ARTICLE 23.4
Other agreements
1. Title II of the Interregional Framework Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Southern Common Market and its Party States, of the other part, signed in Madrid on 15 December 1995, shall cease to have effect and is replaced by this Agreement upon its entry into force.
2. References to the aforementioned Title of the aforementioned agreement in all other agreements between the Parties shall be construed as referring to this Agreement.
3. At the latest 3 (three) months after the date of entry into force of this Agreement, and within the first three months of each subsequent year if so requested, the European Union shall inform MERCOSUR and the Signatory MERCOSUR States of how it would give effect to the cooperation arrangements described in the EU–MERCOSUR Partnership Agreement, including as regards envisaged funding announced in relation thereto.
ARTICLE 23.5
Amendments
1. The Parties may agree, in writing, to amend this Agreement. An amendment shall enter into force after the Parties exchange written notifications certifying that they have completed their respective applicable internal requirements and procedures necessary for the entry into force of the amendment, or on such other date as they may agree.
2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, the Trade Council or the Trade Committee, as appropriate, may decide to amend the Annexes to or other parts of this Agreement if it so provides. Such decision may provide that such amendments apply as of the date agreed by the Parties or upon the notification of the completion of legal requirements of a Party or Parties, if applicable.
ARTICLE 23.6
Fulfilment of obligations
1. Each Party shall adopt any general or specific measures required to fulfil their obligations under this Agreement, including those required to ensure its observance by central, regional or local governments and authorities, as well as by non-governmental bodies in the exercise of governmental powers delegated to them.
2. If either Party considers, based on the factual situation, that the European Union or one or more of its Member States, or MERCOSUR or one or more of the Signatory MERCOSUR States, as the case may be, has or have committed a violation of the obligations that are described as essential elements in Article 1.2(1), Article 5.2(2) and Article 7.7(3) of the EU–MERCOSUR Partnership Agreement, it may take appropriate measures in accordance with Article 30.4(3) of that agreement also with respect to this Agreement.
3. Either Party may also take appropriate measures with respect to this Agreement if it considers that the factual situation is such that it would amount to a violation by the European Union or one or more of its Member States, or MERCOSUR or one or more of the Signatory MERCOSUR States, as the case may be, of the obligations that are described as essential elements in Article 1.2(1), Article 5.2(2) and Article 7.7(3) if those provisions were being applied.
Before doing so, the Party invoking the application of this paragraph shall notify the other Party of this fact and of the measures to be taken. The notified Party may request that the Trade Council meet within 15 days from the date of notification to hold urgent consultations with a view to seeking a timely and mutually agreeable solution. The notifying Party adopting the measures shall submit all relevant information required for a thorough examination of the situation. If no mutually agreeable solution is found within a period of up to 15 days from the commencement of consultations and no later than 30 days from the date of the notification, the Party invoking the application of this paragraph may apply the measures referred to in the first subparagraph. The notifying Party may extend the time periods set out in this paragraph, upon request of the other Party. Where the Parties are unable to agree on a mutually acceptable solution, the Parties may also resort to the mediation procedure provided for in Article 21.6.
For the purpose of this paragraph, "appropriate measures" may include the suspension, in part or in full, of this Agreement. Suspension of this Agreement is a measure of last resort and can be imposed only in the event that the factual situation is such that it would amount to a particularly serious and substantial violation by the other Party of the obligations that are described as essential elements in Article 1.2(1), Article 5.2(2) and Article 7.7(3) of the EU–MERCOSUR Partnership Agreement if those provisions were being applied. In such an event, the Parties shall be released from the obligation to perform this Agreement, in full or in part, in their mutual relations during the period of the suspension. Such suspension shall apply for the minimum period necessary to resolve the issue in a manner acceptable to the Parties.
4. For the purpose of paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article, Articles 30.4(5), 30.4(6) and 30.4(7) of the EU–MERCOSUR Partnership Agreement shall be incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.
ARTICLE 23.7
Private rights
1. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as conferring rights or imposing obligations on persons, other than those created between the Parties under public international law.
2. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as permitting this Agreement to be directly invoked in the domestic legal systems of the Parties. A State Party to Mercosur signatory of this Agreement may provide otherwise under its domestic law.
