3. The Parties shall encourage cooperation between their respective organizations responsible for standardization, conformity assessment, accreditation, and metrology, with the view to facilitating trade and avoiding unnecessary obstacles to trade between the Parties.
Article 6.9. Transparency
1. Each Party shall, upon request of the other Party, provide information, including the objective of, and rationale for, a technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure which the Party has adopted or proposes to adopt and may affect the trade between the Parties, within a reasonable period of time as agreed between the Parties.
2. When a proposed technical regulation is notified to the WTO, a Party shall give appropriate consideration to the comments received from the other Party, and, upon request of the other Party, provide written answers to the comments made by the other Party.
3. The Parties shall ensure that all adopted technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures are publicly available.
Article 6.10. Contact Points
1. For the purposes of this Chapter, the Contact Points are:
(a) for Costa Rica: the Ministry of Foreign Trade, or its successor; and
(b) for the UAE: the Standards and Regulation Sector, the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, or its successor.
2. Each Party shall promptly notify the other Party of any change ofits Contact Point.
Article 6.11. Information Exchange and Technical Discussions
1. Any information or explanation that a Party provides upon request of the other Party pursuant to this Chapter shall be provided in print or electronically within a reasonable period of time. Each Party shall endeavor to respond to such a request within 60 days.
2. All communication between the Parties on any matter covered by this Chapter shall be conducted through the Contact Points designated under Article 6.10.
3. On request of a Party for technical discussions on any matter arising under this Chapter, the Parties shall endeavor, to the extent practicable, to enter into technical discussions by notifying the Contact Points designated under Article 6.10.
Article 6.12. Subcommittee on Technical Barriers to Trade and on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Matters
1. A Subcommittee on Technical Barriers to Trade and on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Matters (hereinafter referred to as the "Subcommittee") is hereby established, consisting of representatives of each Party. The Subcommittee shall meet, in person or by any other technological means as determined by the Parties, at such times as agreed by the Parties and when they deem it appropriate, to consider matters arising under this Chapter and Chapter 5 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures).
2. The Subcommittee may consider any matter arising under this Chapter and Chapter 5 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures).
3. In relation to a matter referred to in paragraph 2, the functions of the Subcommittee shall include:
(a) monitoring the implementation and operation of this Chapter and Chapter 5 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures);
(b) consult on SPS matters related to the development or application of SPS measures that affect, or may affect, trade between the Parties, or arising under Chapter 5 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures);
(c) enhance mutual understanding of each Party's SPS measures, standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures;
(d) enhancing cooperation between the Parties in the initiatives set out in Article 6.8 and in Article 5.10 (Cooperation);
(e) making recommendations to the Joint Committee with regards to matters of its competence; and
(f) carrying out other functions as may be assigned by the Joint Committee or agreed by the Parties.
4. The Joint Committee shall establish the rules of working procedures of the Subcommittee.
Chapter 7. TRADE REMEDIES
Article 7.1. Scope
This Chapter shall apply to investigations and measures that are taken by the Parties' competent authorities as set forth in Article 7.2.
Article 7.2. Competent Authorities
For the purposes of this Chapter, the competent investigating authorities are:
(a) for Costa Rica, the Directorate of Trade Remedies of the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Commerce, or its successor; and
(b) for the UAE, the Ministry of Economy, or its successor.
Article 7.3. Anti-Dumping and Countervailing Measures
1. The Parties reaffirm their rights and obligations under the provisions of Article VI and Article XVI of GATT 1994; Anti-Dumping Agreement and SCM Agreement.
2. The Parties recognize their right to apply measures consistent with Article VI of the GATT 1994, the Anti-Dumping Agreement, and the SCM Agreement, and the importance of promoting transparency.
3. Except as otherwise stipulated in this Article, this Agreement does not confer any additional rights or obligations on the Parties with regard to anti-dumping and countervailing measures including the initiation and conduct of anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations as well as the application of anti-dumping and/or countervailing measures.
4. When the investigating authority of a Party receives a properly documented antidumping application by or on behalf of its domestic industry for the initiation of an anti- dumping investigation in respect of a product from the other Party, the former Party shall notify the other Party of the application as far in advance of the initiation of such investigation as possible and no later than 10 days before the date of initiation of the investigation and upon request of the exporting Party, the other Party may afford a meeting or any other similar opportunity for discussion.
