PREAMBLE

The Government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the
Government of the Republic of Guatemala determined to:
STRENGTHEN the traditional bonds of friendship and the spirit of
cooperation between both countries;
RECOGNIZE the strategic and geographic position of each nation
within its respective regional market;
REACH a better balance in their trade relations;
CREATE an expanded and secure market for goods and services
produced in their territories;
RECOGNIZE the differences in the levels of development and the
size of their economies and the need to create opportunities for
economic development;
AVOID distortions in their reciprocal trade;
ESTABLISH clear rules of mutual benefit governing trade of their
goods and services, and for the promotion and protection of the
investments in their territories;
RESPECT the rights and obligations derived from the Marrakech
Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO), as
well as other bilateral and multilateral cooperation instruments;
STRENGHTEN the competitiveness of their enterprises in global
markets;
CREATE employment opportunities and improve standards of living
in their territories;
PROMOTE economic development in accordance with the protection
and conservation of the environment, as well as sustainable
development;
PRESERVE their capacity to safeguard the public well-being; and
PROMOTE the dynamic participation of different economic agents,
in particular the private sector, in deepening the trade
relations between both nations;
HAVE AGREED as follows:
FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) AND
THE REPUBLIC OF GUATEMALA

PART ONE GENERAL ASPECTS

CHAPTER 1 INITIAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.01 Establishment of a Free Trade Area
The Parties to this Agreement, consistent with Article XXIV of
the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 and Article V of
the General Agreement on Trade in Services, hereby establish a
free trade area.

Article 1.02 Objectives
The objectives of this Agreement are to:
a) promote the expansion and diversification of trade of goods
and services between the Parties;
b) eliminate barriers to trade in, and facilitate the
cross-border movement of, goods and services between the
territories of the Parties;
c) promote fair competition between the Parties;
d) promote, protect and substantially increase investments in
each Party;
e) create effective procedures for the implementation and
application of this Agreement, and for its joint
administration and dispute settlement; and
f) establish a framework for further bilateral cooperation
based on mutually agreed terms and conditions in order to
expand and enhance the benefits of this Agreement.

Article 1.03 Relation to Other International Agreements
1. The Parties reaffirm their rights and obligations with
respect to each other under the WTO Agreement, and other
agreements to which the Parties are party.
2. In case of any inconsistency between the provisions of this
Agreement and the provisions of the agreements mentioned in
paragraph 1, the provisions of this Agreement shall prevail,
unless otherwise agreed.
3. In the event of any inconsistency between this Agreement and
the specific trade obligations set forth in:
a) the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species
of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), done at Washington, March
3, 1973, as amended June 22, 1979;
b) the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone
Layer done at Montreal, September 16, 1987, as amended June
29, 1990; or
c) the Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary
Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, done at
Basel, March 22, 1989,
these obligations shall prevail to the extent of the
inconsistency, provided that where a Party has a choice
among equally effective and reasonably available means of
complying with such obligations, the Party chooses the
alternative that is the least inconsistent with the other
provisions of this Agreement.

Article 1.04 Extent of Obligations
Each Party shall ensure, in conformity with its Constitutional
rules, the adoption of all necessary measures to comply with
provisions of this Agreement in its territory and at all levels
of government.

Article 1.05 Succession of Agreements
Any reference in this Agreement to any other treaty or
international agreement shall be made in the same terms to its
successor treaty or international agreement to which the Parties
are party.

CHAPTER 2 GENERAL DEFINITIONS

Article 2.01 General Application Definitions
For the purposes of this Agreement, unless otherwise agreed:
chapter means the first two digits of the Harmonized System;
Commission means the Administrative Commission of the Agreement
established in accordance with Article 17.01 (Administrative
Commission of the Agreement);
customs tariff means any tax, tariff or duty on imports or any
charge of any type collected in relation to the import of goods,
including any type of surtax or surcharge on imports, except:
a) any charge equivalent to an established internal tax in
accordance with Article III.2 of the GATT Agreement of 1994;
b) any right or other charge related to the import,
proportional to the cost of rendered services;
c) any offered or collected prime on concerned goods derived
from all auction system with respect to the administration
of quantitative restrictions of the import or tariff-quota,
or tariff preference quotas; and
d) antidumping or countervailing duty that is applied pursuant
to a Party's domestic law and applied consistently with
Chapter 7 (Unfair Trade Practices);
Customs Valuation Agreement means the Agreement on
Implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade 1994, including its interpretative notes,
which forms part of the WTO Agreement;
days means calendar days, including Saturdays, Sundays and
holidays;
enterprise means any legal entity constituted or organized under
applicable law, whether or not for profit, and whether
privately-owned or governmentally-owned, including any
corporation, trust, partnership, sole proprietorship, joint
venture, or other association;
existing means in effect on the date of entry into force of this
Agreement;
GATT 1994 means the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994,
which forms a part of the WTO Agreement;
goods means any material, substance, product or part;
goods of a Party means a national product as understood in GATT
1994, or good that the Parties have agreed to attribute such
character, including an originating good of that Party. A good
of a Party may contain materials from other countries;
Harmonized System (HS) means the Harmonized Commodity
Description and Coding System, including its General Rules of
Interpretation, Section Notes, and Chapter Notes, chapters,
headings, subheadings, as adopted and implemented by the Parties
in their respective tariff laws;
heading means the first four digits of the Harmonized System;
measure means any law, regulation, procedure, requirement,
provision or practice, among others;
national means a natural person of a Party according to Annex
2.01;
originating goods means goods that qualify as originating
according to the rules established in Chapter 4 (Rules of
Origin);
Party means the Republic of Guatemala or the Republic of China
(Taiwan);
person means a natural person, or an enterprise;
person of a Party means a national or an enterprise of a Party;
producer means a person who manufactures, produces, processes or
assembles a good, or who cultivates, grows, develops, raises,
exploits a mine, extracts, harvests, fishes, hunts, collects,
gathers, or captures a good;
Secretariat means "Secretariat" as established in accordance
with Article 17.03 (Secretariat);
state enterprise means, an enterprise that is owned or
controlled by a Party through ownership interests;
subheading means the first six digits of the Harmonized System;
tariff reduction schedule means "tariff reduction schedule”, as
established in Annex 3.04 (Tariff Reduction Schedule);
territory means, the land, maritime and air space of each Party,
including the exclusive economic zone and the continental shelf
within which each exercises sovereign rights and jurisdiction in
accordance with international and domestic law; TRIPS means the
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property
Rights, which is part of the WTO Agreement;
Uniform Regulations means "Uniform Regulations", as established
in Article 5.11 (Uniform Regulations); and
WTO Agreement means the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the
World Trade Organization, of April 15, 1994.

PART TWO TRADE IN GOODS

CHAPTER 3 NATIONAL TREATMENT AND MARKET ACCESS FOR GOODS

Section I – Definitions and Scope of Application

Article 3.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, unless otherwise agreed in this
Agreement, the following terms shall be understood as:
commercial samples of negligible value:
a) raw materials and goods of which dimensions, quantities,
weight, volume or presentation are such that indicate
without a doubt that they are not for any other use than
demonstrations or proof;
b) objects of common materials fixed over cards, supports or
clearly presented as samples, according to trade uses;
c) raw materials and goods, as well as the surplus of those
raw materials and goods that have been disabled for other
use rather than demonstration, by laceration, perforation,
marked permanently, or any other way that effectively
prevent their commercialization; and
d) goods that cannot be subject to the conditions established
in subparagraphs a) through c), consisting in:
i) non consumer good, with no more than ten (10) US dollars
unit value, composed by unique specimens in each series
or quality; and
ii) consumer goods with no more than ten (10) US dollars
unit value, including those composed totally or
partially of specimens of the same type or quality, as
long as the quantity and form presentation exclude all
possibility of commercialization.
printed advertising materials: products classified in
chapter 49 of the Harmonized system, including brochures,
pamphlets, leaflets, trade catalogues, yearbooks published
by trade associations, and tourist promotional materials
and posters that are used to promote, publicize, or
advertise an originating good or service, and are supplied
free of charges.
agricultural products or agricultural goods: the products
listed in Annex I of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, and
including any future amendments agreed at the WTO.

Article 3.02 Scope of Application
Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, this Chapter
applies to the trade in goods between the Parties.

Section II - National Treatment

Article 3.03 National Treatment
1. Each Party shall accord national treatment to the goods of
the other Party in accordance with Article III of GATT 1994,
including its interpretative notes, and for that matter, the
Article III of GATT 1994 and its interpretative notes are
incorporated into and made part of this Agreement.
2. The provisions on paragraph 1 regarding the national
treatment shall mean, with respect to a Party, including its
departments, counties, or provinces, a treatment not less
favourable than the most favourable treatment that this Party
accords to any like, directly competitive, or substitutable
goods of its national origin.

Section III - Tariffs

Article 3.04 Tariff Reduction Schedule
1. Unless otherwise agreed in this Agreement, no Party may
increase any existing tariff rate nor adopt any new customs
tariff on originating goods.
2. The Parties agree to establish the tariff reduction schedule
in Annex 3.04 (Tariff Reduction Schedule) for the originating
goods.
3. Paragraph 1 does not intend to impede a Party to create a new
subheading duty, if the customs tariff applied for is not
higher than the tariff applied to the fraction.
4. Upon request by either Party, the Parties shall hold
consultations to examine the possibility to improve the
tariff treatment of each Party established in Annex 3.04
(Tariff Reduction Schedule). An agreement between the Parties
of improving the tariff treatment of a good, shall prevail
over any customs tariff or preference established in their
schedules for that specific good, once approved by each Party
in accordance with its applicable legal procedures.
5. Paragraph 1 of this Article does not prevent a Party from
increasing a customs tariff to a level no higher than that
established in Annex 3.04 (Tariff Reduction Schedule) if
previously this customs tariff had been unilaterally reduced
to a level lower than that established in Annex 3.04 (Tariff
Reduction Schedule).
6. During the tariff reduction process, the Parties commit
themselves to apply in their reciprocal trade of originating
goods, the lowest customs tariff, obtained by comparing the
level established in accordance with its respective Tariff
Reduction Schedule and the level in force according to
Article I of GATT 1994 (MFN).

Article 3.05 Temporary Admission of Goods
1. Each Party shall grant duty-free temporary admission for the
following goods, regardless of their origin:
a) professional equipment, including equipment for the press
and television, and broadcasting and cinematographic
equipment, necessary for carrying out the business trade,
or professional activities;
b) goods intended for display or demonstration;
c) commercial samples and advertising films and recordings; and
d) goods imported for sports purposes.
2. Each Party, shall, at the request of an interested person,
and for reasons deemed valid by its customs authority, extend
the time limit for temporary admission beyond the period
initially fixed, pursuant to its domestic law.
3. No Party shall condition the duty-free temporary admission of
goods referred to in paragraph 1, other than to require that
such goods:
a) not be sold or leased in its territory;
b) be accompanied by a bond in an amount no greater than the
duties and charges that would otherwise be owed on entry or
final importation, reimbursable or releasable on
exportation of the good;
c) be identifiable when exported;
d) be exported within the period established in the domestic
law in force of each Party;
e) be admitted in quantities no greater than is reasonable for
their intended use; and
f) be otherwise admissible into the territory of the Party
under its domestic laws.
4. If any condition that a Party imposes under paragraph 3 has
not been fulfilled, the Party may apply the customs duty and
any other charge that would normally be owed on the goods
plus penalties provided for under its domestic law.
5. Each Party, through its customs authority, shall adopt
procedures providing for the expeditious release of goods
admitted under this Article.
6. Each Party shall permit goods temporarily admitted under this
Article to be exported through a customs port other than that
through which they were admitted.
7. Each Party, through its customs authority, according to its
domestic law, shall relieve the importer or other person
responsible for the goods admitted under this Article from
any liability for failing to export the goods, provided that
satisfactory proof has been presented to customs authorities
showing that the goods have been destroyed within the given
period.
8. Subject to Chapter 10 (Investment) and 11 (Cross-Border Trade
in Services):
a) each Party shall allow a container used in international
transportation that enters its territory from the territory
of the other Party to exit its territory on any route that
is reasonably related to the cost effective and prompt
departure of such container;
b) neither Party shall require any bond or impose any penalty
or charge solely by reason of any difference between the
port of entry and the port of departure of a container;
c) neither Party shall condition the release of any
obligation, including any bond, that it imposes in respect
of the entry of a container into its territory on its exit
through any particular port of departure; and
d) neither Party shall require that a carrier bringing a
container from the territory of the other Party into its
territory be the same carrier that takes such container to
the territory of the other Party.

Article 3.06 Duty-Free Entries of Commercial Samples of
Negligible Value and Printed Advertising Materials
Each Party shall grant duty-free entrance to commercial samples
of negligible value and to printed advertising materials
imported from the territory of the other Party.

Article 3.07 Customs Valuation
Upon the entry into force of this Agreement, the principles of
customs valuation applied to trade between the Parties shall be
that established in the Customs Valuation Agreement, including
its annexes. Besides, the Parties shall not determine the
customs value of the goods based on the officially established
minimum value.

Section IV - Non-Tariff Measures

Article 3.08 Domestic Support
1. The Parties recognize that domestic support measures may be
important to their agricultural sectors, but they may also
distort trade and affect production. In this sense, the
Parties shall apply domestic support in accordance with the
Agreement on Agriculture of the WTO, or its successors, and
when a Party decides to support its agriculture producers it
shall ensure, in accordance with the relevant legal
instruments, that the benefits arising from those programs do
not distort domestic trade of the other Party, nor diminish
the opportunity of the goods of the other Party to access the
market of the Party.
2. In order to ensure transparency, the Parties agree that the
Committee on Trade in Goods established pursuant to Article
3.15 shall carry out ongoing and permanent analysis of the
status of all domestic support measures, seeking to evaluate
the accomplishment of the provisions under paragraph 1. Also,
the Parties shall exchange information in a timely manner or,
at the request of a Party may engage in consultations over
this issue at any time.

Article 3.09 Import and Export Restrictions
1. The Parties agree to immediately eliminate non-tariff
barriers, with the exception of rights of the Parties under
Articles XX and XXI of GATT 1994, and those regulated in
Chapter 8 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures) and Chapter 9
(Standard, Metrology-related Measures and Authorization
Procedures).
2. Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, neither Party
may adopt or maintain any prohibition or restriction on the
importation of any goods of the other Party or on the
exportation or sale for export of any goods destined to the
territory of the other Party, except in accordance with
Article XI of GATT 1994, including its interpretative notes.
To this end, Article XI of GATT 1994 and its interpretative
notes, are incorporated into and form part of this Agreement.
3. The Parties reaffirm their rights and obligations under GATT
1994, that prohibit, under any circumstances any form of
restrictions, export price requirements and, except as
permitted in the enforcement of countervailing and
antidumping orders, import price requirements, including
minimum prices and reference prices.
4. In the event that a Party adopts or maintains a prohibition
or restriction on the importation or exportation of
originating goods from the other Party, if required, the
former Party shall establish that the measure is in
accordance with this Agreement and the WTO Agreements.
5. The Parties hereby establish Annex 3.09 (Import and Export
Restrictions). Paragraphs 1 to 3 shall not apply to the
measures set forth in said Annex.
6. If a Party has state trading enterprises, said Party shall
guarantee that their activities be carried out based solely
on considerations of a commercial nature, such as prices,
quality, availability, marketability, transportation and
other conditions of purchase or sale. The Party shall accord
to the trade of the other Party fair and equitable treatment,
to avoid these activities becoming barriers to trade, in
accordance with Article XVII of GATT 1994 including its
interpretative notes, and to this end, this Article and its
interpretative notes, are incorporated into and form part of
this Agreement.

Article 3.10 Consular Fees
Upon the entry into force of this Agreement, neither Party shall
require consular fees or charges, nor shall require consular
formalities on originating goods from the other Party.

Article 3.11 Country of Origin Marking
1. The Parties confirm their rights and obligations under
Article IX of GATT 1994 and any successor agreement.
2. Each Party shall ensure that the establishment and
implementation of their laws on country of origin marking
does not have the purpose or effect of creating unnecessary
barriers to trade between the Parties.

Article 3.12 Export Taxes
Except as provided in Annex 3.09 (Import and Export
Restriction), at the time of entry into force of this Agreement,
neither Party shall adopt nor maintain any tax, duty or charge
on the export of a good to the territory of the other Party.

Article 3.13 Special Safeguard Measures
1. The Parties may apply a special safeguard measures (SSM) at
any given time in a calendar year, for those products
included in Annex 3.13 (Products subject to Special Safeguard
Measures), whenever the imports of a product from the other
Party have exceeded the trigger levels established in Annex
3.13. The trigger levels shall be a percentage of the yearly
average growth of those imports made during the last 3
calendar years; as long as there have been imports
consecutively in those years.
2. The SSM application shall consist of a tariff increase to the
level of the MFN customs tariff established either at the
time of importation or on July 31 2005, whichever is lower.
3. The SSM application is not subject to any kind of
compensation.
4. The SSM duration period shall be of up to eighteen (18)
months, renewable for an equal period of time. The Party
shall notify the other Party of its intention to extend said
measure at least thirty (30) days before the due date, if the
conditions that caused it persist.
5. The adopted SSM shall take effect on the day that said
measure is published in the media designated by each Party’s
legislation, taking into account all relevant information
that justifies its entry into force. The Party imposing the
measures shall notify it to the other Party at least fifteen
(15) days before its entry into force.
6. Notwithstanding the application of the SSM, the Parties shall
be able to hold consultations at any time in order to
exchange information and with the goal of reaching mutually
beneficial agreements.
7. Whenever new products are incorporated into the Tariff
Reduction Schedule included in Annex 3.04 (Tariff Reduction
Schedule) the Parties shall be able to include them in Annex
3.13 (Products subject to Special Safeguard Measures).
8. The SSM shall not apply to those products listed under the
exclusion category or subject to a tariff quota system.

Article 3.14 Distinctive Products
1. For purposes of labeling, the Government of Taiwan recognizes
coffee as a distinctive product of Guatemala, especially the
coffee from the regions of Antigua, Huehuetenango, Coban, San
Marcos, Oriente, Atitlan and Fraijanes. Therefore, the
Government of Taiwan shall not permit the commercialization
and sale of any product as Guatemalan Coffee, particularly
from Antigua, Huehuetenango, Coban, San Marcos, Oriente,
Atitlan and Fraijanes, unless these products have been
manufactured with originating coffee from Guatemala or the
regions mentioned above, if applied.
2. The Parties may recognize other regions, as well as other
distinctive products after the entry into force of this
Agreement. For these purposes the Parties shall conduct
consultations in the Committee on Trade in Goods.

Article 3.15 Committee on Trade in Goods
1. The Parties hereby establish the Committee on Trade in Goods,
which shall be composed as set out in Annex 3.15 (Committee
on Trade in Goods).
2. The Committee on Trade in Goods shall meet periodically, and
by request of a Party or the Commission, to ensure the
effective implementation and administration of Chapter 3
(National Treatment and Market Access for Goods).
3. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 17.05(2)
(Committees), the Committee shall have the following
functions:
a) supervise the implementation and administration of this
Chapter by the Parties;
b) at the request of either Party, review any proposed
modification or addition;
c) make recommendation on modifications or additions to the
Commission;
d) consider any other matter related to the implementation and
administration of this Chapter; and
e) analyze, the status of all domestic support measures of the
Parties, in an ongoing and permanent manner, as well as any
other modifications of this measures, seeking to assess
compliance with paragraph 1 of Article 3.08.

