not apply to subsidies maintained on agricultural 
products as provided in Article 13 of the Agreement on Agriculture.


ARTICLE 6 
Serious Prejudice 



6.1 Serious prejudice in the sense of paragraph (c) of Article 5 shall be 
deemed to exist in the case of: 



(a) the total ad valorem subsidization 14/ of a product exceeding 5 
percent; 15/




FN 14 The total ad valorem subsidization shall be calculated in accordance 
with provisions of Annex IV. 


FN 15 Since it is anticipated that civil aircraft will be subject to 
specific multilateral rules, the threshold in this subparagraph does not 
apply to civil aircraft.
(b) subsidies to cover operating losses sustained by an industry; 



(c) subsidies to cover operating losses sustained by an enterprise, other 
than one-time measures which are non-recurrent and cannot be repeated for 
that enterprise and which are given merely to provide time for the 
development of long-term solutions and to avoid acute social problems; 



(d) direct forgiveness of debt, i.e. forgiveness of government-held debt, 
and grants to cover debt repayment. 16/



FN 16 Member recognize that where royalty-based finacing for a civil 
aircraft programme is not being fully repaid due to the level of actual 
sales falling below the level of forcast sales, this does not in itself 
constitute prejudice for the purposes of this subparagraph. 
6.2 Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, serious prejudice shall 
not be found if the subsidizing Member demonstrates that the subsidy in 
question has not resulted in any of the effects enumerated in paragraph 3. 




6.3 Serious prejudice in the sense of paragraph (c) of Article 5 may arise 
in any case where one or several of the following apply: 



(a) the effect of the subsidy is to displace or impede the imports of a 
like product of another Member into the market of the subsidizing Member; 



(b) the effect of the subsidy is to displace or impede the exports of a 
like product of another Member from a third country market; 



(c) the effect of the subsidy is a significant price undercutting by the 
subsidized product as compared with the price of a like product of another 
Member in the same market or significant price suppression, price 
depression or lost sales in the same market; 



(d) the effect of the subsidy is an increase in the world market share of 
the subsidizing Member in a particular subsidized primary product or 
commodity 17/ as compared to the average share it had during the previous 
period of three years and this increase follows a consistent trend over a 
period when subsidies have been granted. 


FN 17 Unless other multilaterally agreed specific rules apply to the trade 
in the product or commodity in question. 
6.4 For the purpose of paragraph 3(b), the displacement or impeding of 
exports shall include any case in which, subject to the provisions of 
paragraph 7, it has been demonstrated that there has been a change in 
relative shares of the market to the disadvantage of the non-subsidized 
like product (over an appropriately representative period sufficient to 
demonstrate clear trends in the development of the market for the product 
concerned, which, in normal circumstances, shall be at least one year). 
"Change in relative shares of the market" shall include any of the 
following situations: (a) there is an increase in the market share of the 
subsidized product; (b) the market share of the subsidized product remains 
constant in circumstances in which, in the absence of the subsidy, it 
would have declined; (c) the market share of the subsidized product 
declines, but at a slower rate than would have been the case in the 
absence of the subsidy. 



6.5 For the purpose of paragraph 3(c), price undercutting shall include 
any case in which such price undercutting has been demonstrated through a 
comparison of prices of the subsidized product with prices of a 
non-subsidized like product supplied to the same market. The comparison 
shall be made at the same level of trade and at comparable times, due 
account being taken of any other factor affecting price comparability. 
However, if such a direct comparison is not possible, the existence of 
price undercutting may be demonstrated on the basis of export unit values. 




6.6 Each Member in the market of which serious prejudice is alleged to 
have arisen shall, subject to the provisions of paragraph 3 of Annex V, 
make available to the parties to a dispute arising under Article 7, and to 
the panel established pursuant to paragraph 4 of Article 7, all relevant 
information that can be obtained as to the changes in market shares of the 
parties to the dispute as well as concerning prices of the products 
involved. 



6.7 Displacement or impediment resulting in serious prejudice shall not 
arise under paragraph 3 where any of the following circumstances exist 18/ 
during the relevant period: 

FN 18 The fact that certain circumstances are referred to in this 
paragraph does not, in itself, confer upon them any legal status in terms 
of either GATT 1994 or this Agreement. These circumstances must not be 
isolated, sporadic or otherwise insignificant. 
(a) prohibition or restriction on exports of the like product from the 
complaining Member or on imports from the complaining Member into the 
third-country market concerned; 



(b) decision by an importing government operating a monopoly of trade or 
state trading in the product concerned to shift, for non-commercial 
reasons, imports from the complaining Member to another country or 
countries; 



(c) natural disasters, strikes, transport disruptions or other force 
majeure substantially affecting production, qualities, quantities or 
prices of the product available for export from the complaining Member; 



(d) existence of arrangements limiting exports from the complaining 
Member; 



(e) voluntary decrease in the availability for export of the product 
concerned from the complaining Member (including, inter alia, a situation 
where firms in the complaining Member have been autonomously reallocating 
exports of this product to new markets); 



(f) failure to conform to standards and other regulatory requirements in 
the importing country. 



6.8 In the absence of circumstances referred to in paragraph 7, the 
existence of serious prejudice should be determined on the basis of the 
information submitted to or obtained by the panel, including information 
submitted in accordance with the provisions of Annex V. 



6.9 This Article does not apply to subsidies maintained on agricultural 
products as provided in Article 13 of the Agreement on Agriculture. 






ARTICLE 7 
Remedies



7.1 Except as provided in Article 13 of the Agreement on Agriculture, 
whenever a Member has reason to believe that any subsidy referred to in 
Article 1, granted or maintained by another Member, results in injury to 
its domestic industry, nullification or impairment or serious prejudice, 
such Member may request consultations with such other Member. 



7.2 A request for consultations under paragraph 1 shall include a 
statement of available evidence with regard to (a) the existence and 
nature of the subsidy in question, and (b) the injury caused to the 
domestic industry, or the nullification or impairment, or serious 
prejudice19/ caused to the interests of the Member requesting 
consultations. 

FN 19 In the event that the relates to a subsidy deemed to result in 
serious prejudice in terms of paragraph 1 of Article 6, the available 
evidence of serious prejudice may be limited to the available evidence as 
to whether the conditions of paragraph 1 of Article 6 have been met or 
not.
7.3 Upon request for consultations under paragraph 1, the Member believed 
to be granting or maintaining the subsidy practice in question shall enter 
into such consultations as quickly as possible. The purpose of the 
consultations shall be to clarify the facts of the situation and to arrive 
at a mutually agreed solution. 



7.4 If consultations do not result in a mutually agreed solution within 60 
days, 20/ any Member party to such consultations may refer the matter to 
the DSB for the establishment of a panel, unless the DSB decides by 
consensus not to establish a panel. The composition of the panel and its 
terms of reference shall be established within 15 days from the date when 
it is established.


FN 20 Any time periods mentioned in this Article may be extended by mutual 
agreement.
7.5 The panel shall review the matter and shall submit its final report to 
the parties to the dispute. The report shall be circulated to all Members 
within 120 days of the date of the composition and establishment of the 
panel's terms of reference. 



7.6 Within 30 days of the issuance of the panel's report to all Members, 
the report shall be adopted by the DSB 21/ unless one of the parties to 
the dispute formally notifies the DSB of its decision to appeal or the DSB 
decides by consensus not to adopt the report. 




FN 21 If a meeting of the DSB is not scheduled during this period, such a 
meeting shall be held for this purpose. 


7.7 Where a panel report is appealed, the Appellate Body shall issue its 
decision within 60 days from the date when the party to the dispute 
formally notifies its intention to appeal. When the Appellate Body 
considers that it cannot provide its report within 60 days, it shall 
inform the DSB in writing of the reasons for the delay together with an 
estimate of the period within which it will submit its report. In no case 
shall the proceedings exceed 90 days. The appellate report shall be 
adopted by the DSB and unconditionally accepted by the parties to the 
dispute unless the DSB decides by consensus not to adopt the appellate 
report within 20 days following its issuance to the Members. 22/


FN 22 If a meeting of the DSB is not scheduled during this period, such a 
meeting shall be held for this purpose.
7.8 Where a panel report or an Appellate Body report is adopted in which 
it is determined that any subsidy has resulted in adverse effects to the 
interests of another Member within the meaning of Article 5, the Member 
granting or maintaining such subsidy shall take appropriate steps to 
remove the adverse effects or shall withdraw the subsidy. 