5. As soonas possible after accepting a properly documented countervailing application for a countervailing duty investigation in respect of a product of the other Party, and in any event before initiating an investigation, the Party shall provide written notification of its receipt of the application to the other Party and invite the other Party for consultations with the aim of clarifying the situation as to the matters referred to in the application and arriving at a mutually agreed solution.
6. The investigating authority of each Party shall ensure, before a final determination is made, the disclosure of all essential facts under consideration which form the basis for the decision whether to apply definitive measures. This is without prejudice to Article 6.5 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 12.4 of the SCM Agreement. Disclosures shall be made in writing and allow interested parties sufficient time to make their comments.
7. Interested parties should be granted the right to express their views during anti- dumping and countervailing investigations in accordance with the conditions of each Party's internal legislation.
8. The Parties shall observe the following practices in anti-dumping or countervailing cases between them in order to enhance transparency in the implementation of the WTO Agreement:
(a) when dumping margins are established, assessed, or reviewed under Articles 2, 9.3, 9.5, and 11 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement regardless of the comparison bases under Article 2.4.2 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement, all individual margins, whether positive or negative, should be counted toward the average;
(b) if decision is taken to impose an anti-dumping duty pursuant to Article 9.1 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement, the Party taking such a decision may apply the "lesser duty" rule, by imposing a duty which is less than the dumping margin where such lesser duty would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry; and
(c) if, in an anti-dumping or countervailing duty action that involves imports from the other Party, a Party's investigating authority determines that a timely response to a request for information does not comply with the request, the investigating authority shall inform the interested party that submitted the response of the nature of the deficiency and, to the extent practicable, in light of time limits established to complete the anti-dumping or countervailing duty action, provide the interested party with an opportunity to remedy or explain the deficiency. If that interested party submits further information in response to that deficiency and the investigating authority finds that the response is not satisfactory, or that the response is not submitted within the applicable time limits, and if the investigating authority disregards all or part of the original and subsequent responses, the investigating authority shall indicate in the determination or other written document the reasons for disregarding the information; This procedure shall not be used to cause unwarranted delays in the investigation or to circumvent the deadlines, which are provided in the Party's domestic laws and regulations
9. In an anti-dumping investigation, where a Party's authorities have made a preliminary affirmative determination of dumping and injury caused by such dumping, the Party shall afford due consideration, and adequate opportunity for consultations, to exporters of the other Party regarding proposed price undertakings which, if accepted, may result in suspension of the investigation without imposition of anti-dumping duties, through the means provided for in the Party's domestic laws and regulations.
10. In a countervailing duty investigation, where a Party's authorities have made a preliminary affirmative determination of subsidization and injury caused by such subsidization, the Party shall afford due consideration, and adequate opportunity for consultations, to the other Party and exporters of the other Party, regarding proposed undertakings on price, which, if accepted, may result in suspension of the investigation without imposition of countervailing duties, through the means provided for in the Party's domestic laws and regulations.
11. The Parties agree to examine, with special care, any application for initiation of an antidumping investigation on a good originating in the other Party and on which anti- dumping measures have been terminated in the previous 12 months as a result of a review.
12. Without prejudice to the proper application of Article 3.3 of the Anti-dumping Agreement and Article 15.3 of the SCM Agreement, the Parties shall examine with special care the conditions set forth respectively in 3.3. (b) and 15.3 (b).
Article 7.4. Transitional Safeguard Measures
1. For the purposes of this Article:
domestic industry means, with respect to an imported product, the producers as a whole of the like or directly competitive product operating within the territory of a Party, or those producers whose collective production of the like or directly competitive product constitutes
a major proportion of the total domestic production of that product;
provisional measure means a provisional bilateral safeguard measure described in paragraph 12;
serious injury means a significant overall impairment in the position of a domestic industry;
threat of serious injury means serious injury that, on the basis of facts and not merely on allegation, conjecture or remote possibility, is clearly imminent;
transition period, in relation to a particular product, means the period from the entry into force of this Agreement until 3 calendar years after the date on which that good becomes free of customs duties in accordance with Annex 2B (Elimination of Customs Duties); and
transitional safeguard measure means a transitional bilateral safeguard measure described in paragraph 0.
