(a) based on objective and transparent criteria, such as competence and the ability to supply the service;
(b) not more burdensome than necessary to ensure the quality of the service;
(c) in the case of licensing procedures, not in themselves a restriction on the supply of the service.
6. Pending the incorporation of disciplines pursuant to paragraph 5; for sectors where a Party has undertaken specific commitments and subject to any terms, limitations, conditions or qualifications set out therein, a Party shall not apply licensing and qualification requirements and technical standards that nullify or impair such specific commitments in a manner which:
(a) does not comply with the criteria outlined in paragraphs 5(a), 5(b) or 5(c); and
(b) could not reasonably have been expected of that Party at the time the specific commitments in those sectors were made.
7. In determining whether a Party is in conformity with the obligation under paragraph 6, account shall be taken of international standards of relevant international organisations (7-6) applied by that Party.
8. In sectors where specific commitments regarding professional services are undertaken, each Party shall provide for adequate procedures to verify the competence of professionals of the other.
Article 7.11. RECOGNITION
1. For the purposes of the fulfilment of its standards or criteria for the authorisation, licensing or certification of services suppliers, a Party may recognise the education or experience obtained, requirements met, or licenses or certifications granted in the other Party.
2. In accordance with their prior agreement, the Parties shall ensure that their respective professional bodies in the service sectors of accounting and auditing, architecture, medical (doctors), dental and nursing negotiate and conclude, within twelve months of the date of entry into force of this Agreement, any such agreements or arrangements providing for mutual recognition of the education or experience obtained, requirements met, or licenses or certifications in those service sectors, the details of such agreements or arrangements, including the exact extent and scope of recognition. Any delay or failure by these professional bodies to reach and conclude agreement on the details of such agreements or arrangements shall not be regarded as a breach of a Party's obligations under this paragraph and shall not be subject to the Dispute Settlement Chapter of this Agreement. Progress in this regard will be continually reviewed by the Parties in the course of the review of this Agreement pursuant to Article 16.3.
3. After the entry into force of this Agreement, upon a request being made in writing by a Party to the other Party in any regulated service sector not covered in paragraph 2, the requested Party shall encourage its relevant professional, standard-setting or self- regulatory body in that service sector to enter into negotiations, within a reasonable period of time from the date of the request being received in writing, to negotiate agreements or arrangements providing for mutual recognition of education, or experience obtained, requirements met, or licenses or certifications granted in that Service Sector, with a view to the achievement of early outcomes. Any delay or failure by these professional bodies to reach and conclude agreement on the details of such agreements or arrangements shall not be regarded as a breach of a Party's obligations under this paragraph and shall not be subject to the Dispute Settlement Chapter of this Agreement. Progress in this regard will be continually reviewed by the Parties in the course of the review of this Agreement pursuant to Article 16.3.
4. Where a Party recognises, by agreement or arrangement, the education or experience obtained, requirements met or licenses or certifications granted in the territory of a country that is not a Party to this Agreement, that Party shall accord the other Party, upon request, adequate opportunity to negotiate its accession to such an agreement or arrangement or to negotiate comparable ones with it. Where a Party accords recognition autonomously, it shall afford adequate opportunity for the other Party to demonstrate that the education or experience obtained, requirements met or licenses or certifications granted in the territory of that other Party should also be recognised.
5. The Parties agree that they shall not be responsible in any way for the settlement of disputes arising out of or under the agreements or arrangements for mutual recognition concluded by their respective professional, standard-setting or self-regulatory bodies under the provisions of this Article and that the provisions of Chapter 15 shall not apply to disputes arising out of, or under, the provisions of such agreements or arrangements.
Article 7.12. MONOPOLIES AND EXCLUSIVE SERVICE SUPPLIERS
1. Each Party shall ensure that any monopoly supplier of a service in its territory does not, in the supply of the monopoly service in the relevant market, act in a manner inconsistent with that Party's Schedule of specific commitments.
2. Where a Party's monopoly supplier competes, either directly or through an affiliated company, in the supply of a service outside the scope of its monopoly rights and which is subject to that Party's Schedule of specific commitments, the Party shall ensure that such a supplier does not abuse its monopoly position to act in its territory in a manner inconsistent with such commitments.
3. If a Party has reason to believe that a monopoly supplier of a service of the other Party is acting in a manner inconsistent with paragraphs 1 or 2 above, it may request that Party establishing, maintaining or authorising such supplier to provide specific information concerning the relevant operations.