CHAPTER 4 RULES OF ORIGIN

Article 4.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
CIF: the value of an imported good that includes the costs of
insurance and freight to the port or place of entry in the
importing Party;
FOB: free on board; regardless of the mode of transportation, at
the point of direct shipment by the seller to the buyer;
fungible goods or materials: goods or materials which are
interchangeable for commercial purposes and whose properties are
essentially identical and it is not possible to differentiate
one from another by a simple eye examination;
generally accepted accounting principles: recognized consensus
or substantial authorized support given in the territory of one
of the Parties with respect to the recording of revenues,
expenses, costs, assets and liabilities, the disclosure of
information and the preparation of financial statements.
Generally accepted accounting principles may encompass broad
guidelines for general application, as well as detailed
standards, practices and procedures;
goods wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory of a
Party:
a) minerals extracted or obtained in the territory of that
Party;
b) vegetables and vegetable products harvested, gathered or
recollected in the territory of that Party;
c) live animals born and raised in the territory of that Party;
d) goods obtained by hunting, trapping, fishing, aquaculture,
gathering or capture in the territory of that Party;
e) goods obtained from live animals in the territory of that
Party;
f) fish, shellfish, and other marine species obtained outside
the territorial sea of that Party, by fishing vessels
registered or recorded in that Party and flying its flag,
or by fishing vessels rented by enterprises established in
the territory of that Party;
g) goods obtained or produced on board factory vessels from
the goods referred to in subparagraph f) provided that such
vessels are registered or recorded in that Party and fly
its flag, or are rented by enterprises established in the
territory of that Party;
h) goods obtained from the seabed or subsoil beneath the sea
bed outside the territorial sea of that Party, by that
Party or a person of that Party, provided that the Party
has rights to exploit such seabed or subsoil;
i) scrap and waste derived from manufacturing or processing
operations in the territory of that Party and fit only for
disposal or for the recovery of raw materials; or
j) goods produced in the territory of that Party, exclusively
from goods mentioned in subparagraph a) through and i)
above;
indirect material: a good used in the production, testing or
inspection of another good, but not physically incorporated into
the good, or a good used in the maintenance of buildings or the
operation of equipment related to the production of another
good, including:
a) fuel, energy, solvents and catalysts;
b) equipment, devices and supplies used in the testing or
inspection of goods;
c) gloves, glasses, footwear, clothing, and safety equipment
and supplies;
d) tools, dies and molds;
e) spare parts and materials used in the maintenance of
equipment and buildings;
f) lubricants, greases, compounding materials, and other
materials used in production, or used to operate equipment
and maintenance of buildings; and
g) any other goods that are not incorporated into the good but
whose use in the production of the good can reasonably be
demonstrated to be a part of that production;
material: a good used in the production of another good
including ingredients, parts, components and goods that have
been physically incorporated into another good or were subject
to the production process of another good;
producer: a “producer” as defined in Chapter 2 (General
Definitions);
production: methods of obtaining goods including manufacturing,
producing, growing, assembling, processing, harvesting, raising,
breeding, mining, extracting, hunting, collecting, gathering,
fishing, trapping and capturing;
transaction value of a good: the price actually paid or payable
for a good related to the transaction done by the producer of
the good, according to the principles of Article 1 of the
Customs Valuation Agreement, adjusted according to paragraphs 1,
3 and 4 of Article 8 of the Agreement, regardless whether the
good is sold for exportation. For purposes of this definition,
the seller referred to in the Customs Valuation Agreement shall
be the producer of the good;
transaction value of a material: the price actually paid or
payable for a material related to the transaction done by the
producer of the material, in accordance with the principles of
Article 1 of the Customs Valuation Agreement, adjusted according
to paragraphs 1, 3 and 4 of Article 8 of the said Agreement,
regardless whether the material is sold for exportation. For
purposes of this definition, the seller referred to in the
Customs Valuation Agreement shall be the producer of the
material; and
value: the value of a good or material for purposes of
calculating customs duties or for purposes of applying this
Chapter according to the principles established in the Customs
Valuation Agreement.

Article 4.02 Application and Interpretation Instruments
1. For purposes of this Chapter:
a) the tariff classification of goods shall be based on the
Harmonized System; and
b) the principles and rules of the Customs Valuation Agreement
shall be used to determine the value of a good or a
material.
2. For purposes of this Chapter, the Customs Valuation Agreement
will be applied to determine the origin of a good as follows:
a) the principles and rules of the Customs Valuation Agreement
shall be applied to domestic transactions, with the
modifications required by the circumstances, as they would
apply to international transactions; and
b) the provisions of this Chapter shall prevail over those of
the Customs Valuation Agreement, where there are
inconsistencies.

Article 4.03 Originating Goods
1. Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, a good shall be
considered as originating in the territory of a Party, when:
a) it is wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory
of that Party;
b) it is produced entirely in the territory of one or both
Parties exclusively from materials that qualify as
originating according to this Chapter;
c) it is produced in the territory of one or both Parties from
non-originating materials that meet with a change in tariff
classification, satisfies a regional value content or other
requirements, as specified in Annex 4.03 and the good
complies with all other applicable requirements of this
Chapter;
d) it is produced in the territory of one or both Parties,
even though one or more of the non-originating materials,
provided for as parts under the Harmonized System, that are
used in the production of the good have not undergone a
change in the tariff classification because:
i) the good was imported into the territory of one or both
Parties in an unassembled or a disassembled form and has
been classified as an assembled good according to General
Rules of Interpretation 2(a) of the Harmonized System;
ii) the good and its parts are classified into the same
heading which describes specifically both the good
itself and its parts, and that heading is not further
divided into subheadings; or
iii) the subheading for the good is the same as for its
parts and describes specifically both the good itself
and its parts;
provided that the regional value content of the good,
determined in accordance with Article 4.07, is not less than
thirty five percent (35%), and the good fulfills all other
applicable requirements of this Chapter, unless the specific
rule of origin applicable to the good pursuant to Annex 4.03,
specifies a different requirement of regional value content,
in which case that specific requirement shall be applied. The
rules provided for in this subparagraph shall not be
applicable to the goods in Chapters 61 through 63 of the
Harmonized System.
2. If a good of a Party fulfills the specific rules of origin in
Annex 4.03, the additional fulfillment of the requirement of
regional value content established in paragraph 1 d) shall
not be required.
3. For purposes of this Chapter, the production of a good from
non-originating materials that fulfill a change of tariff
classification and other requirements specified in Annex
4.03, shall be done totally in the territory of one or both
Parties, and the good shall satisfy all the applicable
requirements of this Chapter.
4. Notwithstanding other provisions of this Article, goods shall
not be considered originating, if they are exclusively the
outcome of the minimal operations set out in Article 4.04 and
carried out in the territory of one or both Parties, unless
the specific rules of origin of Annex 4.03 indicate otherwise.

Article 4.04 Minimal Processes or Operations
The minimal processes or operations that by themselves or in
combination do not confer origin to a good are as follows:
a) the necessary operations for the preservation of a good
during transportation or storage, including airing,
ventilation, drying, refrigeration, freezing, elimination
of damaged parts, application of oil, antirust painting or
protective coatings, or the placing in salt, sulfur dioxide
or some other aqueous solution;
b) simple operations consisting of cleaning, washing, sifting
or straining, or shaking, selection, classification or
grading, culling, peeling, shelling or striping, grain
removal, pitting, pressing or crushing, soaking,
elimination of dust or of spoiled or damaged parts,
sorting, division of consignments in bulk, grouping in
packages, placing of marks, labels or distinctive signs on
products and their packages, packing, unpacking or
repackaging;
c) combination or mixing operations of goods that have not
result in any important difference in the characteristics
of the goods before and after the combination or mixing;
d) simple jointing or assembling of parts to make a complete
good, or to form sets or assortments of goods;
e) simple water dilution operations or ionization and salting,
which have not changed the nature of the good; and
f) slaughter of animals.

Article 4.05 Indirect Materials
Indirect materials shall be considered as originating,
regardless where they are produced or manufactured, and the
value of those materials shall be included in the costs as
indicated in the accounting records of the producer of the good.

Article 4.06 Accumulation
1. A Party may only accumulate origin with goods originating
from the territory of the other Party.
2. The originating materials or goods from a territory of one
Party, incorporated into a good in the territory of the other
Party, shall be considered as originating in the territory of
the latter.
3. A good is originating when it is produced in the territory of
one or both Parties by one or more producers, provided that
the good satisfies the requirements established in Article
4.03 and all other applicable requirements of this Chapter.

Article 4.07 Regional Value Content
1. The regional value content of the goods shall be calculated
according to the following formula:
RVC= [(TV- VMN) / TV] * 100
Where:
RVC is the regional value content, expressed as a percentage;
TV is the transaction value of the good adjusted to a FOB
basis, unless as stated in paragraph 2. In case this value
does not exist, or cannot be determined according to the
principles and rules of Article 1 of the Customs Valuation
Agreement, it shall be calculated according to the principles
and rules of Articles 2 through 7 of the Agreement; and VMN
is the transaction value of the non-originating materials
adjusted to a CIF basis, unless as stated in paragraph 5. In
case that the value does not exist or cannot be determined
according to the principles and rules of Article 1 of the
Customs Valuation Agreement, it shall be calculated according
to the principles and rules of Articles 2 through 7 of the
Agreement.
2. When the good is not exported directly by its producer, the
value shall be adjusted to the point at which the buyer
receives the good in the territory in which the producer is
located.
3. When the origin is determined by the method of regional value
content, the required percentage shall be specified in Annex
4.03 in the corresponding specific rule of origin.
4. All the records of the costs considered for the calculation
of the regional value content shall be recorded and
maintained according to the generally accepted accounting
principles, applicable in the territory of the Party where
the good is produced.
5. When the producer of a good acquires a non-originating
material in the territory of a Party in which it is located,
the value of the non-originating material shall not include
freight, insurance, packing costs and any other cost incurred
in the transportation of the material from the supplier’s
warehouse to the location of the producer.
6. For purposes of calculating the regional value content, the
value of the non-originating materials used in the production
of the good shall not include the value of the
non-originating materials used in the production of an
originating material acquired and used in the production of
such good.

Article 4.08 De Minimis
1. A good shall be considered originating if the value of all
non-originating materials used in the production of this good
that does not satisfy the requirement of change in tariff
classification set out in Annex 4.03 does not exceed ten
percent (10%) of the transaction value of the good, as
determined according to Article 4.07.
2. When it refers to goods classified into chapters 50 through
63 of the Harmonized System, the percentage indicated in
paragraph 1 shall refer to the weight of fibers or yarns with
respect to the weight of the good being produced.
3. Paragraph 1 shall not apply to a non-originating material
used in the production of goods classified into Chapters 1
through 27 of the Harmonized System, unless the
non-originating material is classified in a different
subheading from the good for which the origin is being
determined according to this Article.

Article 4.09 Fungible Goods and Materials
1. When in the production of goods using originating or
non-originating fungible goods or materials, the origin of
those fungible goods or materials shall be determined either
by physical segregation of each good or material, at the
producer’s choice, or through the application of one of the
following inventory management methods:
a) first in first out (FIFO) method;
b) last in first out (LIFO) method; or
c) averaging method.
2. When originating and non-originating fungible goods or
materials are physically mixed or combined in the warehouse
and before their exportation do not undergo any production
process or any other operation in the territory of the Party
in which they were mixed of physically combined, other than
unloading, reloading or any other necessary movement to
maintain the goods or materials in good condition or
transport them to the territory or the other Party, the
origin of the good or material shall be determined by one of
the inventory management methods listed out in the preceding
paragraph.
3. Once the inventory management method listed out in the
preceding paragraph is selected by a producer, it shall be
used during the entire period of a fiscal year of that
producer.

Article 4.10 Sets or Assortments of Goods
1. A set or assortment of goods that is classified according to
rule 3 of the General Rules of the Interpretation of the
Harmonized System, as well as the goods whose description
according to the nomenclature of the Harmonized System is
specifically that of a set or assortment, shall qualify as
originating, whenever each one of the goods contained in that
set or assortment complies with the rules of origin set out
in this Chapter and in Annex 4.03.
2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, a set or assortment of goods
shall be considered originating, if the value of all
non-originating goods used in making the set or assortment
does not exceed the percentage set out in paragraph 1 of
Article 4.08 with respect to the value of the set or
assortment, adjusted to the basis indicated in Article 4.07
paragraphs 1 or 2, as the case may be.
3. The provisions of this Article shall prevail over the
specific rules of origin set out in Annex 4.03.

Article 4.11 Accessories, Spare Parts and Tools
1. The accessories, spare parts or tools delivered with the good
that usually form part of the good shall not be taken into
account in determining whether all non-originating materials
used in the production of the good undergo the applicable
change in tariff classification set out in Annex (4.03),
provided that:
a) the accessories, spare parts or tools are not invoiced
separately from the good; and
b) the amount and the value of these accessories, spare parts
or tools are customary for the good.
2. When the good is subject to a requirement of regional value
content, the value of the accessories, spare parts or tools
will be considered as originating or non-originating
materials, as the case may be, in calculating the regional
value content of the good.
3. For those accessories, spare parts or tools that do not
fulfill the conditions
mentioned above, the rules of origin shall apply to each of
them respectively and separately, according to this Chapter.

Article 4.12 Packaging Materials and Containers for Retail Sale
1. When packaging materials and containers in which a good is
packaged for retail sales are classified in the Harmonized
System with the good, they shall not be taken into account in
determining whether all non-originating materials used in the
production of the good undergo the applicable change in
tariff classification set out in Annex 4.03.
2. When the good is subject to a requirement of regional value
content, the value of these packaging materials and
containers shall be taken into account as originating or
non-originating materials, as the case may be, in calculating
the regional value content of the good.

Article 4.13 Packing Materials and Containers for Shipment
Containers and packing materials in which the good is packed for
shipment shall not be taken into account in determining whether:
a) the non-originating materials used in the production of the
good undergo the applicable change in tariff classification
set out in Annex 4.03; or
b) the good satisfies the requirement of regional value
content.

Article 4.14 Transit and Transshipment
An originating good shall not lose such status when it is
exported from a Party to the other Party and during its
transportation it passes by the territories of one or more
non-Parties, as long as it fulfills the following requirements:
a) the transit is justifiable by geographical reasons or by
considerations relative to requirements of international
transportation;
b) the good has not been destined for trade, consumption, and
use in the countries of transit;
c) during its transportation and temporary storage the good
has not undergone operations other than unloading,
reloading or any other operation necessary to preserve them
in good condition; and
the good remains under the control of the customs authority
in the territory of any non-Party.

CHAPTER 5 CUSTOMS PROCEDURES RELATED TO RULES OF ORIGIN

Article 5.01 Definitions
1. For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
certifying authority: in the case of the Republic of
Guatemala, the Ministry of Economy, or its successor; and in
the case of the Republic of China (Taiwan), the Bureau of
Foreign Trade (BOFT), Ministry of Economic Affairs, or its
successor, or other agencies as authorized by BOFT or its
successor;
commercial importation: the importation of a good into the
territory of a Party for sale, or for commercial, industrial
or similar purposes;
competent authority: in the case of the Republic of
Guatemala, the Ministry of Economy, or its successor; and in
the case of the Republic of China (Taiwan), the customs
authority under the Ministry of Finance, or its successor;
customs authority: the authority, according to the respective
laws of each Party, responsible for administering and
implementing customs laws and regulations;
days: "days" as defined in Chapter 2 (General Definitions);
determination of origin: the written legal document issued by
the competent authority as a result of a procedure for
verifying whether a good qualifies as originating according
to Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin);
exporter: a person engaging in exportation and located in the
territory of a Party who is obligated, in accordance with
this Chapter, to maintain records in the territory of that
Party according to paragraph 1 a) of Article 5.05;
identical goods: goods that are equal in all aspects,
including physical characteristics, quality and commercial
prestige, irrespective of minor differences in appearance
that are not relevant to the determination of origin of these
goods according to Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin);
importer: a person engaging in importation and located in the
territory of a Party, who is obligated, in accordance with
this Chapter, to maintain records in the territory of that
Party according to paragraph 1 b) of Article 5.05;
preferential tariff treatment: the application of the tariff
rate corresponding to an originating good according to the
tariff reduction schedule, pursuant to Article 3.04 (Tariff
Reduction Schedule);
producer: "producer" as defined in Chapter 2 (General
Definitions); located in the territory of a Party who is
obligated, in accordance with this Chapter, to maintain
records in the territory of that Party according to paragraph
1 a) of Article 5.05; and
valid certificate of origin: a certificate of origin in the
format established in paragraph 1 of Article 5.02, completed,
signed and dated by the exporter of a good in the territory
of a Party, and certified by a certifying authority of that
Party, according to the provisions of this Chapter and to the
instructions for filling the certificate.
2. The definitions established in Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin)
shall be incorporated into this Chapter.

Article 5.02 Origin Certification
1. For the purposes of this Chapter, the Parties shall establish
a single form of certificate of origin, which shall enter
into force on the same day as this Agreement and may be
modified as many time as deemed necessary by mutual consent.
2. The certificate of origin referred to in paragraph 1 shall be
used to certify that a good being exported from the territory
of a Party into the territory of the other Party qualifies as
originating.
3. The certifying authorities of each Party shall require its
exporters or producers to complete and sign a certificate of
origin for each exportation of goods for which an importer of
the other Party may claim preferential tariff treatment.
4. The exporter or producer completing and signing a certificate
of origin will do so through an affidavit, committing to
assume administrative, civil or criminal liability whenever
the exporter includes false or incorrect information in the
certificate of origin.
5. The certifying authority of each Party shall certify that the
certificate of origin filled out and signed by the exporter
or producer of the good is correctly completed, based on the
information provided by such exporter or producer, who shall
be responsible for the accuracy and validity of the
information provided, and shall verify that the exporter or
producer is indeed located in that Party.
6. Each Party shall require the certificate of origin to be
sealed, signed and dated by the certifying authority of the
exporting Party with respect to the exportation of a good for
which the importer may claim preferential tariff treatment.
The certificate of origin shall also carry a serial number
allowing its identification, which will be managed by the
certifying authority.
7. The certifying authority of the exporting Party shall:
a) maintain the administrative procedures for certifying the
certificates of origin that its producer or exporter fills
out and signs;
b) provide, if requested by the competent authority of the
importing Party, information about the origin of the
imported goods claiming preferential tariff treatment; and
c) notify in writing, before this Agreement enters into force,
the list of the names of the authorized persons and, where
applicable, the list of bodies authorized to certify the
certificate of origin, with the corresponding signatures
and seals. Modifications to this list shall be notified
immediately in writing to the other Party and shall enter
into force thirty (30) days after the date on which that
Party receives notification of the modification.
8. Each Party shall provide that a certificate of origin shall
only be applicable to a single importation of one or more
goods into the territory of that Party.
9. Each Party shall provide that a valid certification of origin
be accepted by the customs authority of the importing Party
for a period of one year from the date on which the
certificate was signed and sealed by the certifying authority.
10. Each Party shall provide that the preferential tariff
reatment shall not be denied only because the good covered
by a certificate of origin is invoiced by an enterprise
located in the territory of a non-Party.
11. The Parties shall, in the second year from the date on which
his Agreement enters into force, review the certifying
procedures with a view to confirm whether it would be more
beneficial to the Parties to let exporters or producers
certify certificates of origin by themselves, rather than
requiring any agency to perform the certification. If this
is agreed by the Parties, the exporter or producer will be
the one responsible to certify the origin without the
certifying agency of each Party being the one required to
perform the certification.

