Free Trade Area of the Americas - FTAA

 
Ministerial
Declarations
Trade Negotiations
Committee
Negotiating
Groups
Special
Committees
Business
Facilitation
Civil
Society
Trade&Tariff
Database
Hemispheric
Cooperation
Program

Home Countries Sitemap A-Z list Governmental Contact Points

 
 

Provisions on Trade in Services in Trade and Integration Agreements in the Western Hemisphere


Part I: Sub-regional Trade and Integration Agreements
XII. Definitions

WTO/GATS
PART VI, Article XXVIII - Definitions
Rules of Origin for foreign service:
(f) "service of another Member" means a service which is supplied,
(i) from or in the territory of that other Member, or in the case of maritime transport, by a vessel registered under the laws of that other Member, or by a person of that other Member which supplies the service through the operation of a vessel and/or its use in whole or in part; or
(ii) in the case of the supply of a service through commercial presence or through the presence of natural persons, by a service supplier of that other Member.

For foreign service supplier:
(g) "service supplier" means any person that supplies a service;
(j) "person" means any person that receives or uses a service;
(k) "natural person of another Member" means a natural person who resides in the territory of that other Member or any other Member, and who under the law of that other Member:
(i) is a national of that other Member; or
(ii) has the right of permanent residence in that other Member, in the case of a Member which:
1. Does not have nationals; or
Accord substantially the same treatment to its permanent residents as it does to its national in respect of measures affecting trade in services, as notified in its acceptance of or accession to the WTO Agreement, provided that no Member is obligated to accord to such permanent residents treatment more favourable than would be accorded by that other Member to such permanent residents. Such notification shall include the assurance to assume, with respect to those permanent residents, in accordance with its laws and regulations, the same responsibilities that other Member bears with respect to its nationals.

PART VI, Article XXVIII - Definitions (Cont.)
Rules of Origin for foreign enterprise:
(n) a juridical person is:
(i) "owned" by Persons of a Member if more than 50 percent of the equity interest in it is beneficially owned by persons of that Member;
(ii) "controlled" by persons of a Member if such persons have the power to name a majority of its directors or otherwise to legally direct its actions;
(iii) "affiliated" with another person when it controls, or is controlled by, that other person; or when it and the other person are both controlled by the same person.

NAFTA
Article 1213: Definitions
For foreign service:
Cross-border provisions of a service or cross-border trade in services means the provision of a service:


(a) from the territory of a Party into the territory of another Party,
(b) in the territory of a Party by a person of that Party to a person of another Party, or
(c) by a national of a Party in the territory of another Party, but does not include the provision of a service in the territory of a Party by an investment, as defined in Article 1139 (Investment - Definitions), in that territory;

For foreign service supplier:
Service provider of a Party means a person of a Party that seeks to provide or provides a service.

For foreign enterprise: see next page.

Article 1139: Investment - Definitions
For foreign enterprise:
Enterprise of a Party means an enterprise constituted or organized under the law of a Party, and a branch located in the territory of a Party and carrying out business activities there;

investment of an investor of a Party means an investment owned or controlled directly or indirectly by an investor of such a Party;

investor of a Party means a Party or state enterprise thereof, or a national or an enterprise of such Party, that seeks to make, is making or has made an investment;

investor of a non-Party means an investor other than an investor of a Party, that seeks to make, is making or has made an investment.

Group of Three
Article 10-01: Definitions
For foreign service:
Trade in services means the provision of a service:


(a) from the territory of a Party into the territory of another Party,
(b) in the territory of a Party by a person of that Party to a person of another Party,
(c) through the presence of service suppliers enterprises of one Party in the territory of another Party;
(d) by nationals or natural persons of one Party in the territory of another Party.

For foreign service supplier:
Service provider of a Party means a person of a Party that seeks to provide or provides a service.

For foreign enterprise: see next page.

Article 10-01: Definitions
For foreign enterprise:
Enterprise of a Party means an enterprise constituted or organized under the law of a Party, and a branch located in the territory of a Party and carrying out business activities there;

Article 17-01: Investment Definitions
Investment: resources transferred to the national territory of one Party or reinvested therein by investors of the other Party, including:
(a) any type of asset or right the purpose of which is to produce economic benefits;
(b) equity interest, in any proportion, by the investors of one Party in companies constituted or organized under the laws of another Party;
(c) enterprises owned or effectively controlled by a investor of that Party that have been constituted or organized in the territory of the other Party; and
(d) any other resources considered an investment under the laws of that Party.

Investor of a Party: any of the following persons owing an investment in the territory of the other Party:
(a) the Party itself or any of its public entities or State enterprises;
(b) a natural person who is a national of that Party in accordance with its laws;
(c) an enterprise constituted, organized, or protected in accordance with the laws of that Party;
(d) a branch located in the territory of that Party that engages in commercial activities therein.

CACM
Not Specified.

CARICOM
Not Specified.

Andean Community
Chapter IX, Article 23: Origin of the Services
The following services shall be considered as originating within the subregion, for the purpose of benefitting from the provisions of the present General Framework:
1. Services provided by natural or physical persons with permanent residence in the Member Countries, in accordance with their respective national regulations;
2. The service provided by juridical persons, constituted, authorized, or domiciled, in accordance with the national legislation, in any of the Member Countries, and which effectively realize substantial operations in the territory of any of the Member Countries, or by Multinational Andean Companies; and
3. In the case of cross-border provision of services, those services produced and provided directly from the territory of any of the Member Country, by natural or physical persons, or by juridical persons, in accordance with the paragraphs above.

Transitory provisions
Third. With the aim of deepening the understanding and correct application of the present Decision by competent domestic authorities, the General Secretariat shall carry out a study on the coverage of the criteria of origin established in Article 23, whose results shall be transmitted to the Commission, at the latest within six months of the entry into force of the present Decision.

Chapter IX, Article 24.
When a country has doubts about the origin of a service, it can have consultations with the other interested Member State. If within maximum thirty days the doubts on the origin of a service persist, any involved Party can request the intervention of the General Secretariat of the Andean Community. The General secretariat shall carry forward the respective investigation, and shall pronounce itself in no more than thirty days, counted as of the receipt of the request.

Chapter II: Definitions
Trade in services:

a) from the territory of a Member Country to the territory of another Member Country
b) in the territory of a Member Country to a consumer of another Member Country
c) by a service supplier of one Member Country, through commercial presence in the territory of another Member Country;
d) by presence of national persons of one Member Country in the territory of another Member Country.

Central America/Dominican Republic
Chapter X, Article 10-02
For foreign service:

Trade in services means the provision of a service:
a) from the territory of one Party into the territory of the other Party;
b) in the territory of one Party to the service consumer of the other Party;
c) by a service supplier of one Party, through commercial presence in the territory of the other Party;
d) by presence of national persons of one Party in the territory of the other Party.

Chapter X, Article 10-02: Definitions
Service of other Party: the service supplied:
a) from or in the territory of this other Party; or
b) by a service provider of this other Party through commercial presence or through the presence of physical persons.
Service provider: any person supplying a service. Physical person of other Party: national of other Party. Juridical person of other Party: any juridical person constituted or organized according to the legislation of this other Party that develops or intends to develop substantial commercial operations in the territory of this Party or of any other Party.

Mercosur
Part II, Article XVIII: Definitions

Service of another Party means a service provided:
i) from or in the territory of this other Party;
ii) in the case of provision of a service, through commercial presence or through physical presence of a person, by a service provider of this other Party.

Trade in services means the provision of a service:
a) from the territory of one Party into the territory of another Party;
b) in the territory of one Party to the service consumer of another Party;
c) by a service supplier of one Party, through commercial presence in the territory of the other Party;
d) by presence of national persons of one Party in the territory of the other Party.

Person means a physical person or a juridical person:
i) "physical person of another Party" means a physical person that resides in the territory of this other Party or from another Party and that, with arranging to the legislation of this other Party, is a national of this other Party or has a permanent residential right in this other Party.
ii) "juridical person" means all juridical entity properly constituted and organized in accordance to the applicable legislation, has or is from public, private, or mixed property and takes the form of any type of society or association.

"Juridical Person form another Party" means a juridical person who is constituted and organized in accordance to the legislation of this other Party, that has its head office there and develops or intends to substantially expand commercial operations in the territory of this Party or from another Party.

Service provider means any person that provides a service. When the service is not provided by a juridical person directly, but through other forms of commercial presence, for example, a branch or a representative office, is nevertheless entitled, through that presence, to the treatment accorded to the service providing entity. It is not necessary to extend the same treatment to any other part of the provider situated outside the territory where the service is being provided.

Bolivia/Mercosur
Not Specified.

Chile/Mercosur
Not Specified.

 
countries sitemap a-z list governmental contact points