7.9 In the event the Member has not taken appropriate steps to remove the 
adverse effects of the subsidy or withdraw the subsidy within six months 
from the date when the DSB adopts the panel report or the Appellate Body 
report, and in the absence of agreement on compensation, the DSB shall 
grant authorization to the complaining Member to take countermeasures, 
commensurate with the degree and nature of the adverse effects determined 
to exist, unless the DSB decides by consensus to reject the request. 



7.10 In the event that a party to the dispute requests arbitration under 
paragraph 6 of Article 22 of the DSU, the arbitrator shall determine 
whether the countermeasures are commensurate with the degree and nature of 
the adverse effects determined to exist. 



PART IV: NON-ACTIONABLE SUBSIDIES
ARTICLE 8 
Identification of Non-Actionable Subsidies 



8.1 The following subsidies shall be considered as non-actionable: 23/



FN 23 It is recognized that government assistance for various purposes is 
widely provided by Members and the mere fact that such assistance may not 
qualify for non-actionable treatment under the provisions of this Article 
does not in itself restrict the ability of Members to provide such 
assistance. 
(a) subsidies which are not specific within the meaning of Article 2; 



(b) subsidies which are specific within the meaning of Article 2 but which 
meet all of the conditions provided for in paragraphs 2(a), 2(b) or 2(c) 
below. 



8.2 Notwithstanding the provisions of Parts III and V,the following 
subsidies shall be non-actionable: 



(a) assistance for research activities conducted by firms or by higher 
education or research establishments on a contract basis with firms if: 
24/, 25/, 26/
FN 24 Since it is anticipated that civil aircraft will be subject to 
specific multilateral rules, the provisions of this subparagraph do not 
apply to that product.
FN 25 Not later than 18 months after the date of entry into force if the 
WTO Agreement, the Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures 
provided for in Article 24 (referred to in this Agreement as "the 
Committee") shall review the operation of the provisions of subparagraph 
2(a) with a view to making all necessary modifications to improve the 
operation of these provision. In the consideration of possible 
modifications, the Committee shall carefully review the definitions of the 
categories set forth in this subparagraph in the light of the experience 
of Members in the operation of research programmes and the work in other 
relevant international institutions. 
FN 26 The provision of this Agreement do not apply to fundamental research 
activities independently conducted by higher education or research 
establishments. The term "fundamental research" means an enlargement of 
general scientific and technical knowledge not linked to industrial or 
commerical objectivies. 
the assistance covers 27/ not more than 75 percent of the costs of 
industrial research 28/ or 50 percent of the costs of pre-competitive 
development activity; 29/, 30/ 


FN 27 The allowable levels of non-actionable assistance referred to in 
this subparagraph shall be established by reference to the total eligible 
cost incurred over the duration of an individual project. 
FN 28 The term "industrial research" means planned search or critical 
investigation aimed at discovery of new knowledge, with the objective that 
such knowledge may be useful in developing new products, processes or 
services, or in bringing about a significant improvement to existing 
products, processes or services. 
FN 29 The term "pre-competitive development activity" means the 
translation of industrial research findings into a plan, blueprint or 
design for new, modified or improved products, processes or services 
whether intended for sale or use, including the creation of a first 
prototype which would not be capable of commercial use. It may further 
include the conceptual formulation and design of products, processes or 
services alternatives and initial demonstration or pilot projects, 
provided that these same projects cannot be converted or used for 
industrial application or commercial exploitation. It does not include 
routine or periodic alterations to existing products, production lines, 
manufacturing processes, services, and other on-going operations even 
though those alterations may represent improvements. 

FN 30 In the case of programmes which span "industrial research" and 
"pre-competitive development activity", the allowable level of 
non-actionable assistance shall not exceed the simple average of the 
allowable levels of non- actionable assistance applicable to the above two 
categories, calculated on the basis of all eligible costs as set forth in 
items (i) to (v) of this subparagraph. 
and provided that such assistance is limited exclusively to: 
(i) costs of personnel (researchers, technicians and other 
supporting staff employed exclusively in the research activity); 



(ii) costs of instruments, equipment, land and buildings used exclusively 
and permanently (except when disposed of on a commercial basis) for the 
research activity; 



(iii) costs of consultancy and equivalent services used exclusively for 
the research activity, including bought-in research, technical knowledge, 
patents, etc.; 



(iv) additional overhead costs incurred directly as a result of the 
research activity; 



(v) other running costs (such as those of materials, supplies and the 
like), incurred directly as a result of the research activity. 



(b) assistance to disadvantaged regions within the territory of a Member 
given pursuant to a general framework of regional development 31/ and 
non-specific (within the meaning of Article 2) within eligible regions 
provided that: 


FN 31 A "general framework of regional development" means that regional 
subsidy programmes are part of an internally consistent and generally 
applicable regional development policy and that regional development 
subsidies are not granted in isolated geographical points having no, or 
virtually no influence on the development of a region. 
(i) each disadvantaged region must be a clearly designated contiguous 
geographical area with a definable economic and administrative identity; 



(ii) the region is considered as disadvantaged on the basis of neutral and 
objective criteria, 32/ indicating that the region's difficulties arise 
out of more than temporary circumstances; such criteria must be clearly 
spelled out in law, regulation, or other official document, so as to be 
capable of verification; 



FN 32 "Neutral and objective criteria" means criteria which do not favour 
certain regions beyond what is appropriate for the elimination or 
reduction of regional disparities within the framework of the regional 
development policy. In this regard, regional subsidy programmes shall 
include ceilings on the amount of assistance which can be granted to each 
subsidized project. Such ceilings must be differentiated according to the 
different levels of development of assisted regions and must be expressed 
in terms of investment costs or cost of job creation. Within such 
ceilings, the distribution of assistance shall be sufficiently broad and 
even to avoid the predominant use of a subsidy by, or the granting of 
disproportionately large amounts of subsidy to, certain enterprises as 
provided for in Article 2. 
(iii) the criteria shall include a measurement of economic development 
which shall be based on at least one of the following factors: 



- one of either income per capita or household income per capita, or GDP 
per capita, which must not be above 85 percent of the average for the 
territory concerned; 



- unemployment rate, which must be at least 110 percent of the average for 
the territory concerned;as measured over a three-year period; 
such measurement, however, may be a composite one and may include other 
factors. 

(c) assistance to promote adaptation of existing facilities 33/ to new 
environmental requirements imposed by law and/or regulations which result 
in greater constraints and financial burden on firms, provided that the 
assistance: 



FN 33 The term "existing facilities" means facilities having been in 
operation for at least two years at the time when new environmental 
requirements are imposed. 
(i) is a one-time non-recurring measure; and 



(ii) is limited to 20 percent of the cost of adaptation; and 



(iii) does not cover the cost of replacing and operating the assisted 
investment, which must be fully borne by firms; and 



(iv) is directly linked to and proportionate to a firm's planned reduction 
of nuisances and pollution, and does not cover any manufacturing cost 
savings which may be achieved; and 



(v) is available to all firms which can adopt the new equipment and/or 
production processes. 



8.3 A subsidy programme for which the provisions of paragraph 2 are 
invoked shall be notified in advance of its implementation to the 
Committee in accordance with the provisions of Part VII. Any such 
notification shall be sufficiently precise to enable other Members to 
evaluate the consistency of the programme with the conditions and criteria 
provided for in the relevant provisions of paragraph 2. Members shall also 
provide the Committee with yearly updates of such notifications, in 
particular by supplying information on global expenditure for each 
programme, and on any modification of the programme. Other Members shall 
have the right to request information about individual cases of 
subsidization under a notified programme. 34/


FN 34 It is recognized that nothing in this notification provision 
requires the provision of confidential information, including confidential 
business information. 
8.4 Upon request of a Member, the Secretariat shall review a notification 
made pursuant to paragraph 3 and, where necessary, may require additional 
information from the subsidizing Member concerning the notified programme 
under review. The Secretariat shall report its findings to the Committee. 
The Committee shall, upon request, promptly review the findings of the 
Secretariat (or, if a review by the Secretariat has not been requested, 
the notification itself), with a view to determining whether the 
conditions and criteria laid down in paragraph 2 have not been met. The 
procedure provided for in this paragraph shall be completed at the latest 
at the first regular meeting of the Committee following the notification 
of a subsidy programme, provided that at least two months have elapsed 
between such notification and the regular meeting of the Committee. The 
review procedure described in this paragraph shall also apply, upon 
request, to substantial modifications of a programme notified in the 
yearly updates referred to in paragraph 3. 