Article 5.03 Obligations Regarding Importations
1. Each Party shall require the importer claiming preferential
tariff treatment for a good imported into its territory from
the territory of the other Party to:
a) declare in writing in the importation document required by
its legislation, based on a valid certificate of origin
that a good qualifies as an originating good;
b) have the certification of origin in his possession at the
time the declaration is made;
c) provide, if requested by its customs authority, the
certificate of origin or its copies; and
d) promptly make a corrected declaration and pay any duties
owing where the importer has reasons to believe that the
certificate of origin on which a customs declaration was
based contains incorrect information. Where the importer
presents a corrected declaration before the customs
authority notifies the revision, according to the domestic
laws of each Party, the importer may not be penalized.
2. Each Party shall provide that, if an importer in its
territory fails to comply with any requirement established in
this Chapter, it may deny the preferential tariff treatment
under this Agreement to a good imported from the territory of
the other Party.
3. Each Party shall provide that, when the importer does not ask
for a preferential tariff treatment for goods imported into
its territory that would have qualified as originating, the
importer may, not later than four (4) months from the date of
release of the imported goods, request the return of the
tariff duties paid in excess for not having requested the
preferential tariff treatment for that good, as long as the
importer has the certificate of origin in his/her possession
and the request is accompanied by:
a) a written declaration, indicating that the good qualifies
as originating at the time of importation;
b) the certificate of origin or its copy; and
c) any other documentation related to the import of the good,
as the customs authority may require.
4. Compliance with the provisions of previous paragraphs of this
Article does not exempt the importer from the obligation to
pay the corresponding customs duties according to the
applicable laws of the importing Party, when the competent
authority of that Party concludes an origin verification and
determines to deny the preferential tariff treatment to goods
imported, according to Article 5.06.

Article 5.04 Obligations Regarding Exportations
1. Each Party shall require its exporter or producer that has
filled out and signed a certificate of origin to submit a
copy of such certificate to its competent authority upon
request.
2. Each Party shall require its exporter or producer who has
completed and signed a certificate of origin or information
for his/her certifying authority, and has reasons to believe
such certificate contains incorrect information, to notify
promptly in writing all persons to whom that certificate was
given and its certifying authority, of any change that may
affect the accuracy or validity of that certificate, in which
case, the exporter or producer may not be penalized for
having provided an incorrect certificate or information
according to domestic laws of each Party.
3. Each Party shall require that if a false Certificate or
information provided by its exporter or producer results in
the good being exported to the territory of the other Party
qualified as originating, such exporter or producer shall be
subject to similar penalties as would apply to an importer in
its territory for violating its customs laws and regulations
by making false declarations or statements.
4. The certifying authority of the exporting Party shall provide
the competent authority of the importing Party the
notification referred to in paragraph 2.

Article 5.05 Records
1. Each Party shall provide that:
a) its exporter or producer who requests a certificate of
origin and provides information to its certifying authority
shall maintain, for at least five (5) years from the date
on which the certificate is signed, all records and
documents related to the origin of the goods, including
those concerning:
i) the purchase, costs, value, and payment of the good
exported from its territory;
ii) the purchase, costs, value and payment of all materials,
including indirect ones, used in the production of the
good exported from its territory; and
iii) the production of the good in the form in which it is
exported from its territory;
b) an importer who claims preferential tariff treatment for a
good imported into that Party’s territory shall maintain a
copy of the certificate of origin and other documentation
relating to the importation for at least five (5) years
from the date of importation of the good; and
c) the certifying authority of the exporting Party that has
issued a certificate of origin shall maintain all
documentation relating to the issuance of the certificate
for a minimum period of five (5) years from the issuing
date of the certificate.
2. A Party may deny the preferential tariff treatment to an
imported good subject to an origin verification, if the
exporter, producer or importer of the good who shall maintain
records or documents in accordance with paragraph 1:
a) does not have the records or documents for determining the
origin of the good, in accordance with the provisions of
this Chapter and of Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin); or
b) denies access to the records or documents.

Article 5.06 Origin Verification Procedures
1. The importing Party, through its competent authority, may
request information about the origin of a good from the
certifying authority of the exporting Party. The competent
authority of the importing Party may also request its Embassy
in the territory of the other Party for assistance in those
matters.
2. For purposes of determining whether a good imported into its
territory from the territory of the other Party under
preferential tariff treatment according to this agreement
qualifies as originating, a Party may verify the origin of
the good through its competent authority by means of:
a) written questionnaires or requests for information sent
directly to the importer in its territory or the exporter
or producer in the territory of the other Party;
b) verification visits to the exporter or producer in the
territory of the other Party to review the records and
documents referred to in Article 5.05, and to inspect the
materials and facilities used in the production of the good
in question;
c) delegating its Embassy in the territory of the other Party
to conduct the verification visit mentioned above; or
d) other procedures as the Parties may agree to.
3. For the purposes of this Article, the questionnaires,
requests, official letters, determinations of origin,
notifications or any other written communications sent by the
competent authority to the importer, exporter or the producer
for origin verification, shall be considered valid, provided
that they are done by the following means:
a) certified mails with receipts of acknowledgement or other
ways that confirm that the importer, exporter or producer
has received the documents;
b) official communications through the Embassies of the
Parties whenever the competent authority requires; or
c) any other way as the Parties may agree to.
4. In a written questionnaire or request for information
referred to in paragraph 2 a) it shall:
a) indicate the time period, which shall be no less than
thirty (30) days from the date of receipt, that the
importer, exporter or producer has to duly complete and
return the questionnaire or provide the information
requested; and
b) include the notification of intention to deny preferential
tariff treatment, in case the importer, exporter or
producer does not duly complete and return the
questionnaire or provide the information requested within
such time period.
5. The importer, exporter or producer who receives a
questionnaire or request for information according to
paragraph 2 a) shall duly complete and return the
questionnaire or respond to the request for information
within the time period established in paragraph 4 a) from the
date of receipt. During that time period, the importer,
exporter or producer may make a written request to the
competent authority of the importing Party for an extension
of no more than thirty (30) days. Such request shall not have
the consequence of denial of the preferential tariff
treatment.
6. Each Party shall provide that, even if the answered
questionnaire or information requested referred to in
paragraph 5 has been received within the specified time
period, it may still request, through its competent
authority, additional information from the importer, exporter
or producer, by means of a subsequent questionnaire or
request. In such cases the importer, exporter or producer
shall answer the questionnaire or respond to the request
within thirty (30) days from the date of receipt.
7. If the importer, exporter or producer does not duly complete
a questionnaire, or does not return the questionnaire or
provide the information requested within the time period
established in paragraphs 4 a), 5 and 6 above, the importing
Party may deny preferential tariff treatment to the goods
subject to verification, by issuing a written determination
of origin, including facts and the legal basis for that
determination, to the importer, exporter or producer.
8. Prior to conducting a verification visit according to
paragraph 2 b), the importing Party shall, through its
competent authority, provide a written notification of its
intention to conduct the visit. The notification shall be
sent to the exporter or producer to be visited, to the
certifying authority and the competent authority of the Party
in whose territory the visit will be conducted, and, if
necessary, to the Embassy of the other Party in the territory
of the importing Party. The competent authority of the
importing Party shall request written consent from the
exporter or producer to be visited.
9. The notification referred to in paragraph 8 shall include:
a) the name of the competent authority that sends the
notification;
b) the name of the exporter or producer to be visited;
c) the date and place of the proposed verification visit;
d) the objective and scope of the verification visit,
including the specific reference to the goods subject to
verification;
e) the names and positions of the officers conducting the
verification visit; and
f) the legal basis for carrying out the verification visit.
10. Any modification of the information referred to in the
receding paragraph shall also be notified according to
paragraph 8.
11. If the exporter or producer has not given his written
onsent to a proposed verification visit within the thirty
(30) days of the written notification as provided in
paragraphs 8 and 9, the importing Party may deny
preferential tariff treatment to the good or goods by
notifying in writing to the importer, exporter or producer
its determination, including facts and the legal basis for
such denial.
12. Each Party shall provide that, when an exporter or producer
eceives a notification as provided in paragraphs 8 and 9,
that exporter or producer may, within fifteen (15) days of
receipt of the notification, notify in writing the competent
authority of the importing Party, certifying authority and
competent authority of the exporting Party, its decision to
postpone only for once the proposed verification visit for a
period no longer than sixty (60) days from the date the
notification was received, or for a longer period as the
Parties may agree to.
13. The Parties shall not deny the preferential tariff treatment
o a good solely because a verification visit is postponed
according to paragraph 12.
14. Each Party shall permit an exporter or producer who is
ubject to a verification visit to designate two observers to
be present during the visit, provided that the observers do
not participate in a manner other than as observers.
Nevertheless, the failure of designating the observers by
the exporter or producer shall not be a cause for postponing
the visit.
15. Each Party shall require that an exporter or a producer
rovides the records and documents referred to in paragraph 1
a) of Article 5.05 to the competent authority of the
importing Party conducting a verification visit. If the
records and documents are not in possession of the exporter
or producer, he/she may request the producer or supplier of
the materials to deliver them to the competent authority
mentioned above.
16. When the competent authority of the importing Party verifies
hether the regional value content, the de minimis
calculation or any other requirement established under
Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin) have been fulfilled, it shall
adopt, where applicable, the generally accepted accounting
principles applied in the territory of the Party from which
the good under verification was exported.
17. Once the verification visit has been concluded, the
ompetent authority of the importing Party shall prepare a
minute of the visit, which shall include the facts confirmed
by it. The exporter or producer may sign this minute.
18. Within a period of one hundred and twenty (120) days from
he conclusion of the verification of origin, the competent
authority shall issue a written determination of origin,
including the facts, results and the legal basis for such
determination, and send it to the importer, exporter or
producer of the good subject to verification according to
paragraph 3, to determine whether or not the good qualifies
as originating.
19. Where through a verification the importing Party determines
hat an importer, exporter or a producer has provided more
than once, a false or unfounded certificate of origin or
stating that a good qualifies as originating, the importing
Party may suspend preferential tariff treatment to the
identical goods imported, exported or produced by that
person, until it is confirmed that such person is in
compliance with all the requirements under Chapter 4 (Rules
of Origin). The suspension and resumption of the
preferential tariff treatment shall be accompanied by a
written notification, including facts and the legal basis,
to the importer, exporter or producer.
20. When the competent authority of the importing Party
etermines that a good imported into its territory does not
qualify as originating, according to the tariff
classification or the value applied by the Party to one or
more materials used in the production of the good, which
differs from the classification or the value applied to the
materials by the Party from which the good was exported,
that Party shall provide that its origin determination shall
not take effect until it has been notified in writing to the
certifying authority of the exporting Party, to the importer
of the good, to the person that has completed and signed the
certificate of origin, as well as to the producer of the
good.
21. A Party shall not apply a determination issued under
aragraph 20 to an importation made before the date of entry
into force of the determination when:
a) the competent authority of that Party from whose territory
the good was exported, had issued a determination on the
tariff classification or on the value of the materials, on
which a person is entitled to rely; and
b) the determination mentioned in the preceding subparagraph
was issued prior to the notification of the origin
verification.

Article 5.07 Advance Rulings
1. Each Party shall, through its competent authority,
expeditiously provide a written advance ruling, prior to the
importation of a good into its territory. The advance ruling
shall be issued in response to a written application made by
an importer in whose territory or an exporter or producer in
the territory of the other Party, based on the facts and
circumstances stated by such importer, exporter or producer
of the good, with respect to:
a) whether the good qualifies as originating according to
Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin);
b) whether the non-originating materials used in the
production of the good have undergone applicable changes on
tariff classification established in Annex 4.03 (Specific
Rules of Origin);
c) whether the good fulfills the requirement of regional value
content established in Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin) and in
Annex 4.03 (Specific Rules of Origin); or
d) whether the method applied by an exporter or producer in
the territory of the other Party, according to the norms
and principles of the Customs Valuation Agreement, to
calculate the transaction value of a good or of the
materials used in the production of the good, with respect
to which an advance ruling is being requested, is adequate
for demonstrating whether the good satisfies a regional
value content requirement according to Chapter 4 (Rules of
Origin) and in Annex 4.03 (Specific Rules of Origin).
2. Each Party shall establish directives for the issuance of
advance rulings, including:
a) the obligation of the importer to provide information
reasonably required to process an application for such
ruling;
b) the power of the competent authority to ask at any time for
additional information from the person who applies for an
advance ruling, while evaluating such application;
c) the obligation of the competent authority to issue an
advance ruling within a maximum period of one hundred and
twenty (120) days, once all the necessary information has
been collected from the applicant; and
d) the obligation of the competent authority to issue an
advance ruling in a complete, well-founded, and reasoned
manner.
3. Each Party shall apply an advance ruling to the imports
concerned, from the date on which the ruling is issued or a
later date indicated in the ruling, unless such ruling has
been modified or revoked according to paragraph 5.
4. Each Party shall provide any person who applies for an
advance ruling the same treatment, including the same
interpretation and application of the provisions of Chapter 4
(Rules of Origin), regarding the determination of origin as
provided for any other person, to whom an advance ruling has
been issued, whenever the facts and circumstances are
identical in all substantial aspects.
5. An advance ruling may be modified or revoked by the issuing
competent authority:
a) when it is based on an error:
i) in fact;
ii) in the tariff classification of the good or materials
which are the subject of the ruling; or
iii) in the application of the regional value content
requirement according to Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin);
b) when the ruling is not in accordance with the
interpretation agreed by the Parties with respect to
Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin);
c) when there is a change in the facts or circumstances on
which the ruling is based;
d) for the purpose of conforming with a modification of
Chapter 4 (Rules of Origin) or this Chapter; or
e) for the purpose of complying with an administrative
decision independent from the issuing authority, a judicial
decision or to adjust to a change in the national
legislation of the Party that issued the advance ruling.
6. Each Party shall provide that any modification or revocation
of an advance ruling shall enter into force from the date on
which the modification or revocation is issued, or on such
later date as may be specified therein, and shall not be
applied to the importation of a good having occurred prior to
that date, unless the person to whom the advance ruling was
issued has not acted according to its terms and conditions.
7. Each Party shall provide that, when its competent authority
verifies the origin of a good with respect to which an
advance ruling has been issued, that authority shall evaluate
whether:
a) the exporter or producer has complied with the terms and
conditions of the advance ruling;
b) the operations of the exporter or producer are consistent
with the facts and circumstances on which the advance
ruling is based; and
c) the data and calculations used in the application of
criteria or methods to calculate the regional value content
are correct in all substantial aspects.
8. Each Party shall provide that, when its competent authority
determines that any of the requirements established in
paragraph 7 has not been fulfilled, that authority may modify
or revoke the advance ruling as the circumstances warrant.
9. Each Party shall provide that, when a person to whom an
advance ruling has been issued demonstrates that he has acted
with reasonable care and in good faith while stating the
facts and circumstances on which the ruling was based, that
person shall not be penalized whenever the issuing authority
determines that the ruling was based on incorrect information.
10. Each Party shall provide that, when an advance ruling has
een issued to a person who had falsely stated or omitted
substantial facts or circumstances on which the ruling was
based, or has not acted in accordance with the terms and
conditions of the ruling, the competent authority may apply
measures against that person according to the legislation of
each Party.
11. The Parties shall provide that the holder of an advance
uling may use it solely while the facts or circumstances on
which the ruling was based are maintained. In case those
facts or circumstances have changed, the holder of the
ruling shall be allowed to present the necessary information
for the issuing authority to modify or revoke it according
to paragraph 5.
12. Any good subject to an origin verification or a request for
eview or appeal in the territory of one of the Parties,
shall not be subject to advance ruling.

Article 5.08 Confidentiality
1. Each Party shall maintain, according to its legislation, the
confidentiality of confidential information collected
according to this Chapter and shall protect such information
from disclosure.
2. The confidential information collected in accordance with
this Chapter may only be disclosed to the authorities in
charge of the administration and enforcement of origin
determinations, and of customs and taxation matters according
to the legislation of each Party.

Article 5.09 Penalties
Each Party shall establish or maintain measures that impose
criminal, civil or administrative penalties for violations of
its laws and regulations related to the provisions of this
Chapter.

Article 5.10 Review and Appeal
1. Each Party shall grant the same rights of review and appeal
with respect to determinations and advance rulings to its
importers, or to the exporters or producers of the other
Party to whom those determinations and rulings have been
issued according to Article 5.06 and Article 5.07.
2. When a Party denied preferential tariff treatment to a good
by a determination based on non-compliance with time periods
established in this Chapter, with respect to the presentation
of records or other information to the competent authority of
this Party, the decision made in the review or appeal shall
only deal with the non-compliance of the time period to which
this paragraph refers.
3. The rights referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 include access
to at least one administrative review, independent from the
responsible official or office of the determination or the
advance ruling under review, and access to a judicial review
of the determination or ruling as the final resort of the
administrative proceedings, according to the laws of each
Party.

Article 5.11 Uniform Regulations
1. The Parties shall establish and implement, through their
respective laws or regulations, by the date on which this
Agreement enters into force, or at any later date as agreed
by the Parties, the uniform regulations regarding the
interpretation, application and administration of Chapter 4
(Rules of Origin), this Chapter and other matters as may be
agreed by the Parties.
2. Each Party shall implement any modification or addition to
the uniform regulations no later than one hundred and eighty
(180) days after the Parties agree on such modification or
addition, or within any other period that the Parties may
agree.

Article 5.12 Cooperation
1. Each Party shall notify the other Party of the following
determinations, measures and rulings, including, to the
extent possible, the ones to be applied:
a) an origin determination issued as a result of a
verification conducted according to Article 5.06, once the
review and appeal referred to in Article 5.10 are exhausted;
b) an origin determination that the Party considers contrary
to a ruling issued by the competent authority of the other
Party on the tariff classification or the value of a good,
or of the materials used in the manufacturing of a good;
c) a measure that establishes or significantly modifies an
administrative policy that may in the future affect the
determinations of origin; and
d) an advance ruling, and its revocation or modification,
issued according to Article 5.07.
2. The Parties shall cooperate:
a) in the enforcement of their respective customs laws or
regulations, for the implementation of this Agreement, and,
if applicable, under mutual customs assistance agreements,
or in any another customs related agreement which they are
parties to;
b) to the extent possible and for the purpose of facilitating
the flow of trade between their territories, in customs
issues such as the collection and exchange of statistics
regarding the importation and exportation of goods, and the
exchange of information;
c) to the extent possible, in the collection and exchange of
documentation on customs procedures; and
d) to the extent possible, in the verification of origin of a
good, in such a way that the competent authority of the
importing Party may request, for the Republic of Guatemala,
the competent authority and for the Republic of China
(Taiwan), the certifying authority, to conduct
investigations in its territory and provide the
corresponding reports.

CHAPTER 6 SAFEGUARD MEASURES

Article 6.01 Definitions
For the purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
Agreement on Safeguards: the Agreement on Safeguards which forms
part of the WTO Agreement, its modifications or any successor
agreement;
threat of serious injury: as defined in the Agreement on
Safeguards;
competent and investigating authority: for the purposes of this
Chapter, the investigating authority shall be:
a) in the case of the Republic of China (Taiwan), the
International Trade Commission of the Ministry of Economic
Affairs, or it successor;
b) in the case of Guatemala, Ministry of Economy or it
successor;
critical circumstances: those circumstances where delay of the
application of the safeguard measure would cause damage that
would be difficult to repair;
serious injury: as defined in the Agreement on Safeguards;
safeguard measure: all kinds of tariff measures as applied in
accordance with the provisions of this Chapter, with the
exception of any derived safeguard measure of an initiate
procedure before the entering into force of this Agreement[1];
domestic industry: the producers as a whole of the like or
directly competitive goods operating within the territory of a
Party, or those whose collective output of the like or directly
competitive goods constitutes a major proportion of the total
domestic production of those goods;
transition period: means a period of ten (10) years as of the
date this Agreement enters into force; except when it refers to
a good where tariffs should be eliminated in a period of more
than ten (10) years, according to the Schedule to Annex (3.04)
(Tariff Elimination) of the Party that applies the measure, in
which case Transition period means the one set out in the
aforementioned Schedule; and
causal link: as defined in Agreement on Safeguards.