ARTICLE 23.8
Accession of new Member States of the European Union
1. The European Union shall notify MERCOSUR of any request for accession of a third country to the European Union.
2. During the negotiations between the European Union and the candidate country seeking accession, the European Union shall:
(a) provide, upon request of MERCOSUR, and to the extent possible, any information regarding any matter covered by this Agreement; and
(b) take into account any concerns expressed by MERCOSUR.
3. The Trade Committee shall examine any effects of accession of a third country to the European Union on this Agreement sufficiently in advance of the date of such accession.
4. To the extent necessary, the Parties shall, before the entry into force of the agreement on the accession of a third country to the European Union, put in place by decision of the Trade Council the necessary adjustments or transitional arrangements regarding this Agreement.
5. Without prejudice to paragraph 4, this Agreement shall apply between on the one part the new Member State of the European Union and, on the other part, MERCOSUR and each of the Signatory MERCOSUR States from the date of accession of that new Member State to the European Union.
ARTICLE 23.9
Accession of State Parties to Mercosur
1. MERCOSUR shall notify the European Union of any request for accession of a third country to MERCOSUR.
2. During the negotiations between the MERCOSUR and the candidate country seeking accession, MERCOSUR shall:
(a) provide, upon request of the European Union, and to the extent possible, any information regarding any matter covered by this Agreement; and
(b) take into account any concerns expressed by the European Union.
3. Any State Party to MERCOSUR that is not a Party to this Agreement on the date of its signature ("applicant MERCOSUR State Party") may accede to this Agreement by means of a Protocol of Accession concluded by the European Union and the applicant MERCOSUR State Party. The Protocol of Accession shall incorporate the results of the accession negotiations and, if necessary, any adjustments recommended by the Trade Committee pursuant to paragraph 4. This Agreement shall be amended pursuant to Article 23.5(1) to reflect the terms of accession as agreed in the Protocol of Accession between the European Union and the applicant MERCOSUR State Party.
4. During the negotiations of the Accession Protocol referred to in paragraph 3, MERCOSUR may accompany the delegation of the applicant MERCOSUR State Party and, before the conclusion of the negotiations, either Party may request a meeting of the Trade Committee to examine any effects on this Agreement of the accession of the applicant MERCOSUR State Party and consider possible adjustments.
ARTICLE 23.10
Duration
This Agreement shall remain in force until the entry into force of the EU–MERCOSUR Partnership Agreement.
ARTICLE 23.11
Denunciation
1. Either Party may give written notice to the other Party of its intention to denounce this Agreement.
2. Denunciation shall take effect nine (9) months after notification to the other Party.
ARTICLE 23.12
Annexes, Appendices and Protocols
1. The Annexes, Appendices and Protocols to this Agreement shall form an integral part thereof.
2. Each Annex to this Agreement, including its appendices, identified by a code starting with an Arabic number, shall form an integral part of that Chapter in this Agreement that is identified by the same number and in which reference is made to that particular Annex.
ARTICLE 23.13
Authentic languages
This Agreement is drawn up in the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Irish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish languages, each of these texts being equally authentic.
Conclusion
(1) Among other measures of equivalent effect, this includes ad valorem import duties, agricultural components, additional duties on sugar content, additional duties on flour content, specific duties, mixed duties, seasonal duties and additional duties from entry price systems.(2) For greater certainty, the term "measure" includes omissions and legislation that has not been fully implemented at the conclusions of the negotiations of this Agreement as well as its implementing acts.(3) OJ EU L 343, 29.12.2015, p. 1.(4) OJ EU L 343, 29.12.2015, p. 558.(5) For greater certainty, "tasa consular" of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay and "tasa estadística" of the Argentine Republic are governed by paragraph 3.(6) Notwithstanding this paragraph, for the Republic of Paraguay the transitional period will be 10 (ten) years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement.(7) For the purposes of this Article, "non-automatic import or export licensing procedures" is defined as licensing procedures where approval of the application is not granted for all legal and natural persons who fulfil the requirements of the Party concerned for engaging in the importation or exportation of goods subject to licensing procedures.(8) This point is without prejudice to the sovereign rights and obligations of the Parties under UNCLOS in particular within the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.(9) Points (k) and (l) are without prejudice to each Party's laws and regulations regarding the import of the goods mentioned therein.(10) Products of fishing or other products taken from the sea by chartered vessels sailing under the flag of a Member State of the European Union or a Signatory MERCOSUR State are considered to originate in the Member State of the European Union or the Signatory MERCOSUR State in which the vessel is chartered and the license is issued, provided that they fulfil all criteria in this paragraph.(11) For the purposes of this Article, the definition of point (m) of Article 10.2 applies.(12) For the purposes of this Article, the definition of point (h) of Article 10.2 applies.