8.5 Upon the request of a Member, the determination by the Committee 
referred to in paragraph 4, or a failure by the Committee to make such a 
determination, as well as the violation, in individual cases, of the 
conditions set out in a notified programme, shall be submitted to binding 
arbitration. The arbitration body shall present its conclusions to the 
Members within 120 days from the date when the matter was referred to the 
arbitration body. Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, the DSU 
shall apply to arbitrations conducted under this paragraph. 











ARTICLE 9 
Consultations and Authorized Remedies 


9.1 If, in the course of implementation of a programme referred to in 
paragraph 2 of Article 8, notwithstanding the fact that the programme is 
consistent with the criteria laid down in that paragraph, a Member has 
reasons to believe that this programme has resulted in serious adverse 
effects to the domestic industry of that Member, such as to cause damage 
which would be difficult to repair, such Member may request consultations 
with the Member granting or maintaining the subsidy. 


9.2 Upon request for consultations under paragraph 1, the Member granting 
or maintaining the subsidy programme in question shall enter into such 
consultations as quickly as possible. The purpose of the consultations 
shall be to clarify the facts of the situation and to arrive at a mutually 
acceptable solution. 


9.3 If no mutually acceptable solution has been reached in consultations 
under paragraph 2 within 60 days of the request for such consultations, 
the requesting Member may refer the matter to the Committee. 


9.4 Where a matter is referred to the Committee, the Committee shall 
immediately review the facts involved and the evidence of the effects 
referred to in paragraph 1. If the Committee determines that such effects 
exist, it may recommend to the subsidizing Member to modify this programme 
in such a way as to remove these effects. The Committee shall present its 
conclusions within 120 days from the date when the matter is referred to 
it under paragraph 3. In the event the recommendation is not followed 
within six months, the Committee shall authorize the requesting Member to 
take appropriate countermeasures commensurate with the nature and degree 
of the effects determined to exist. 





PART V: COUNTERVAILING MEASURES 


ARTICLE 10
Application of Article VI of GATT 1994 35/ 

FN 35 The provisions of Parts II or III may be invoked in parallel with 
the provisions of Part V; however, with regard to the effects of a 
particular subsidy in the domestic market of the importing Member, only 
one form of relief (either a countervailing duty, if other requirements of 
Part V are met, or a countermeasure under Articles 4 or 7) shall be 
available. The provisions of Parts III and V shall not be invoked 
regarding measures considered non-actionable in accordance with the 
provisions of Part IV. However, measures referred to in paragraph 1(a) of 
Article 8 may be investigated in order to determine whether or not they 
are specific within the meaning of Article 2. In addition, in the case of 
a subsidy referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 8 conferred pursuant to a 
programme which has not been notified in accordance with paragraph 3 of 
Article 8, the provisions of Parts III or V may be invoked, but such 
subsidy shall be treated as non-actionable if it is found to conform to 
the standards set forth in paragraph 2 of Article 8. 


Members shall take all necessary steps to ensure that the imposition of a 
countervailing duty 36/ on any product of the territory of any Member 
imported into the territory of another Member is in accordance with the 
provisions of Article VI of GATT 1994 and the terms of this Agreement. 
Countervailing duties may only be imposed pursuant to investigations 
initiated 37/ and conducted in accordance with the provisions of this 
Agreement and the Agreement on Agriculture. 
FN 36 - The term "countervailing duty" shall be understood to mean a 
special duty levied for the purpose of offsetting any subsidy bestowed 
directly or indirectly upon the manufacture, production or export of any 
merchandise, as provided for in paragraph 3 of Article VI of GATT 1994. 


FN 37 - The term "initiated" as used hereinafter means procedural action 
by which a Member formally commences an investigation as provided in 
Article 11. 





ARTICLE 11
Initiation and Subsequent Investigation 


11.1 Except as provided in paragraph 6, an investigation to determine the 
existence, degree and effect of any alleged subsidy shall be initiated 
upon a written application by or on behalf of the domestic industry. 


11.2 An application under paragraph 1 shall include sufficient evidence of 
the existence of (a) a subsidy and, if possible, its amount, (b) injury 
within the meaning of Article VI of GATT 1994 as interpreted by this 
Agreement, and (c) a causal link between the subsidized imports and the 
alleged injury. Simple assertion, unsubstantiated by relevant evidence, 
cannot be considered sufficient to meet the requirements of this 
paragraph. The application shall contain such information as is reasonably 
available to the applicant on the following: 


(i) the identity of the applicant and a description of the volume and 
value of the domestic production of the like product by the applicant. 
Where a written application is made on behalf of the domestic industry, 
the application shall identify the industry on behalf of which the 
application is made by a list of all known domestic producers of the like 
product (or associations of domestic producers of the like product) and, 
to the extent possible, a description of the volume and value of domestic 
production of the like product accounted for by such producers; 


(ii) a complete description of the allegedly subsidized product, the names 
of the country or countries of origin or export in question, the identity 
of each known exporter or foreign producer and a list of known persons 
importing the product in question; 


(iii) evidence with regard to the existence, amount and nature of the 
subsidy in question; 


(iv) evidence that alleged injury to a domestic industry is caused by 
subsidized imports through the effects of the subsidies; this evidence 
includes information on the evolution of the volume of the allegedly 
subsidized imports, the effect of these imports on prices of the like 
product in the domestic market and the consequent impact of the imports on 
the domestic industry, as demonstrated by relevant factors and indices 
having a bearing on the state of the domestic industry, such as those 
listed in paragraphs 2 and 4 of Article 15. 


11.3 The authorities shall review the accuracy and adequacy of the 
evidence provided in the application to determine whether the evidence is 
sufficient to justify the initiation of an investigation. 


11.4 An investigation shall not be initiated pursuant to paragraph 1 
unless the authorities have determined, on the basis of an examination of 
the degree of support for, or opposition to, the application expressed 38/ 
by domestic producers of the like product, that the application has been 
made by or on behalf of the domestic industry 39/ The application shall be 
considered to have been made "by or on behalf of the domestic industry" if 
it is supported by those domestic producers whose collective output 
constitutes more than 50 per cent of the total production of the like 
product produced by that portion of the domestic industry expressing 
either support for or opposition to the application. However, no 
investigation shall be initiated when domestic producers expressly 
supporting the application account for less than 25 per cent of total 
production of the like product produced by the domestic industry. 

FN 38 - In the case of fragmented industries involving an exceptionally 
large number of producers, authorities may determine support and 
opposition by using statistically valid sampling techniques. 



FN 39 - Members are aware that in the territory of certain Members 
employees of domestic producers of the like product or representatives of 
those employees may make or support an application for an investigation 
under paragraph 1. 



11.5 The authorities shall avoid, unless a decision has been made to 
initiate an investigation, any publicizing of the application for the 
initiation of an investigation. 


11.6 If, in special circumstances, the authorities concerned decide to 
initiate an investigation without having received a written application by 
or on behalf of a domestic industry for the initiation of such 
investigation, they shall proceed only if they have sufficient evidence of 
the existence of a subsidy, injury and causal link, as described in 
paragraph 2, to justify the initiation of an investigation. 


11.7 The evidence of both subsidy and injury shall be considered 
simultaneously (a) in the decision whether or not to initiate an 
investigation and (b) thereafter, during the course of the investigation, 
starting on a date not later than the earliest date on which in accordance 
with the provisions of this Agreement provisional measures may be applied. 



11.8 In cases where products are not imported directly from the country of 
origin but are exported to the importing Member from an intermediate 
country, the provisions of this Agreement shall be fully applicable and 
the transaction or transactions shall, for the purposes of this Agreement, 
be regarded as having taken place between the country of origin and the 
importing Member. 


11.9 An application under paragraph 1 shall be rejected and an 
investigation shall be terminated promptly as soon as the authorities 
concerned are satisfied that there is not sufficient evidence of either 
subsidization or of injury to justify proceeding with the case. There 
shall be immediate termination in cases where the amount of a subsidy is 
de minimis, or where the volume of subsidized imports, actual or 
potential, or the injury, is negligible. For the purpose of this 
paragraph, the amount of the subsidy shall be considered to be de minimis 
if the subsidy is less than 1 per cent ad valorem. 