Article 6.02 Bilateral Safeguard Measures
1. All the substantive aspects, procedures and in general the
application of the safeguard measures shall be governed by
this Chapter, and Article XIX of GATT 1994, the Agreement on
Safeguards and the applicable legislation for each Party as
suppletory.
2. During the transition period, each Party may apply a
safeguard measure according to the procedure established in
this Chapter if, as a result of the reduction or elimination
of a customs tariff in accordance with this Agreement, an
originating good from the territory of a Party is being
imported into the territory of the other Party, in such
increased quantities, relative to domestic production and
under such conditions as to constitute a substantial cause of
serious injury, or a threat thereof, to the domestic industry
of the like or directly competitive good. The importing Party
will be able to the extent necessary to prevent or remedy
serious injury, or the threat thereof:
a) suspend the further reduction of any customs tariff
provided for under this Agreement on the good; or
b) increase the customs tariff on the good to a level not to
exceed the lesser of:
i) the Most Favored Nation (MFN) applied customs tariff in
effect at the time the measure is taken; or
ii) the MFN applied customs tariff in effect on the day
immediately preceding the date of entry into force of
this Agreement.
3. Guatemala shall have the right to extend the period of
application of a safeguard measure for up to an additional
two (2) years beyond the maximum period provided for in
Article 6.02, paragraph 4.
4. The following conditions shall be observed in the proceeding
that may result in the application of a safeguard measure
according to paragraph 2:
a) a Party shall, without delay and in writing, notify the
other Party of the initiation of the proceeding which could
have as a consequence the application of a safeguard
measure against a good originating in the territory of the
other Party;
b) any safeguard measure shall be initiated no later than one
(1) year from the date of the initiation of the procedure;
except for what is established by the Article 6.04
paragraph 15.
c) no safeguard measure may be maintained:
i) for more than four (4) years, extendable for a period of
four (4) additional consecutive years as provided in
Article 6.04 paragraphs 27 through 29;
ii) after the termination of the transition period, unless
with the consent of the Party against whose good the
measure is applied.
d) a safeguard measure may be applied as many times as
necessary provided that at least a period has elapsed,
equivalent to half of the time during which the safeguard
measure was applied for the first time.
e) the period in which a provisional safeguard measure has
been applied shall be calculated for the purpose of
determining the period of duration of the definitive
safeguard measure established in subparagraph (c) of this
paragraph.
f) provisional measures that do not become definitive shall be
excluded from the limitation provided for in subparagraph
(d) of this paragraph.
g) on the termination of the safeguard measure, the applied
customs tariff shall be the rate as that in the Tariff
Reduction Schedule.
5. In critical circumstances a Party may apply provisional
bilateral safeguard measures pursuant to a preliminary
determination that there is clear evidence that increased
imports have been given on originating goods of the other
Party, as a result of the reduction or elimination of duty
pursuant this Agreement and under such conditions as to
constitute a serious injury or threat thereof. The duration
of provisional measures shall not exceed two hundred (200)
days.

Article 6.03 Global Safeguard Measures
1. Each Party shall reserve its rights and obligations in
accordance with Article XIX of the GATT 1994, and the
Agreement on Safeguards, its modifications or successor
provisions, except those relating to compensation or
retaliation and exclusion of a safeguard measure which are
inconsistent with the provisions of this Article.
2. Any Party applying a safeguard measure in accordance with
paragraph 1 shall exclude goods imported from the other Party
from this measure, unless:
a) imports from the other Party account for a substantial
share of total imports. Those imports normally shall not be
considered to be substantial if that Party is not among the
top three suppliers of the good subject to the proceeding,
measured in terms of its import share during the most
recent three (3) year period; and
b) imports from the other Party contribute importantly to the
serious injury, or threat thereof, caused by total imports.
To determine this, the investigating authority shall
consider factors such as the change in the import share of
the other Party in the total imports, as well as the import
volume of the other Party and the changes in that volume.
Normally, the imports from a Party shall not be considered
to contribute importantly to serious injury, or threat
thereof, if its growth rate of imports from a Party during
the period in which the injurious surge in imports occurred
is appreciably lower than the growth rate of total imports
from all sources during the same period.
3. A Party shall notify in writing in a fifteen (15) day term to
the other Party of the initiation of a proceeding that may
result in the application of a safeguard measure, in
accordance with paragraph 1 of this Article.
4. No Party may apply a measure under paragraph 1 of this
Article, that imposes restrictions on a good, without
previous notification in writing to the other Party, and
without giving appropriate opportunity to carry out
consultations in advance with the other Party, with as much
anticipation as feasible before applying it;
5. When a Party determines, in accordance with this Article,
that it needs to apply a safeguard measure to those goods
originating from the other Party, the measure applied to
those goods shall consist, only and exclusively, of tariff
measures;
6. The Party applying a safeguard measure under this Article
shall provide to the other Party mutually agreed trade
liberalization compensation, in the form of concessions,
having substantially equivalent trade effects or equivalent
to the additional customs tariff expected to result from the
safeguard measure;
7. If the Parties are unable to agree on the compensation, the
Party against whose good the safeguard measure is applied may
impose measures which have trade effects substantially
equivalent to the effects of the safeguard measure applied
pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article.

Article 6.04 Administration of the Safeguard Measure Proceedings
1. Each Party shall ensure the consistent impartial and
reasonable application of the applicable legislation of each
Party, regulations, decisions and rulings governing the
application of safeguards proceeding, that shall be
consistent with the provisions set forth in Article XIX of
GATT 1994, Agreement on Safeguards its modifications or
successors.
2. Safeguard proceedings and the determination of the existence
of serious injury or threat thereof shall be entrusted to the
investigating authority of each Party. The investigating
authority empowered under the domestic law of each Party to
conduct these proceedings should be provided with all the
necessary resources to fulfill its duties.
3. Each Party shall comply in an equitable, timely, transparent
and effective manner with the safeguard proceedings under
this Chapter.
Proceeding
4. The investigating authority may initiate a proceeding ex
officio or by a petition of a domestic industry. When the
investigating authority acts ex officio it shall notify the
domestic industry to corroborate with its consent to continue
the investigation.
5. When the procedure is initiated ex officio, or is a result of
a petition by the domestic industry, support by at least 25%
of said domestic industry shall be required.
Content of the Petition
6. The domestic industry that files a petition to initiate an
investigation shall provide the following information in the
petition, to the extent that such information is publicly
available from governmental or other sources, or its best
estimates and the basis therefore if such information is not
thus available:
a) designation of the investigating authority to whom the
petition is presented;
b) data of identification of the petitioner or petitioners, as
well as the location of the establishments in which they
produce the like or directly competitive good. A proxy
shall document the capacity in which it acts;
c) documentation to certify petitioner’s share of domestic
production of the like or directly competitive goods they
represent and reasons for claiming that they represent said
domestic industry;
d) description of the imported good concerned at the level of
tariff subheading under which that good is classified, or
when necessary at a more detailed level, the effective
tariff treatment as well as the specifications and elements
that allow to compare them with domestic goods;
e) description of the affected like or directly competitive
domestic goods and its tariff subheading;
f) volume and value of the imports;
g) import data for each of the three (3) full years
immediately prior to the initiation of the safeguard
proceedings that form the basis of the claim that the good
is being imported into the territory of the other Party, in
increased quantities, either in absolute terms or relative
to domestic production;
h) cause of injury: the listing and description of the alleged
causes of injury or threat thereof, and a summary of the
basis for the assertion that imports of the good concerned
increased relative to domestic production. The quantitative
and objective indicators that denote the nature and cause
of injury or threat thereof to the domestic industry, such
as changes in the level of sales, prices, production,
productivity, utilization of installed capacity, market
share, profits or losses, and employment;
i) volume and value of the domestic production of the like or
directly competitive goods for each of the three (3) full
years immediately prior to the initiation of the safeguard
proceeding;
j) petition to initiate the investigation and for the
imposition of a safeguard measure;
k) lists of known importers and exporters with addresses or
place to serve them notice;
l) petitioner’s addresses or place to serve them notice;
m) place and date of petition; and
n) signature of the petitioner or legal representative.
Acceptance or Rejection of the Petition
7. After receiving a petition, the investigating authority shall
review it and determine within thirty (30) days whether to
accept the petition. a) If the petition fulfills the
requirements, the investigating authority shall initiate the
investigation; b) If the petition does not fulfill the
requirements, the investigating authority shall notify the
petitioner of the requirement to fulfill them within a period
of fifteen (15) days and this term shall be extended for the
same period at the request of the interested parties; c) the
investigating authority may reject the petition, through a
justified resolution, if there are not enough elements to
justify the investigation or if the petitioner fails to
fulfill the standing requirements of the domestic industry
support. If the petitioner fulfills the requirements pursuant
to part b) of this paragraph the investigating authority
shall, within thirty (30) days after the petitioner fulfills
the requirements, accept the petition and initiate the
investigation or reject it. If the petitioner does not
fulfill the requirements the investigating authority shall
reject it, without prejudice of submittal of a new petition
by the interested parties at a later date.
Resolution to Initiate an Investigation
8. The resolution to initiate an investigation shall contain as
minimum:
a) identification of the investigating authority, as well as
the place and date on which resolution is issued;
b) indication that the petition is accepted with attached
documents;
c) name of individual or legal person of domestic producers of
the like or directly competitive goods that support the
petition and their addresses to be served notice;
d) description of the imported good concerned at the level of
the tariff subheading under which that good is classified,
or when necessary at a more detailed level, the effective
tariff treatment as well as a description of the like or
directly competitive goods.
e) the basis that sustains the resolution;
f) previous representative period;
g) time period for interested parties to submit written
allegations and related documents, and
h) other relevant data.
Notifications in General
9. The notifications in the proceedings shall be made in writing
within fifteen (15) days after the date the resolutions are
issued, with attached copies of public versions of the
petition and documents.
Publication Requirements
10. When initiating an investigation, the investigating
uthority shall publish a notice of initiation in an official
journal of the Party or nation-wide newspaper, within a
period of ten (10) days starting from the acceptance of the
petition. The notification of the investigation initiation
shall be sent through the competent authority to the other
Party by certified mail, courier, fax or any other means
that will ensure the reception of it.
Opposition
11. The investigating authority shall grant forty-five (45) days
o the interested parties, starting from the day after the
notification that the investigation has initiated, to allow
them to submit their position and introduce evidence. The
investigating authority may, at the request of the
interested parties, extend the period by not more than
thirty (30) days.
Previous Representative Period
12. The previous representative period, shall be the basis for
he determination of the existence of serious injury or
threat thereof to the domestic industry and shall be
determined by the investigating authority upon initiating
the investigation and can be modified when necessary.
Consultations
13. Once a petition is accepted, the Party that intends to
nitiate the case shall notify the other Party, and the
Parties may hold consultations at any time during the
proceeding, without interrupting them.
14. During these consultations the Parties may address, among
thers, any issue relating to the investigation, the
elimination of the measure, and in general, any related
issues.
Time limit of investigation
15. An investigation shall normally be concluded within six (6)
onths, and in exceptional circumstances qualified by the
investigating authority, shall conclude twelve (12) months
from the initiation of the investigation.
Information Required
16. The investigating authority may request all kinds of
nformation from the interested parties. When the interested
parties deny access to the necessary information, or they do
not cooperate within the period set by the investigating
authority, it can make a determination based on the evidence
available.
Provisional Safeguard Measures
17. If the justified elements are gathered for the petition of a
rovisional measure, and the investigating authority has made
an affirmative injury determination or threat thereof, it
may recommend that the competent authority imposes a
provisional measure.
18. Provisional measures shall take the form of customs tariff
ncreases to be promptly refunded, pursuant to this Chapter,
if the subsequent investigation does not determine that
increased imports have caused or threatened to cause serious
injury to a domestic industry.
Evidence of Serious Injury or Threat Thereof
19. In conducting its proceedings the investigating authority
hall gather, to the best of its ability, all relevant
information appropriate to make the determination. It shall
evaluate all relevant factors of an objective and
quantifiable nature having a bearing on the situation of the
domestic industry, including the rate and amount of the
increased import quantities, absolute or relative to
domestic production of the good concerned, the share of the
domestic market taken by the increased imports, changes in
the level of sales, production, productivity, capacity
utilization, profits and losses, and employment. In making
its determination, the investigating authority may also
consider other economic factors, such as changes in prices
and inventories, and the ability of the domestic industry to
raise capital or investments.
Public Hearing
20. In the course of each proceeding, the investigating
uthority shall:
a) notify the date and the place of the public hearing to the
interested parties, including the importers and exporters,
fifteen (15) days before it is held, to allow them to
appear in person or through a representative to submit
evidence, allegations and be heard on issues of serious
injury or threat thereof and the appropriate remedy; and
b) provide an opportunity to all interested parties appearing
at hearing to express their arguments and to ask questions.
21. After the public hearing the interested parties should have
ifteen (15) days to submit their supplementary evidence and
conclusions on the investigation, in writing, to the
investigating authority.
Confidential Information
22. The investigating authority shall establish or maintain
rocedures for the treatment of confidential information
protected by the national legislation that is provided in
the course of the proceeding, and shall request that the
interested parties furnish non-confidential written
summaries thereof. If the interested parties indicate that
the information cannot be summarized, they shall explain the
reasons why a summary cannot be provided. Unless it is
demonstrated that the information is accurate, in a
convincing way and from an accurate source, the authority
may disregard that information.
23. The investigating authority shall not disclose any
onfidential information provided in accordance with any
obligation related to the confidential information obtained
in the course of the proceedings.
Deliberation and Determination
24. Except in critical circumstances or involving bilateral
afeguard measures involving to perishable agricultural
goods, the investigating authority, before making definitive
determination in a proceeding for the application of
safeguard measures, shall allow sufficient time to gather
and check relevant information, shall hold a public hearing
and provide opportunity for all interested parties to
prepare and submit their views.
25. The investigating authority shall promptly publish a final
etermination notice in an official journal or nation-wide
newspaper publicizing the results of the investigation and
the reasoned conclusions on all pertinent issues of law and
fact. The determination notice shall include a description
of the imported good, its tariff subheading, the methodology
applied and the findings made in the proceedings. The
statement of reasons shall set out the basis for the
determination, including a description of:
a) the domestic industry seriously injured or threatened with
serious injury;
b) information supporting a finding that imports are
increasing, the domestic industry is seriously injured or
threatened with serious injury, and increasing imports are
causing or threatening to cause serious injury; and
c) if provided for by domestic law, any finding or
recommendation regarding the appropriate remedy, as well as
the basis thereof.
26. Each Party shall ensure that the decisions in safeguard
roceedings may be subject to review by judicial or
administrative proceedings of the Party, as provided in its
domestic laws. Negative determinations of the existence of
serious injury or threat thereof shall not be subject to
modification by the investigating authority, unless the
modification is required by such judicial or administrative
review.
Extension of Measures
27. If the importing Party determines that reasons justify the
xtension of a bilateral safeguard measure, the Party shall
notify the competent authority of the other Party of its
intention to extend the measure at least ninety (90) days
before the measure is expected to expire, and shall prove
that the reasons leading to its application persist, for the
purpose of holding respective consultations which shall be
done according to the provisions of this Article.
28. The domestic industry that submitted the request for an
xtension of measures shall present a readjustment plan
including variables controllable by the domestic industry or
production involved to eliminate injury or threat thereof.
29. The notifications of extension and compensation shall be
resented pursuant to this Article prior to the expiration of
the applied measures.
Compensation
30. The Party that applies a safeguard measure according to this
rticle shall provide to the other Party mutually agreed
compensation in the form of concessions that have commercial
effects substantially equivalent to the value of the
additional customs duties that are expected from the
safeguard measure. However, no compensation shall be
provided for the first three (3) years that the safeguard
measure is in effect, as well as the right of suspension of
the concession or other obligations substantially equivalent
shall not be exercised by the Party against which the
safeguard measure is applied during these three (3) years.
31. Following the expiration of the three (3) years mentioned in
he previous paragraph, the Party that applies the measure
shall give opportunity to hold consultations within ninety
(90) days following the expiration. If the Parties cannot
reach an agreement on compensation, the Party to whose good
the safeguard measure is applied shall be able to suspend
concessions or other obligations that have commercial
effects substantially equivalent to those of the applied
safeguard measure according to this Article, after having
notified the other Party in writing at least thirty (30)
days before imposing these measures. The Party shall apply
the tariff measure during the necessary minimum period to
reach the effects substantially equivalent and in any event
it shall cease when the other Party finishes the application
of the safeguard measure.

Article 6.05 Dispute Settlement as regards of Safeguard Measures
No Party shall request the establishment of an arbitral panel,
under Article 18.07 (Request for an Arbitral Panel), before the
application of a safeguard measure by the other Party.

CHAPTER 7 UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES

Article 7. 01 Anti-dumping and Countervailing Measures
The Parties confirm their rights and obligations for the
application of antidumping or countervailing duties imposed by a
Party on the goods imported from the territory of the other
Party, such measures shall be subject to Article VI and XVI of
the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, the Agreement
on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade 1994 and the Agreement on Subsidies and
Countervailing Measures.

Article 7.02 Scope of Application
Except as provided in this Chapter, the antidumping and
countervailing duties shall be applied by the Parties in
accordance with the provisions of the agreements set forth in
Article 7.01 and the legislation of each Party as suppletory.[2]

Article 7.03 Competent Authority
For the investigation and application of the provisions of this
Chapter the competent authority in the case of Guatemala is the
Ministry of Economy or its successor and in the case of ROC, the
Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Finance, or
their successors.

Article 7.04 Consultations
Prior to initiating an antidumping or countervailing
investigation under this Chapter, the Parties may hold
consultations in order to clarify the facts of the situations
and to arrive at a mutually agreed solution.

Article 7.05 Support of Domestic Industry
An antidumping or countervailing investigation shall not be
initiated between the Parties unless the authority have
determined that the application has been made by on behalf of
the domestic industry whose collective output constitutes more
than fifty per cent (50 %) of the total production of the like
good produced by that portion of the domestic industry
expressing either support for or opposition to the application,
however no investigation shall be initiated when the domestic
producers expressly supporting the application account for less
than twenty five per cent (25 %) of the total production of the
like product produced by the domestic industry.

Article 7.06 Maximum Period for Completing an Investigation
An investigation on dumping or subsidy practices initiated by a
Party against the goods imported from the territory of the other
Party shall be concluded within one (1) year and, in special
circumstances, this period may be extended to no more than
eighteen (18) months, after its initiation.

Article 7.07 Duration of Measures
Notwithstanding the right to review in accordance with the WTO
Agreements included in Article 7.01, any definitive antidumping
or countervailing duty imposed by a Party on a good imported
from territory of the other Party shall be terminated on a date
not later than five (5) years from its imposition.

PART THREE TRADE BARRIERS

CHAPTER 8 SANITARY AND PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES

Article 8.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, the Parties shall apply the
definitions and terms set out in:
a) the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures, that forms a part of the WTO,
Agreement, hereinafter referred to as ASPS;
b) the Office International des Epizooties, hereinafter,
referred to as OIE;
c) the International Plant Protection Convention, hereinafter
referred to as IPPC; and
d) the Codex Alimentarius Commission, hereinafter referred to
as Codex.

Article 8.02 General Provisions
1. The authorities legally responsible for ensuring the
compliance with the sanitary and phytosanitary obligations
provided in this Chapter shall be deemed as the competent
authorities.
2. The Parties, on the basis of the ASPS, established this
framework of rules and disciplines that shall guide the
adoption and implementation of sanitary and phytosanitary
measures.
3. The Parties shall facilitate trade through mutual cooperation
to prevent the introduction or spreading of pests or diseases
and to improve plant health, animal health and food safety.

Article 8.03 Rights of the Parties
The Parties, according to the ASPS, may:
a) establish, adopt, maintain or implement any sanitary or
phytosanitary measures in their territories, only to the
extent necessary to protect human life and health (food
safety) and animal life and health or to preserve plant
health, even if they are stricter than international
standard, guidelines or recommendations, provided that
there is a scientific basis to justify them;
b) implement the sanitary and phytosanitary measures only to
the extent necessary to reach an appropriate level of
protection; and
c) verify that plants, animals, products and by-products bound
for export are subject to sanitary and phytosanitary
monitoring to ensure conformity with the requirements of
the sanitary and phytosanitary measures established by the
importing Party.