(13) A certificate of origin will be valid in accordance with the transitional measures contained in Annex 3-D, for the time period specified therein.(14) This provision applies without prejudice to the other provisions in this Chapter.(15) For greater certainty, reference to laws and regulations covers procedures enshrined therein.(16) Signatory MERCOSUR States shall comply with the commitments in this paragraph in accordance with Article 16 (Notification of definitive dates for implementation of Category B and Category C) of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement.(17) Signatory MERCOSUR States shall comply with the commitments in this paragraph in accordance with Article 16 (Notification of definitive dates for implementation of Category B and Category C) of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement.(18) Under this paragraph, a review may, either before or after the ruling has been acted upon, be provided by the official, office, or authority that issued the ruling, a higher or independent administrative authority, or a judicial authority.(19) This provision shall apply only in respect of the European Union and of those Signatory MERCOSUR States that are Contracting parties to the Convention on Temporary Admission done at Istanbul on 26 June 1990 and according to the commitments undertaken in that Convention.(20) "Reasonable interval" shall be understood to mean normally a period of not less than 6 (six) months, except when this would be ineffective in fulfilling the legitimate objectives pursued.(21) In case of conflict, this Chapter prevails over other Chapters of this Agreement when applied to SPS measures, including when such measures are part of a measure.(22) OJ EU L 317, 23.11.2016, p. 4.(23) WTO Document G/SPS/19/Rev.2, dated 13 July 2004.(24) WTO Document G/SPS/48, dated 16 May 2008.(25) FAO, CAC/GL 26-1997.(26) At the entry into force of this Agreement, the outermost regions of the European Union are: Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Mayotte, Reunion, St. Martin, the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands. This Article shall also apply to a country or an overseas territory that changes its status to an outermost region by a decision of the European Council in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 355(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union following the entry into force of that decision. In the event that an outermost region of the European Union changes its status by the same procedure, this Article shall cease to be applicable following the entry into force of the European Council's decision. The European Union shall notify in writing the other Party of any change in the territories considered as outermost regions of the European Union.(27) Without prejudice to the scope of activities which may be considered as cabotage under the relevant national legislation, national maritime cabotage under this Chapter covers transportation of passengers or goods between a port or point located in a Signatory MERCOSUR State or a Member State of the European Union and another port or point located in the same Signatory MERCOSUR State or Member State of the European Union, including on its continental shelf, as provided in UNCLOS, as well as traffic originating and terminating in the same port or point located in the Signatory MERCOSUR State or Member State of the European Union.(28) The terms "constitution" and "acquisition" of a juridical person shall be understood as including capital participation in a juridical person with a view to establishing or maintaining lasting economic links.(29) If the economic activity is not performed directly by a juridical person but through other forms of establishment such as a branch or a representative office, the investor (namely, the juridical person) shall, nonetheless, through such establishment, be accorded the treatment provided for investors under the Agreement. Such treatment shall be extended to the establishment through which the economic activity is performed and does not need to be extended to any other parts of the investor located outside the territory where the economic activity is performed.(30) Point (j) of this Article shall not, under any circumstances, be interpreted in such a way as to allow a shipping company constituted or established in, or incorporated, established or otherwise organized under the laws applicable to a territory subject to a sovereignty dispute involving the Argentine Republic to benefit from the provisions of this Chapter. This provision shall not be interpreted as implying the legitimacy of the laws applied to such territories.(31) If a Party accords substantially the same treatment to its permanent residents as it does to natural persons having the nationality of that Party, its permanent residents shall be covered by the definition of natural persons, in respect of measures affecting the cross-border trade in services, consumption abroad and establishment.(32) If the service is not supplied directly by a juridical person, the treatment provided under this Chapter shall be extended to the branch or representative office through which the service is supplied and need not be extended to any parts of the supplier located outside the territory where the service is supplied.(33) The obligation in this paragraph applies also to measures governing the composition of boards of directors of an enterprise, such as nationality and residency requirements.(34) The sole fact of requiring a visa for a natural person of certain countries and not for those of other countries shall not be regarded as nullifying or impairing benefits under a specific commitment.(35) The service contract referred to in point (b) shall be a bona fide contract and comply with the laws and regulations of the Party where the contract is executed.