11.10 An investigation shall not hinder the procedures of customs 
clearance. 


11.11 Investigations shall, except in special circumstances, be concluded 
within one year, and in no case more than 18 months, after their 
initiation. 



ARTICLE 12
Evidence 


12.1 Interested Members and all interested parties in a countervailing 
duty investigation shall be given notice of the information which the 
authorities require and ample opportunity to present in writing all 
evidence which they consider relevant in respect of the investigation in 
question. 


12.1.1 Exporters, foreign producers or interested Members receiving 
questionnaires used in a countervailing duty investigation shall be given 
at least 30 days for reply. 40/ Due consideration should be given to any 
request for an extension of the 30-day period and, upon cause shown, such 
an extension should be granted whenever practicable. 


FN 40 - As a general rule, the time-limit for exporters shall be counted 
from the date of receipt of the questionnaire, which for this purpose 
shall be deemed to have been received one week from the date on which it 
was sent to the respondent or transmitted to the appropriate diplomatic 
representatives of the exporting Member or, in the case of a separate 
customs territory Member of the WTO, an official representative of the 
exporting territory. 

12.1.2 Subject to the requirement to protect confidential information, 
evidence presented in writing by one interested Member or interested party 
shall be made available promptly to other interested Members or interested 
parties participating in the investigation. 


12.1.3 As soon as an investigation has been initiated, the authorities 
shall provide the full text of the written application received under 
paragraph 1 of Article 11 to the known exporters 41/ and to the 
authorities of the exporting Member and shall make it available, upon 
request, to other interested parties involved. Due regard shall be paid to 
the protection of confidential information, as provided for in paragraph 
4. 


FN 41 - It being understood that where the number of exporters involved is 
particularly high, the full text of the application should instead be 
provided only to the authorities of the exporting Member or to the 
relevant trade association who then should forward copies to the exporters 
concerned. 

12.2 Interested Members and interested parties also shall have the right, 
upon justification, to present information orally. Where such information 
is provided orally, the interested Members and interested parties 
subsequently shall be required to reduce such submissions to writing. Any 
decision of the investigating authorities can only be based on such 
information and arguments as were on the written record of this authority 
and which were available to interested Members and interested parties 
participating in the investigation, due account having been given to the 
need to protect confidential information. 


12.3 The authorities shall whenever practicable provide timely 
opportunities for all interested Members and interested parties to see all 
information that is relevant to the presentation of their cases, that is 
not confidential as defined in paragraph 4, and that is used by the 
authorities in a countervailing duty investigation, and to prepare 
presentations on the basis of this information. 


12.4 Any information which is by nature confidential (for example, because 
its disclosure would be of significant competitive advantage to a 
competitor or because its disclosure would have a significantly adverse 
effect upon a person supplying the information or upon a person from whom 
the supplier acquired the information), or which is provided on a 
confidential basis by parties to an investigation shall, upon good cause 
shown, be treated as such by the authorities. Such information shall not 
be disclosed without specific permission of the party submitting it. 42/ 


FN 42 - Members are aware that in the territory of certain Members 
disclosure pursuant to a narrowly-drawn protective order may be required. 
12.4.1 The authorities shall require interested Members or interested 
parties providing confidential information to furnish non-confidential 
summaries thereof. These summaries shall be in sufficient detail to permit 
a reasonable understanding of the substance of the information submitted 
in confidence. In exceptional circumstances, such Members or parties may 
indicate that such information is not susceptible of summary. In such 
exceptional circumstances, a statement of the reasons why summarization is 
not possible must be provided. 


12.4.2 If the authorities find that a request for confidentiality is not 
warranted and if the supplier of the information is either unwilling to 
make the information public or to authorize its disclosure in generalized 
or summary form, the authorities may disregard such information unless it 
can be demonstrated to their satisfaction from appropriate sources that 
the information is correct. 43/ 


FN 43 Members agree that requests for confidentiality should not be 
arbitrarily rejected. Members further agree that the investigating 
authority may request the waiving of confidentiality only regarding 
information relevant to the proceedings. 
12.5 Except in circumstances provided for in paragraph 7, the authorities 
shall during the course of an investigation satisfy themselves as to the 
accuracy of the information supplied by interested Members or interested 
parties upon which their findings are based. 


12.6 The investigating authorities may carry out investigations in the 
territory of other Members as required, provided that they have notified 
in good time the Member in question and unless that Member objects to the 
investigation. Further, the investigating authorities may carry out 
investigations on the premises of a firm and may examine the records of a 
firm if (a) the firm so agrees and (b) the Member in question is notified 
and does not object. The procedures set forth in Annex VI shall apply to 
investigations on the premises of a firm. Subject to the requirement to 
protect confidential information, the authorities shall make the results 
of any such investigations available, or shall provide disclosure thereof 
pursuant to paragraph 8, to the firms to which they pertain and may make 
such results available to the applicants. 


12.7 In cases in which any interested Member or interested party refuses 
access to, or otherwise does not provide, necessary information within a 
reasonable period or significantly impedes the investigation, preliminary 
and final determinations, affirmative or negative, may be made on the 
basis of the facts available. 


12.8 The authorities shall, before a final determination is made, inform 
all interested Members and interested parties of the essential facts under 
consideration which form the basis for the decision whether to apply 
definitive measures. Such disclosure should take place in sufficient time 
for the parties to defend their interests. 


12.9 For the purposes of this Agreement, "interested parties" shall 
include: 


(i) an exporter or foreign producer or the importer of a product subject 
to investigation, or a trade or business association a majority of the 
members of which are producers, exporters or importers of such product; 
and 


(ii) a producer of the like product in the importing Member or a trade and 
business association a majority of the members of which produce the like 
product in the territory of the importing Member. 


This list shall not preclude Members from allowing domestic or foreign 
parties other than those mentioned above to be included as interested 
parties. 


12.10 The authorities shall provide opportunities for industrial users of 
the product under investigation, and for representative consumer 
organizations in cases where the product is commonly sold at the retail 
level, to provide information which is relevant to the investigation 
regarding subsidization, injury and causality. 


12.11 The authorities shall take due account of any difficulties 
experienced by interested parties, in particular small companies, in 
supplying information requested, and shall provide any assistance 
practicable. 


12.12 The procedures set out above are not intended to prevent the 
authorities of a Member from proceeding expeditiously with regard to 
initiating an investigation, reaching preliminary or final determinations, 
whether affirmative or negative, or from applying provisional or final 
measures, in accordance with relevant provisions of this Agreement. 







ARTICLE 13 

Consultations 


13.1 As soon as possible after an application under Article 11 is 
accepted, and in any event before the initiation of any investigation, 
Members the products of which may be subject to such investigation shall 
be invited for consultations with the aim of clarifying the situation as 
to the matters referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 11 and arriving at a 
mutually agreed solution.


13.2 Furthermore, throughout the period of investigation, Members the 
products of which are the subject of the investigation shall be afforded a 
reasonable opportunity to continue consultations, with a view to 
clarifying the factual situation and to arriving at a mutually agreed 
solution. 44/ 


FN 44 - It is particularly important, in accordance with the provisions of 
this paragraph, that no affirmative determination whether preliminary or 
final be made without reasonable opportunity for consultations having been 
given. Such consultations may establish the basis for proceeding under the 
provisions of Part II, III or X. 



13.3 Without prejudice to the obligation to afford reasonable opportunity 
for consultation, these provisions regarding consultations are not 
intended to prevent the authorities of a Member from proceeding 
expeditiously with regard to initiating the investigation, reaching 
preliminary or final determinations, whether affirmative or negative, or 
from applying provisional or final measures, in accordance with the 
provisions of this Agreement. 


13.4 The Member which intends to initiate any investigation or is 
conducting such an investigation shall permit, upon request, the Member or 
Members the products of which are subject to such investigation access to 
non- confidential evidence, including the non-confidential summary of 
confidential data being used for initiating or conducting the 
investigation. 