Article 8.04 Obligations of the Parties
1. Sanitary and phytosanitary measures shall not constitute a
disguised restriction to trade and shall not have the purpose
or effect of creating an unnecessary obstacle to trade
between the Parties.
2. Sanitary and phytosanitary measures shall be based on
scientific principles, shall only be maintained if there are
reasons to sustain them and shall be based on risk assessment.
3. Sanitary and phytosanitary measures shall be based on
international standards, guidelines or recommendations.
4. Where conditions are identical or similar, sanitary and
phytosanitary measures shall not discriminate arbitrarily or
unjustifiably.

Article 8.05 International Standards and Harmonization
With the aim to harmonize sanitary and phytosanitary measures,
the procedures of control, inspection and the approval of
sanitary and phytosanitary measures of the Parties, shall be
based on the following principles:
a) each Party shall use international standards, guidelines or
recommendations as reference guideline for its sanitary and
phytosanitary measures;
b) each Party may adopt, implement, establish or maintain a
sanitary or phytosanitary measure with a level of
protection different from or stricter than that of
international standards, guidelines or recommendations,
provided that there is scientific justification for the
measure;
c) with the aim of reaching a higher degree of harmonization,
each Party shall follow the guidelines of the ASPS, the
IPPC for plant health, the OIE for animal health and the
Codex on food safety and tolerance limits; and
d) the Parties shall establish harmonized systems for the
procedures of control, inspection and approval of the
sanitary and phytosanitary measures for animals, plants,
their products and by-products as well as food safety.

Article 8.06 Equivalence
With the purpose of implementing sanitary and phytosanitary
measures in the territory of the Parties, the Parties shall
implement control, inspection and approval procedures according
to the following principles:
a) each Party shall accept the sanitary or phytosanitary
measures of the other Party as equivalent, even if these
measures differ from its own in the same product, if the
other Party objectively demonstrates to the Party that,
based on scientific information and risk assessment, its
measures achieve the Party’s appropriate level of sanitary
or phytosanitary protection. Upon request by a Party, the
other Party shall give reasonable access to information
related to its inspection, testing and other relevant
procedures; and
b) the Parties shall facilitate access to their territories
for the purpose of inspection, testing and other relevant
procedures in order to establish equivalence between their
sanitary and phytosanitary measures.

Article 8.07 Assessment Risk and Determination of the
Appropriate Level of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Protection
According to the guidelines developed by relevant international
organizations:
a) the Parties shall ensure that their sanitary and
phytosanitary measures are based on an assessment, as
appropriate to the circumstances, of the existing risk for
the protection of human life and health (food safety) and
animal health, or to protect plant health taking into
account the guidelines and risk assessment techniques
developed by relevant international organizations;
b) the Parties shall provide necessary access for assessing
sanitary and phytosanitary services through the procedures
in force for verification of control, inspections, approval
procedures, measure implementation and programs on sanitary
and phytosanitary matters, on the basis of the guidelines
and recommendations of the international organizations
recognized by the WTO;
c) in assessing the risk of a good and in establishing the
appropriate level of protection, the Parties shall take
into account the following factors among others:
i) available scientific and technical information;
ii) existence of pests or diseases;
iii) epidemiology of pests and diseases of quarantine
importance;
iv) analysis of critical control points in sanitary (food
safety) and phytosanitary aspects;
v) physical, chemical and biological hazards in foods;
vi) relevant ecological and environmental conditions;
vii) production processes and methods, and inspection,
sampling and testing methods;
viii) structure and organization of sanitary and
phytosanitary services;
ix) procedures for protection, epidemiological surveillance,
diagnostic and treatment to ensure food safety;
x) loss of production or sales in the event of the entry,
establishment, spread or dissemination of a pest or
disease;
xi) applicable quarantine measures and treatments that shall
satisfy the importing Party on risk mitigation; and
xii) costs of controlling or eradication of pests or
diseases in the territory of the importing Party and
relative cost-effectiveness of other possible methods
to reduce the risk;
d) for the purpose of establishing and harmonizing the
appropriate level of protection, the Parties shall avoid
arbitrary or unjustifiable distinctions that may result in
discrimination or disguised restriction to trade;
e) where relevant scientific evidence is insufficient for
carrying out risk assessment, the Party may provisionally
adopt sanitary and phytosanitary measures on the basis of
available pertinent information, including that from the
relevant international organization described in this
Chapter. In such circumstances, the Parties shall seek to
obtain the additional information necessary for a more
objective assessment of risk and review the sanitary or
phytosanitary measures accordingly within a reasonable time
frame, and with this aim, the following procedures shall be
applied:
i) the importing Party that applies the provisional measure,
shall request from the other Party, within thirty (30)
days of adoption of the provisional measure, the
necessary technical information to complete the risk
assessment, and the other Party shall provide the
information. If the information is not provided, the
provisional measure shall be sustained, and if on
expiration of this period the information has not been
requested, the provisional measure shall be withdrawn;
ii) if the importing Party has requested information, it
shall have sixty (60) days from the date of provision of
this information to review, withdraw or keep as final
the provisional measure. If necessary, the Party may
extend this time period;
iii) the importing Party may request clarification about the
information provided by the exporting Party after its
receipt;
iv) the importing Party shall allow the exporting Party to
make its comments and shall take them into account for
its conclusion of the risk assessment; and
v) the adoption or revision of the provisional sanitary or
phytosanitary measure shall be immediately notified to
the other Party through the notification authorities
established under the ASPS;
f) if the result of risk assessment involves non-acceptance of
the importation, the scientific basis for the decision
shall be notified in writing; and
g) when a Party has reasons to believe that a sanitary or
phytosanitary measure established or maintained by the
other Party restricts or may restrict its exports and that
the measure is not based on relevant international
standards, guidelines or recommendations, or such
standards, guidelines or recommendations do not exist, the
Party may demand an explanation for the reasons of the
sanitary and phytosanitary measures and the Party
maintaining these measures shall provide the explanation
within sixty (60) days from the date of receipt of the
inquiry by the competent authority.

Article 8.08 Recognition of Pest- or Disease-Free Areas and
Areas of Low Pest or Disease Prevalence
1. The Parties shall recognize the pest- or disease-free areas
and the areas of low pest or disease prevalence according to
international standards, guidelines or recommendations,
taking into account geographical situation, ecosystems,
epidemiological surveillance and the effectiveness of
sanitary and phytosanitary controls in the area.
2. The Party claiming that an area within its territory is free
from a specific pest or disease, shall demonstrate
objectively to the importing Party this condition and ensure
that it will be maintained as such, on the basis of the
protection measures implemented by those in charge of the
sanitary and phytosanitary services.
3. The Party interested in obtaining recognition that an area is
free from a specific pest or disease shall send the request
to the other Party and provide relevant scientific and
technical information.
4. The Party that receives the request for recognition may carry
out inspections, testing and other verification procedures.
If the Party does not accept the request, it shall indicate
in writing the technical basis for its decision.
5. The Parties may initiate consultation in order to reach
agreement on specific requirements for recognition of pest-
or disease-free areas or areas of low pest or disease
prevalence. Due to the lack of international standards for
the recognition of areas of low pest or disease prevalence,
it is agreed by both Parties that the recognition of such
areas shall be pending until the establishment of the
international standards.

Article 8.09 Control, Inspection and Approval Procedures
1. The Parties, according to this Chapter, shall observe the
provisions of Annex C to the ASPS on control, inspection and
approval procedures, including approval of the use of
additives or establishment of tolerances for contaminants in
food, beverages and feedstuffs.
2. When the competent authority of the exporting Party requests
for the first time to the competent authority of the
importing Party to inspect a production unit or production
process in its territory, the competent authority of the
importing Party shall, upon completion of review and
evaluation of necessary documents and information and risk
assessment required by the importing Party, carry out the
inspection within a period of one hundred (100) days. This
period may be extended by mutual agreement between the
Parties in those cases where it can be justified. When the
inspection is completed, the competent authority of the
importing Party shall issue a decision based on the results
on the inspection and shall notify the exporting Party within
ninety (90) days after the inspection.

Article 8.10 Transparency
1. Each Party, when proposing adoption or modification of a
sanitary or phytosanitary measure of general application,
shall notify:
a) adoptions and modifications of these measures, it shall
also provide information on measures according to the
provisions of Annex B to the ASPS, and shall implement the
relevant adjustment;
b) changes or revisions in sanitary or phytosanitary measures
that have a significant effect on trade between the Parties
, within sixty (60) days prior to the entry into force of
the new provisions, to allow the other Party to comment;
such requirement shall be exempted for emergencies,
according to the provisions of Annex B to the ASPS;
c) changes in the status of animal health, as the occurrence
of exotic diseases and diseases in List A of the OIE,
within twenty-four (24) hours after confirming the disease;
d) changes in the phytosanitary status, as the occurrence of
quarantine pests and diseases or spread of quarantine pests
and diseases under official control, within seventy-two
(72) hours of their verification; and
e) disease outbreaks which are scientifically shown to be
caused by the consumption of imported food and food
products, natural or processed.
2. The Parties shall use the notification authorities and
enquiry points established under the ASPS as communication
channels. When emergency measures are needed, the Party shall
immediately notify the other Party in writing, indicating
briefly the purposes and basis of the measure, and the nature
of the problem.
3. According to the provisions of Article 16.02 (Information
Center), each Party shall answer any reasonable request for
information from the other Party and shall provide relevant
documentation according to the principles of paragraph 3 of
Annex B to the ASPS.

Article 8.11 Technical Consultations
1. A Party, when necessary, may request consultations with the
other Party regarding the application or interpretation of
the content in this Chapter.
2. The Party that considers that the sanitary and phytosanitary
measures of the other Party are inconsistent with this
Chapter, shall have the burden to establish the inconsistency.
3. If the Party requests consultations, it shall notify the
Committee. The Committee shall facilitate the consultations,
and if necessary, forward to an ad-hoc working group for
technical recommendations.
4. When the Parties have resorted to consultations, in
accordance with this Article, without satisfactory results,
these consultations shall constitute those foreseen in
Article 18.05 (Consultations), if the Parties so agree.

Article 8.12 Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
1. The Parties hereby establish the Committee on Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures (“the Committee”), as set out in
Annex 8.12.
2. The Committee shall hear matters regarding this Chapter and,
without prejudice to Article 17.05(2) (Committees), shall
carry out the following functions:
a) promoting the means necessary for the training and
specialization of technical staff;
b) promoting the active participation of the Parties in
international bodies; and
c) creating and updating a database of specialists qualified
in the fields of food safety, plant and animal health, for
the purpose of the provisions of Article 17.06 (Groups of
Experts).

CHAPTER 9 MEASURES ON STANDARDS, METROLOGY AND AUTHORIZATION
PROCEDURES

Article 9.01 Definitions
1. For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
administrative refusal: action taken in the exercise of its
authorities by a public body of the importing Party to prevent
the entry in its territory of a consignment that does not comply
with its technical regulations, conformity assessment procedures
or metrological requirements;
assessment of risk: evaluation of potential adverse effects on
legitimate objectives that could impede trade;
authorization procedure: any mandatory administrative procedure
for granting registration, license or any other approval for a
good to be produced, marketed or used for a stated purpose or
under stated conditions;
comparable situation: situation that offers the same level of
safety or protection for reaching a legitimate objective ;
conformity assessment procedure: any procedure used, directly or
indirectly, to determine that a technical regulation or standard
is fulfilled, including sampling, testing, inspection,
evaluation, verification, assurance of conformity, registration,
accreditation and approval as well as their combinations;
international standard: a standard, guide or recommendation,
adopted by an international standardizing body and made
available to the public;
international standardizing or metrological body: a
standardizing or metrological body whose membership is open to
at least all the Members of the WTO, including the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the Codex Alimentarius
Commission (CAC), the International Organization of Legal
Metrology (OIML), the International Commission on Radiation
Units and Measurements, Inc. (ICRU), or any other body that the
Parties designate;
legitimate objectives: national security requirements,
prevention of deceptive practices, protection of human health or
safety, animal or plant life or health, or the environment;
make compatible: to bring different standards-related measures
of the same scope approved by different standardizing bodies to
a level such that they are either identical, equivalent or have
the effect of permitting goods to be used in place of one
another or for fulfilling the same purpose;
standard: document approved by a recognized body that provides,
for common and repeated use, rules, guidelines or
characteristics for goods or related processes and production
methods, with which compliance is not mandatory. It may also
include, or deal exclusively with, terminology, symbols,
packaging, marking or labeling requirements as they apply to a
good, process or production method;
standardization measures: the rules, technical regulations or
procedures for conformity assessment;
TBT Agreement: The Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade,
that forms a part of World Trade Organization (WTO); and
technical regulation: document which lays down characteristics
of goods or their related processes and production methods,
including the applicable administrative provisions with which
compliance is mandatory. It may also include or deal exclusively
with terminology, symbols, packaging, marking or labelling
requirements as they apply to a good, process, or production
method.
2. Except as defined in paragraph 1, the Parties shall use the
terms of the current ISO/IEC Guide 2:1996 “Standardization
and Related Activities-General Vocabulary.”

Article 9.02 General Provisions
In addition to the provisions of the WTO Agreement, the Parties
shall apply the provisions of this Chapter.

Article 9.03 Scope of Application
1. This Chapter shall apply to the measures adopted by the
Parties on standards, authorization procedures and metrology,
as well as on related measures that may directly or
indirectly affect the trade in goods between the Parties.
2. This Chapter shall not apply to sanitary and phytosanitary
measures.

Article 9.04 Basic Rights and Obligations
Right to Adopt Standardization Measures
1. Each Party may develop, adopt, apply and maintain:
a) measures on standards, authorization procedures and
metrology, according to the provisions of this Chapter; and
b) technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures
that allow the Party to reach its legitimate objectives.
Unnecessary Barriers
2. No Party shall develop, adopt, maintain or apply measures on
standards, authorization procedures or metrology that have
the purpose or effect of creating unnecessary trade barriers
to the other Party.
Non-Discriminatory Treatment
3. Each Party shall, in relation to measures on standardization,
authorization procedures and metrology, accord to the goods
of the other Party national treatment and treatment no less
favorable than that it accords to like goods of any other
country.
Use of International Standards
4. In the development or implementation of its measures on
standardization, authorization procedures or metrology, each
Party shall use international standards where they exist or
their completion is imminent, or use the relevant parts of
them, except where such international standards would not be
an effective or appropriate means for fulfilling the
legitimate objectives because of fundamental climatic,
geographical, technological or infrastructural factors, or
scientifically verified reasons.

Article 9 .05 Assessment of Risk
1. In pursuing its legitimate objectives, each Party conducting
risk assessments shall take into account:
a) risk assessments carried out by international standardizing
or metrological bodies;
b) available scientific evidence or technical information;
c) related processing technology; or
d) intended end uses of goods.
2. Where a Party establishes a level of protection that it
considers appropriate and conducts an assessment of risk, it
shall avoid arbitrary or unjustifiable distinctions between
similar goods in the level of protection it considers
appropriate, where the distinctions:
a) result in arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination against
goods of the other Party;
b) constitute a disguised restriction on trade between the
Parties; or
c) discriminate between similar goods for the same use under
the same conditions that pose the same level of risk and
provide similar benefits.
3. A Party shall provide to the other Party, upon request,
relevant documentation on its risk assessment processes and
on the factors taken into account when conducting the
assessment and definition of protection levels, according to
Article 9.04.

Article 9.06 Compatibility and Equivalence
1. Without prejudice to the rights conferred by this Chapter and
taking into account the international activities on standards
and metrology, the Parties shall, to the greatest extent,
make compatible their respective standards and metrology
measures, without reducing the level of safety or protection
to human, animal or plant life or health, the environment and
consumers.
2. A Party shall accept as equivalent to its own any technical
regulations of the other Party, when in cooperation with the
other Party, the importing Party determines that the
technical regulations of the exporting Party adequately
fulfill the legitimate objectives of the importing Party.
3. The importing Party shall provide to the exporting Party, on
request, its reasons in writing for not treating a technical
regulation as equivalent under paragraph 2.

Article 9.07 Conformity Assessment
1. Each Party shall develop, adopt and apply conformity
assessment procedures to accord access to like goods from the
territory of the other Party under conditions no less
favorable than those accorded to its like goods or to those
of any other country, in a comparable situation.
2. With regard to its conformity assessment procedures, each
Party shall:
a) initiate and complete these procedures as expeditiously as
possible and on a non-discriminatory basis;
b) publish the procedure and the normal period of each
procedure or, upon request, to convey this information to
the applicant;
c) have the competent body or authority review without delay
upon receipt of an application if the documentation is
complete and communicate to the applicant as soon as
possible and with accuracy and thoroughness the findings of
the assessment, so that the applicant may take corrective
measures as needed, and even when the application shows
deficiencies, proceed with the conformity assessment as far
as possible if requested by the applicant and, upon
request, inform the applicant of the stage of the procedure
and explain any possible delay;
d) request only the information necessary to assess the
conformity and calculate the fees;
e) respect the confidentiality of the information about a good
of the other Party obtained by such procedures or provided
in connection with them, in the same manner as in the case
of goods from the Party, so as to protect the legitimate
trade interests;
f) make equitable the fees imposed for assessing the
conformity of a good of the other Party, compared with the
fees that would be collected for assessing the conformity
of a like good of this Party, taking into account
communication, transportation and other costs due to
differences in location of the applicant’s premises and of
the conformity assessment body;
g) ensure that the location of premises used in conformity
assessment procedures and sampling procedures do not cause
unnecessary inconvenience to applicants or their agents;
h) if the specifications of a good are modified after the
determination of its conformity with technical regulations
or applicable standards, limit the conformity assessment
procedure for the modified good to the extent necessary to
determine with due assurance that the good shall continue
to conform to the technical regulations or applicable
standards; and
i) establish a procedure for reviewing the claims related to
the application of a conformity assessment procedure and
adopt corrective measures if the claim is justified.
3. With the aim of advancing the facilitation of trade, a Party
shall consider favorable a request from the other Party to
initiate negotiations designed to conclude agreements for the
mutual recognition of the results of their respective
conformity assessment procedures.
4. To the extent practicable each Party shall accept the results
of conformity assessment procedures carried out in the
territory of the other Party, provided that those procedures
offer enough confidence, equivalent to the confidence of its
own procedures and that the good meets the technical
regulations or applicable standards adopted or maintained in
the territory of this Party.
5. Before accepting the results of a conformity assessment
procedure under paragraph 4 and with the aim of strengthening
the sustained reliability of the results of conformity
assessment of each Party, the Parties may consult about
matters such as the technical capacity of conformity
assessment bodies, including the verified compliance with
relevant international standards through means such as
accreditation.
6. Each Party, recognizing that the outcome shall be to the
mutual advantage of both Parties, shall accredit, approve or
recognize conformity assessment bodies in the territory of
the other Party, in conditions no less favorable than those
accorded to conformity assessment bodies in its territory.
7. The Parties may use the capacity and technical infrastructure
of the accredited bodies established in the territory of the
Parties in the conformity assessment procedures.

Article 9.08 Authorization Procedures
1. Each Party shall develop, adopt and apply authorization
procedures to accord access to like goods from the territory
of the other Party under conditions no less favorable than
that accorded to its goods or to the goods of any other
country, in a comparable situation.
2. In relation to its authorization procedures, each Party shall:
a) initiate and complete these procedures as expeditiously as
possible and in a non-discriminatory manner;
b) publish the procedure and the normal period of each
procedure or upon request to convey this information to the
applicant;
c) have the competent authority review without delay upon
receipt of an application if the documentation is complete
and communicate to the applicant as soon as possible and
with accuracy and thoroughness the results of the
authorization, so that the applicant may take corrective
measures as needed, and even when the application shows
deficiencies, proceed with the authorization procedure as
far as possible if requested by the applicant and, upon
request, inform the applicant of the stage of the procedure
and explain any possible delay;
d) request only the information necessary to authorize and
calculate the fees;
e) respect the confidentiality of the information about a good
of the other Party obtained by such procedures or provided
in connection with them, in the same manner as in the case
of goods from the Party, in order to protect the legitimate
trade interests;
f) make equitable the fees imposed for authorization procedure
with respect to a good of the other Party, compared with
the fees that would be collected for an authorization
procedure of a like good of this Party, taking into account
communication, transportation and other costs due to
differences in location of the applicant’s premises and of
the authorizing body; and
g) establish a procedure for reviewing the claims related to
the application of an authorization procedure and adopt
corrective measures if the claim is justified.

