Title
FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE
Preamble
The European Union, hereinafter referred to as "the Union",
and
the Republic of Singapore, hereinafter referred to as "Singapore",
hereinafter jointly referred to as the "Parties" or individually referred to as a "Party",
RECOGNISING their longstanding and strong partnership based on the common principles and values reflected in the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, and their important economic, trade and investment relationship;
DESIRING to further strengthen their relationship as part of and in a manner coherent with their overall relations, and convinced that this Agreement will create a new climate for the development of trade and investment between the Parties;
RECOGNISING that this Agreement will complement and promote regional economic integration efforts;
DETERMINED to strengthen their economic, trade, and investment relations in accordance with the objective of sustainable development, in its economic, social and environmental dimensions, and to promote trade and investment in a manner mindful of high levels of environmental and labour protection and relevant internationally-recognised standards and agreements to which they are party;
DESIRING to raise living standards, promote economic growth and stability, create new employment opportunities and improve the general welfare and, to this end, reaffirming their commitment to promoting trade and investment liberalisation;
CONVINCED that this Agreement will create an expanded and secure market for goods and services, thus enhancing the competitiveness of their firms in global markets;
REAFFIRMING each Party's right to adopt and enforce measures necessary to pursue legitimate policy objectives such as social, environmental, security, public health and safety, promotion and protection of cultural diversity;
REAFFIRMING their commitment to the Charter of the United Nations signed in San Francisco on 26 June 1945 and having regard to the principles articulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the General Assem- bly of the United Nations on 10 December 1948;
RECOGNISING the importance of transparency in international trade to the benefit of all stakeholders;
SEEKING to establish clear and mutually advantageous rules governing their trade and investment and to reduce or elimi- nate the barriers to mutual trade and investment;
RESOLVED to contribute to the harmonious development and expansion of international trade by removing obstacles to trade through this Agreement and to avoid creating new barriers to trade or investment between the Parties that could reduce the benefits of this Agreement;
BUILDING on their respective rights and obligations under the WTO Agreement and other multilateral, regional and bilateral agreements and arrangements to which they are party,
HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:
Body
Chapter One. OBJECTIVES AND GENERAL DEFINITIONS
Article 1.1. Establishment of a Free Trade Area
The Parties to this Agreement hereby establish a free trade area, consistent with Article XXIV of GATT 1994 and Article V of GATS.
Article 1.2. Objectives
The objectives of this Agreement are to liberalise and facilitate trade and investment between the Parties in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.
Article 1.3. Definitions of General Application
For the purposes of this Agreement, unless otherwise specified: "Agreement on Agriculture" means the Agreement on Agriculture contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"Agreement on Government Procurement" means the Agreement on Government Procurement contained in Annex 4 of the WTO Agreement;
"Agreement on Preshipment Inspection" means the Agreement on Preshipment Inspection contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"Anti-Dumping Agreement" means the Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"Customs Valuation Agreement" means the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"day" means a calendar day;
"DSU" means the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes contained in Annex 2 of the WTO Agreement;
"GATS" means the General Agreement on Trade in Services contained in Annex 1B of the WTO Agreement; âGATT 1994 means the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement,
"Harmonized System" means the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, including all legal notes and amendments thereto (hereinafter also referred to as the "HS";
"IMF" means the International Monetary Fund;
"Import Licensing Agreement" means the Agreement on Import Licencing Procedures contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"measure" means any law, regulation, procedure, requirement or practice;
"natural person of a Party" means a national of Singapore, or of one of the Member States of the Union (1), according to their respective legislation;
"Partnership and Cooperation Agreement" means the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Singapore, of the other part, signed in Brussels on 19 October 2018;
"person" means a natural person or a juridical person;
"Safeguards Agreement" means the Agreement on Safeguards contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"SCM Agreement" means the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"SPS Agreement" means the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"TBT Agreement" means the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade contained in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement;
"TRIPS Agreement" means the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights contained in Annex 1C of the WTO Agreement;
"WIPO" means the World Intellectual Property Organization;
"WTO" means the World Trade Organization; and
"WTO Agreement" means the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization done at Marrakesh on 15 April 1994.
Chapter Two. NATIONAL TREATMENT AND MARKET ACCESS FOR GOODS
Section A. COMMON PROVISIONS
Article 2.1. Objective
The Parties shall progressively and reciprocally liberalise trade in goods over a transitional period starting from the entry into force of this Agreement in accordance with this Agreement and in conformity with Article XXIV of GATT 1994.
Article 2.2. Scope
This Chapter applies to trade in goods between the Parties.