ARTICLE 14 
Calculation of the Amount of a Subsidy in Terms of 
the Benefit to the Recipient 


For the purpose of Part V, any method used by the investigating authority 
to calculate the benefit to the recipient conferred pursuant to paragraph 
1 of Article 1 shall be provided for in the national legislation or 
implementing regulations of the Member concerned and its application to 
each particular case shall be transparent and adequately explained. 
Furthermore, any such method shall be consistent with the following 
guidelines: 


(a) government provision of equity capital shall not be considered as 
conferring a benefit, unless the investment decision can be regarded as 
inconsistent with the usual investment practice (including for the 
provision of risk capital) of private investors in the territory of that 
Member; 


(b) a loan by a government shall not be considered as conferring a 
benefit, unless there is a difference between the amount that the firm 
receiving the loan pays on the government loan and the amount the firm 
would pay on a comparable commercial loan which the firm could actually 
obtain on the market. In this case the benefit shall be the difference 
between these two amounts; 


(c) a loan guarantee by a government shall not be considered as conferring 
a benefit, unless there is a difference between the amount that the firm 
receiving the guarantee pays on a loan guaranteed by the government and 
the amount that the firm would pay on a comparable commercial loan absent 
the government guarantee. In this case the benefit shall be the difference 
between these two amounts adjusted for any differences in fees; 


(d) the provision of goods or services or purchase of goods by a 
government shall not be considered as conferring a benefit unless the 
provision is made for less than adequate remuneration, or the purchase is 
made for more than adequate remuneration. The adequacy of remuneration 
shall be determined in relation to prevailing market conditions for the 
good or service in question in the country of provision or purchase 
(including price, quality, availability, marketability, transportation and 
ther conditions of purchase or sale). 




ARTICLE 15 

Determination of Injury 45/ 




FN 45 - Under this Agreement the term "injury" shall, unless otherwise 
specified, be taken to mean material injury to a domestic industry, threat 
of material injury to a domestic industry or material retardation of the 
establishment of such an industry and shall be interpreted in accordance 
with the provisions of this Article. 




15.1 A determination of injury for purposes of Article VI of GATT 1994 
shall be based on positive evidence and involve an objective examination 
of both (a) the volume of the subsidized imports and the effect of the 
subsidized imports on prices in the domestic market for like products 46/ 
and (b) the consequent impact of these imports on the domestic producers 
of such products. 




FN 46 Throughout this Agreement the term "like product" ("produit 
similaire") shall be interpreted to mean a product which is identical, 
i.e. alike in all respects to the product under consideration, or in the 
absence of such a product, another product which, although not alike in 
all respects, has characteristics closely resembling those of the product 
under consideration. 


15.2 With regard to the volume of the subsidized imports, the 
investigating authorities shall consider whether there has been a 
significant increase in subsidized imports, either in absolute terms or 
relative to production or consumption in the importing Member. With regard 
to the effect of the subsidized imports on prices, the investigating 
authorities shall consider whether there has been a significant price 
undercutting by the subsidized imports as compared with the price of a 
like product of the importing Member, or whether the effect of such 
imports is otherwise to depress prices to a significant degree or to 
prevent price increases, which otherwise would have occurred, to a 
significant degree. No one or several of these factors can necessarily 
give decisive guidance. 


15.3 Where imports of a product from more than one country are 
simultaneously subject to countervailing duty investigations, the 
investigating authorities may cumulatively assess the effects of such 
imports only if they determine that (a) the amount of subsidization 
established in relation to the imports from each country is more than de 
minimus as defined in paragraph 9 of Article 11 and the volume of imports 
from each country is not negligible and (b) a cumulative assessment of the 
effects of the imports is appropriate in light of the conditions of 
competition between the imported products and the conditions of 
competition between the imported products and the like domestic product. 


15.4 The examination of the impact of the subsidized imports on the 
domestic industry shall include an evaluation of all relevant economic 
factors and indices having a bearing on the state of the industry, 
including actual and potential decline in output, sales, market share, 
profits, productivity, return on investments, or utilization of capacity; 
factors affecting domestic prices; actual and potential negative effects 
on cash flow, inventories, employment, wages, growth, ability to raise 
capital or investments and, in the case of agriculture, whether there has 
been an increased burden on government support programmes. This list is 
not exhaustive, nor can one or several of these factors necessarily give 
decisive guidance. 


15.5 It must be demonstrated that the subsidized imports are, through the 
effects 47/ of subsidies, causing injury within the meaning of this 
Agreement. The demonstration of a causal relationship between the 
subsidized imports and the injury to the domestic industry shall be based 
on an examination of all relevant evidence before the authorities. The 
authorities shall also examine any known factors other than the subsidized 
imports which at the same time are injuring the domestic industry, and the 
injuries caused by these other factors must not be attributed to the 
subsidized imports. Factors which may be relevant in this respect include, 
inter alia, the volumes and prices of non-subsidized imports of the 
product in question, contraction in demand or changes in the patterns of 
consumption, trade restrictive practices of and competition between the 
foreign and domestic producers, developments in technology and the export 
performance and productivity of the domestic industry.



FN 47 As set forth in paragraphs 2 and 4 



15.6 The effect of the subsidized imports shall be assessed in relation to 
the domestic production of the like product when available data permit the 
separate identification of that production on the basis of such criteria 
as the production process, producers' sales and profits. If such separate 
identification of that production is not possible, the effects of the 
subsidized imports shall be assessed by the examination of the production 
of the narrowest group or range of products, which includes the like 
product, for which the necessary information can be provided. 


15.7 A determination of a threat of material injury shall be based on 
facts and not merely on allegation, conjecture or remote possibility. The 
change in circumstances which would create a situation in which the 
subsidy would cause injury must be clearly foreseen and imminent. In 
making a determination regarding the existence of a threat of material 
injury, the investigating authorities should consider, inter alia, such 
factors as: 


(i) nature of the subsidy or subsidies in question and the trade effects 
likely to arise therefrom; 


(ii) a significant rate of increase of subsidized imports into the 
domestic market indicating the likelihood of substantially increased 
importation; 


(iii) sufficient freely disposable, or an imminent, substantial increase 
in, capacity of the exporter indicating the likelihood of substantially 
increased subsidized exports to the importing Member's market, taking into 
account the availability of other export markets to absorb any additional 
exports; 


(iv) whether imports are entering at prices that will have a significant 
depressing or suppressing effect on domestic prices, and would likely 
increase demand for further imports; and 


(v) inventories of the product being investigated. 


No one of these factors by itself can necessarily give decisive guidance 
but the totality of the factors considered must lead to the conclusion 
that further subsidized exports are imminent and that, unless protective 
action is taken, material injury would occur. 


15.8 With respect to cases where injury is threatened by subsidized 
imports, the application of countervailing measures shall be considered 
and decided with special care. 









ARTICLE 16 

Definition of Domestic Injury 




16.1 For the purposes of this Agreement, the term "domestic industry" 
shall, except as provided in paragraph 16.2, be interpreted as referring 
to the domestic producers as a whole of the like products or to those of 
them whose collective output of the products constitutes a major 
proportion of the total domestic production of those products, except that 
when producers are related 48/ to the exporters or importers or are 
themselves importers of the allegedly subsidized product or a like product 
from other countries, the term "domestic industry" may be interpreted as 
referring to the rest of the producers.


FN 48 - For the purpose of this paragraph, producers shall be deemed to be 
related to exporters or importers only if (a) one of them directly or 
indirectly controls the other; or (b) both of them are directly or 
indirectly controlled by a third person; or (c) together they directly or 
indirectly control a third person, provided that there are grounds for 
believing or suspecting that the effect of the relationship is such as to 
cause the producer concerned to behave differently from non-related 
producers. For the purpose of this paragraph, one shall be deemed to 
control another when the former is legally or operationally in a position 
to exercise restraint or direction over the latter. 



16.2. In exceptional circumstances, the territory of a Member may, for the 
production in question, be divided into two or more competitive markets 
and the producers within each market may be regarded as a separate 
industry if (a) the producers within such market sell all or almost all of 
their production of the product in question in that market, and (b) the 
demand in that market is not to any substantial degree supplied by 
producers of the product in question located elsewhere in the territory. 
In such circumstances, injury may be found to exist even where a major 
portion of the total domestic industry is not injured, provided there is a 
concentration of subsidized imports into such an isolated market and 
provided further that the subsidized imports are causing injury to the 
producers of all or almost all of the production within such market. 


16.3 When the domestic industry has been interpreted as referring to the 
producers in a certain area, i.e. a market as defined in paragraph 2, 
countervailing duties shall be levied only on the products in question 
consigned for final consumption to that area. When the constitutional law 
of the importing Member does not permit the levying of countervailing 
duties on such a basis, the importing Member may levy the countervailing 
duties without limitation only if (a) the exporters shall have been given 
an opportunity to cease exporting at subsidized prices to the area 
concerned or otherwise give assurances pursuant to Article 18, and 
adequate assurances in this regard have not been promptly given, and (b) 
such duties cannot be levied only on products of specific producers which 
supply the area in question. 


16.4 Where two or more countries have reached under the provisions of 
paragraph 8(a) of Article XXIV of GATT 1994 such a level of integration 
that they have the characteristics of a single, unified market, the 
industry in the entire area of integration shall be taken to be the 
domestic industry referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2. 


16.5 The provisions of paragraph 6 of Article 15 shall be applicable to 
this Article. 







ARTICLE 17 

Provisional Measures 


17.1 Provisional measures may be applied only if: 


(a) an investigation has been initiated in accordance with the provisions 
of Article 11, a public notice has been given to that effect and 
interested Members and interested parties have been given adequate 
opportunities to submit information and make comments; 


(b) a preliminary affirmative determination has been made that a subsidy 
exists and that there is injury to a domestic industry caused by 
subsidized imports; and 


(c) the authorities concerned judge such measures necessary to prevent 
injury being caused during the investigation. 


17.2 Provisional measures may take the form of provisional countervailing 
duties guaranteed by cash deposits or bonds equal to the amount of the 
provisionally calculated amount of subsidization. 


17.3 Provisional measures shall not be applied sooner than 60 days from 
the date of initiation of the investigation. 


17.4 The application of provisional measures shall be limited to as short 
a period as possible, not exceeding four months. 


17.5 The relevant provisions of Article 19 shall be followed in the 
application of provisional measures. 







ARTICLE 18 
Undertakings 


18.1 Proceedings may 49/ be suspended or terminated without the imposition 
of provisional measures or countervailing duties upon receipt of 
satisfactory voluntary undertakings under which: 


FN 49 The word "may" shall not be interpreted to allow the simultaneous 
continuation of proceedings with the implementation of undertakings, 
except as provided in paragraph 4. 



(a) the government of the exporting Member agrees to eliminate or limit 
the subsidy or take other measures concerning its effects; or 


(b) the exporter agrees to revise its prices so that the investigating 
authorities are satisfied that the injurious effect of the subsidy is 
eliminated. Price increases under such undertakings shall not be higher 
than necessary to eliminate the amount of the subsidy. It is desirable 
that the price increases be less than the amount of the subsidy if such 
increases would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry. 



18.2 Undertakings shall not be sought or accepted unless the authorities 
of the importing Member have made a preliminary affirmative determination 
of subsidization and injury caused by such subsidization and, in case of 
undertakings from exporters, have obtained the consent of the exporting 
Member.


18.3 Undertakings offered need not be accepted if the authorities of the 
importing Member consider their acceptance impractical, for example if the 
number of actual or potential exporters is too great, or for other 
reasons, including reasons of general policy. Should the case arise and 
where practicable, the authorities shall provide to the exporter the 
reasons which have led them to consider acceptance of an undertaking as 
inappropriate, and shall, to the extent possible, give the exporter an 
opportunity to make comments thereon. 


18.4 If an undertaking is accepted, the investigation of subsidization and 
injury shall nevertheless be completed if the exporting Member so desires 
or the importing Member so decides. In such a case, if a negative 
determination of subsidization or injury is made, the undertaking shall 
automatically lapse, except in cases where such a determination is due in 
large part to the existence of an undertaking. In such cases, the 
authorities concerned may require that an undertaking be maintained for a 
reasonable period consistent with the provisions of this Agreement. In the 
event that an affirmative determination of subsidization and injury is 
made, the undertaking shall continue consistent with its terms and the 
provisions of this Agreement. 


18.5 Price undertakings may be suggested by the authorities of the 
importing Member, but no exporter shall be forced to enter into such 
undertakings. The fact that governments or exporters do not offer such 
undertakings, or do not accept an invitation to do so, shall in no way 
prejudice the consideration of the case. However, the authorities are free 
to determine that a threat of injury is more likely to be realized if the 
subsidized imports continue. 


18.6 Authorities of an importing Member may require any government or 
exporter from whom an undertaking has been accepted to provide 
periodically information relevant to the fulfilment of such an 
undertaking, and to permitverification of pertinent data. In case of 
violation of an undertaking, the authorities of the importing Member may 
take, under this Agreement in conformity with its provisions, expeditious 
actions which may constitute immediate application of provisional measures 
using the best information available. In such cases, definitive duties may 
be levied in accordance with this Agreement on products entered for 
consumption not more than 90 days before the application of such 
provisional measures, except that any such retroactive assessment shall 
not apply to imports entered before the violation of the undertaking. 









ARTICLE 19 
Imposition and Collection of Countervailing Duties 


19.1 If, after reasonable efforts have been made to complete 
consultations, a Member makes a final determination of the existence and 
amount of the subsidy and that, through the effects of the subsidy, the 
subsidized imports are causing injury, it may impose a countervailing duty 
in accordance with the provisions of this Article unless the subsidy or 
subsidies are withdrawn. 


19.2 The decision whether or not to impose a countervailing duty in cases 
where all requirements for the imposition have been fulfilled, and the 
decision whether the amount of the countervailing duty to be imposed shall 
be the full amount of the subsidy or less, are decisions to be made by the 
authorities of the importing Member. It is desirable that the imposition 
should be permissive in the territory of all Members, that the duty should 
be less than the total amount of the subsidy if such lesser duty would be 
adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry, and that 
procedures should be established which would allow the authorities 
concerned to take due account of representations made by domestic 
interested parties 50/ whose interests might be adversely affected by the 
imposition of a countervailing duty.


FN 50 - For the purpose of this paragraph, the term "domestic interested 
parties" shall include consumers and industrial users of the imported 
product subject to investigation. 

19.3 When a countervailing duty is imposed in respect of any product, such 
countervailing duty shall be levied, in the appropriate amounts in each 
case, on a non-discriminatory basis on imports of such product from all 
sources found to be subsidized and causing injury, except as to imports 
from those sources which have renounced any subsidies in question or from 
which undertakings under the terms of this Agreement have been accepted. 
Any exporter whose exports are subject to a definitive countervailing duty 
but who was not actually investigated for reasons other than a refusal to 
cooperate, shall be entitled to an expedited review in order that the 
investigating authorities promptly establish an individual countervailing 
duty rate for that exporter. 


19.4 No countervailing duty shall be levied 51/ on any imported product in 
excess of the amount of the subsidy found to exist, calculated in terms of 
subsidization per unit of the subsidized and exported product. 

FN 51 - As used in this Agreement "levy" shall mean the definitive or 
final legal assessment or collection of a duty or tax. 









ARTICLE 20 
Retroactivity 




20.1 Provisional measures and countervailing duties shall only be applied 
to products which enter for consumption after the time when the decision 
under paragraph 1 of Article 17 and paragraph 1 of Article 19, 
respectively, enters into force, subject to the exceptions set out in this 
Article. 


20.2 Where a final determination of injury (but not of a threat thereof or 
of a material retardation of the establishment of an industry) is made or, 
in the case of a final determination of a threat of injury, where the 
effect of the subsidized imports would, in the absence of the provisional 
measures, have led to a determination of injury, countervailing duties may 
be levied retroactively for the period for which provisional measures, if 
any, have been applied.


20.3 If the definitive countervailing duty is higher than the amount 
guaranteed by the cash deposit or bond, the difference shall not be 
collected. If the definitive duty is less than the amount guaranteed by 
the cash deposit or bond, the excess amount shall be reimbursed or the 
bond released in an expeditious manner. 


20.4 Except as provided in paragraph 2, where a determination of threat of 
injury or material retardation is made (but no injury has yet occurred) a 
definitive countervailing duty may be imposed only from the date of the 
determination of threat of injury or material retardation, and any cash 
deposit made during the period of the application of provisional measures 
shall be refunded and any bonds released in an expeditious manner. 


20.5 Where a final determination is negative, any cash deposit made during 
the period of the application of provisional measures shall be refunded 
and any bonds released in an expeditious manner. 


20.6 In critical circumstances where for the subsidized product in 
question the authorities find that injury which is difficult to repair is 
caused by massive imports in a relatively short period of a product 
benefiting from subsidies paid or bestowed inconsistently with the 
provisions of GATT 1994 and of this Agreement and where it is deemed 
necessary, in order to preclude the recurrence of such injury, to assess 
countervailing duties retroactively on those imports, the definitive 
countervailing duties may be assessed on imports which were entered for 
consumption not more than 90 days prior to the date of application of 
provisional measures. 







ARTICLE 21 
Duration and Review of Countervailing Duties and Undertakings 


21.1 A countervailing duty shall remain in force only as long as and to 
the extent necessary to counteract subsidization which is causing injury. 


21.2 The authorities shall review the need for the continued imposition of 
the duty, where warranted, on their own initiative or, provided that a 
reasonable period of time has elapsed since the imposition of the 
definitive countervailing duty, upon request by any interested party which 
submits positive information substantiating the need for a review. 
Interested parties shall have the right to request the authorities to 
examine whether the continued imposition of the duty is necessary to 
offset subsidization, whether the injury would be likely to continue or 
recur if the duty were removed or varied, or both. If, as a result of the 
review under this paragraph, the authorities determine that the 
countervailing duty is no longer warranted, it shall be terminated 
immediately. 


21.3 Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, any definitive 
countervailing duty shall be terminated on a date not later than five 
years from its imposition (or from the date of the most recent review 
under paragraph 2 if that review has covered both subsidization and 
injury, or under this paragraph), unless the authorities determine, in a 
review initiated before that date on their own initiative or upon a duly 
substantiated request made by or on behalf of the domestic industry within 
a reasonable period of time prior to that date, that the expiry of the 
duty would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of 
subsidization and injury.52/ The duty may remain in force pending the 
outcome of such a review.


FN 52 - When the amount of the countervailing duty is assessed on a 
retrospective basis, a finding in the most recent assessment proceeding 
that no duty is to be levied shall not by itself require the authorities 
to terminate the definitive duty. 

21.4 The provisions of Article 12 regarding evidence and procedure shall 
apply to any review carried out under this Article. Any such review shall 
be carried out expeditiously and shall normally be concluded within 12 
months of the date of initiation of the review. 


21.5 The provisions of this Article shall apply mutatis mutandis to 
undertakings accepted under Article 18. 









ARTICLE 22 
Public Notice and Explanation of Determinations 


22.1 When the authorities are satisfied that there is sufficient evidence 
to justify the initiation of an investigation pursuant to Article 11, the 
Member or Members the products of which are subject to such investigation 
and other interested parties known to the investigating authorities to 
have an interest therein shall be notified and a public notice shall be 
given. 


22.2 A public notice of the initiation of an investigation shall contain, 
or otherwise make available through a separate report,53/ adequate 
information on the following: 


FN 53 Where authorities provide information and explanations under the 
provisions of this Article in a separate report, they shall ensure that 
such report is readily available to the public. 

(i) the name of the exporting country or countries and the product 
involved; 


(ii) the date of initiation of the investigation; 


(iii) a description of the subsidy practice or practices to be 
investigated; 


(iv) a summary of the factors on which the allegation of injury is based; 


(v) the address to which representations by interested Members and 
interested parties should be directed; and 


(vi) the time-limits allowed to interested Members and interested parties 
for making their views known. 


22.3 Public notice shall be given of any preliminary or final 
determination, whether affirmative or negative, of any decision to accept 
an undertaking pursuant to Article 18, of the termination of such an 
undertaking, and of the termination of a definitive countervailing duty. 
Each such notice shall set forth, or otherwise make available through a 
separate report, in sufficient detail the findings and conclusions reached 
on all issues of fact and law considered material by the investigating 
authorities. All such notices and reports shall be forwarded to the Member 
or Members the products of which are subject to such determination or 
undertaking and to other interested parties known to have an interest 
therein. 


22.4 A public notice of the imposition of provisional measures shall set 
forth, or otherwise make available through a separate report, sufficiently 
detailed explanations for the preliminary determinations on the existence 
of a subsidy and injury and shall refer to the matters of fact and law 
which have led to arguments being accepted or rejected. Such a notice or 
report shall, due regard being paid to the requirement for the protection 
of confidential information, contain in particular: 


(i) the names of the suppliers or, when this is impracticable, the 
supplying countries involved; 


(ii) a description of the product which is sufficient for customs 
purposes; 


(iii) the amount of subsidy established and the basis on which the 
existence of a subsidy has been determined; 


(iv) considerations relevant to the injury determination as set out in 
Article 15; 

(v) the main reasons leading to the determination. 


22.5 A public notice of conclusion or suspension of an investigation in 
the case of an affirmative determination providing for the imposition of a 
definitive duty or the acceptance of an undertaking shall contain, or 
otherwise make available through a separate report, all relevant 
information on the matters of fact and law and reasons which have led to 
the imposition of final measures or the acceptance of an undertaking, due 
regard being paid to the requirement for the protection of confidential 
information. In particular, the notice or report shall contain the 
information described in paragraph 4, as well as the reasons for the 
acceptance or rejection of relevant arguments or claims made by interested 
Members and by the exporters and importers. 


22.6 A public notice of the termination or suspension of an investigation 
following the acceptance of an undertaking pursuant to Article 18 shall 
include, or otherwise make available through a separate report, the 
non-confidential part of this undertaking. 


22.7 The provisions of this Article shall apply mutatis mutandis to the 
initiation and completion of reviews pursuant to Article 21 and to 
decisions under Article 20 to apply duties retroactively. 







ARTICLE 23 
Judicial Review 


Each Member whose national legislation contains provisions on 
countervailing duty measures shall maintain judicial, arbitral or 
administrative tribunals or procedures for the purpose, inter alia, of the 
prompt review of administrative actions relating to final determinations 
and reviews of determinations within the meaning of Article 21. Such 
tribunals or procedures shall be independent of the authorities 
responsible for the determination or review in question, and shall provide 
all interested parties who participated in the administrative proceeding 
and are directly and individually affected by the administrative actions 
with access to review. 





PART VI: INSTITUTIONS 


ARTICLE 24 
Committee on Subisides and Countervailing Measures and Subsidiary Bodies 


24.1 There is hereby established a Committee on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures composed of representatives from each of the 
Members. The Committee shall elect its own Chairman and shall meet not 
less than twice a year and otherwise as envisaged by relevant provisions 
of this Agreement at the request of any Member. The Committee shall carry 
out responsibilities asassigned to it under this Agreement or by the 
Members and it shall afford Members the opportunity of consulting on any 
matter relating to the operation of the Agreement or the furtherance of 
its objectives. The WTO Secretariat shall act as the secretariat to the 
Committee. 


24.2 The Committee may set up subsidiary bodies as appropriate. 


24.3 The Committee shall establish a Permanent Group of Experts composed 
of five independent persons, highly qualified in the fields of subsidies 
and trade relations. The experts will be elected by the Committee and one 
of them will be replaced every year. The PGE may be requested to assist a 
panel, as provided for in paragraph 5 of Article 4. The Committee may also 
seek an advisory opinion on the existence and nature of any subsidy. 


24.4 The PGE may be consulted by any Member and may give advisory opinions 
on the nature of any subsidy proposed to be introduced or currently 
maintained by that Member. Such advisory opinions will be confidential and 
may not be invoked in proceedings under Article 7. 


24.5 In carrying out their functions, the Committee and any subsidiary 
bodies may consult with and seek information from any source they deem 
appropriate. However, before the Committee or a subsidiary body seeks such 
information from a source within the jurisdiction of a Member, it shall 
inform the Member involved. 



PART VII: NOTIFICATION AND SURVEILLANCE 


ARTICLE 25 
Notifications 


25.1 Members agree that, without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 
1 of Article XVI of GATT 1994, their notifications of subsidies shall be 
submitted not later than 30 June of each year and shall conform to the 
provisions of paragraphs 2 through 6. 


25.2 Members shall notify any subsidy as defined in paragraph 1 of Article 
1, which is specific within the meaning of Article 2, granted or 
maintained within their territories. 


25.3 The content of notifications should be sufficiently specific to 
enable other Members to evaluate the trade effects and to understand the 
operation of notified subsidy programmes. In this connection, and without 
prejudice to the contents and form of the questionnaire on subsidies, 54/ 
Members shall ensure that their notifications contain the following 
information: 



FN 54 The Committee shall establish a Working Party to review the contents 
and form of the questionnaire as contained in BISD 9S/193-194. 