Article 9.09 Metrology
Each Party shall ensure, to the extent practicable, the
documented traceability of its standards and the calibration of
its measuring instruments, according to the recommendations of
the Bureau International des Poids et Measures (BIPM) and the
International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML), and comply
with the requirements set out in this Chapter.

Article 9.10 Notification
1. In cases where there is no relevant international standard,
or the technical content of a proposed technical regulation
or of a conformity assessment procedure does not conform with
the technical content of the relevant international
standards, and if these technical regulations may have a
significant impact on trade between the Parties, each Party
shall notify, in writing, the other Party of the proposed
measure, at least sixty (60) days before its adoption,
allowing the interested parties to make comments, discuss
these comments upon request, and take these comments and the
results of these discussion into account.
2. If a Party faces serious problems or the threat of serious
problems related to safety, health, environment protection
and national security, this Party may not present the
communication prior to the project, but once adopted shall
notify the other Party.
3. The notifications under paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be done
following the models established in the TBT Agreement.
4. Within thirty (30) days of entry into force of this
Agreement, each Party shall notify the other Party of the
institution designated to carry out the notifications under
this Article.
5. Each Party shall notify in writing the other Party of its
standardization plans and programmers.
6. When a Party rejects a shipment by an administrative
decision, the Party shall notify the person in charge of the
shipment of the technical reasons for the rejection, without
delay and in writing via fax, courier, e-mail or other media.
7. Once the information required under paragraph 5 is completed,
the Party shall immediately transmit it to the Information
Center of the other Party.

Article 9.11 Information Centers
1. Each Party shall ensure the existence of an information
center in its territory that may answer all reasonable
questions and requests from the other Party and from
interested persons and supply the relevant updated
documentation relating to any measure on standards,
metrology, conformity assessment procedures or authorization
procedures adopted or proposed in its territory by
governmental or non-governmental bodies.
2. Each Party designates the center set out in Annex 9.11(2) as
Information Center.
3. If an information center requests copies of the documents
referred to in paragraph 1 they shall be delivered without
cost. The interested persons from the other Party shall
receive copies of the documents at the same price as the
nationals from this Party, plus the actual cost of shipment.

Article 9.12 Technical Consultations
1. When a Party considers that a measure on standards, metrology
or authorization procedures of the other Party is interpreted
or applied in an inconsistent way with the provisions of this
Chapter, the Party will have the obligations to prove the
inconsistency.
2. When a Party requests consultations and notifies the
Committee specified in Article 9.13, the Committee shall
facilitate the consultations and send them to an ad-hoc
working group or to another forum for consultations.
3. When the Parties have resorted to consultations, in
accordance with this Article, without satisfactory results,
these consultations shall constitute the consultations
foreseen in Article 18.05 (Consultations) if the Parties so
agree.

Article 9.13 Committee on Standards, Metrology and Authorization
Procedures
1. The Parties hereby establish the Committee on Standards,
Metrology and Authorization Procedures, as set out in Annex
9.13.
2. The Committee will hear matters relating to this Chapter,
without prejudice to the provisions of Article 17.05
(Committees), and shall have the following functions:
a) analyzing and proposing ways to resolve measures on
standards, authorization procedures and metrology that a
Party considers a technical barrier to trade;
b) facilitating the process by which the Parties shall make
compatible their measures on standards and metrology,
giving priority, inter alia, to labelling and packaging;
c) promoting technical cooperation activities between the
Parties;
d) providing assistance to the risk assessment activities
carried out by the Parties;
e) working together to develop and strengthen the standards
and metrology measures of the Parties; and
f) facilitating the process by which the Parties shall
establish mutual recognition agreements.

PART FOUR INVESTMENT, SERVICES AND RELATED MATTERS

CHAPTER 10 INVESTMENT

Section A – Definitions

Article 10.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
Additional Facility Rules of ICSID: Additional Facility Rules of
ICSID established in 1978;
claim: the claim made by the disputing investor against a Party
under Section C of this Chapter;
disputing investor: an investor that makes a claim under Section
C of this Chapter;
disputing Parties: the disputing investor and the disputing
Party;
disputing Party: a Party against which a claim is made under
Section C of this Chapter;
disputing party: the disputing investor or the disputing Party;
enterprise: an "enterprise" as defined in Chapter 2 (General
Definitions ), and a branch of an enterprise;
enterprise of a Party: 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;
ICC: the International Chamber of Commerce;
ICSID: the International Centre for Settlement of Investment
Disputes;
ICSID Convention: the Convention on the Settlement of Investment
Disputes between States and Nationals of other States, done at
Washington, March 18, 1965;
investment: any kind of goods or rights of any nature acquired
or used with the purpose of obtaining an economic profit or
other business objective, acquired with resources transferred or
reinvested by an investor, and including:
a) an enterprise, shares in an enterprise, shares in the
capital of an enterprise that allow the owner to
participate in its income or profits. Debt instruments of
an enterprise and loans to an enterprise where:
i) the enterprise is a branch of the investor, or
ii) the date of maturity of the debt instrument or loan is
at least three (3) years;
b) a share in an enterprise that grants to the owner the right
to participate in the assets of this enterprise in a
liquidation, provided that they do not arise from a debt
instrument or a loan excluded under subparagraph (a);
c) real estate or other properties, tangible or intangible,
including rights in the intellectual property field, as
well as any other proprietary right (such as mortgages,
liens, usufruct and similar rights), acquired with the
expectation of or used with the purpose of obtaining an
economic benefit or other business objectives;
d) share or benefits arising from the allocation of capital or
other resources to the developing of an economic activity
in the territory of a Party according, inter alia; to:
i) contracts that involve the presence of the property of an
investor in the territory of a Party, including
concessions and construction and turnkey contracts, or
ii) contracts where remuneration substantially depends on
the production, income or profits of an enterprise;
but investment does not include:
e) a payment obligation or a credit granted to the State or a
state enterprise;
f) monetary claims exclusively derived from:
i) commercial contracts for the sale of goods or services by
a national or an enterprise in the territory of a Party
to an enterprise in the territory of the other Party, or
ii) a credit granted in relation to a commercial
transaction, of which date of maturity is less than
three (3) years, such as trade financing, except a loan
covered by the provisions of subparagraph (a); or
g) any other monetary claim that does not refer to aspects set
out in subparagraphs (a) through (d);
investor of a non-Party: means, with respect to a Party, an
investor that attempts to make, is making, or has made an
investment in the territory of that Party, that is not an
investor of a Party;
investor of a Party: a Party or a state enterprise of a Party or
a national or an enterprise of a Party that makes or has made an
investment in the territory of the other Party;
investment of an investor of a Party: the investment property or
under direct or indirect control of an investor of this Party;
own or control: in the case of an enterprise, an investment is
property of an investor of a Party if that investor has the
property of more than fifty percent (50%) of the equity;
An investment is under the control of an investor of a Party if
that investor has the power
a) to designate most of its directors; or
b) to direct otherwise its operations legally;
New York Convention: the United Nations Convention on the
Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, done at
New York, June 10th, 1958;
Secretary-General: the Secretary-General of the ICSID or the ICC;
Transfers: remittance and international payments;
Tribunal: an arbitration tribunal established under Article
10.21and Article 10.27; and
UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules: the arbitration rules of the United
Nations Commission on International Trade Law, approved by the
United Nations General Assembly on December 15th , 1976.

Section B - Investment

Article 10.02 Scope and Coverage
1. This Chapter applies to measures adopted or maintained by a
Party relating to:
a) investors of the other Party with respect to all aspects of
its investments;
b) investments of investors of the other Party in the
territory of the Party; and
c) all investments of the investors of a Party in the
territory of the other Party with regard to Article 10.07.
2. This Chapter does not apply to:
a) measures adopted or maintained by a Party in relation to
financial services;
b) measures adopted by a Party to limit the participation of
investment of investors of the other Party in its territory
for reasons of public order or national security;
c) economic activities reserved by each Party pursuant to its
law in force on the date of the signing of this Agreement,
as listed in Annex III on economic activities reserved to
each Party;
d) government services or functions such as law enforcement,
correctional services, income security or unemployment
insurance, social security services, social welfare, public
education, public training, health, and child care;
e) disputes or claims arising before the entry into force of
this Agreement or relating to facts that occurred before it
entered into force, even if their effects persist
thereafter; and
f) government procurement.
3. This Chapter applies to the entire territory of the Parties
and to any level of government, regardless of any
inconsistent measures that may exist in the law of these
government levels.
4. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2(d), if a duly
authorized investor from a Party provides services or carries
out functions such as correctional services, income security
or unemployment insurance, social security services, social
welfare, public education, public training, health, and child
care, the investment of this investor shall be protected by
the provisions of this Chapter.
5. This Chapter shall apply to both investments made prior to
and after the entry into force of this Agreement, by
investors of a Party in the territory of the other Party.

Article 10.03 National Treatment
1. Each Party shall accord to investors of the other Party
treatment no less favorable than that it accords, in like
circumstances, to its own investors with respect to the
establishment, acquisition, expansion, management, conduct,
operation, and sale or other disposal of investments.
2. Each Party shall accord to investments of investors of the
other Party treatment no less favorable than that it accords,
in like circumstances, to investments of its own investors
with respect to the establishment, acquisition, expansion,
management, conduct, operation, and sale or other disposal of
investments.

Article 10.04 Most-Favored-Nation Treatment
1. Each Party shall accord to investors of the other Party
treatment no less favorable than that it accords, in like
circumstances, to investors of a non-Party with respect to
the establishment, acquisition, expansion, management,
conduct, operation, and sale or other disposal of investments.
2. Each Party shall accord to investments of investors of the
other Party treatment no less favorable than that it accords,
in like circumstances, to investments of investors of a
non-Party with respect to the establishment, acquisition,
expansion, management, conduct, operation, and sale or other
disposal of investments.

Article 10.05 Fair and Equitable Treatment
Each Party shall accord to investors of the other Party and
their investments treatment in accordance with international
law, including fair and equitable treatment as well as full
protection and security.

Article 10.06 Compensation for Losses
Each Party shall accord to the investors of the other Party
whose investments have been adversely affected in its territory
due to armed conflict, state of emergency, insurrection, or
civil strife, non-discriminatory treatment on any measure
adopted or maintained in relation to such losses.

Article 10.07 Performance Requirements
1. No Party may impose or enforce any of the following
requirements, or enforce any commitment or undertaking, in
connection with the establishment, acquisition, expansion,
management, conduct or operation of an investment of an
investor of the other Party in its territory:
a) to export a given level or percentage of goods or services;
b) to achieve a given level or percentage of domestic content;
c) to purchase, use or accord a preference to goods produced
or services provided in its territory, or to purchase goods
or services from persons in its territory; or
d) to relate in any way the volume or value of imports to the
volume or value of exports or to the amount of foreign
exchange inflows associated with such investment;
All the provisions established in the paragraph 1 do not
apply to any requirement other than indicated herein.
2. No Party may condition the receipt or continued receipt of an
advantage, in connection with an investment in its territory
of an investor of the other Party, on compliance with any of
the following requirements:
a) to achieve a given level or percentage of domestic content;
b) to purchase, use or accord a preference to goods produced
in its territory, or to purchase goods from producers in
its territory; or
c) to relate in any way the volume or value of imports to the
volume or value of exports or to the amount of foreign
exchange inflows associated with such investment;
All the provisions established in the paragraph 2 do not
apply to any requirements other than indicated herein.
3. The provisions included in:
a) paragraph 1(a), (b), and (c) and paragraph 2(a) and (b) do
not apply to requirements relating to the qualification of
goods and services for programs of export promotion and
foreign aid programs;
b) paragraph 1(b) and (c) and paragraph 2(a) and (b) do not
apply to the procurement by a Party or by a state
enterprise; and
c) paragraph 2(a) and (b) does not apply to the requirements
imposed by an importing Party related to the contents of a
good necessary to qualify it for preferential tariffs or
quotas.
4. Nothing in paragraph 2 shall be construed to prevent a Party
from conditioning the receipt or continued receipt of an
advantage, in connection with an investment in its territory
of an investor of the other Party, on compliance with a
requirement to locate production, provide a service, train or
employ workers, construct or expand particular facilities, or
carry out research and development, in its territory.
5. Provided that these measures are not applied in an arbitrary
or unjustified manner or do not constitute a disguised
restriction to international trade or investment, nothing in
paragraph 1(b) or (c) or 2(a) or (b) shall be construed to
prevent a Party from adopting or maintaining measures,
including environment measures, necessary to:
a) ensure compliance with laws and regulations that are not
inconsistent with the provisions of this Agreement;
b) protect human, animal or plant life or health; or
c) conserve living or non-living exhaustible natural resources.
6. In the case where, in the opinion of a Party, the imposition
by the other Party of any of the following requirements shall
adversely affect trade flows or constitutes a significant
barrier to investment by an investor of a Party, the matter
shall be considered by the Commission:
a) to restrict the sales of goods or services in its territory
that such investment produces or provides by relating such
sales in any way to the volume or value of its exports or
foreign exchange earnings;
b) to transfer technology, production process or other
proprietary knowledge to a person in its territory, except
when the requirement is imposed by a competent judicial
court or administrative authority, to remedy an alleged
violation of competition laws or to act in a manner not
inconsistent with other provisions of this Agreement; or
c) to act as the exclusive supplier of the goods it produces
or services it provides to a specific region or world
market.
7. A measure that requires an investment to use a technology to
meet generally applicable health, safety or environmental
requirements shall not be construed to be inconsistent with
paragraph 6(b). For greater certainty, Articles 10.03 and
10.04 apply to the measure.
8. If the Commission finds that the imposition of any of the
above requirements adversely affects the trade flow, or
represents a significant barrier to investment by an investor
of the other Party, it shall recommend that the practice in
question be suspended.

Article 10.08 Senior Management and Boards of Directors
1. No Party may require that an enterprise of that Party that is
an investment of an investor of the other Party appoint to
senior management positions individuals of any particular
nationality.
2. A Party may require that a majority of the board of
directors, of an enterprise of that Party that is an
investment of an investor of the other Party, be of a
particular nationality, or resident in the territory of the
Party, provided that the requirement does not materially
impair the ability of the investor to exercise control over
its investment.

Article 10.09 Reservations and Exceptions
1. Articles 10.03, 10.04, 10.07 and 10.08 do not apply to:
a) any existing non-conforming measure that is maintained by:
i) a Party at the national level, as set out in its Schedule
to Annex I or III, or
ii) a local or municipal government;
b) the continuation or prompt renewal of any non-conforming
measure referred to in subparagraph (a); or
c) the amendment of any non-conforming measure referred to in
subparagraph (a), provided that this amendment does not
decrease the conformity of the measure as it existed before
its amendment by Articles 10.03, 10.04, 10.07, and 10.08.
2. Articles 10.03, 10.04, 10.07 and 10.08 shall not apply to any
measure adopted or maintained by a Party in relation to
sectors, sub-sectors or activities, as are indicated in their
Schedule to Annex II.
3. No Party may under any measure adopted after the date of
entry into force of this Agreement and covered by its
Schedule to Annex II, require an investor of the other Party,
by reason of its nationality, to sell or otherwise dispose of
an investment existing at the time the measure becomes
effective.
4. Article 10.04 does not apply to treatment accorded by a Party
under this Agreement, with respect to sectors included in its
Schedule to Annex V.
5. Articles 10.03, 10.04 and 10.07 do not apply to:
a) procurement by a Party or a state enterprise; and
b) subsidies or grants provided by a Party or a state
enterprise, including government supported loans,
guarantees and insurance.

Article 10.10 Transfers
1. Each Party shall permit all transfers relating to an
investment of an investor of the other Party in the territory
of the Party to be made freely and without delay. Such
transfers include:
a) profits, dividends, interest, capital gains, royalty
payments, management fees, technical assistance and other
fees, returns in kind and other amounts derived from the
investment;
b) proceeds from the sale of all or any part of the investment
or from the partial or complete liquidation of the
investment;
c) payments made under a contract entered into by the
investor, or its investment, including payments made
pursuant to a loan agreement;
d) payments made pursuant to Article 10.11; and
e) payments arising from the mechanism of dispute settlement
under Section C of this Chapter.
2. Each Party shall permit transfers to be made without delay in
a freely convertible currency at the market rate of exchange
prevailing on the date of transfer.
3. No Party shall require its investors to transfer, or penalize
its investors that fail to transfer the income, earnings,
profits or other amounts derived from or attributable to,
investments in the territory of the other Party.
4. Notwithstanding paragraphs 1 and 2, a Party may prevent a
transfer through the equitable, non-discriminatory and good
faith application of its laws relating to:
a) bankruptcy, insolvency or the protection of the rights of
creditors;
b) administrative or judicial definitive resolutions
c) non-fulfillment to reports of transfers of currency or
other monetary instruments;
d) ensuring the satisfaction of judgments and arbitral awards
in adjudicatory proceedings; or
e) issuing, trading or dealing in securities.
5. Paragraph 3 shall not be construed to prevent a Party from
imposing any measure through the equitable,
non-discriminatory and good faith application of its laws
relating to the matters set out in subparagraphs (a) through
(e) of paragraph 4.

Article 10.11 Expropriation and Compensation
1. No Party may directly or indirectly nationalize or
expropriate an investment of an investor of the other Party
in its territory or take a measure tantamount to
nationalization or expropriation of such an investment
("expropriation"), except:
a) for a public interest;
b) on a non-discriminatory basis;
c) in accordance with due process of law; and
d) on payment of compensation in accordance with this Article.
2. Compensation shall be equivalent to the fair market value of
the expropriated investment immediately before the
expropriation took place ("date of expropriation"), and shall
not reflect any change in value occurring because the
intended expropriation had become known earlier. Valuation
criteria shall include going concern value, asset value
including declared tax value of tangible property, and other
criteria, as appropriate, to determine fair market value.
3. Compensation shall be paid without delay and be fully
realizable.
4. The amount paid as compensation shall be no less than the
equivalent amount that would have been paid on that date to
the expropriated investor in a currency of free
convertibility in the international financial market
according to the exchange rate in force on the date in which
the fair market price was determined. The compensation shall
include the payment of interests computed from the day of
dispossession of the expropriated investment until the day of
payment, and shall be computed on the basis of a commercially
applicable rate for this currency set by the national bank
system of the Party where the expropriation occurred.
5. Upon payment, the compensation shall be freely transferable
according to Article 10.10.
6. This Article does not apply to the issuance of compulsory
licenses granted in relation to intellectual property rights,
or to the revocation, limitation or creation of intellectual
property rights, to the extent that such issuance,
revocation, limitation or creation is consistent with TRIPS.
7. For purposes of this Article and for greater certainty, a
non-discriminatory measure of general application shall not
be considered a measure tantamount to an expropriation of a
debt security or loan covered by this Chapter solely on the
ground that the measure imposes costs on the debtor that
cause it to default on the debt.