Article 2.3. National Treatment
Each Party shall accord national treatment to the goods of the other Party in accordance with Article Ill of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions. To this end, the obligations contained in Article Il] of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.
Article 2.4. Customs Duty
For the purposes of this Chapter, a customs duty includes any duty or charge of any kind imposed on or in connection with the importation or exportation of a good, including any form of surtax or surcharge imposed on or in connection with such importation or exportation.
A customs duty does not include any:
(a) charge equivalent to an internal tax imposed consistently with Article 2.3 (National Treatment);
(b) duty imposed consistently with Chapter Three (Trade Remedies);
(c) duties applied consistently with Article VI, Article XVI, Article XIX of GATT 1994, the Anti-Dumping Agreement, the SCM Agreement, Article 5 of the Agreement on Agriculture and the DSU; and
(d) fee or other charge imposed consistently with Article 2.10 (Fees and Formalities Connected with Importation and Exportation).
Article 2.5. Classification of Goods
The classification of goods in trade between the Parties shall be governed by each Party's respective tariff nomenclature in conformity with the HS and its amendments.
Section B. REDUCTION OR ELIMINATION OF CUSTOMS DUTIES
Article 2.6. Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties on Imports
1. Each Party shall reduce or eliminate its customs duties on imported goods originating in the other Party in accordance with the Schedules set out in Annex 2-A. For the purposes of this Chapter, "originating" means the origin of a good as determined in accordance with the rules of origin and the other requirements set out in Protocol 1.
2. The base rate of customs duties on imports, to which the successive reductions are to be applied under paragraph 1, shall be that specified in the Schedules in Annex 2-A.
3. If at any moment a Party reduces its applied most favoured nation (hereinafter referred to as "MFN") customs duty rates on imports after the date of entry into force of this Agreement, that duty rate shall apply if and for as long as it is lower than the customs duty rate on imports calculated in accordance with its Schedule in Annex 2-A.
4. Three years after the entry into force of this Agreement, at the request of either Party, the Parties shall consult to consider accelerating and broadening the scope of the reduction and elimination of customs duties on imports. A decision by the Parties in the Committee on Trade in Goods on such acceleration or broadening shall supersede any duty rate or staging category determined pursuant to their Schedules for that good.
Article 2.7. Elimination of Customs Duties and Taxes on Exports
Neither Party shall maintain or institute any customs duty or tax on, or in connection with the exportation or sale for export of, goods to the other Party, or any internal taxes on goods exported to the other Party that are in excess of those imposed on like goods destined for internal sale.
Article 2.8. Standstill
Upon the entry into force of this Agreement, neither Party shall increase any existing customs duty, or introduce any new customs duty, on the importation of a good originating in the other Party. This shall not preclude either Party from raising a customs duty to the level established in its Schedule in Annex 2-A following a unilateral reduction.
Section C. NON-TARIFF MEASURES
Article 2.9. Import and Export Restrictions
1. Neither Party shall adopt or maintain any prohibition or restriction on the importation of any good of the other Party or on the exportation or sale for export of any good destined for the territory of the other Party, in accordance with Article XI of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions. To that end, Article XI of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.
2. The Parties understand that, before taking any measures provided for in subparagraphs 2(a) and 2(c) of Article XI of GATT 1994, the Party intending to take the measures shall supply the other Party with all relevant information, with a view to seeking a solution acceptable to the Parties. The Parties may agree on any means needed to put an end to the difficulties. If no agreement is reached within 30 days of supplying such information, the exporting Party may apply measures under this Article on the exportation of the good concerned. Where exceptional and critical circumstances requiring immediate action make prior information or examination impossible, the Party intending to take the measures may apply forthwith the precautionary measures necessary to deal with the situation, and shall inform the other Party immediately thereof.
Article 2.10. Fees and Formalities Connected with Importation and Exportation
1. Each Party shall ensure, in accordance with Article VIN of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, that all fees and charges of whatever character (other than customs duties, and measures listed in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of Article 2.4 (Customs Duty)) imposed on, or in connection with the importation or exportation of, goods are limited in amount to the approximate cost of services rendered, which shall not be calculated on an ad val- orem basis, and shall not represent an indirect protection to domestic goods or a taxation of imports or exports for fiscal purposes.
2. Each Party shall make available, via an officially designated medium, including through the internet, the fees and charges it imposes in connection with importation and exportation.
3. No Party shall require consular transactions (2), including the payment of related fees and charges, in connection with the importation of any good of the other Party.
