(B) provide interested parties and the other Party with the opportunity to comment on such measures.
1. At the request of a Party, and to the extent permitted by its domestic law, the other Party shall provide information and promptly respond to questions relating to any matter that could materially affect this Agreement.
2. Any provision of information provided under this Article shall be made without prejudice to whether or not the measure is compatible with this Agreement.
164:. Administrative Procedures
In order to administer in a compatible, impartial and reasonable manner all measures of general application affecting the matters covered by this Agreement, each Party shall ensure that in its administrative procedures in which the measures referred to in Article 16.2.1 To persons, goods or services in particular of the other Party in specific cases:
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(A) wherever possible, persons of the other Party who are directly affected by a proceeding shall, in accordance with national law, receive reasonable notice of the commencement of the proceedings, including a description of their nature, To which the procedure is initiated and a general description of all the issues in dispute;
(B) where the time, nature of the proceedings and the public interest permit, such persons are given a reasonable opportunity to present facts and arguments in support of their claims, prior to any final administrative action; Y
(C) its procedures are in accordance with national legislation.
1. Each Party shall establish or maintain judicial or administrative tribunals or proceedings for the purpose of prompt review and, where appropriate, correction of final administrative actions related to matters covered by this Agreement. These courts shall be impartial and shall not be bound by the agency or the authority responsible for administrative enforcement of the law and shall have no material interest in the outcome of the case.
2. Each Party shall ensure that, in such courts or in such proceedings, the Parties have the right to:
(A) a reasonable opportunity to support or defend their respective positions; Y
(B) a resolution based on the evidence and arguments or, in cases where required by national legislation, in the file compiled by the administrative authority.
3. Each Party shall ensure that, in accordance with the means of challenge or subsequent review to which it may be provided in accordance with its domestic law, such resolutions shall be implemented by its agencies or authorities and shall govern their practice with respect to The administrative action in question.
166:. Specific Rules
The provisions of this Chapter are without prejudice to the specific rules established in other Chapters of this Treaty.
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167:. Definition
For the purposes of this Chapter:
Administrative resolution of general application means an administrative resolution or interpretation that applies to all persons and situations of fact that generally fall within its scope, and which establishes a standard of conduct, but does not include:
(A) resolutions or rulings in an administrative proceeding that applies to a particular person, commodity or service of the other Party in a specific case; or
(B) a ruling which resolves in respect of a particular act or practice.
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Chapter 17. Administration of the Treaty
1. The Parties shall establish the Free Trade Commission, composed of representatives at the ministerial level of each Party, in accordance with Annex 17.1, or by the persons to whom they designate.
2. The Commission shall:
(A) monitor the implementation of the Treaty;
(B) oversee the further development of the Treaty;
(C) oversee the work of all bodies established under this Treaty, including committees and working groups;
(D) to approve at its first meeting, unless otherwise agreed by the Parties, the Rules of Procedure and the Code of Conduct referred to in Chapter 15 (Dispute Settlement), as well as to modify them as necessary;
(E) set the amount of compensation and expenses to be paid to the members of the panels referred to in Chapter 15 (Settlement of Disputes);
(F) to know of any other matter that could affect the operation of the Treaty; Y
(G) establish and modify its rules of procedure.
3. The Commission may:
(A) establish and delegate responsibilities to the bodies established under this Agreement;
(B) modify in compliance with the objectives of this Treaty:
(I) the Schedules set out in Annex 2.3 (Tariff Elimination Program) by improving the market access tariff conditions, including the possibility of accelerating the tariff elimination and including one or more goods excluded from the Tariff Elimination Program. Tariff Elimination;
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(Ii) the rules of origin established in Annex 3.1 (Specific Rules of Origin), Annex 3.16 (Certificate of Origin) and Annex 3.17 (Declaration of Origin); Y
(Iii) Annex 10.1 (Coverage Annex);
(C) issue interpretations of the provisions of this Agreement;
(D) discuss any proposed amendment to this Treaty to make a recommendation to the Parties;
(E) review the impacts of the Treaty on the Parties' micro, small and medium-sized enterprises;
(F) request the advice of individuals or non-governmental groups; Y
(G) take any other action for the performance of their duties as the Parties may agree.
4. Each Party shall implement, in accordance with its national legislation, any changes referred to in subparagraph 3 (b) within the period agreed by the Parties.
5. All decisions of the Commission shall be adopted by mutual agreement.
6. The Commission shall meet at least once a year in ordinary session, unless the Commission decides otherwise. The ordinary sessions of the Commission shall be held alternately in the territory of the Parties or by any technological means.
172:.
"Coordinators of the Free Trade Agreement
1. Each Party shall designate a Coordinator of the Free Trade Agreement, in accordance with Annex 17.2.
2. The Coordinators shall work jointly in the development of agendas and in other preparations for the meetings of the Commission and shall monitor appropriately the decisions of the Commission.