(36) The recipient enterprise may be required to submit a training programme covering the duration of stay for prior approval, demonstrating that the purpose of the stay is for training. The competent authorities may require that training be linked to the university degree which has been obtained.(37) The service contract referred to in point (d) shall be a bona fide contract and comply with the laws and regulations of the Party where the contract is executed.(38) This Article is without prejudice to the rights and obligations deriving from bilateral visa waiver agreements between individual Signatory MERCOSUR States and individual Member States of the European Union.(39) Licensing fees do not include payments for auction, tendering or other non-discriminatory means of awarding concessions, or mandated contributions to the provision of universal services.(40) For greater certainty, this includes the grant of a concession, registration, declaration, notification or individual licences.(41) "Postal services" covers the CPC, CPC 7511 and CPC 7512.(42) Licensing fees do not include payments for auction, tendering or other non-discriminatory means of awarding concessions or mandated contributions to the provision of universal services.(43) "Broadcasting" means radiocommunication in which transmissions are intended for direct reception by the general public, and may include sound transmission and television transmission. Suppliers of broadcasting services shall be considered as suppliers of public telecommunications transport services, and their networks, as public telecommunications transport networks, if and to the extent that such networks are also used for providing public telecommunications transport services.(44) For the Republic of Paraguay and the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, "essential telecommunications facilities" means facilities of a public telecommunications transport network and a public telecommunications transport service in accordance with the definition provided in their national law.(45) For the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, the scope of this Article applies to all suppliers of telecommunications services.(46) For the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, the scope of this Article applies to all suppliers.(47) For the purposes of this Subsection, "non-discrimination" is understood to refer to national treatment as defined in Article 10.4, as well as to reflect sector-specific usage of the term to mean terms and conditions no less favourable than those accorded to any other user of like public telecommunication transport networks or public telecommunications transport services under like circumstances.(48) For the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, the scope of this Article applies to all suppliers of telecommunications services.(49) For greater certainty, in the case of MERCOSUR, this refers to the regulatory authority of each Signatory MERCOSUR State.(50) This Article shall not apply to contracts that create or transfer rights in real estate; contracts requiring by law the involvement of courts, public authorities or professions exercising public authority; contracts of suretyship granted or collateral securities furnished by persons acting for purposes outside their trade, business or profession; and contracts governed by family law or by the law of succession.(51) Consent shall be defined in accordance with each Party's own laws and regulations.(52) For greater certainty, this includes laws and regulations on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism.(53) Notwithstanding Article 12.3(1), in the case of the European Union and Argentina, paragraph 2(a) shall apply to all procurement in Argentina with regard to suppliers of the European Union which are juridical persons established in Argentina, and in the European Union with regard to suppliers of Argentina which are juridical persons established in the European Union. This remains subject to security and general exceptions as defined in Article 12.5.(54) Notwithstanding Article 12.3(1), in the case of the European Union and Brazil, paragraph 2(a) shall apply to all procurement in Brazil with regard to suppliers of the European Union which are juridical persons established in Brazil, and in the European Union with regard to suppliers of Brazil which are juridical persons established in the European Union. This remains subject to security and general exceptions as defined in Article 12.5.(55) For the purposes of this Chapter, "national" means, in respect of the relevant intellectual property right, a person of a Party that would meet the criteria for eligibility for protection provided for in the TRIPS Agreement or multilateral agreements concluded and administered under the auspices of WIPO, as appropriate, to which a Party is a contracting party.(56) For the purposes of Article 13.5, "protection" includes matters affecting the availability, acquisition, scope, maintenance and enforcement of intellectual property rights as well as those matters affecting the use of intellectual property rights specifically addressed in this Chapter.(57) In respect of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organisations, this obligation only applies in respect of the rights provided under this Chapter.(58) For the purposes of Article 13.6, "indigenous and local communities" may include descendants of enslaved Africans and small-scale farmers.(59) The Parties shall be free, in their laws and regulations, to use different names for the rights set out in this Sub-section, provided the agreed level of protection is ensured.