Article 2.11. Import and Export Licensing Procedures
1. The Parties affirm their existing rights and obligations under the Import Licensing Agreement.
2. The Parties shall introduce and administer any import or export licensing procedures (3) in accordance with:
(a) Paragraphs 1 to 9 of Article 1 of the Import Licensing Agreement;
(b) Article 2 of the Import Licensing Agreement;
(c) Article 3 of the Import Licensing Agreement.
To that end, the provisions referred to in subparagraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this paragraph are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement. The Parties shall apply those provisions, mutatis mutandis, to any export licensing procedures.
3. Each Party shall ensure that all export licensing procedures are neutral in application and are administered in a fair, equitable, non-discriminatory and transparent manner.
4. Each Party shall only adopt or maintain licensing procedures as a condition for the importation into its territory or the exportation from its territory to the other Party where other appropriate procedures to achieve an administrative purpose are not reasonably available.
5. Neither Party shall adopt or maintain non-automatic import or export licensing procedures unless necessary to implement a measure that is consistent with this Agreement. A Party adopting non-automatic licensing procedures shall clearly indicate the measure being implemented through such licensing procedure.
6. A Party introducing export licensing procedures or changes in these procedures shall notify the Committee on Trade in Goods 60 days in advance of the publication of those procedures. This notification shall contain the informa- tion required under Article 5 of the Import Licensing Agreement.
7. A Party shall respond within 60 days to enquiries from the other Party regarding any licensing procedures which the Party to which the request is addressed intends to adopt or has adopted or maintained, as well as the criteria for granting or allocating import or export licences.
Article 2.12. State Trading Enterprises
1. The Parties affirm their existing rights and obligations under Article XVI of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, and the Understanding on the Interpretation of Article XVII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, contained in Annex 1-A to the WTO Agreement, which are hereby incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.
2. Each Party may request information from the other Party as provided for in subparagraphs 4(c) and 4(d) of Article XVII of GATT 1994.
Article 2.13. Elimination of Sectoral Non-Tariff Measures
1. The Parties shall undertake further commitments on sector-specific non-tariff measures on goods as set out in Annex 2-B and Annex 2-C (hereinafter referred to as âSectoral Annexes). To that end, the Parties may, by decision in the Committee on Trade in Goods, amend the Sectoral Annexes.
2. At the request of a Party, the Parties shall enter into negotiations with the aim of broadening the scope of their commitments on sector-specific non-tariff measures on goods.
Section D. SPECIFIC EXCEPTIONS RELATED TO GOODS
Article 2.14. General Exceptions
1. Nothing in this Chapter shall prevent the taking of measures in accordance with Article XX of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, which are hereby incorporated into and made part of this Agree- ment, mutatis mutandis.
2. The Parties understand that, before taking any measures provided for in paragraphs (i) and (j) of Article XX of GATT 1994, the exporting Party intending to take the measures shall provide the other Party with all relevant informa- tion, with a view to seeking a solution acceptable to the Parties. The Parties may agree on any means needed to put an end to the difficulties. If no agreement is reached within 30 days, the exporting Party may apply measures under this Article on the exportation of the good concerned. Where exceptional and critical circumstances requiring immediate action make prior information or examination impossible, the Party intending to take the measures may apply forthwith the precautionary measures necessary to deal with the situation and shall inform the other Party immediately thereof.
Section E. INSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS
Article 2.15. Committee on Trade In Goods
1. The Committee on Trade in Goods established pursuant to Article 16.2 (Specialised Committees) shall meet at the request of a Party or the Trade Committee to consider any matter arising under this Chapter and comprise representatives of the Parties.
2. The Committee's functions shall include:
(a) monitoring the implementation of this Chapter and Annexes 2-A, 2-B and 2-C;
(b) promoting trade in goods between the Parties, including through consultations on accelerating and broadening the scope of tariff elimination and broadening of the scope of commitments on non-tariff measures under this Agreement, and on other issues as appropriate; as a result of these consultations, the Committee may, by decision, amend or expand the Annexes 2-A, 2-B and 2-C as required; and
(c) addressing tariff and non-tariff measures to trade in goods between the Parties, and, if appropriate, referring such matters to the Trade Committee for its consideration.
Chapter THREE. TRADE REMEDIES
Section A. ANTI-DUMPING AND COUNTERVAILING MEASURES
Article 3.1. General Provisions
1. The Parties affirm their rights and obligations arising under Article VI of GATT 1994, the Anti-Dumping Agreement and the SCM Agreement, and shall apply anti-dumping and countervailing measures in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter.