4. The provisions of this Article shall also apply to cases of exclusive service suppliers, where a Party, formally or in effect:
(a) authorises or establishes a small number of service suppliers; and
(b) substantially prevents competition among those suppliers in its territory.
Article 7.13. BUSINESS PRACTICES
1. The Parties recognise that certain business practices of service suppliers, other than those falling under Article 7.12, may restrain competition and thereby restrict trade in services.
2. A Party shall, at the request of the other Party, enter into consultations with a view to eliminating practices referred to in paragraph 1. The Party addressed shall accord full and sympathetic consideration to such a request and shall co-operate through the supply of publicly available non-confidential information of relevance to the matter in question. The Party addressed shall also provide other information available to the requesting Party, subject to its domestic law and to the conclusion of satisfactory agreement concerning the safeguarding of its confidentiality by the requesting Party.
Article 7.14. SAFEGUARD MEASURES
1. Neither Party shall take safeguard action against services and service suppliers of the other Party from the date of entry into force of this Agreement. Neither Party shall initiate or continue any safeguard investigations in respect of services and service suppliers of the other Party.
2. The Parties shall review the issue of safeguard measures in the context of developments in international fora of which both parties are members.
Article 7.15. SUBSIDIES
1. The Parties shall review the treatment of subsidies in the context of developments in multilateral fora of which both Parties are Members.
2. In the event that either Party considers that its interests have been adversely affected by a subsidy or grant provided by the other Party, upon request, the other Party shall enter into consultations with a view to resolving the matter.
3. During the consultations referred to in paragraph 2, the subsidising Party may, as it deems fit, consider a request of the other Party for information relating to the subsidy scheme or programme such as:
(a) domestic laws or regulations under which the measure is introduced;
(b) form of the measure (e.g. grant, loan, tax concession);
(c) policy objective and/or purpose of the measure;
(d) dates and duration of the programme or subsidy and any other time limits attached to it; and
(e) eligibility requirements of the measure (e.g. criteria applied with respect to the potential population of beneficiaries).
4. The provisions of Chapter 15 of this Agreement shall not apply to any requests made or consultations held under the provisions of this Article or to any disputes that may arise between the Parties out of, or under, the provisions of this Article.
Article 7.16. PAYMENTS AND TRANSFERS
1. Except under the circumstances envisaged in Article 7.17 a Party shall not apply restrictions on international transfers and payments for current transactions relating to its specific commitments.
2. Nothing in this Chapter shall affect the rights and obligations of the Parties as members of the International Monetary Fund under the Articles of Agreement of the Fund, including the use of exchange actions which are in conformity with the Articles of Agreement, provided that a Party shall not impose restrictions on any capital transactions inconsistently with its specific commitments regarding such transactions, except under Article 7.17 or at the request of the Fund.
Article 7.17. RESTRICTIONS TO SAFEGUARD THE BALANCE OF PAYMENTS
1. In the event of serious balance of payments and external financial difficulties or threat thereof, a Party may adopt or maintain restrictions on trade in services in respect of which it has obligations under Articles 7.3 and 7.4 or has made Additional Commitments including on payments or transfers for transactions relating to such obligations. It is recognised that particular pressures on the balance of payments of a Party in the process of economic development may necessitate the use of restrictions to ensure, inter alia, the maintenance of a level of financial reserves adequate for the implementation of its programme of economic development.
2. The restrictions referred to in paragraph 1 shall:
(a) be consistent with the Articles of Agreement of the International Monetary Fund;
(b) avoid unnecessary damage to the commercial, economic and financial interests of the other Party;
(c) not exceed those necessary to deal with the circumstances described in paragraph 1;
(d) be temporary and be phased out progressively as the situation specified in paragraph 1 improves;
(e) be applied on a national treatment basis and such that the other Party is treated no less favourably than any country that is not a Party to this Agreement.
3. Any restrictions adopted or maintained under paragraph 1, or any changes therein, shall be promptly notified to the other Party.
4. The Party adopting any restrictions under paragraph 1 shall commence consultations with the other Party in order to review the restrictions adopted by it.
Article 7.18. TRANSPARENCY
1. Each Party shall publish promptly and, except in emergency situations, at the latest by the time of their entry into force, all relevant measures of general application which pertain to or affect the operation of this Chapter. International agreements pertaining to or affecting trade in services to which a Party is a signatory shall also be published.