(60) Points (c) and (d) of Article 13.13 shall not apply to a Party to the extent that that Party does not provide in its laws and regulations for the rights set out therein. In such case, the other Parties may exclude broadcasting organisations of that Party from the protection granted in points (c) and (d) of Article 13.13, and the obligation under Article 13.5 shall not apply in respect of the rights provided for in points (c) and (d) of Article 13.13.(61) Each Party may grant more extensive rights as regards the communication to the public by broadcasting organisations.(62) Each Party may grant more extensive rights, in place of the right to remuneration or in addition to this right, as regards the broadcasting and communication to the public of phonograms published for commercial purposes, to performers and producers of phonograms.(63) Each Party may provide that the publication or lawful communication to the public of the fixation of the performance or of the phonogram must occur within a defined period of time of the date of the performance (in the case of the performers) or the date of the fixation (in the case of producers of phonograms).(64) This obligation only applies to trademarks registered after the date of adoption of the Nice Classification criteria or of accession to the instrument.(65) For the purposes of this Article, a Party may consider that a design having individual character is original.(66) Argentina shall provide for the protection of independently created designs that are new or original.(67) The Parties define in Appendix 13-B-1 the plant varieties and animal breeds the use of which shall not be prevented.(68) The Parties define in Appendix 13-B-1 the terms for which protection is not sought or granted.(69) In accordance with the Nice Classification and its amendments.(70) For greater certainty, the specific level of protection by each Signatory MERCOSUR State as defined in Article 13.35(8) applies only in favour of those prior users that are part of the prior users' list of that particular Signatory MERCOSUR State.(71) For the European Union this provision can be fulfilled through adherence of its Member States.(72) For the purposes of this Section, "procedures" includes measures and remedies.(73) For the purposes of this Article, "confidential information" may include personal data.(74) A Party may extend the application of this paragraph to other intellectual property rights.(75) In deciding what is "reasonably satisfactory", the judge may take into consideration the public interest.(76) "Unfair profits" are those derived from the infringement, in accordance with a Party's law.(77) OJ EC L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1.(78) For greater certainty, competition law in the European Union applies to the agricultural sector in accordance with Regulation (EU) 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 (OJ EU L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 671).(79) For greater certainty, this point shall not be construed as limiting the scope of the analysis to be carried out in the case of agreements between undertakings, decisions by associations of undertaking and concerted practices between undertakings under the respective competition law of each Party.(80) For greater certainty, this excludes activities undertaken by an enterprise that operates: (a) on a not-for-profit basis; or (b) on a cost recovery basis.(81) For greater certainty, the granting of a licence to a limited number of enterprises in allocating a scarce resource through objective, proportional and non-discriminatory criteria is not in and of itself an exclusive or special privilege.(82) For the purposes of this definition, the term "owned or controlled" refers to situations in which a Party owns more than 50 % of the share capital or controls the exercise of more than 50 % of the voting rights, or otherwise exercises an equivalent degree of control over the enterprise according to the governance rules of that enterprise.(83) For greater certainty, the concept of "public mandate or purpose" includes, among others, the activities of national banks regarding the purchase of goods and services under federal procurement laws, and lending policies in support of affordable housing, exports or imports, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and farmers or any tasks assigned by a Party to its state-owned enterprises and enterprises granted exclusive or special privileges by a Party. The concept of "public mandate or purpose" also includes activities carried out by a public entity or trust relating to social security or public retirement plans.(84) For the purposes of this Chapter, the term "labour" means the strategic objectives of the International Labour Organization under the Decent Work Agenda, which is expressed in the ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization.(85) For greater certainty, in the case of matters covered by Chapter 15 such persons are the addressees of a decision by a Party's competition authority.(86) The public security and public order exceptions may be invoked only where a genuine and sufficiently serious threat is posed to one of the fundamental interests of society.(87) For greater certainty, this includes anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regulations.