173:. Administration of Dispute Resolution Procedures
Controversies
1. Each Party shall:
(A) designate an office to provide administrative support for the panels contemplated in Chapter 15 (Dispute Settlement) and perform other functions under the instruction of the Commission; Y
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(B) notify the other Party of the address of its designated office.
2. Each Party shall be responsible for the operation and costs of its designated office.
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The Free Trade Commission will be composed of:
(A) in the case of Honduras: the Secretary of State in the Office of Economic Development; Y
(B) in the case of Peru: the Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism, or his successors.
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Annex 17.1.3 (b): Implementation of the Modifications Approved by the
Free Trade Commission
In the case of Honduras, the decisions of the Commission under Article 17.1.3 (b) shall be equivalent to the instrument referred to in Article 21 of the Constitution of the Republic of Honduras.
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"Coordinators of the Free Trade Agreement
The Coordinators of the Free Trade Agreement will be:
(A) in the case of Honduras: the Director General of Administration and Negotiation of Treaties of the Secretary of State in the Economic Development Office or his designee; Y
(B) in the case of Peru: the unit designated by the Vice Minister of Foreign Trade,
Or their successors.
Chapter 18. Exceptions
181:. General Exceptions
1. For the purposes of Chapter 2 (Market Access to Goods), Chapter 3 (Rules of Origin and Procedures of Origin), Chapter 4 (Trade Facilitation and Customs Procedures), Chapter 5 (Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Customs Matters), Chapter 6 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures) and Chapter 7 (Technical Barriers to Trade), Article XX of the GATT 1994 and its interpretative notes are incorporated into this Agreement and form an integral part thereof, mutatis mutandis. The Parties understand that the measures referred to in Article XX (b) of the GATT 1994 include environmental measures necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health and that Article XX (g) of the GATT Of 1994 applies to measures relating to the conservation of living or non-living exhaustible natural resources.
2. For the purposes of Chapter 13 (Cross-Border Trade in Services) and Chapter 14 (Temporary Entry of Business Persons), WTO GATS Article XIV (including footnotes) is incorporated into this Agreement and forms Which is an integral part thereof, mutatis mutandis. The Parties understand that the measures referred to in Article XIV (b) of the WTO GATS include environmental measures necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health.
182:. Essential Security
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as:
(A) oblige a Party to provide or give access to information the disclosure of which it considers to be contrary to its essential security interests; or
(B) prevent a Party from implementing measures it deems necessary to fulfill its obligations with respect to the maintenance or restoration of international peace or security or to protect its essential security interests.
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 the Parties deriving from any tax convention. In case of
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Incompatibility between this Agreement and any of these agreements, the agreement shall prevail to the extent of the incompatibility. In the case of a tax agreement between the Parties, the competent authorities under that agreement shall have sole responsibility for determining whether there is any inconsistency between this Agreement and that agreement.
3. By way of derogation from paragraph 2:
(A) Article 2.2 (National Treatment) and such other provisions in this Agreement as are necessary to give effect to such Article shall apply to taxation measures to the same extent as Article III of the GATT 1994; and
(B) Article 2.11 (Export Taxes) will apply to tax measures.
4. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2:
(A) Article 13.3 (National Treatment), shall apply to tax measures on income, capital gains, or on the taxable capital of companies relating to the acquisition or consumption of specific services, except that nothing In this subparagraph shall prevent a Party from conditioning the receipt or continuation of receipt of an advantage related to the acquisition or consumption of specific services, to the requirement to provide the service in its territory; Y
(B) Articles 12.2 (National Treatment) and 12.3 (Most Favored Nation Treatment) and 13.3 (National Treatment) and 13.4 (Most Favored Nation Treatment) shall apply to all tax measures, except those on income, earnings Of capital, or over taxable corporate capital, estate taxes, inheritance, donations and generation-skipping transfers.
5. Paragraph 4 may not:
(A) impose any most-favored-nation obligation in respect of the benefit conferred by a Party in pursuance of any tax convention;
(B) apply to any non-conforming provision of any existing tax measure;
(C) apply to the continuation or prompt renewal of a non-conforming provision of any existing tax measure;
(D) apply a reform to a non-conforming provision of any existing tax measure, so long as that reform does not
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At the time of its execution, its degree of conformity with any of the articles mentioned in paragraph 4;
(E) apply to the adoption or application of any tax measure to ensure the application or collection of taxes in an equitable or effective manner (as permitted by WTO GATS Article XIV (d)); or
(F) apply to a provision that conditions the receipt or continued receipt of an advantage in respect of contributions to, or income from, fiduciary pensions or pension schemes, on the requirement that the Party maintain continuous jurisdiction over the pension Fiduciary or pension plan.
6. Subject to paragraph 2 and without prejudice to the rights and obligations of Parties in accordance with paragraph 3, paragraphs 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 of Article 12.6 (Performance Requirements) shall apply to The tax measures.
7.