2. If, as a result of the reduction or elimination ofa customs duty under this Agreement, an originating product of a Party is being imported into the territory of the other Party in such increased quantities, in absolute terms or relative to domestic production, and under such conditions as to cause serious injury, or threat thereof, to a domestic industry producing a like or directly competitive product, the other Party may, to the extent necessary to prevent or remedy serious injury apply a transitional safeguard measure consisting of:
(a) the suspension of the further reduction of any rate of customs duty on the product provided for under this Agreement;
(b) anincrease of the rate of customs duty on the product to a level not to exceed the lesser of:
(i) the most-favored-nation (MFN) applied rate of customs duty on the product in effect at the date on which the transitional safeguard measure is taken; or
(ii) the base rate set forth in the corresponding schedule of tariff commitments in Annex 2B (Elimination of Customs Duties).
3. A Party shall notify the other Party in writing:
(a) immediately on initiation of an investigation described in paragraph 0;
(b) immediately upon making a finding of serious injury or threat thereof caused by increased imports of an originating product of the other Party as a result of the reduction or elimination of a customs duty on the product pursuant to this Agreement;
(c) before applying provisional measures pursuant to paragraph 0; and
(d) no less than 20 days in advance of applying a definitive transitional safeguard measure or extending a transitional safeguard measure.
4. A Party shall consult with the other Party as far in advance of applying a transitional safeguard measure as practicable, with a view to reviewing the non-confidential version of the information arising from the investigation and exchanging views on the measure.
5. A Party shall apply a transitional safeguard measure only following an investigation by the Partyâs competent authorities in accordance with Articles 3 and 4.2(c) of the Safeguards Agreement, and to this end, Articles 3 and 4.2(c) of the Safeguards Agreement are incorporated into and made a part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.
6. In the investigation described in paragraph 0, the Party shall comply with the requirements of Article 4.2 (a) and (b) of the Safeguards Agreement, and to this end, Article 4.2 (a) and (b) of the Safeguards Agreement is incorporated into and made a part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.
7. Each Party shall ensure that its competent authorities complete any such investigation within one year of its date of initiation.
8. Neither Party may apply a transitional safeguard measure:
(a) except to the extent, and for such time, as may be necessary to prevent or remedy serious injury and to facilitate adjustment;
(b) fora period exceeding two years, except that the period may be extended by up to one year if the competent authorities of the importing Party determine, in conformity with the procedures specified in this Article, that the measure continues to be necessary to prevent or remedy serious injury and to facilitate adjustment and that there is evidence that the industry is adjusting, provided that the total period of application of a transitional safeguard measure, including the period of initial application and any extension thereof, shall not exceed three years; or
(c) beyond the expiration of the transition period, except with the consent of the other Party.
9. Neither Party may apply a transitional safeguard measure more than once against the same good.
10. Where the expected duration of the transitional safeguard measure is over one year, the importing Party shall progressively liberalize it at regular intervals.
11. When a Party terminates a transitional safeguard measure, the rate of customs duty shall be the rate that, according to its schedule of tariff commitments in Annex 2B (Elimination of Customs Duties), would have been in effect but for the measure.
12. In critical circumstances where delay would cause damage that would be difficult to repair, a Party may apply a transitional safeguard measure on a provisional basis pursuant to a preliminary determination by its competent authorities that there is clear evidence that imports of an originating product from the other Party have increased as the result of the reduction or elimination of a customs duty under this Agreement, and such imports have caused serious injury, or threat thereof, to the domestic industry.
13. Before applying a safeguard measure on a provisional basis, the applying Party shall notify the other Party. A Party may not apply a provisional measure until at least 45 days after the date its competent authorities initiate an investigation.
14. The duration of any provisional measure shall not exceed 200 days, during which time the Party shall comply with the requirements of paragraphs 0 and 0.
15. The Party shall, pursuant to Article 6 of the Safeguards Agreement, promptly refund any tariff increases if the investigation described in paragraph 0 does not result in a finding that the requirements of paragraph 0 are met. The duration of any provisional measure shall be counted as part of the period described in paragraph 0.