(88) For greater certainty, the Parties understand that such measures include measures inconsistent with Article 10.4 aimed at ensuring the equitable or effective imposition or collection of direct taxes, taken by a Party under its taxation system which:(i) apply to non-resident investors and services suppliers in recognition of the fact that the tax obligation of non-residents is determined with respect to taxable items sourced or located in the Party's territory;(ii) apply to non-residents in order to ensure the imposition or collection of taxes in the Party's territory;(iii) apply to non-residents or residents in order to prevent the avoidance or evasion of taxes, including compliance measures;(iv) apply to consumers of services supplied in or from the territory of another Party in order to ensure the imposition or collection of taxes on such consumers derived from sources in the Party's territory;(v) distinguish investors and service suppliers subject to tax on worldwide taxable items from other investors and service suppliers, in recognition of the difference in the nature of the tax base between them; or(vi) determine, allocate or apportion income, profit, gain, loss, deduction or credit of resident persons or branches, or between related persons or branches of the same person, in order to safeguard the Party's tax base.Tax terms or concepts in this footnote are determined according to tax definitions and concepts, or equivalent or similar definitions and concepts, under the domestic law of the Party taking the measure.(89) For greater certainty, a measure of the European Union referred to in this Article would also cover a measure of one or more of the European Union's Member States.(90) For greater certainty, paragraph 3 of article 9 of the DSU shall not prevent a Signatory MERCOSUR State to appoint a member of the arbitration panel from the sub-list referred to in point (b) of Article 21.8(3) of this Chapter different from the one that served or is serving as arbitrator in a panel established to examine a complaint of another Signatory MERCOSUR State on the same matter.(91) For greater certainty, when agreeing on the composition of the arbitration panel pursuant to this paragraph, the parties may agree to select as arbitrators persons who are not included in the list of arbitrators established pursuant to Article 21.8(3).(92) For greater certainty, two or more disputes which involve the same parties to the dispute and refer to the same measure, but do not concern an alleged violation of the covered provisions or the WTO Agreement or any other agreement to which the relevant parties are party, shall not be considered as concerning the same matter for the purpose of this Article.(93) For greater certainty, such costs are to be shared jointly and equally between, on the one part, the European Union and, on the other part, the Signatory MERCOSUR States that are parties to the dispute and MERCOSUR, if the latter is also party to the dispute.(94) OJ EU L 269, 10.10.2013, p. 1.
Attachments
ANNEX 10-A. EUROPEAN UNION. LIST OF COMMITMENTS ON CROSS-BORDER SUPPLY OF SERVICES IN CONFORMITY WITH ARTICLES 10.3 AND 10.4
1. The list of commitments below indicates the service sectors liberalised pursuant to Articles 10.3 and 10.4 and specifies, by means of reservations, the market access and national treatment limitations that apply to services and service suppliers of Signatory MERCOSUR States in those sectors. The list below is composed of two columns containing the following elements, respectively:
(a) the sector or subsector in which the commitment is undertaken by the European Union, and the scope of liberalisation to which the reservations apply; and
(b) a description of the applicable reservations.
2. The European Union does not undertake any commitment for cross-border supply of services in sectors or subsectors covered by this Agreement and not mentioned in this Annex.
3. For the purposes of this Annex, when identifying individual sectors and subsectors:
(a) "CPC" means the Provisional Central Products Classification as defined in Article 1.3(c); and
(b) "CPC ver. 1.0" means the Central Products Classification as set out in Statistical Office of the United Nations, Statistical Papers, Series M, N° 77, CPC ver. 1.0, 1998.
4. The list in this Annex does not include measures relating to qualification requirements and procedures, technical standards and licensing requirements and procedures that do not constitute a limitation within the meaning of Articles 10.3 or 10.4 respectively. Those measures (for example, the need to obtain a licence, universal service obligations, need to obtain recognition of qualifications in regulated sectors and need to pass specific examinations, including language examinations), even if not listed, apply in any case to services and service suppliers of a Signatory MERCOSUR State.
5. The list below is without prejudice to the feasibility of the cross-border supply of services as defined in point (b) of Article 10.2 in certain service sectors and subsectors and without prejudice to the existence of public monopolies and exclusive rights as described in the list of commitments on establishment.
6. The European Union takes commitments with respect to market access as set out in Article 10.3, differentiated by its Member States, if applicable.
7. For greater certainty, for the European Union, the obligation to grant national treatment does not entail the requirement to extend to natural or juridical persons of a Signatory MERCOSUR State the treatment granted in a Member State of the European Union, pursuant to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, or to any measure adopted pursuant to that Treaty, including the implementation of that Treaty or measures in the Member States of the European Union, to:
(a) natural persons or residents of a Member State of the European Union; or
(b) juridical persons constituted or organised under the law of another Member State of the European Union or that of the European Union and having their registered office, central administration or principal place of business in one of its Member State.
Such national treatment is granted to juridical persons which are constituted or organised under the law of a Member State or the European Union and have their registered office, central administration or principal place of business in a Member State of the European Union, including those which are owned or controlled by natural or juridical persons of a Signatory MERCOSUR State.
8. The following abbreviations are used in the list below:
– EU European Union, including all its Member States
– EEA European Economic Area
– AT Austria
– BE Belgium
– BG Bulgaria
– CY Cyprus
– CZ Czechia
– DE Germany
– DK Denmark
– EE Estonia
– EL Greece
– ES Spain
– FI Finland
– FR France
– HR Croatia
– HU Hungary
– IE Ireland
– IT Italy
– LT Lithuania
– LU Luxembourg
– LV Latvia
– MT Malta
– NL Netherlands
– OECD Organisation for Economic Co–operation and Development
– PL Poland
– PT Portugal
– RO Romania
– SE Sweden
– SI Slovenia
– SK Slovak Republic
Sector or subsector
Description of reservations
All sectors
Real estate
For Modes 1 and 2
In all Member States of the European Union except AT, BG, CY, CZ, DE, DK, EL, FI, HU, IE, IT, LT, MT, PL, RO, SI, SK: None.
In AT: The acquisition, purchase, rent or lease of real estate by foreign natural persons and juridical persons requires an authorisation by the competent regional authorities ("Länder") which shall consider whether important economic, social or cultural interests are affected or not.
In BG: Foreign juridical persons and foreign citizens with permanent residence abroad can acquire ownership of buildings and limited property rights 1 of real estate subject to the permission of the Ministry of Finance. The permission requirement does not apply to persons who have made investments in BG.
Foreign citizens with permanent residence abroad, foreign juridical persons and companies in which foreign participation ensures a majority in adopting decisions or blocks the adoption of decisions, can acquire real estate property rights in specific geographic regions designated by the Council of Ministers subject to permission.
In CY: Unbound.
In CZ: Agricultural and forest land can be acquired by foreign natural and juridical persons with permanent residence in CZ. Specific rules apply to the agricultural and forest land in the state ownership.
In DK: Limitations on real estate purchase by non‑resident physical and legal entities apply. Limitations on agricultural estate purchased by foreign physical and legal entities apply.
In DE: Certain conditions of reciprocity may apply.
In EL: According to Law No. 1892/90, permission from the Minister of Defence is needed for a citizen to acquire land in areas near borders.
In FI (Åland Islands): Restrictions apply on the right for natural persons who do not enjoy regional citizenship in Åland and for juridical persons to acquire and hold real property on the Åland Islands without permission from the competent authorities of the islands. Restrictions apply on the right of establishment and the right to provide services by natural persons who do not enjoy regional citizenship in Åland or by any juridical person, without permission from the competent authorities of the Åland Islands.
In HU: Unbound for the acquisition of state-owned properties. Limitations on acquisition of land and real estate by foreign investors apply 2 .
In IE: Prior written consent of the Land Commission is necessary for the acquisition of any interest in Irish land by domestic or foreign companies or foreign nationals. If that land is for industrial use (other than agricultural industry), this requirement is waived subject to certification to this effect from the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation. This requirement does not apply to land within the boundaries of cities and towns.
In IT: The purchase of real estate by foreign natural and juridical persons is subject to a condition of reciprocity.
In LT: Unbound for the acquisition of land.
In MT: The requirements of Maltese laws and regulations regarding acquisition of real property apply.
In PL: Acquisition of real estate, direct or indirect, by foreigners (natural or juridical persons) requires permission. Unbound for acquisition of state-owned property (for example, the regulations governing the privatisation process).
In RO: Natural persons not having Romanian citizenship or residence in Romania, as well as juridical persons not having Romanian nationality or their headquarters in Romania, may not acquire ownership over any kind of land plots through inter vivos acts.
In SI: Juridical persons established in SI with foreign capital participation may acquire real estate in the territory of SI. Branches 3 established in SI by foreign persons may only acquire real estate, except land, necessary for the conduct of the economic activities for which they are established.
In SK: Limitations on real estate acquisition by foreign natural and legal entities apply. Foreign entities may acquire real estate property through establishment of Slovak legal entities or participation in joint ventures. Unbound for land, including natural resources, lakes, rivers and public roads.
1. Business services
A. Professional services
a) Legal services
(CPC 861) 4
excluding legal advisory and legal documentations and certification services provided by legal professionals entrusted with public functions, such as notaries, "huissiers de justice" or other "officiers publics et ministériels."
For Modes 1 and 2
In AT, EL, LT, MT, PL, SK: Full admission to the Bar, required for the practice of domestic (EU and Member State) law, is subject to a nationality requirement. In SK, coupled with residency requirement in SK.
In FI: Full admission to the Bar, required for legal representation services, is subject to a nationality requirement, coupled with a residency requirement.
