1. The Parties may agree to suspend the work of the panel at any time for a period not exceeding 12 months from the date of such agreement. If the work of the panel remains suspended for more than 12 months, the authority of the panel shall lapse unless the Parties agree otherwise. If the authority of the panel lapses and the Parties have not reached an agreement on the settlement of the dispute, nothing in this Article shall preclude a Party from requesting a new proceeding on the same matter.
2. The Parties may agree to terminate the panel proceedings by joint notification to the chairperson of the panel at any time prior to the notification of the report.
Annex 24.2. Nullification and Impairment
1. A Party may have recourse to the dispute settlement mechanism under this Chapter when, by virtue of the application of a measure not inconsistent with this , it considers that the benefits it could reasonably have expected to receive from the application of any of the following provisions are nullified or impaired:
(a) Chapter 2 (National Treatment and Market Access),
(b) Chapter 3 (Rules of Origin);
(c) Chapter 4 (Trade Facilitation and Customs Procedures);
(d) Chapter 7 (Technical Barriers to Trade),
(e) Chapter 10 (Cross-Border Trade in Services); or,
(f) Chapter 17 (Public Procurement);
2. No Party may invoke paragraph (c) of Article 24.2 with respect to any measure subject to an exception under Chapter 25 (General Exceptions).
3. In determining elements of nullification or impairment, the Parties may take into consideration the principles set forth in the jurisprudence of paragraph 1(b) of Article XXIII of GATT 1994.
Chapter 25. Exceptions
Article 25.1. General Exceptions
1. For the purposes of Chapters 2 (National Treatment and Market Access for Goods), 3 (Rules of Origin and Origin Procedures), 4 (Trade Facilitation and Customs Procedures), 6 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures), 7 (Technical Barriers to Trade) and 13 (Electronic Commerce), Article XX of the GATT 1994 and its interpretative notes are incorporated into and form an integral part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis. The Parties understand that the measures referred to in Article XX (b) of GATT 1994 include environmental measures necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health, and that Article XX(g) of GATT 1994 applies to measures relating to the conservation of living or non-living exhaustible natural resources.
2. For the purposes of Chapters 10 (Cross-Border Trade in Services), 11 (Financial Services), 12 (Telecommunications Services), 13 (Electronic Commerce), 14 (Temporary Entry of Business Persons) and 15 (Investment), Article XIV of the WTO GATS (including the ) are incorporated into and form an integral part of Agreement, mutatis mutandis. The Parties understand that the measures referred to in Article XIV(b) of the WTO GATS include environmental measures to protect human, animal or plant life or health.
Article 25.2. Essential Safety
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as to:
(a) oblige a Party to provide or give access to information the disclosure of which it considers contrary to its essential security interests; or
(b) prevent a Party from applying measures to carry out its obligations under the Charter of the United Nations with respect to the maintenance or restoration of international peace or security, or which it considers necessary to protect its essential security interests.
Article 25.3. Taxation
1. Except as provided in this Article, nothing in this Agreement shall apply to taxation measures.
2. Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the rights and obligations of any Party under any agreement. In the event of any inconsistency between this Agreement and any such agreement, such agreement shall prevail to the extent of the inconsistency. In the case of a tax treaty between the Parties, the competent authorities under that treaty shall have sole responsibility for determining whether there is any inconsistency between this Agreement and that treaty.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, Article 2.2 (National Treatment) and such other provisions in this Agreement as are necessary to give effect to that Article shall apply to taxation measures to the same extent as Article III of GATT 1994 applies to taxation measures.
4. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2:
(a) Articles 10.2 (National Treatment) and 11.3 (National Treatment) shall apply to taxation measures on income, capital gains, or on the taxable capital of enterprises relating to the acquisition or consumption of specific services, except that nothing in this subparagraph shall prevent a Party from conditioning the receipt or continued receipt of an advantage related to the acquisition or consumption of specific services on the requirement to supply the service in its territory; and
(b) Articles 10.2 (National Treatment), 10.3 (Most Favored Nation), 11.3 (National Treatment), 11.4 (Most Favored Nation), 15.3 (National Treatment) and 15.3 (Most Favored Nation) shall apply to all tax measures, except those on income, capital gains, or corporate taxable capital, or taxes on estates, inheritances, gifts and generation-skipping transfers;
except that nothing in the provisions of the articles referred to in subparagraphs (a) and (b) above shall apply:
(c) to any MFN obligation with respect to the benefit granted by a Party pursuant a tax treaty;
(d) to non-conforming provision of any existing tax measure;
(e) The continuation or prompt renewal of a non-conforming provision of existing tax measure;
(f) to an amendment to a non-conforming provision of any existing tax measure, as as such amendment does not, at the time it is made, reduce its degree of conformity with any of those articles;
(g) the adoption or enforcement of any taxation measure aimed at ensuring the equitable or effective application and collection of taxes (as permitted by GATS Article XIV(d)); or
(h) to provision that conditions the receipt, or continued receipt, of an advantage with respect to contributions to, or income from, pension trust funds or pension plans on the requirement the Party maintain continuing jurisdiction over the pension trust fund or pension plan.
5. Subject to paragraph 2 and without prejudice to the rights and obligations of the Parties under paragraph 3, paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of Article 15.7 (Performance Requirements) shall apply to taxation measures.
6. Kick the effects of this article:
tax treaty means a convention for the avoidance double taxation or an international tax treaty or arrangement;
taxes and tax measures do not include:
(a) acustoms tariff as defined in Article 1.6 (Definitions); or
(b) the measures listed in exceptions (b) and (c) of that definition.
Article 25.4. Disclosure of Information
1, Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to require a Party to furnish or give access to confidential information, the disclosure of which would impede the enforcement of its domestic laws, including those protecting personal privacy, or which would be contrary to the public interest, or which would prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of particular enterprises, whether public or private.
2. Where a Party provides information of a confidential nature to the other Party, the other Party shall maintain in accordance with its domestic law the confidentiality of such information.
Article 25.5. Balance of Payments Safeguard Measures
In accordance with the WTO Agreement and consistent with the International Monetary Fund's Articles of Agreement, a country may adopt or maintain temporary and non-discriminatory safeguard measures with respect to payments and capital movements that it deems necessary:
(a) in the event of the existence or threat of serious external financial or balance of payments difficulties; or
(b) in cases where, under exceptional circumstances, payments and capital movements cause or threaten to cause serious difficulties for macroeconomic management, particularly in monetary and exchange rate policy.
Chapter 26. Final Provisions
Article 26.1. Annexes, Appendices and Footnotes
The Annexes, Appendices, and footnotes to this Agreement constitute an integral part of this Agreement.
Article 26.2. Amendments
1. The Parties may agree to any amendment to this Agreement.
2. When the amendment is agreed and approved in accordance with the necessary domestic legal procedures of each Party, the amendment shall constitute an integral part of this Agreement and shall enter into force in accordance with the provisions of Article 26.5.
Article 26.3. Amendments to the WTO Agreement
If any provision of the WTO Agreement that has been incorporated into this is amended, the Parties shall consult with a view to amending the corresponding provision of this Agreement, as appropriate, in accordance with Article 26.2.
Article 26.4. Reservations and Interpretative Statements
This Agreement shall not be subject to reservations or unilateral interpretative declarations.
Article 26.5. Entry Into Force
1. This Agreement shall have indefinite duration.
2. The entry into force of this Agreement shall be subject to the fulfillment of the necessary domestic legal procedures of each Party.
3. This Agreement, as well as any subsequent amendments, shall enter into force 60 days the date on which the Parties exchange written notices confirming that they have complied with their respective internal legal procedures or on the date on which the Parties so agree.
Article 26.6. Denunciation
Any Party may withdraw from the Agreement. The denunciation shall take effect 180 days after its notification by written notice to the other Parties, without prejudice to the fact that the Parties may agree on a different period for the denunciation to take effect.
Conclusion
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.
DONE at San José, in two equally authentic and valid copies on this first day of March, 2023.
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ECUADOR:
GUILLERMO LASSO-MENDOZA
JULIO PRADO LUCIO-PAREDES
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF COSTA RICA:
RODRIGO CHAVES ROBLES
MANUEL TOVAR RIVERA