2. The Parties, recognising that anti-dumping and countervailing measures can be abused to obstruct trade, agree that:
(a) such measures should be used in full compliance with the relevant WTO requirements, and should be based on a fair and transparent system; and
(b) careful consideration should be given to the interests of the Party against which such a measure is to be imposed.
3. For the purpose of this Section, the origin of the goods shall be determined in accordance with the non-preferen- tial rules of origin of the Parties.
Article 3.2. Transparency and Information Exchange
1. After receipt by a Party's competent authorities of a properly documented anti-dumping application with respect to imports from the other Party, and no later than 15 days before initiating an investigation, that Party shall provide written notification to the other Party of its receipt of the application.
2. After receipt by a Party's competent authorities of a properly documented countervailing duty application with respect to imports from the other Party, and no later than 15 days before initiating an investigation, that Party shall provide written notification to the other Party of its receipt of the application and shall afford the other Party the possibility to consult with its competent authorities regarding the application, with a view to clarifying the factual situation and to arriving at a mutually agreed solution. The Parties shall endeavour to hold these consultations as soon as possible thereafter.
3. Both Parties shall ensure, immediately after any imposition of provisional measures, and in any case before the final determination is made, full and meaningful disclosure of all essential facts and considerations which form the basis for the decision to apply those measures. This is without prejudice to Article 6.5 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 12.4 of the SCM Agreement. Any disclosure shall be made in writing, and shall allow interested parties sufficient time to make their comments.
4. Each interested party shall be granted the possibility to be heard in order to express their views during trade reme- dies investigations.
Article 3.3. Lesser Duty Rule
Should a Party decide to impose any anti-dumping or countervailing duty, the amount of such duty shall not exceed the margin of dumping or countervailable subsidies, and it should be less than the margin if such lesser duty would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry.
Article 3.4. Consideration of Public Interest
Neither Party shall apply anti-dumping or countervailing measures where, on the basis of the information made available during the investigation, it can clearly be concluded that it is not in the public interest to apply such measures. Public interest shall take into account the situation of the domestic industry, importers and their representative associations, representative users and representative consumer organisations, to the extent they have provided relevant information to the investigating authorities.
Article 3.5. Exclusion from Bilateral Dispute Settlement and Mediation Mechanism
The provisions of this Section shall not be subject to Chapter Fourteen (Dispute Settlement) and Chapter Fifteen (Mediation Mechanism).
Section B. GLOBAL SAFEGUARD MEASURES
Article 3.6. General Provisions
1. Each Party retains its rights and obligations under Article XIX of GATT 1994, the Safeguards Agreement and Article 5 of the Agreement on Agriculture. Unless otherwise provided for in this Section, this Agreement does not confer any additional rights or obligations on the Parties with regard to actions taken pursuant to Article XIX of GATT 1994 and the Safeguards Agreement.
2. No Party shall apply at the same time with respect to the same good both: (a) a bilateral safeguard measure; and (b) a measure under Article XIX of GATT 1994 and the Safeguards Agreement.
3. For the purposes of this Section, the origin of the goods shall be determined in accordance with the non-preferential rules of origin of the Parties.
Article 3.7. Transparency
1. Notwithstanding Article 3.6 (General Provisions), at the request of the other Party, and provided that the latter has a substantial interest, a Party, when initiating a safeguard investigation or when intending to take safeguard measures, shall immediately provide, at least seven days in advance of the date of such initiation or imposition, ad hoc written notification of all pertinent information leading to the initiation of a safeguard investigation or the imposition of safeguard measures, including on the provisional findings and the final findings of the investigation, where relevant. This is without prejudice to Article 3.2 of the Safeguards Agreement.
2. When imposing safeguard measures, the Parties shall endeavour to impose them in a way that least affects their bilateral trade.
3. For the purposes of paragraph 2, if a Party considers that the legal requirements are met for the imposition of definitive safeguard measures, and it intends to apply such measures, it shall notify the other Party and give that Party the possibility of holding bilateral consultations. If no satisfactory solution has been reached within 30 days of the notification, the importing Party may adopt the definitive safeguard measures. The possibility of consultations should also be offered to the other Party in order to exchange views on the information referred to in paragraph 1.
Article 3.8. Exclusion from Bilateral Dispute Settlement and Mediation Mechanism
The provisions of this Section shall not be subject to Chapter Fourteen (Dispute Settlement) and Chapter Fifteen (Media- tion Mechanism).
Section C. BILATERAL SAFEGUARD CLAUSE
Article 3.9. Definitions
For the purposes of this Section: