This paragraph does not prejudice any other provision of this Agreement that permits a Party to restrict transfers.
Article 10. Expeditious Application Procedures
1. Where a license is required for the supply of financial services, and if the applicable requirements are fulfilled, the competent authorities of a Party shall endeavour to reach a decision on an application, within six months after the submission of a complete application meeting all the conditions and requirements of the licensing applications under that Party's domestic laws and regulations.
2. If the competent authorities of a Party require additional information from the applicant in order to process its application, they shall notify the applicant without undue delay, in line with its laws and regulation.
Article 11. Dispute Settlement
Panels established pursuant to Chapter 15 (Dispute Settlement) for disputes related to financial services suppliers and other financial matters shall have the necessary expertise relevant to the specific financial service under dispute.
Article 12. Consultations
A Party may request consultation with the other Party regarding any matter arising under this Agreement that affects financial services.
The other Party shall give due consideration to the request.
Chapter 9. DIGITAL TRADE
Article 9.1. Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter:
authentication means the process or act of verifying the identity of a party to an electronic communication or transaction and ensuring the integrity of an electronic communication;
customs duty includes any duty or charge of any kind imposed on or in connection with the importation of a good, and any surtax or surcharge imposed in connection with such importation, but does not include any:
(a) charge equivalent to an internal tax imposed consistently with paragraph 2 of Article III of the GATT 1994;
(b) fee or other charge in connection with the importation commensurate with the cost of services rendered; or
(c) antidumping or countervailing duty.
digital product means a computer program, text, video, image, sound recording or other product that is digitally encoded, produced for commercial sale or distribution, and that can be transmitted electronically;(37) (38)
electronic transmission or transmitted electronically means a transmission made using any electromagnetic means, including by photonic means;
open data means non-proprietary information, including data, made freely available to the public by the central level of government;
personal data means any information, including data, about an identified or identifiable natural person;
measure means any measure by a Party, whether in the form of a law, regulation, rule, procedure, decision, administrative action, or any other form;
trade administration documents mean forms issued or controlled by a Party that must be completed by or for an importer or exporter in connection with the import or export of goods; and
unsolicited commercial electronic message means an electronic message which is sent for commercial or marketing purposes to an electronic address, without the consent of the recipient or despite the explicit rejection of the recipient, through an Internet access service supplier or, to the extent provided for under the laws and regulations of each Party, other telecommunications service.
Article 9.2. Objectives
1. The Parties recognise the economic growth and opportunity that digital trade provides, the importance of avoiding barriers to its use and development, the importance of frameworks that promote consumer confidence in digital trade, and the applicability of the WTO Agreement to measures affecting digital trade.
2. The Parties seek to foster an environment conducive to the further advancement of digital trade, including electronic commerce and the digital transformation of the global economy, by strengthening their bilateral relations on these matters.
Article 9.3. General Provisions
1. This Chapter shall apply to measures adopted or maintained by a Party that affect trade by electronic means.
2. This Chapter shall not apply to:
(a) government procurement; or
(b) information held or processed by or on behalf of a Party, or measures related to such information, including measures related to its collection, except for Article 13 (open data).
3. For greater certainty, the Parties affirm that measures affecting the supply of a service delivered or performed electronically are subject to the relevant provisions of Chapter 8 (Trade in Services) and its Annexes, including any exceptions or limitations set out in this Agreement that are applicable to such provisions.
Article 9.4. Customs Duties
1. Neither Party shall impose customs duties on digital or electronic transmissions, including content transmitted electronically, between a person of a Party and a person of the other Party.
2. For greater certainty, paragraph 1 shall not preclude a Party from imposing internal taxes, fees or other charges on content transmitted digitally or electronically, provided that such taxes, fees or charges are imposed in a manner consistent with this Agreement.