Article 10.12 Special Formalities and Information Requirements
1. Nothing in Article 10.03 shall be construed to prevent a
Party from adopting or maintaining a measure that prescribes
special formalities in connection with the establishment of
investments by investors of the other Party, such as a
requirement that investors be residents of the Party or that
investments be legally constituted under the laws or
regulations of the Party, provided that such formalities do
not materially impair the protections afforded by a Party to
investors of the other Party and investments of investors of
the other Party pursuant to this Chapter.
2. Notwithstanding Articles 10.03 and 10.04, a Party may require
an investor of the other Party, or its investment in its
territory, to provide routine information concerning that
investment solely for informational or statistical purposes.
The Party shall protect such information that is confidential
from any disclosure that would prejudice the competitive
position of the investor or the investment. Nothing in this
paragraph shall be construed to prevent a Party from
otherwise obtaining or disclosing information in connection
with the equitable and good faith application of its law.

Article 10.13 Relation to Other Chapters
1. In the event of any inconsistency between this Chapter and
another Chapter, the latter shall prevail to the extent of
the inconsistency.
2. A requirement by a Party that a service provider of the other
Party post a bond or other form of financial security as a
condition of providing a service into its territory does not
of itself make this Chapter applicable to the rendering of
that of cross border service. This Chapter applies to that
Party's treatment of the posted bond or financial security.

Article 10.14 Denial of Benefits
With previous notification and consultation done according to
Articles 16.04 (Provision of Information) and 18.05
(Consultations), a Party may deny the benefits under this
Chapter to an investor of the other Party that is an enterprise
of such other Party and to the investment of this investor, if
the investors of a non-Party own or control, (directly or
indirectly), the enterprise and the enterprise has no
substantial business activities in the territory of the Party
under whose law it is constituted or organized.

Article 10.15 Environmental Measures
1. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to prevent a Party
from adopting, maintaining or enforcing any measure otherwise
consistent with this Chapter that it considers appropriate to
ensure that investment activity in its territory is
undertaken under its ecological or environmental laws.
2. The Parties recognize that it is inappropriate to encourage
investment by relaxing domestic health, safety or
environmental measures. Accordingly, a Party shall not waive
or otherwise derogate from, or offer to waive or otherwise
derogate from, such measures as an encouragement for the
establishment, acquisition, expansion or retention in its
territory of an investment of an investor. If a Party
considers that the other Party has offered such an
encouragement, it may request consultations with the other
Party.

Section C - Settlement of Disputes between a Party and an
Investor of the other Party

Article 10.16 Objective
Without prejudice to the rights and obligations of the Parties
under Chapter 18 (Dispute Settlement), this Section establishes
a mechanism for the settlement of investment disputes arising
from the violation of obligations established under Section B of
this Chapter that assures both equal treatment among investors
of the Parties in accordance with the principle of reciprocity
and due process before an impartial tribunal.

Article 10.17 Claim by an Investor of a Party on Its Own Behalf
1. An investor of a Party may submit to arbitration under this
Section a claim on the grounds that the other Party or an
enterprise controlled directly or indirectly by the other
Party, has breached an obligation under this Chapter if the
investor has suffered losses or damages from the violation of
this Chapter.
2. An investor may not make a claim if more than three (3) years
have elapsed from the date on which the investor first
acquired, or should have first acquired, knowledge of the
alleged breach and knowledge that the investor has suffered
losses or damages.

Article 10.18 Claim by an Investor of a Party on Behalf of an
Enterprise
1. An investor of a Party, on behalf of an enterprise of the
other Party, that the investor owns or controls directly or
indirectly, may submit to arbitration under this Section a
claim that the other Party or an enterprise controlled
directly or indirectly by that Party has breached an
obligation under this Chapter, whenever the enterprise has
suffered losses or damages due to that violation or arising
therefrom.
2. An investor may not make a claim on behalf of an enterprise
described in paragraph 1 if more than three (3) years have
elapsed from the date on which the enterprise first acquired,
or should have first acquired, knowledge of the alleged
breach and knowledge that the enterprise has suffered losses
or damages.
3. Where an investor makes a claim under this Article and the
investor or a non-controlling investor in the enterprise
makes a claim under Article 10.17 arising out of the same
events that gave rise to the claim under this Article, and
two or more of the claims are submitted to arbitration under
Article 10.21, the claims should be heard together by a
Tribunal established under Article 10.27, unless the Tribunal
finds that the interests of a disputing party would be
prejudiced thereby.

Article 10.19 Settlement of a Dispute through Consultation and
Negotiation
The disputing Parties should first attempt to settle a dispute
through consultation or negotiation.

Article 10.20 Notice of Intent to Submit a Claim to Arbitration
The disputing investor shall deliver to the disputing Party
written notice of its intention to submit a claim to arbitration
at least ninety (90) days before the claim is submitted, which
notice shall specify:
a) the name and address of the disputing investor and, where a
claim is made under Article 10.18, the name and address and
the type of business of the enterprise;
b) the provisions of this Chapter alleged to have been
breached and any other relevant provisions;
c) the issues and the factual basis for the claim; and
d) the relief sought and the approximate amount of damages
claimed.

Article 10.21 Submission of a Claim to Arbitration
1. Provided that six (6) months have elapsed since the events
giving rise to a claim, a disputing investor may submit the
claim to arbitration under:
a) the ICSID Convention, provided that both the disputing
Party and the Party of the investor are Contracting Parties
to the Convention;
b) the Additional Facility Rules of ICSID, provided that
either the disputing Party or the Party of the investor,
but not both, is a Contacting Party to the ICSID Convention;
c) the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules; or
d) the ICC Arbitration Rules.
2. The applicable arbitration rules shall govern the arbitration
established in this Chapter except to the extent modified by
this Section.

Article 10.22 Conditions Prior to the Submission of a Claim to
Arbitration
1. Consent of the disputing parties in the arbitration procedure
according to this Chapter shall be considered as consent to
this arbitration that excludes any other procedure.
2. Each Party may demand the exhaustion of its local
administrative remedies as a condition for consenting to the
arbitration under this Chapter. Nevertheless, if six (6)
months have elapsed from the date on which the administrative
remedies were lodged and the administrative authorities have
not issued a final resolution, the investor may directly
appeal to arbitration, according to the provisions of this
Section.
3. A disputing investor may submit a claim under Article 10.17
to arbitration only if:
a) the investor consents to arbitration in accordance with the
procedures set out in this Section; and
b) the investor and, where the claim is for losses or damages
to an interest in an enterprise of the other Party that the
investor owns or controls directly or indirectly, the
enterprise, waive their right to initiate or continue
before any competent judicial court or administrative
authority, under the law of the Parties, or other dispute
settlement procedures, any proceedings with respect to the
measure of the disputing Party that is alleged to be a
breach referred to in Article 10.17, except for
proceedings, not involving the payment of monetary damages,
before a competent judicial court or administrative
authority under the law of the disputing Party.
4. A disputing investor may present a claim to the arbitration
procedure according to Article 10.18 only if both investor
and enterprise:
a) consent to submit the claim to arbitration in accordance
with the procedures set out in this Section; and
b) waive their right to initiate or continue before any
competent judicial court or administrative authority under
the law of the Parties, or other dispute settlement
procedures, any proceedings with respect to the measure of
the disputing Party that is alleged to be a breach referred
to in Article 10.18, except for proceedings, not involving
the payment of monetary damages, before a competent
judicial court or administrative authority under the law of
the disputing Party.
5. The consent and the waiver required by this Article shall be
stated in writing, delivered to the disputing Party and
included in the submission of the claim to arbitration.
6. The waiver by the enterprise, under paragraphs 3(b) and 4(b),
shall not be required if, and only if, the disputing Party
had deprived the disputing investor of the control of an
enterprise.

Article 10.23 Consent to Arbitration
1. Each Party consents to the submission of a claim to
arbitration in accordance with the procedures and
requirements set out in this Section.
2. The consent given by paragraph 1 and the submission by a
disputing investor of a claim to arbitration shall be deemed
as having satisfied the requirement of:
a) Chapter II of the ICSID Convention (Jurisdiction of the
Centre) and the Additional Facility Rules for written
consent of the parties; and
b) Article II of the New York Convention for an agreement in
writing.

Article 10.24 Number of Arbitrators and Method of Appointment
Except in respect of a Tribunal established under Article 10.27,
and unless the disputing Parties otherwise agree, the Tribunal
shall comprise three arbitrators, one arbitrator appointed by
each of the disputing Parties and the third, who shall be the
presiding arbitrator of the Tribunal, appointed by agreement of
the disputing Parties.

Article 10.25 Constitution of a Tribunal When a Party Fails to
Appoint an Arbitrator or the Disputing Parties Are
Unable to Agree on a Presiding Arbitrator
1. In the event a disputing party does not appoint an arbitrator
or an agreement is not reached about the appointment of the
presiding arbitrator of the Tribunal, the arbitrator or the
presiding arbitrator of the Tribunal in the arbitration
proceeding shall be designated, according to this Section.
2. Where a Tribunal, not being the one created according to
Article 10.27, is not constituted within a period of ninety
(90) days from the date on which the claim is submitted to
arbitration, the Secretary-General of the ICSID, or an
appropriate official (hereinafter the Secretary-General) at
an international organization agreed upon by the disputing
Parties with previous consultation of the same ones, shall
appoint the not yet appointed arbitrator or arbitrators,
except for the presiding arbitrator of the Tribunal who shall
be appointed according to paragraph 3. In any case, the
majority of arbitrators shall not be nationals of the
disputing Party or the Party of the disputing investor.
3. The Secretary-General shall appoint the presiding arbitrator
of the Tribunal from the roster of arbitrators referred to in
paragraph 4, ensuring that the presiding arbitrator of the
Tribunal is not a national of the disputing Party or a
national of the Party of the disputing investor. In case of
not finding in the roster an available arbitrator to head the
Tribunal, the Secretary-General shall appoint from the roster
of arbitrators of the ICSID the presiding arbitrator of the
Tribunal, provided that he or she is of a nationality
different from the disputing Party or from the Party of the
disputing investor.
4. On the date of entry into force of this Agreement, the
Parties shall establish and maintain a roster of six (6)
arbitrators as possible presiding arbitrators of the
Tribunal, none of which may be national of a Party, who
comply with the rules contemplated in Article 10.21 and have
experience in international law and in investment matters.
The members of the roster shall be appointed by mutual
agreement, regardless of nationality, for a period of two (2)
years that may be extended if the Parties so decide. In case
of death or resignation of one member of the roster, the
Parties shall appoint by mutual agreement the other person to
substitute him or her in its functions for the remaining
period to which the former person was appointed.

Article 10.26 Agreement to Appointment of Arbitrators
For purposes of Article 39 of the ICSID Convention and Article 7
of Schedule C to the ICSID Additional Facility Rules, and
without prejudice to an objection to an arbitrator based on
Article 10.25(3) or on a ground other than nationality:
a) the disputing Party agrees to the appointment of each
individual member of a Tribunal established under the ICSID
Convention or the ICSID Additional Facility Rules;
b) a disputing investor referred to in Article 10.17 may
submit a claim to arbitration, or continue a claim, under
the ICSID Convention or the ICSID Additional Facility
Rules, only on condition that the disputing investor agrees
in writing to the appointment of each individual member of
the Tribunal; and
c) a disputing investor referred to in Article 10.18(1) may
submit a claim to arbitration, or continue a claim, under
the ICSID Convention or the ICSID Additional Facility
Rules, only on condition that the disputing investor and
the enterprise agree in writing to the appointment of each
individual member of the Tribunal.

Article 10.27 Proceedings Consolidation
1. A Tribunal under this Article shall be established according
to the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules and shall conduct its
proceedings in accordance with those Rules, except as
modified by this Section.
2. Where a Tribunal established under this Article determines
that claims have been submitted to arbitration under Article
10.21 raise a question of law or fact in common, the Tribunal
may, in the interests of fair and efficient resolution of the
claims, and after hearing the disputing Parties, order:
a) to assume jurisdiction over, and hear and determine
together, all or part of the claims; or
b) to assume jurisdiction over, and hear and determine one or
more of the claims, the determination of which it believes
would assist in the resolution of the others.
3. A disputing party that seeks an order under paragraph 2 shall
request the Secretary-General to establish a Tribunal and
shall specify in the request:
a) the name of the disputing Party or disputing investors
against which the order is sought;
b) the nature of the order sought; and
c) the grounds on which the order is sought.
4. The disputing party shall deliver a copy of the request to
the disputing Party or disputing investors against which the
order is sought.
5. Within sixty (60) days of receipt of the request, the
Secretary-General shall establish a Tribunal comprising three
arbitrators. The Secretary-General shall appoint the
presiding arbitrator from the roster referred to in Article
10.25(4). In the event that no such presiding arbitrator is
available to serve, the Secretary-General shall appoint, from
the ICSID Panel of Arbitrators, a presiding arbitrator who is
not a national of any of the Parties. The Secretary-General
shall appoint the two other members from the roster referred
to in Article 10.25(4), and to the extent not available from
that roster, from the ICSID Panel of Arbitrators, and to the
extent not available from that Panel, in the discretion of
the Secretary-General. One member shall be a national of the
disputing Party and one member shall be a national of the
Party of the disputing investors.
6. Where a Tribunal has been established under this Article, a
disputing investor that has submitted a claim to arbitration
under Article 10.17 or 10.18 and that has not been named in a
request made under paragraph 3 may make a written request to
the Tribunal that it be included in an order made under
paragraph 2, and shall specify in the request:
a) the name, address and the type of business of the
enterprise of the disputing investor;
b) the nature of the order sought; and
c) the grounds on which the order is sought.
7. A disputing investor referred to in paragraph 6 shall deliver
a copy of its request to the disputing Parties named in a
request made under paragraph 3.
8. A Tribunal established under Article 10.21 shall not have
jurisdiction to decide a claim, or a part of a claim, over
which a Tribunal established under this Article has assumed
jurisdiction.
9. On application of a disputing party, a Tribunal established
under this Article, pending its decision under paragraph 2,
may order that the proceedings of a Tribunal established
under Article 10.21 be stayed, unless the latter Tribunal has
already adjourned its proceedings, until there is a decision
about the propriety of consolidation.
10. A disputing party shall deliver to the Secretariat, within
ifteen 15 days of receipt by the disputing Party, a copy of:
a) a request for arbitration made under paragraph (1) of
Article 36 of the ICSID Convention;
b) a notice of arbitration made under Article 2 of Schedule C
of the ICSID Additional Facility Rules;
c) a notice of arbitration given under the UNCITRAL
Arbitration Rules; or
d) a request for arbitration made under ICC Arbitration Rules.
11. A disputing party shall deliver to the Secretariat a copy of
request made under paragraph 3:
a) within fifteen (15) days of receipt of the request, in the
case of a request made by a disputing investor; or
b) within fifteen (15) days of making the request, in the case
of a request made by the disputing Party.
12. A disputing party shall deliver to the Secretariat a copy of
request made under paragraph 6 within fifteen (15) days of
receipt of the request.
13. The Secretariat shall maintain a public register of the
ocuments referred to in paragraphs 10, 11 and 12 of this
article.

Article 10.28 Notice
A disputing party shall deliver to the other Party:
a) written notice of a claim that has been submitted to
arbitration no later than thirty (30) days after the date
that the claim is submitted; and
b) copies of all pleadings filed in the arbitration.

Article 10.29 Participation by a Party
On written notice to the disputing parties, a Party may make
submissions to a Tribunal on a question of interpretation of
this Agreement.

Article 10.30 Documents
1. A Party shall be entitled, at its own cost, to receive from
the disputing party a copy of:
a) the evidence that has been tendered to the Tribunal
according to this Section; and
b) the written argument of the disputing parties.
2. A Party receiving information pursuant to paragraph 1 shall
treat the confidential information as if it were a disputing
party.

Article 10.31 Venue of Arbitration
Unless the disputing parties agree otherwise, a Tribunal
established under this Section shall hold an arbitration in the
territory of a Contracting Party to the New York Convention,
selected in accordance with:
a) the ICSID Additional Facility Rules if the arbitration is
under those Rules, or the ICSID Convention;
b) the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules if the arbitration is under
those Rules; or
c) the ICC Arbitration Rules if the arbitration is under those
Rules.

Article 10.32 Governing Law
1. A Tribunal established under this Section shall decide the
issues in dispute in accordance with this Agreement and
applicable rules of international law.
2. An interpretation by the Commission of a provision of this
Agreement shall be binding on a Tribunal established under
this Section.

Article 10.33 Interpretation of Annexes
1. Where a disputing party asserts as a defense that the measure
alleged to be a breach is within the scope of a reservation
or exception set out in those Annexes, on request of the
disputing party, the Tribunal shall request the
interpretation of the Commission on the issue. The
Commission, within sixty (60) days of delivery of the
request, shall submit in writing its interpretation to the
Tribunal.
2. Further to Article 10.32(2), a Commission interpretation
submitted under paragraph 1 shall be binding on the Tribunal
established under this Section. If the Commission fails to
submit an interpretation within sixty (60) days, the Tribunal
shall decide the issue.

Article 10.34 Expert Reports
Without prejudice to the appointment of other kinds of experts
where authorized by the applicable arbitration rules, a
Tribunal, at the request of a disputing party or, on its own
initiative, may appoint one or more experts to report to it in
writing on any issue concerning the controversy.

Article 10.35 Interim Measures of Protection
A Tribunal established under this Section may request, or the
disputing parties may petition to, in accordance with domestic
legislation, national courts for imposing an interim measure of
protection to preserve the rights of a disputing party, or to
ensure that the Tribunal's jurisdiction is made fully effective.
A Tribunal established under this Section may not order
attachment or enjoin the application of the measure alleged to
constitute a breach referred to in Article 10.17 or 10.18.

Article 10.36 Final Award
1. Where a Tribunal established under this Section makes a final
award against a disputing party, the Tribunal may award, only:
a) monetary damages and any applicable interest; or
b) restitution of property, in which case the award shall
provide that the disputing party may pay monetary damages
and any applicable interest in lieu of restitution.
A tribunal may also award costs in accordance with the
applicable arbitration rules.
2. Subject to paragraph 1, where a claim is made under Article
10.18(1):
a) an award of restitution of property shall provide that
restitution be made to the enterprise; or
b) an award of monetary damages and any applicable interest
shall provide that the sum be paid to the enterprise.
3. The award shall provide that it is made without prejudice to
any right that any person may have in the relief under
applicable domestic law.

Article 10.37 Finality and Enforcement of an Award
1. An award made by a Tribunal established under this Section
shall have no binding force except between the disputing
parties and in respect of the particular case.
2. Subject to paragraph 3 and the applicable review procedure
for an award, a disputing party shall abide by and comply
with an award without delay.
3. A disputing party may not seek enforcement of a final award
until:
a) in the case of a final award made under the ICSID
Convention:
i) one hundred and twenty (120) days have elapsed from the
date the award was rendered and no disputing party has
requested explanation, revision or annulment of the
award, or
ii) explanation, revision or annulment proceedings have been
completed; and
b) in the case of a final award under the ICSID Additional
Facility Rules or the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules:
i) ninety (90) days have elapsed from the date the award was
rendered and no disputing party, has used pertinent legal
remedies; or
ii) a court has dismissed or allow the application of
pertinent legal remedies against the award and there is
no further appeal.
4. Each Party shall provide for the enforcement of an award in
its territory.
5. If a disputing party fails to abide by or comply with a final
award, the Commission, on delivery of a request by a Party
whose investor was a party to the arbitration, shall
establish a panel under Article 18.07 (Establishment of an
Arbitral Panel). The requesting Party may seek in such
proceedings:
a) a determination that the failure to abide by or comply with
the final award is inconsistent with the obligations of
this Agreement; and
b) a recommendation that the Party abide by or comply with the
final award.
6. A disputing investor may seek enforcement of an arbitration
award under the New York Convention, or the ICSID Convention,
regardless of whether proceedings have been taken under
paragraph 5.
7. A claim that is submitted to arbitration under this Section
shall be considered to arise out of a commercial relationship
or transaction for purposes of Article 1 of the New York
Convention.