(A) Article 12.10 (Expropriation and Compensation) and 12.16 (Submission of a Claim to Arbitration) shall apply to a tax measure that is alleged to be expropriation. However, no investor may invoke Article 12.10 (Expropriation and Compensation) as the basis of a claim where it has been determined in accordance with this paragraph that the measure does not constitute an expropriation 1. An investor seeking to invoke Article 12.10 (Expropriation and Compensation) With respect to a tax measure, it shall first submit the matter to the competent authorities of the Party complained against and referred to in sub-paragraph (b), upon written notice of its intention to submit a claim to arbitration pursuant to To Article 12.16 (Submission of a Claim to Arbitration), so that said authorities determine whether the tax measure constitutes
1 With reference to Article 12.10 (Expropriation and Compensation) in assessing whether a tax measure constitutes expropriation, the following considerations are relevant:
(A) taxation does not generally constitute expropriation. The mere introduction of new tax measures or the imposition of taxes in more than one jurisdiction with respect to an investment does not constitute, nor in itself, expropriation;
(B) tax measures consistent with internationally recognized tax policies, principles and practices do not constitute expropriation and, in particular, tax measures aimed at preventing tax evasion or avoidance should not generally be considered as expropriation; Y
(C) tax measures applied on a non-discriminatory basis, as opposed to being addressed to an investor of a particular nationality or to specific individual taxpayers, are less likely to constitute expropriation. A tax measure should not constitute expropriation if, when the investment is made, it is already in force, and the information on the measure was made public or otherwise made publicly available.
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An expropriation. If the competent authorities do not agree to examine the matter or if, having agreed to examine it, they do not agree that the measure does not constitute an expropriation, within six (6) months after the matter has been referred to, the investor may Submit your claim to arbitration, in accordance with Article 12.16 (Submission of a Claim to Arbitration).
(B) For the purposes of this paragraph, the competent authorities
Mean:
(I) in the case of Honduras, the Executive Directorate of Revenue (DEI); Y
(Ii) in the case of Peru, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, or its successors.
8. For the purposes of this Article:
Tax convention means an agreement to avoid double taxation.
Other international agreement or arrangement in tax matters; and
Taxes and tax measures do not include:
(A) a customs tariff as defined in Article 1.5 (Definitions of General Application); or
(B) the measures listed in exceptions (b) and (c) of the Customs Tariff definition of Article 1.5 (Definitions of General Application).
184:. Disclosure of Information
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to oblige a Party to provide or give access to confidential information, the disclosure of which may impede compliance with its domestic law, is contrary to the public interest, or would be likely to prejudice commercial interests Of private companies, whether public or private.
185:.
"Measures to Safeguard the Balance of Payments
In accordance with the WTO Agreement and consistent with the Agreement Establishing the International Monetary Fund, a Party may adopt or maintain temporary and non-discriminatory safeguard measures with respect to payments and capital movements that it deems necessary:
(A) in case of 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 monetary and exchange rate policy.
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Chapter 19. Final Provisions
191:. Appendices, Appendices and Footnotes
The Annexes, Appendices, and footnotes to this Agreement form an integral part thereof.
1. The Parties may agree to any amendment to this Agreement.
2. When the amendment is agreed upon and approved in accordance with the legal procedures of each Party, the amendment shall form an integral part of this Agreement and shall enter into force on the date on which the Parties so agree.
193:. Amendments to the Wto Agreement
If any provision of the WTO Agreement that has been incorporated into this Agreement is amended, the Parties shall consult with a view to amending the appropriate provision of this Agreement, as appropriate, in accordance with Article 19.2.
194:. Reservations and Interpretative Declarations
This Treaty shall not be subject to reservations or unilateral interpretative declarations. 1
195:. Entry Into Force
This Treaty shall enter into force sixty (60) days after the date on which the Parties exchange written notifications confirming that they have complied with their respective legal procedures or on such date as the Parties so agree.
196:. Complaint
Any Party may denounce this Treaty. The denunciation shall take effect one hundred and eighty (180) days after being communicated to the other Party, without prejudice to the parties being able to agree on a different period of time to effect the denunciation.
1 Peru understands that this provision does not affect its position on reservations and interpretative declarations in relation to other treaties other than this.
1. A Party's Schedule to this Annex establishes, in accordance with Article 12.7 (Non-Conforming Measures) and Article 13.7 (Non-Conforming Measures), nonconforming aspects of a Party's existing measures that are not subject to any or all Obligations imposed by:
(A) Article 12.2 (National Treatment) or Article 13.3 (National Treatment);
(B) Article 12.3 (Most-Favored-Nation Treatment) or Article 13.4 (Most-Favored-Nation Treatment);
(C) Article 12.5 (Senior Executives and Boards of Directors);
(D) Article 12.6 (Performance Requirements);
(E) Article 13.5 (Market Access); or
(F) Article 13.6 (Local Presence).
2. Each reservation in the Party's Schedule establishes the following elements:
(A) Sector refers to the general sector for which the reservation has been made;