Article 9.5. Non-Discriminatory Treatment of Digital Products
1. Neither Party shall accord less favourable treatment to a digital product created, produced, published, contracted for, commissioned or first made available on commercial terms in the territory of the other Party, or to a digital product of which the author, performer, producer, developer or owner is a person of the other Party, than it accords to other like digital products. (39)
2. Paragraph 1 of this Article is subject to relevant exceptions, limitations or reservations set out in this Agreement or its Annexes, if any.
3. This Article does not apply to measures affecting the electronic transmission of a series of text, video, images, sound recordings, and other products scheduled by a content provider for aural and/or visual reception, and for which the content consumer has no choice over the scheduling of the series.
Article 9.6. Domestic Electronic Transactions Framework
1. Each Party shall endeavour to maintain a legal framework governing electronic transactions consistent with the principles of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce (1996) or the United Nations Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts, done at New York on 23 November 2005.
2. The Parties recognise the importance of developing mechanisms to facilitate the use of electronic transferrable records. To this end, in developing such mechanisms, the Parties shall endeavour to take into account, as appropriate, relevant model legislative texts developed and adopted by international bodies, such as the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (2017).
3. Each Party shall endeavour to:
(a) avoid any unnecessary regulatory burden on electronic transactions; and
(b) facilitate input by interested persons in the development of its legal framework for electronic transactions, including in relation to trade documentation.
Article 9.7. Digital Authentication and Electronic Signature
1. Except in circumstances otherwise provided for under its law, a Party shall not deny the legal validity of a signature solely on the basis that the signature is in digital or electronic form.
2. Neither Party shall adopt or maintain measures regarding authentication that would:
(a) prohibit parties to an electronic transaction from mutually determining the appropriate authentication methods for that transaction; or
(b) prevent parties to an electronic transaction from having the opportunity to establish before judicial or administrative authorities that their transaction complies with any legal requirements with respect to authentication.
3. Notwithstanding paragraph 2, a Party may require that, for a particular category of transactions, the method of authentication meets certain performance standards or is certified by an authority accredited in accordance with its law.
4. The Parties shall encourage the use of interoperable means of authentication.
Article 9.8. Paperless Trading
Each Party shall endeavour to:
(a) make trade administration documents available to the public in digital or electronic form; and
(b) accept trade administration documents submitted electronically as the legal equivalent of the paper version of those documents.
Article 9.9. Online Consumer Protection
1. The Parties recognise the importance of adopting and maintaining transparent and effective measures to protect consumers from misleading, deceptive, and fraudulent commercial practices when they engage in digital trade.
2. Each Party shall endeavour to adopt or maintain consumer protection laws to proscribe misleading, deceptive, and fraudulent commercial activities that cause harm or potential harm to consumers engaged in digital trade. (40)
Article 9.10. Personal Data Protection
1. The Parties recognise the economic and social benefits of protecting the personal data of persons who conduct or engage in electronic transactions and the contribution that this makes to enhancing consumer confidence in digital trade.
2. To this end, each Party shall adopt or maintain a legal framework that provides for the protection of the personal data of the users of digital trade. (41) In the development of any legal framework for the protection of personal data, each Party should endeavor to take into account principles and guidelines of relevant international organisations.
Article 9.11. Principles on Access to and Use of the Internet for Digital Trade
To support the development and growth of digital trade, each Party recognises that consumers in its territory should be able to:
(a) access and use services and applications of their choice, unless prohibited by the Party's law;
(b) run services and applications of their choice, subject to the Party's law, including the needs of legal and regulatory enforcement activities; and
(c) connect their choice of devices to the Internet, provided that such devices do not harm the network and are not otherwise prohibited by the Party's law.
Article 9.12. Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Messages
1. Each Party shall endeavour to adopt or maintain measures regarding unsolicited commercial electronic messages sent to an electronic mail address that:
(a) require a supplier of unsolicited commercial electronic messages to facilitate the ability of a recipient to prevent ongoing reception of those messages;
(b) require the consent, as specified in the laws and regulations of each Party, of recipients to receive commercial electronic messages; or
(c) otherwise provide for the minimisation of unsolicited commercial electronic messages.