16. No later than 30 days after it applies a transitional safeguard measure, a Party shall afford an opportunity for the other Party to consult with it regarding appropriate trade liberalizing compensation in the form of concessions having substantially equivalent trade effects or equivalent to the value of the additional duties expected to result from the transitional safeguard measure. The applying Party shall provide such compensation as the Parties mutually agree.
17. If the Parties are unable to agree on compensation within 30 days after consultations begin, the Party against whose originating product the measure is applied may suspend the application of concessions with respect to originating product of the applying Party that have trade effects substantially equivalent to the transitional safeguard measure. The Party exercising the right of suspension may suspend the application of concessions only for the minimum period necessary to achieve the substantially equivalent effects.
18. A Party against whose product the transitional safeguard measure is applied shall notify the Party applying the transitional safeguard measure in writing at least 30 days before it suspends concessions in accordance with paragraph 17.
19. The right of suspension referred in paragraph 17 shall not be exercised for the first 12 months during which a transitional safeguard measure is in effect, provided that the transitional safeguard measure has been applied as a result of an absolute increase in imports.
20. The applying Party's obligation to provide compensation under paragraph 16 and the other Party's right to suspend concessions under paragraph 17 shall terminate on the date the transitional safeguard measure terminates.
Article 7.5. Global Safeguard Measures
1. Each Party retains its rights and obligations under Article XIX of GATT 1994 and the Safeguards Agreement. This Agreement does not confer any additional rights or obligations on the Parties with regard to actions taken under Article XIX of GATT 1994 and the Safeguards Agreement.
2. Neither Party shall apply, with respect to the same product, at the same time: (a) a transitional safeguard measure as provided in Article 7.4; and (b) a measure under Article XIX of GATT 1994 and the Safeguards Agreement.
3. A Party taking a global safeguard measure shall exclude imports of an originating good of the other Party as long as its share of imports of the product concerned in the importing Party does not exceed 3 per cent of total imports of the concerned product, provided that its share collectively with other developing countries with less than 3 per cent import account for not more than 9 per cent of total imports of the product concerned. (1)
4. For greater certainty, where, as a result of a global safeguard measure, a safeguard duty is imposed, the margin of preference, in accordance with the Schedules of Concessions of the Parties under Chapter 2 (Trade in Goods), shall be maintained.
5. At the request of the other Party and/or provided that it has a substantial interest, the Party intending to take safeguard measures shall provide immediately written notification of all pertinent information on the initiation of the safeguard investigation, including the provisional findings and the final findings of the investigation, as well as offer the possibility for consultations to the other Party.
6. For the purpose of this Article, it is considered that a Party has a substantial interest when it is among the five largest suppliers of the imported goods during the most recent three-year period of time, measured in terms of either absolute volume or value.
Article 7.6. Cooperation on Trade Remedies
The Parties shall endeavour to encourage cooperation on trade remedies, between the relevant authorities of each Party who have responsibility for trade remedy matters.
Chapter 8. INVESTMENT
Article 8.1. UAE-Costa Rica Bilateral Investment Agreement
The Parties note the existence of and reaffirm the Agreement Between the Government of the United Arab Emirates and the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica for the Reciprocal Promotion and Protection of Investments, signed in San Jose, Costa Rica on 3 October 2017 (UAE-Costa Rica Bilateral Investment Agreement).
Article 8.2. Promotion of Investment
The Parties affirm their desire to promote an attractive investment climate to encourage the expansion of trade in products and services as well as to create favourable conditions for long-term economic development and diversification of trade between the two countries.
Article 8.3. Technical Council on Investment
The Parties shall establish a Costa Rica-United Arab Emirates Council on Investment (hereinafter referred to as the âCouncilâ), which shall be composed of representatives of the competent authorities of the Parties. The Council shall be chaired in the case of Costa Rica by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and in the case of the United Arab Emirates by the Ministry of Finance. The Council may establish working groups as the Parties deem necessary. The Joint Committee shall establish the rules of working procedures of the Council.
Article 8.4. Objectives of the Council
The objectives of the Council are as follows:
(a) to promote and enhance the economic cooperation on investment matters between the Parties;
(b) to monitor investment relations, to identify opportunities for expanding investment which may include interlinkages with trade;
(c) to hold consultations, where appropriate, on specific investment matters of interest to the Parties;
(d) to work toward the enhancement of investment flows;
(e) to identify impediments, to investment flows and work towards identifying the appropriate actions and channels to address them;
(f) to seek the views of the private sector, where appropriate, on matters related to the work of the Council;
(g) to make recommendations to the Joint Committee with regards to matters of its competence; and
(h) to carry out other functions as may be assigned by the Joint Committee or agreed by the Parties.
Article 8.5. Rules of Working Procedures of the Council
The Council shall meet, in person or virtually, at such times and venues as agreed by the Parties, but the Parties shall endeavour to meet once per year when they deem it appropriate. A Party may refer a specific investment matter to the Council by delivering a written request to the other Party that includes a description of the matter concerned. The Council shall endeavour to take up the matter promptly after the request is delivered unless the requesting Party agrees to postpone discussion of the matter. Each Party shall endeavour, where appropriate, to provide for an opportunity for the Council to discuss a matter before taking actions that could affect adversely the investment interests of the other Party.
Article 8.6. Non-Application of Dispute Settlement Mechanisms
The Parties agree that nothing in this Chapter shall be subject to any dispute settlement mechanism.
Chapter 9. TRADE IN SERVICES
Article 9.1. Definitions
For the purposes of this Chapter:
a service supplied in the exercise of governmental authority means any service which is supplied neither on a commercial basis, nor in competition with one or more service suppliers;
aircraft repair and maintenance services mean such activities when undertaken on an aircraft or a part thereof while it is withdrawn from service and do not include so-called line maintenance;
commercial presence means any type of business or professional establishment including through:
(a) the constitution, acquisition or maintenance of a juridical person; or
(b) the creation or maintenance of a branch or representative office,
within the territory of a Party for the purpose of supplying a service;
computer reservation system services mean services provided by computerised systems that contain information about air carriers' schedules, availability, fares and fare rules, through which reservations can be made or tickets may be issued;
juridical person means any legal entity duly constituted or otherwise organized under applicable law, whether for profit or otherwise, and whether privately-owned or governmentally-owned, including any corporation, trust, partnership, joint venture, sole proprietorship or association;
juridical person of the other Party means a juridical person which is either:
(a) constituted or otherwise organized under the law of the other Party, and is engaged in substantive business operations in the territory of such other Party; or
(b) in the case of the supply of a service through commercial presence, owned or controlled by:
(i) natural persons of the other Party identified under paragraph (a) of the definition of natural person of a Party, excluding subparagraph (b) of the definition of natural person of a Party; or
(ii) juridical persons of that other Party identified under subparagraph (a);
a juridical person is:
(a) "owned" by persons ofa Party if more than 50 percent of the equity interest in it is beneficially owned by persons of that Party; or
(b) "controlled" by persons of a Party if such persons have the power to name a majority of its directors or otherwise to legally direct its actions;
measure means any measure by a Party, whether in the form of a law, regulation, rule, procedure, decision, administrative action, or any other form;
measures by Parties mean measures adopted or maintained by: (a) central, regional or local governments and authorities; and
(b) non-governmental bodies in the exercise of powers delegated by central, regional or local governments or authorities;
measures by Parties affecting trade in services include measures in respect of (a) the purchase, payment or use of a service;
(b) the access to and use of, in connection with the supply of a service, services which are required by a Party to be offered to the public generally; and
(c) the presence, including commercial presence, of persons of a Party for the supply of a service in the territory of the other Party;
natural person of a Party means a natural person who resides in the territory of that Party or elsewhere, and who under the law of that Party:
(a) is a national of that Party; or
(b) has the right of permanent residence in that Party provided that such Party accords substantially the same treatment to its permanent residents (1) as it does to its nationals in respect of measures affecting trade in services, provided that the Party is not obligated to accord to such permanent residents treatment more favourable than would be accorded by that Party to such permanent residents;
person means either a natural person or a juridical person;
sector of a service means:
(a) with reference to a specific commitment, one or more, or all, subsectors of that service, as specified in a Party's Schedule; or