2. Where publication as referred to in paragraph 1 is not practicable, such information shall be made otherwise publicly available.
3. Each Party shall respond promptly to all requests by the other Party for specific information on any of its measures of general application or international agreements within the meaning of paragraph 1. Each Party shall also establish one or more enquiry points to provide specific information to other Party, upon request, on all such matters.
Article 7.19. DISCLOSURE OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
Nothing in this Chapter shall require any Party to provide confidential information, the disclosure of which would impede law enforcement, or otherwise be contrary to the public interest, or which would prejudice legitimate commercial interests of particular enterprises, public or private.
Article 7.20. GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT
Articles 7.3 and 7.4 shall not apply to laws, regulations or requirements governing the procurement by governmental agencies of services purchased for governmental purposes and not with a view to commercial resale or with a view to use in the supply of services for commercial sale
Article 7.21. GENERAL EXCEPTIONS
1. Subject to the requirement that such measures are not applied in a manner which would constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination against the other Party, or a disguised restriction on trade in services, nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to prevent the adoption or enforcement by either Party of measures:
(a) necessary to protect public morals or to maintain public order; (7-7)
(b) necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health;
(c) necessary to secure compliance with laws or regulations which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Chapter including those relating to:
(i) the prevention of deceptive and fraudulent practices or to deal with the effects of a default on services contracts;
(ii) the protection of the privacy of individuals in relation to the processing and dissemination of personal data and the protection of confidentiality of individual records and accounts;
(iii) safety;
(d) inconsistent with Article 7.4, provided that the difference in treatment is aimed at ensuring the equitable or effective (7-8) imposition or collection of direct taxes in respect of services or service suppliers of the other Party.
2. Nothing in this Agreement shall prevent a Party from adopting or maintaining measures under which it accords more favourable treatment to persons of a non-Party than that accorded to persons of the other Party to this Agreement as a result of a bilateral double taxation avoidance agreement between the Party and such non-Party.
Article 7.22. SECURITY EXCEPTIONS
1. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed:
(a) to require a Party to furnish any information, the disclosure of which it considers contrary to its essential security interests; or
(b) to prevent a Party from taking any action which it considers necessary for the protection of its essential security interests:
(i) relating to the supply of services as carried out directly or indirectly for the purpose of provisioning a military establishment;
(ii) relating to fissionable and fusionable materials or the materials from which they are derived;
(iii) taken in time of war or other emergency in international relations;
(iv) relating to protection of critical public infrastructure, including communications, power and water infrastructure from deliberate attempts intended to disable or degrade such infrastructure; or
(c) to prevent a Party from taking any action in pursuance of its obligations under the United Nations Charter for the maintenance of international peace and security.
2. Each Party shall inform the other Party to the fullest extent possible of measures taken under paragraphs 1(b) and (c) and of their termination.
3. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to require a Party to accord the benefits of this Chapter to a service supplier of the other Party where a Party adopts or maintains measures in any legislation or regulations which it considers necessary for the protection of its essential security interests with respect to a non-Party or a service supplier of a non-Party that would be violated or circumvented if the benefits of this Chapter were accorded to such a service supplier.
Article 7.23. DENIAL OF BENEFITS
1. Subject to prior notification and consultation, a Party may deny the benefits of this Chapter:
(a) to the supply of a service, if it establishes that the service is supplied from or in the territory of a country that is not a Party to this Agreement;
(b) in the case of the supply of a maritime transport service, if it establishes that the service is supplied:
(i) by a vessel registered under the laws of a non-Party, and
(ii) by a person which operates and/or uses the vessel in whole or in part but which is of a non-Party;
(c) to the supply of a service through commercial presence, if the Party establishes at any time that persons of a non-Party own or control, or have acquired ownership or control over through subsequent transactions, the service supplier;
(d) to the supply of a service from or in the territory of the other Party, if the Party establishes that the service is supplied by a service supplier that is owned or controlled by a person of the denying Party.