2. Each Party shall endeavour to provide recourse against a supplier of unsolicited commercial electronic messages that does not comply with a measure adopted or maintained in accordance with paragraph 1.
3. The Parties shall endeavour to cooperate in appropriate cases of mutual concern regarding the regulation of unsolicited commercial electronic messages.
Article 9.13. Cross-Border Flow of Information
Recognising the importance of the free flow of information in facilitating trade, and acknowledging the importance of protecting personal data, each Party shall endeavour to refrain from imposing or maintaining unnecessary barriers to electronic information flows across borders.
Article 9.14. Open Data
1. The Parties recognise that facilitating public access to and use of open data contributes to stimulating economic and social benefit, competitiveness, productivity improvements and innovation. To the extent that a Party chooses to make available open data, it shall ensure:
(a) that the information is appropriately anonymised, contains descriptive metadata and is in a machine readable and open format that allows it to be searched, retrieved, used, reused and redistributed freely by the public; and
(b) to the extent practicable, that the information is made available in a spatially enabled format with reliable, easy to use and freely available Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and is regularly updated.
2. The Parties shall endeavour to cooperate to identify ways in which each Party can expand access to and use of open data, with a view to enhancing and generating business and research opportunities.
Article 9.15. Digital Government
1. The Parties recognise that technology can enable more efficient and agile government operations, improve the quality and reliability of government services, and enable governments to better serve the needs of their citizens and other stakeholders.
2. To this end, the Parties shall endeavour to develop and implement strategies to digitally transform their respective government operations and services, which may include:
(a) adopting open and inclusive government processes focusing on accessibility, transparency, and accountability in a manner that overcomes digital divides;
(b) promoting cross-sectoral and cross-governmental coordination and collaboration on digital agenda issues;
(c) shaping government processes, services and policies with digital inclusivity in mind;
(d) providing a unified digital platform and common digital enablers for government service delivery;
(e) leveraging emerging technologies to build capabilities in anticipation of disasters and crises and facilitating proactive responses;
(f) generating public value from government data by applying it in the planning, delivering and monitoring of public policies, and adopting rules and ethical principles for the trustworthy and safe use of data;
(g) making government data and policy-making processes (including algorithms) available for the public to engage with; and
(h) promoting initiatives to raise the level of digital capabilities and skills of both the populace and the government workforce.
3. Recognising that the Parties can benefit by sharing their experiences with digital government initiatives, the Parties shall endeavour to cooperate on activities relating to the digital transformation of government and government services, which may include:
(a) exchanging information and experiences on digital government strategies and policies;
(b) sharing best practices on digital government and the digital delivery of government services; and
(c) providing advice or training, including through exchange of officials, to assist the other Party in building digital government capacity.
Article 9.16. Digital and Electronic Invoicing
1. The Parties recognise the importance of digital and electronic invoicing to increase the efficiency, accuracy and reliability of commercial transactions. Each Party also recognises the benefits of ensuring that the systems used for the importance of digital and electronic invoicing to increase the efficiency, accuracy and reliability of commercial transactions. Each Party also recognises the benefits of ensuring that the systems used for digital and electronic invoicing within its territory are interoperable with the systems used in the other Party's territory.
2. Each Party shall endeavour to ensure that the implementation of measures related to digital and electronic invoicing in its territory supports cross-border interoperability between the Parties' digital and electronic invoicing frameworks. To this end, each Party shall endeavour to base its measures relating to digital and electronic invoicing on international frameworks.
3. The Parties recognise the economic importance of promoting the global adoption of digital and electronic invoicing systems, including interoperable international frameworks. To this end, the Parties shall endeavour to:
(a) promote, encourage, support or facilitate the adoption of digital and electronic invoicing by enterprises;
(b) promote the existence of policies, infrastructure and processes that support digital and electronic invoicing;
(c) generate awareness of, and build capacity for, digital and electronic invoicing; and
(d) share best practices and promote the adoption of interoperable international digital and electronic invoicing systems.