In CY: Nationality requirement and residency requirements apply. Full admission to the Bar is required for the provision of legal services in CY. Full admission to the Bar is subject to a nationality requirement, coupled with a residency requirement. Only advocates enrolled in the Bar may be partners or shareholders or members of the Board of Directors in a law company in CY.
In BE: Full admission to the Bar, required for legal representation services, is subject to a nationality requirement. Exemptions can be granted under specific conditions (for example, residency requirement and reciprocity). Quotas apply for representation before the "Cour de cassation” in non-criminal cases.
In BG: Foreign lawyers can only provide legal representation services for a national of their home country subject to reciprocity and cooperation with a Bulgarian lawyer. For legal mediation services, permanent residence is required.
In CZ: Full admission to the Bar is required for the practice of legal services, including representation before courts. Non-discriminatory legal form requirements apply. For the practice of legal services in respect of domestic (EU and Member State) law, including representation before courts, EEA or Swiss nationality and residency in CZ is required.
In DK: The performing of legal services under the title "Advokat" is only permitted for lawyers with a Danish licence to practise. Representation before the courts is mainly reserved for lawyers with a Danish licence to practise. Other persons than lawyers with a Danish licence to practise may perform legal services in accordance with the Danish Act on Legal Services, but are not allowed to use the title "Advokat". In order to obtain a licence to practise, a person must have a Danish Bachelor and Master degree in law and must have worked as an assistant attorney-at-law for 3 (three) years.
In ES: Full admission to the Bar is required for the practice of legal services in respect of EU and Member State law, including representation before courts. EEA or Swiss nationality is required for the practice of legal services in respect of domestic (EU and Member State) law, including representation before courts. The competent authorities may grant nationality waivers. Non-discriminatory legal form requirements apply. EEA nationality is required for the practice of industrial property agent services.
In FR: Full admission to the Bar is required for the practice of legal services in respect of French law, including representation before courts. Residency (commercial presence) is required in order to obtain full admission to the Bar. To provide legal services in respect of domestic (EU and Member State) law, commercial presence may be required to take one of the legal forms which are allowed under national law on a non-discriminatory basis. Some types of legal form may be reserved exclusively to lawyers admitted to the Bar, also on a non-discriminatory basis. Representation before the "Cour de Cassation" and "Conseil d'Etat" is subject to quotas. In a law firm providing services in respect of French or EU law, shareholding and voting rights may be subject to quantitative restrictions related to the professional activity of the partners.
In FI: A patent agent must be resident in the EEA in order to be recorded in the Patent Agents Register, which is necessary for the practice of the profession.
In HR: Unbound for the practice of Croatian law.
In HU: Full admission to the Bar is subject to a nationality requirement, coupled with a residency requirement. For foreign lawyers, the scope of legal activities is limited to the provision of legal advice.
In IE: Full admission to the Bar is required for the practice of legal services in respect of Irish law, including representation before courts. Residency (commercial presence) is required in order to obtain full admission to the Bar. Lawyers in IE are divided into 2 (two) distinct categories: solicitors and barristers. The Law Society of Ireland is the statutory legal professional body that governs admission of solicitors in IE. The Honourable Society of King's Inns governs the admission of barristers in IE.
In LV: Nationality requirement for sworn solicitors, to whom legal representation in criminal proceedings is reserved, applies.
In PT: The recognition of qualifications to practise Portuguese Law is subject to a condition of reciprocity. Nationality requirement for the access to the profession of notaries "solicitadores" and for industrial property agent applies.
In SI: Representing clients before the court against payment is conditioned by commercial presence in SI. A foreign lawyer who has the right to practise law in a foreign country may perform legal services or practise law under the conditions laid down in Article 34a of the Attorneys Act, provided that the condition of actual reciprocity is fulfilled. Compliance with the condition of reciprocity is verified by the Ministry of Justice. Commercial presence for appointed attorneys by the Slovene Bar Association is restricted to sole proprietorship, law firm with limited liability (partnership) or to a law firm with unlimited liability (partnership) only. The activities of a law firm shall be restricted to the practice of law. Only attorneys may be partners in a law firm.
In SE: Admission to the Bar, necessary only for the use of the Swedish title "advokat", is subject to a residency requirement.
b) 1. Accounting and bookkeeping services
(CPC 86212 other than auditing services, 86213, 86219 and 86220)