Article 7.24. SERVICES-INVESTMENT LINKAGE
1. For the avoidance of doubt, the Parties confirm, in respect of Chapter 6, that:-
(a) the following articles of Chapter 6 apply, mutatis mutandis, to measures affecting the supply of service by a service supplier of a Party through commercial presence in the territory of the other Party, only to the extent that they relate to an investment, regardless of whether or not such service sector is scheduled in a Party's Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 7A or 7B:
(i) Article 6.4;
(ii) Article 6.5;
(iii) Article 6.6;
(iv) Article 6.8;
(v) Article 6.10;
(vi) Article 6.14;
(vii) Article 6.18;
(viii) Article 6.19;
(ix) Article 6.22; and
(x) Article 6.23.
(b) Article 6.21 apply, mutatis mutandis, to measures affecting the supply of service by a service supplier of a Party through commercial presence in the territory of the other Party, only to the extent that they relate to an investment and an obligation under Chapter 6, regardless of whether or not such service sector is scheduled in a Party's Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 7A or 7B; and
(c) the provisions relating to entry into force, duration and termination in Article 6.24 shall apply to the provisions of Chapter 6 that are made applicable under paragraphs (a) and (b) above.
Chapter 8. AIR SERVICES
Article 8.
1. The Parties affirm, mutatis mutandis, their rights and obligations under the GATS.
2. The Parties affirm their rights and obligations under the Air Services Agreement (ASA) between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Republic of Singapore dated 23 January 1968, as amended by and read with subsequent Memoranda or Supplementary Memoranda of Understanding, Confidential Memoranda of Understanding and Exchange of Letters entered into between their respective Governments.
3. The Parties recognise the strategic partnership in civil aviation and the importance of air connectivity to support the expansion of tourism, trade and investments between the Parties. To facilitate the implementation, as well as to fully harness the benefits of this Agreement, the Parties shall review and enhance their bilateral ASA and explore further areas of mutually beneficial co-operation.
Chapter 9. MOVEMENT OF NATURAL PERSONS
Article 9.1. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
1. This Chapter reflects the preferential trading relationship between the Parties, the Parties' mutual desire to facilitate temporary entry of natural persons on a comparable basis and of establishing transparent criteria and streamlined procedures for temporary entry, while recognizing the need to ensure border security. This Chapter provides for rights and obligations additional to those set out in Chapters 2, 6 and 7 in relation to the movement of natural persons between the Parties.
2. This Chapter shall not apply to measures pertaining to citizenship, permanent residence, or employment on a permanent basis.
3. Nothing contained in this Chapter shall prevent a Party from applying measures to regulate the entry or temporary stay of natural persons of the other Party in its territory, including measures necessary to protect the integrity of its territory and to ensure the orderly movement of natural persons across its borders, provided such measures are not applied in a manner so as to unduly impair the benefits accruing to the other Party or delay trade in goods or services or conduct of investment activities under this Agreement.
Article 9.2. SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS
1. This Chapter applies to measures affecting the movement of natural persons of a Party into the territory of the other Party, where such persons are:
(a) service sellers of the first mentioned Party;
(b) service suppliers of the first mentioned Party;
(c) sellers of goods of the first mentioned Party;
(d) investors of the first mentioned Party in respect of an investment of that investor in the territory of the other Party; or
(e) employed by an investor of the first mentioned Party in respect of an investment of that investor in the territory of the other Party;
(f) advisor (as defined in paragraph 2(b)(iv)).