Article 9.17. Digital and Electronic Payments
1. Recognising the rapid growth of digital and electronic payments, in particular those provided by non-bank, non-financial institutions and financial technology enterprises, the Parties shall endeavour to support the development of efficient, safe and secure cross-border digital and electronic payments by:
(a) fostering the adoption and use of internationally accepted standards for digital and electronic payments;
(b) promoting interoperability and the interlinking of digital electronic payment infrastructures; and
(c) encouraging innovation and competition in digital and electronic payments services.
2. To this end, each Party shall endeavour to:
(a) make publicly available its laws and regulations of general applicability relating to digital and electronic payments, including in relation to regulatory approval, licensing requirements, procedures and technical standards;
(b) finalise decisions on regulatory or licensing approvals relating to digital and electronic payments in a timely manner;
(c) not arbitrarily or unjustifiably discriminate between financial institutions and non-financial institutions in relation to access to services and infrastructure necessary for the operation of digital and electronic payment systems;
(d) adopt or utilize international standards for electronic data exchange between financial institutions and services suppliers to enable greater interoperability between digital and electronic payment systems;
(e) facilitate the use of open platforms and architectures such as tools and protocols provided for through APIs and encourage payment service providers to safely and securely make APIs for their products and services available to third parties, where possible, to facilitate greater interoperability, innovation and competition in electronic payments; and
(f) facilitate innovation and competition and the introduction of new financial and electronic payment products and services in a timely manner, such as through adopting regulatory and industry sandboxes.
Article 9.18. Digital Identities
Recognising that cooperation between the Parties on digital identities for natural persons and enterprises will promote connectivity and further growth of digital trade, and recognising that each Party may take different legal and technical approaches to digital identities, the Parties shall endeavour to pursue mechanisms to promote compatibility between their respective digital identity regimes. This may include:
(a) developing appropriate frameworks and common standards to foster technical interoperability between each Party's implementation of digital identities;
(b) developing comparable protection of digital identities under each Party's respective legal frameworks, or the recognition of their legal effects, whether accorded autonomously or by agreement;
(c) supporting the development of international frameworks on digital identity regimes; and
(d) exchanging knowledge and expertise on best practices relating to digital identity policies and regulations, technical implementation and security standards, and the promotion of the use of digital identities.
Article 9.19. Cooperation
1. Recognising the importance of digital trade to their collective economies, the Parties shall maintain a dialogue on regulatory matters relating to digital trade with a view to sharing information and experiences, as appropriate, including on related laws, regulations, and their implementation, and best practices with respect to digital trade, including in relation to:
(a) online consumer protection;
(b) personal data protection;
(c) anti-money laundering and sanctions compliance for digital trade;
(d) unsolicited commercial electronic messages;
(e) authentication;
(f) intellectual property concerns with respect to digital trade;
(g) challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises in digital trade; and
(h) digital government.
2. The Parties have a shared vision to promote secure digital trade and recognise that threats to cybersecurity undermine confidence in digital trade. Accordingly, the Parties recognise the importance of:
(a) building the capabilities of their government agencies responsible for computer security incident response;
(b) using existing collaboration mechanisms to cooperate to identify and mitigate malicious intrusions or dissemination of malicious code that affect the electronic networks of the Parties; and
(c) promoting the development of a strong public and private workforce in the area of cybersecurity, including possible initiatives relating to mutual recognition of qualifications.
Chapter 10. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Section A. General Provisions
Article 10.1. Definition
For the purposes of this Chapter:
(a) Intellectual property embodies:
(i) copyright, including copyright in computer programs and in databases, and related rights;
(ii) patents and utility models;
(iii) trademarks; (42)