(i) form of a subsidy (i.e. grant, loan, tax concession, etc.); 


(ii) subsidy per unit or, in cases where this is not possible, the 
total amount or the annual amount budgeted for that subsidy (indicating, 
if possible, the average subsidy per unit in the previous year); 


(iii) policy objective and/or purpose of a subsidy; 


(iv) duration of a subsidy and/or any other time-limits attached to it; 


(v) statistical data permitting an assessment of the trade effects of a 
subsidy. 


25.4 Where specific points in paragraph 3 have not been addressed in a 
notification, an explanation shall be provided in the notification itself. 



25.5 If subsidies are granted to specific products or sectors, the 
notifications should be organized by product or sector. 


25.6 Members which consider that there are no measures in their 
territories requiring notification under paragraph 1 of Article XVI of 
GATT 1994 and this Agreement shall so inform the Secretariat in writing. 


25.7 Members recognize that notification of a measure does not prejudge 
either its legal status under GATT 1994 and this Agreement, the effects 
under this Agreement, or the nature of the measure itself. 


25.8 Any Member may, at any time, make a written request for information 
on the nature and extent of any subsidy granted or maintained by another 
Member (including any subsidy referred to in Part IV), or for an 
explanation of the reasons for which a specific measure has been 
considered as not subject to the requirement of notification. 


25.9 Members so requested shall provide such information as quickly as 
possible and in a comprehensive manner, and shall be ready, upon request, 
to provide additional information to the requesting Member. In particular, 
they shall provide sufficient details to enable the other Member to assess 
their compliance with the terms of this Agreement. Any Member which 
considers that such information has not been provided may bring the matter 
to the attention of the Committee. 


25.10 Any Member which considers that any measure of another Member having 
the effects of a subsidy has not been notified in accordance with the 
provisions of paragraph 1 of Article XVI of GATT 1994 and this Article may 
bring the matter to the attention of such other Member. If the alleged 
subsidy is not thereafter notified promptly, such Member may itself bring 
the alleged subsidy in question to the notice of the Committee. 


25.11 Members shall report without delay to the Committee all preliminary 
or final actions taken with respect to countervailing duties. Such reports 
shall be available in the Secretariat for inspection by other Members. 
Members shall also submit, on a semi-annual basis, reports on any 
countervailing duty actions taken within the preceding six months. The 
semi-annual reports shall be submitted on an agreed standard form. 


25.12 Each Member shall notify the Committee (a) which of its authorities 
are competent to initiate and conduct investigations referred to in 
Article 11 and (b) its domestic procedures governing the initiation and 
conduct of such investigations. 







ARTICLE 26 
Surveillance 


26.1 The Committee shall examine new and full notifications submitted 
under paragraph 1 of Article XVI of GATT 1994 and paragraph 1 of Article 
25 of this Agreement at special sessions held every third year. 
Notifications submitted in the intervening years (updating notifications) 
shall be examined at each regular meeting of the Committee. 


26.2 The Committee shall examine reports submitted under paragraph 11 of 
Article 25 at each regular meeting of the Committee. 



PART VIII: DEVELOPING COUNTRY MEMBERS 


ARTICLE 27 
Special and Differential Treatment of Developing Country Members 


27.1 Members recognize that subsidies may play an important role in 
economic development programmes of developing country Members. 


27.2 The prohibition of paragraph 1(b) of Article 3 shall not apply to: 


(a) developing country Members referred to in Annex VII. 


(b) other developing country Members for a period of eight years from the 
date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement, subject to compliance with 
the provisions in paragraph 4. 


27.3 The prohibition of paragraph 1(b) of Article 3 shall not apply to 
developing country Members for a period of five years, and shall not apply 
to least-developed country Members for a period of eight years, from the 
date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement. 


27.4 Any developing country Member referred to in paragraph 2(b) shall 
phase out its export subsidies within the eight-year period, preferably in 
a progressive manner. However, a developing country Member shall not 
increase the level of its export subsidies, 55/ and shall eliminate them 
within a period shorter than that provided for in this paragraph when the 
use of such export subsidies is inconsistent with its development needs. 
If a developing country Member deems it necessary to apply such subsidies 
beyond the eight- year period, it shall not later than one year before the 
expiry of this period enter into consultation with the Committee, which 
will determine whether an extension of this period is justified, after 
examining all the relevant economic, financial and development needs of 
the developing country Member in question. If the Committee determines 
that the extension is justified, the developing country Member concerned 
shall hold annual consultations with the Committee to determine the 
necessity of maintaining the subsidies. If no such determination is made 
by the Committee, the developing country Member shall phase out the 
remaining export subsidies within two years from the end of the last 
authorized period. 


FN 55 for a developing country Member not granting export subsidies as of 
the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement, this paragraph shall 
apply on the basis of the level of export subsidies granted in 1986. 
27.5 A developing country Member which has reached export competitiveness 
in any given product shall phase out its export subsidies for such 
product(s) over a period of two years. However, for a developing country 
Member which is referred to in Annex VII and which has reached export 
competitiveness in one or more products, export subsidies on such products 
shall be gradually phased out over a period of eight years. 


27.6 Export competitiveness in a product exists if a developing country 
Member's exports of that product have reached a share of at least 3.25 per 
cent in world trade of that product for two consecutive calendar years. 
Export competitiveness shall exist either (a) on the basis of notification 
by the developing country Member having reached export competitiveness, or 
(b) on the basis of a computation undertaken by the Secretariat at the 
request of any Member. For the purpose of this paragraph, a product is 
defined as a section heading of the Harmonized System Nomenclature. The 
Committee shall review the operation of this provision five years from the 
date of the entry into force of the WTO Agreement. 


27.7 The provisions of Article 4 shall not apply to a developing country 
Member in the case of export subsidies which are in conformity with the 
provisions of paragraphs 2 through 5. The relevant provisions in such a 
case shall be those of Article 7. 


27.8 There shall be no presumption in terms of paragraph 1 of Article 6 
that a subsidy granted by a developing country Member results in serious 
prejudice, as defined in this Agreement. Such serious prejudice, where 
applicable under the terms of paragraph 9, shall be demonstrated by 
positive evidence, in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs 3 
through 8 of Article 6. 


27.9 Regarding actionable subsidies granted or maintained by a developing 
country Member other than those referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 6, 
action may not be authorized or taken under Article 7 unless nullification 
or impairment of tariff concessions or other obligations under GATT 1994 
is found to exist as a result of such a subsidy, in such a way as to 
displace or impede imports of a like product of another Member into the 
market of the subsidizing developing country Member or unless injury to a 
domestic industry in the market of an importing Member occurs. 


27.10 Any countervailing duty investigation of a product originating in a 
developing country Member shall be terminated as soon as the authorities 
concerned determine that: 


(a) the overall level of subsidies granted upon the product in question 
does not exceed 2 per cent of its value calculated on a per unit basis; or 



(b) the volume of the subsidized imports represents less than 4 per cent 
of the total imports of the like product in the importing Member, unless 
imports from developing country Members whose individual shares of total 
imports represent less than 4 per cent collectively account for more than 
9 per cent of the total imports of the like product in the importing 
Member. 


27.11 For those developing country Members within the scope of paragraph 
2(b) which have eliminated export subsidies prior to the expiry of the 
period of eight years from the date of entry into force of the WTO 
Agreement, and for those developing country Members referred to in Annex 
VII, the number in paragraph 10(a) shall be 3 per cent rather than 2 per 
cent. This provision shall apply from the date that the elimination of 
export subsidies is notified to the Committee, and for so long as export 
subsidies are not granted by the notifying developing country Member. This 
provision shall expire eight years from the date of entry into force of 
the WTO Agreement. 


27.12 The provisions of paragraphs 10 and 11 shall govern any 
determination of de minimis under paragraph 3 of Article 15. 


27.13 The provisions of Part III shall not apply to direct forgiveness of 
debts, subsidies to cover social costs, in whatever form, including 
relinquishment of government revenue and other transfer of liabilities 
when such subsidies are granted within and directly linked to a 
privatization programme of a developing country Member, provided that both 
such programme and the subsidies involved are granted for a limited period 
and notified to the Committee and that the programme results in eventual 
privatization of the enterprise concerned. 


27.14 The Committe