2. For the purposes of this Chapter, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) natural person is as defined in paragraph (j) of Article 7.1 of this Agreement and specifically covers a national of a Party as described in paragraphs 1(a) to 1(f);
(b) business visitor means a natural person of either Party who is:
(i) a service seller; or
(ii) seeking temporary entry for negotiating sale of goods, where such negotiations do not involve direct sales to the general public; or
(iii) an investor of a Party or an employee of an investor (who is a manager, executive or specialist as defined under paragraph 2(f)) seeking temporary entry to establish an investment; or
(iv) seeking temporary entry as an Advisor in a capacity as an employee or otherwise to a person described in paragraphs 2(b) (i) to (ii), so long as any such advisory role is solely confined to such person, and does not involve any direct dealings with the general public;
(c) immigration visa refers to:
(i) in respect of Singapore: A multiple journey visa, employment pass, or other document issued by Singapore, granting a natural person of India the right to reside or work or remain in the territory of Singapore, and;
(ii) in respect of India: An employment visa or business visa issued by India, granting a natural person of Singapore the right to reside or work or remain in the territory of India without the intent to reside permanently;
(d) temporary entry means entry by a business visitor, a short-term service supplier, an intra- corporate transferee, or a professional, and spouses or dependants as defined in Article 9.6, as the case may be without the intent to establish permanent residence and for the purpose of engaging in activities which are clearly related to their respective business purposes. Additionally, in the case of a business visitor, the salaries of and any related payments to such a visitor should be paid entirely by the service supplier or enterprise which employs that visitor in the visitor's home country;
(e) professional means a natural person of a party who is employed in a specialised occupation as listed in Annex 9A that requires theoretical and practical application of specialised knowledge; and
(i) attainment of a post secondary degree in the specialty requiring three or more years of study (or the equivalent of such a degree) as a minimum of entry into the occupation. Such degrees include Bachelors' degree, Masters' degree and Doctoral degree conferred by institutions in India and Singapore; and
(ii) in the case of regulated professions, registration, license or credentials, as specified by the relevant authorities of a Party, if applicable, to engage in a business activity as a professional in one of the professions listed in Annex 9A, and for which specific commitments for that services sector have been undertaken by that Party under Chapter 7;
(f) intra-corporate transferee means an employee of a service supplier, juridical person as defined in paragraph (e) of Article 7.1, investor or enterprise of a Party established in the territory of the other Party referred to below as an organization, through a branch, subsidiary or affiliate, who has been so employed for a period of not less than either six months in-company and one year industry experience or three years industry experience immediately preceding the date of the application for temporary entry, and who is a manager, executive or specialist as defined below:
(i) Manager means a natural person within an organization who primarily directs the organization or a department or sub-division of the organization, supervises and controls the work of other supervisory, professional or managerial employees, has the authority to hire and fire or take other personnel actions (such as promotion or leave authorization), and exercises discretionary authority over day-to-day operations; this does not include a first-line supervisor, unless the employees supervised are professionals, nor does this include an employee who primarily performs tasks necessary for the provision of the service or operation of an investment, however, this does not prevent the manager, in the course of executing his duties as described above, from secondarily performing tasks necessary for the provision of the service or operation of an investment;
(ii) executive means a natural person within an organization who primarily directs the management of the organization, exercises wide latitude in decision-making, and receives only general supervision or direction from higher level executives, the board of directors, or stockholders of the business; an executive would not primarily perform tasks related to the actual provision of the service or the operation of an investment; however, this does not prevent the executive, in the course of executing his duties as described above, from secondarily performing tasks necessary for the provision of the service or operation of an investment;
(iii) specialist means a natural person within an organization who possesses knowledge at an advanced level of expertise and who possesses relevant knowledge of the organisation's service, research, equipment, techniques or management (a specialist may include, but is not limited to, members of a licensed profession);
(g) service seller means a natural person of a party who is a representative (9-1) of a service supplier of that Party and is seeking temporary entry into the other Party for the purpose of negotiating the sale of services for that service supplier, where such a representative will not be engaged in making direct sales to the general public or in supplying services directly;
(h) seller of goods means any person of a party engaged in the manufacture, production, supply or distribution of industrial or agricultural goods seeking temporary entry into the other Party in order to sell goods to, or to enter into a distribution or retailing arrangement with a person or an enterprise of the other Party engaged in an industrial or commercial enterprise, provided, however, that such person shall not sell goods directly to the general public of the other Party;
(i) short-term service suppliers mean natural persons of a Party who:
(i) are employees of a service supplier or an enterprise of a Party not having a commercial presence or investment in the other, which has concluded a service contract with a service supplier or an enterprise engaged in substantive business operations in the other Party;
(ii) have been employees of the service supplier or enterprise for a time period of not less than three months in the relevant industry immediately preceding an application for admission for temporary entry;
(ii) are managers, executives or specialists as defined under paragraph 2(f) ;
(iv) are seeking temporary entry into the other Party for the purpose of providing a service as a professional in service sectors scheduled by the other Party under Chapter 7 of this Agreement on behalf of the service supplier or enterprise which employs them; and
(v) satisfy any other requirements under the domestic laws and regulations of the other Party to provide such services in the territory of that Party;
3. Notwithstanding paragraph 1 of Article 9.1, the obligations of this Chapter shall only apply to the sectors in which specific commitments are undertaken by the concerned Party under Chapters 6 and 7 of this Agreement. However, they shall not apply to Singapore's commitments for the legal services sector made under the provisions of Chapter 7.