Article 10.38 General Provisions
Time when a Claim is Submitted to Arbitration
1. A claim is submitted to arbitration under this Section when:
a) the request for arbitration under paragraph (1) of Article
36 of the ICSID Convention has been received by the
Secretary-General ;
b) the notice of arbitration under Article 2 of Schedule C of
the ICSID Additional Facility Rules has been received by
the Secretary-General;
c) the notice of arbitration given under the UNCITRAL
Arbitration Rules is received by the disputing Party; or
d) the request for arbitration under Article 3 of the ICC
Arbitration Rules has been received by the Secretariat.
Delivery of Notifications and Other Documents
2. Delivery of notifications and other documents to a Party
shall be made to the place named for that Party in Annex
10.38(2).
Receipts under Insurance or Guarantee Contracts
3. In an arbitration under this Section, a Party shall not
assert, as a defense, counterclaim, right of setoff or
otherwise, that the disputing investor has received or will
receive, pursuant to an insurance or guarantee contract,
indemnification or other compensation for all or part of its
alleged damages.
Publication of an Award
4. The awards shall be published only if there is an agreement
in writing by the disputing parties.

CHAPTER 11 CROSS-BORDER TRADE IN SERVICES

Article 11.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
cross-border trade in services or cross-border service: the
provision of a service:
a) from the territory of a Party into the territory of the
other Party;
b) in the territory of a Party to the services consumer of the
other Party; or
c) by a service provider of a Party, through presence of
natural persons of a Party in the territory of the other
Party;
but does not include the provision of a service in the territory
of a Party by an investment, as defined in Article 10.01
(Definitions), in that territory;
enterprise: an "enterprise" as defined in Chapter 2 (General
Definitions);
enterprise of a Party: 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;
quantitative restriction: a non-discriminatory measure that
imposes limitations on:
a) the number of service providers, whether in the form of a
quota, a monopoly or an economic needs test, or by any
other quantitative means; or
b) the operations of any service provider, whether in the form
of a quota or an economic needs test, or by any other
quantitative means;
services provided in the performing of government functions: any
cross-border service provided by a public institution in
non-commercial conditions and without competing with one or more
service providers; and
service provider of a Party: a person of a Party that provides
or seeks to provide a cross-border service.

Article 11.02 Scope of Application
1. This Chapter applies to measures adopted or maintained by a
Party relating to cross-border trade in services by service
providers of the other Party, including measures respecting:
a) the production, distribution, marketing, sale and delivery
of a service;
b) the purchase or use of, or payment for, a cross-border
service;
c) the access to and use of distribution and transportation
systems in connection with the provision of a cross-border
service;
d) the presence in its territory of a cross-border service
provider of the other Party; and
e) the provision of a bond or other form of financial security
as a condition for the provision of a cross-border service.
2. For purposes of this Chapter, it shall be understood that the
measures adopted or maintained by a Party include measures
adopted or maintained by non-governmental institutions or
bodies in the performance of regulatory, administrative or
other functions of a governmental nature delegated to them by
the Party.
3. This Chapter does not apply to:
a) subsidies or grants provided by a Party or a state
enterprise, including government-supported loans,
guarantees and insurance;
b) air services, including domestic and international air
transportation services, whether scheduled or
non-scheduled, and related services in support of air
services, other than:
i) aircraft repair and maintenance services during which an
aircraft is withdrawn from service;
ii) the selling and marketing of air transport services; and
iii) computer reservation system (CRS) services;
c) government services or functions such as law enforcement,
correctional services, income security or unemployment
insurance or social security services, social welfare,
public education, public training, health, and child care;
d) cross-border financial services; and
e) government procurement done by a Party or state enterprise.
4. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to impose any
obligation on a Party with respect to a national of the other
Party seeking access to its employment market, or employed on
a permanent basis in its territory, or to confer any right on
that national with respect to that access or employment.

Article 11.03 National Treatment
1. Each Party shall accord to cross-border services and service
providers of the other Party treatment no less favorable than
that it accords, in like circumstances, to its own services
and service providers.
2. Specific commitments assumed under this Article shall not be
construed to require any Party to compensate for any inherent
competitive disadvantages which result from the foreign
character of the relevant services or service suppliers.

Article 11.04 Most-Favored-Nation Treatment
Each Party shall accord to cross-border services and service
providers of the other Party treatment no less favorable than
that it accords, in like circumstances, to services and service
providers of any non-Party.

Article 11.05 Local Presence
No Party may require a service provider of the other Party to
establish or maintain a representative office or any form of
enterprise, or to be resident, in its territory as a condition
for the cross-border provision of a service.

Article 11.06 Permission, Authorization, Licensing and
Certification
With a view to ensuring that any measure adopted or maintained
by a Party relating to the permission, authorization, licensing
or certification of nationals of the other Party does not
constitute an unnecessary barrier to cross-border trade, each
Party shall endeavor to ensure that any such measure:
a) is based on objective and transparent criteria, such as
competence and the ability to provide a cross-border
service;
b) is not more burdensome than necessary to ensure the quality
of a cross border service; and
c) does not constitute a disguised restriction on the
cross-border provision of a service.

Article 11.07 Reservations
1. Articles 11.03, 11.04 and 11.05 do not apply to:
a) any existing non-conforming measure that is maintained by
i) a Party at the national level, as set out in its Schedule
to Annex I or III,
ii) a local or municipal government;
b) the continuation or prompt renewal of any non-conforming
measure referred to in subparagraph (a) or
c) an amendment to any non-conforming measure referred to in
subparagraph (a) to the extent that the amendment does not
decrease the conformity of the measure, as it existed
immediately before the amendment, with Articles 11.03,11.04
and 11.05.
2. Articles 11.03, 11.04 and 11.05 do not apply to any measure
that a Party adopts or maintains with respect to sectors,
sub-sectors or activities, as set out in its Schedule to
Annex II.

Article 11.08 Quantitative Restrictions
1. Each Party shall set out in its Schedule to Annex IV any
quantitative restriction that it maintains.
2. Each Party shall notify the other Party of any quantitative
restriction that it adopts, other than at the local
government level, after the date of entry into force of this
Agreement and shall set out the restriction in its Schedule
as referred to in paragraph 1.
3. Regularly, at least every 2 years, the Parties shall endeavor
to negotiate with the aim of liberalizing or eliminating:
a) existing quantitative restrictions maintained by a Party,
according to the list referred to in paragraph 1; or
b) quantitative restrictions adopted by a Party after the
entry into force of this Agreement.

Article 11.09 Denial of Benefits
Subject to prior notification and consultation in accordance
with Articles 16.04 (Provision of Information) and 18.05
(Consultations), a Party may deny the benefits of this Chapter
to a service provider of the other Party where the Party
decides, according to its effective law that the service is
being provided by an enterprise that is owned or controlled by
persons of a non-Party having no substantial business activities
in the territory of the other Party.

Article 11.10 Future Liberalization
The Parties, through future negotiations to be convened by the
Commission, shall deepen the liberalization reached in different
service sectors, with the aim of eliminating the remaining
restrictions listed under Article 11.07(1) and (2).

Article 11.11 Procedures
The Parties shall establish procedures for:
a) a Party to notify and include in its relevant Schedule
i) amendments of measures referred to in Article 11.07(1)
and (2), and
ii) quantitative restrictions in accordance with Article
11.08; and
b) consultations on reservations or quantitative restrictions
for further liberalization.

Article 11.12 Disclosure of Confidential Information
No provision in this Chapter may be construed as imposing on the
Parties the obligation to provide confidential information of
which the disclosure may be an obstacle to the observance of
laws or otherwise be damaging to the public interest, or that
may injure legitimate trade interests of state and private
enterprises.

Article 11.13 Committee on Investment and Cross-border Trade in
Services
1. The Parties hereby establish the Committee on Investment and
Cross-border Trade in Services, as set out in Annex 11.13.
2. The Committee shall hear matters relating to this Chapter and
Chapter 10 (Investment) and, without prejudice to the
provisions of Article 17.05(2)(Committees), shall have the
following functions:
a) supervising the implementation and administration of
Chapters 10 (Investment) and 11 (Cross-border Trade in
Services);
b) discussing matters relating to investment and cross-border
trade in services presented by a Party;
c) analyzing matters that are discussed in other international
fora;
d) facilitating the exchange of information between the
Parties and cooperating in giving advice on investment and
cross-border trade in services; and
e) establishing working groups or convening panels of experts
on matters of interest to the Parties.
3. The Committee shall meet when necessary or at any other time
at the request of either Party. Representatives of other
institutions may also take part in its meetings if the
relevant authorities deem it appropriate.

CHAPTER 12 TEMPORARY ENTRY OF BUSINESS PERSONS

Article12.01 Definitions
1. For the purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall
be understood as:
business activities: legitimate commercial activities undertaken
and operated for the purpose of obtaining profits in the market,
not including the possibility of obtaining employment, wages or
remuneration from a labor source in the territory of a Party;
business person: a national of a Party who engages in trade of
goods, provision of services or management of investment
activities;
labor certification: procedure applied by the competent
administrative authority for the purpose of determining if a
national of a Party who seeks temporary entry into the territory
of the other Party displaces national workers in the same
domestic industry or noticeably harms its labor conditions;
national: "national" as defined in Chapter 2 (General
Definitions), but not including those permanent residents;
pattern of practice: a practice repeatedly followed by the
immigration authorities of one Party during the representative
period immediately before the execution of the same; and
temporary entry: entry into the territory of a Party by a
business person of the other Party without the intention to
establish permanent residence.
2. For the purposes of Annex 12.04 (Temporary Entry of Business
Persons), the following term shall be understood as:
executive functions: functions assigned in an organization to a
person who shall have the following basic responsibilities:
a) managing the administration of the organization, or of a
relevant component, or function within it;
b) establishing the policies and objectives of the
organization, components or function; or c) receiving
supervision or general direction only from executives in a
higher level, the board of directors or the administrative
council of the organization or its shareholders.
management functions: functions assigned in an organization to a
person who shall have the following basic responsibilities:
a) managing the organization or an essential function within
it;
b) supervising and controlling the work of other professional
employees, supervisors or administrators;
c) having the authority to hire and dismiss or to recommend
these actions, and to undertake other actions related to
the management of the personnel directly supervised by this
person, and to perform senior functions within the
organizational hierarchy or functions related to his
position; or
d) performing discretionary actions related to the daily
operation of the function over which this person has
authority; and
functions requiring specialized knowledge: functions that
require special knowledge of goods, services, research,
equipment, techniques, management of an organization or of its
interests and their application in international markets, or an
advanced level of knowledge or experience in the processes and
procedures of the organization.

Article 12.02 General Principles
This Chapter reflects the preferential trading relationship
between the Parties, the convenience of facilitating temporary
entry on a reciprocal basis and the establishment of transparent
criteria and procedures for temporary entry as well as the
necessity to guarantee the security at the borders, and to
protect the domestic labor force and permanent employment in
their respective territories.

Article12.03 General Obligations
1. Each Party shall apply its measures relating to the
provisions of this Chapter in accordance with Article 12.02
and, in particular, shall apply them expeditiously so as to
avoid undue delays or the impairment of trade in goods or
services or the management of investment activities under
this Agreement.
2. The Parties shall endeavor to develop and adopt common
criteria, definitions and interpretations for the
implementation of this Chapter.

Article 12.04 Granting of Temporary Entry
1. Each Party shall grant temporary entry to business persons
who are otherwise qualified for entry under applicable
measures relating to public health and safety and national
security, in accordance with this Chapter, including the
provisions of Annex 12.04 (Temporary Entry of Business
Persons) and 12.04(1) (Special Provisions Regarding Temporary
Entry of Business Persons).
2. A Party may deny temporary entry to a business person when
the temporary entry of that person might adversely affect:
a) the settlement of a labor dispute underway at the place or
intended place of employment; or
b) the employment of any person who is involved in such
dispute.
3. When a Party denies temporary entry in accordance with
paragraph 2, that Party may:
a) inform the affected business person in writing of the
reasons for the denial; and
b) promptly notify in writing to the Party whose business
person has been denied entry of the reasons for the denial.
4. Each Party shall limit any fees for processing applications
for temporary entry of business persons to the approximate
cost of services rendered.
5. An authorization of temporary entry under this Chapter does
not supersede the requirements demanded by the exercise of a
profession or activity according to the specific rules in
force in the territory of the Party authorizing the temporary
entry.

Article 12.05 Provision of Information
1. In addition to Article 16.03 (Publication), each Party shall:
a) provide to the other Party such materials as will enable it
to become acquainted with its measures relating to this
Chapter; and
b) no later than one (1) year after the date of entry into
force of this Agreement, prepare, publish and make
available in its own territory, and in the territory of the
other Party, explanatory material in a consolidated
document regarding the requirements for temporary entry
under this Chapter in such a manner that it enables
business persons of the other Party to become acquainted
with them.
2. Each Party shall collect, maintain, and make available to the
other Party the information regarding the granting of
temporary entry under this Chapter to business persons of the
other Party who have been issued immigration documentation,
including specific data for each authorized category.

Article 12.06 Dispute Settlement
A Party may not initiate proceedings under Article 18.05
(Consultations) regarding a denial to grantr temporary entry
under this Chapter or a particular case arising under Article
12.03, unless:
a) the matter involves a pattern of practice; and
b) the affected business person has exhausted the available
administrative proceedings regarding that particular
matter, in accordance with domestic law and regulations of
that Party.

Article 12.07 Relationship to Other Chapters and Articles
Except as provided in this Chapter, in Chapters 1 (Initial
Provisions), 2 (General Definitions), 17 (Administration of the
Agreement), 21 (Final Provisions) and in Articles 16.02
(Information Center), 16.03 (Publication), 16.04 (Provision of
Information), 16.05 (Guarantees of Hearing, Legality and Due
Process), and 16.06 (Administrative Proceedings for Adopting
Measures of General Applications), no provision in this
Agreement shall impose an obligation on a Party regarding its
immigration measures.

CHAPTER 13 AIR TRANSPORTATION

Article 13.01 Scope of Application
1. This Chapter shall be applied to the measures that a Party
adopts or maintains in the matter of air transportation
services.
2. The agreements on air transportation entered and to be
entered into by the Republic of Guatemala and the Republic of
China (Taiwan), hereinafter the Agreements, are incorporated
into this Agreement.
3. In case of incompatibility between this Agreement and the
Agreements, the former shall prevail to the extent of the
incompatibility.

Article 13.02 Consolidation of Measures
Any modifications to the Agreements shall not eliminate or
reduce the existing rights to this Agreement.

Article 13.03 Dispute Settlement
1. The disputes that arise with respect to the application or
interpretation of this Chapter or of the Agreements shall be
governed by the provisions of Chapter 18 (Dispute
Settlement), except as provided in this Article.
2. When a Party alleges that a dispute arises in relation to
paragraph 1, Article 18.10 (Arbitral Panel Selection) shall
apply, except where the arbitration panel is composed
entirely of individuals fulfilling the requirements
established in a) and b):
a) within a term of thirty (30) days from the entry into force
of this Agreement, the Parties shall establish by consensus
a list of up to six (6) persons who have the aptitudes and
qualifications necessary to act as arbiters in the matter
of air transportation services; and
b) the members of the list must:
i) have specialized knowledge of, or experience in, air
transportation services; and
ii) fulfill the requirements established in article 18.09
(Qualifications of Panelists).
3. In case the list referred to in paragraph 2(a) has not been
established, each disputing Party shall designate an arbiter
and the third one shall be designated by common consent of
the disputing Parties. When an arbitration panel has not been
composed in accordance with this paragraph in the established
term of Article 18.07 (Establishment of an Arbitral Panel),
the President of the Council of the International Civil
Aviation Organization (ICAO) or an appropriate official at an
international organization agreed upon by the disputing
Parties, may designate the arbiter or arbiters that have not
been designated, according to the procedures of that
organization and at the request of either of the disputing
Parties.

Article 13.04 Air Transportation Committee
1. The Parties establish an Air Transportation Committee, whose
composition is indicated in Annex 13.04.
2. The Committee shall be entrusted with the subjects relative
to this Chapter.

CHAPER 14 MARITIME TRANSPORTATION

Article 14.01 Scope of Application
1. This Chapter shall be applied to the measures that a Party
adopts or maintains in the matter of maritime transportation
services.
2. The agreements on maritime transportation entered and to be
entered into by the Republic of Guatemala and the Republic of
China (Taiwan), hereinafter the Agreements, are incorporated
into this Agreement
3. In case of incompatibility between this Agreement and the
Agreements, the former shall prevail to the extent of the
incompatibility.

Article 14.02 Consolidation of Measures
Any modifications to the Agreements shall not eliminate or
reduce the existing rights to this Agreement.

Article 14.03 Dispute Settlement
1. The disputes that arise with respect to the application or
interpretation of this Chapter or of the Agreements shall be
governed by the provisions of Chapter 18 (Dispute
Settlement), except as provided in this Article.
2. When a Party alleges that a dispute arises in relation to
paragraph 1, Article 18.10 (Arbitral Panel Selection) shall
apply, except where the arbitration panel is composed
entirely of individuals fulfilling the requirements
established in a) and b):
a) within a term of thirty (30) days from the entry into force
of this Agreement, the Parties shall establish by consensus
a list of up to six (6) persons who have the aptitudes and
qualifications necessary to act as arbiters in the matter
of maritime transportation services; and
b) the members of the list must:
i) have specialized knowledge of, or experience in, maritime
transportation services; and
ii) fulfill the requirements established in Article 18.09
(Qualifications of Panelists).
3. In case the list referred to in paragraph 2(a) has not been
established, each disputing Party shall designate an arbiter
and the third one shall be designated by common consent of
the disputing Parties. When an arbitration panel has not been
composed in accordance with this paragraph in the established
term of Article 18.07 (Establishment of an Arbitral Panel),
the President of the United Nations Commission on
International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) or an appropriate official
at an international organization agreed upon by the disputing
Parties, may designate the arbiter or arbiters that have not
been designated, according to the procedures of that
organization and at the request of either of the disputing
Parties.

Article 14.04 Committee of Maritime Transportation
1. The Parties establish a Committee of Maritime Transportation,
whose composition is indicated in Annex 14.04.
2. The Committee shall be entrusted with the subjects relative
to this Chapter.

PART FIVE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

CHAPER 15 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Section A - General Provisions

Article 15.01 Application
The Parties confirm the protection of Intellectual Property
Rights included in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). The Parties agree to
establish the appropriate measures to ensure adequate and
effective protection according to international regulations on
this matter.

Section B - Protection of Intellectual Property Rights

Article 15.02 Protection of Geographical Indications
1. The Parties, within a term of two (2) years as of the date of
entering into force of this Agreement, shall initiate
consultations to protect and/or recognize the geographical
indications of both Parties, in the terms set out in Articles
23 and 24 of the TRIPS.
2. Each Party shall provide the measures to prevent the
importation, manufacture or sale of goods which use a
geographical indication protected in the territory of the
other Party. To have access to protection, each Party shall
notify the other Party of its protected geographical
indications.

Article 15.03 Protection of Traditional Knowledge
1. Each Party shall protect the collective rights of
intellectual property and traditional knowledge of its
indigenous peoples and local communities regarding their
creations that are commercially used. This shall be
accomplished by means of a special system of registry,
promotion and commercialization of their rights, with a view
towards emphasizing the sociological and cultural native
values of the indigenous towns and the local communities in
order to grant them social justice.
2. Each Party shall recognize that the customs, traditions,
beliefs, spirituality, religiosity, cosmos vision, folklore
expressions, artistic manifestations, traditional skills and
any other form of traditional expression of the indigenous
peoples and local communities are a part of their cultural
heritage.
3. The cultural heritage shall not be subject to any form of
exclusivity from non-authorized third parties who apply the
intellectual property system, unless the request is made by
the indigenous peoples and local communities or by a third
party authorized by them.

Article 15.04 Protection of Folklore
Each Party shall ensure the effective protection of all
folkloric expressions and artistic manifestations of the
traditional and popular culture of the indigenous peoples and
local communities.

Article15.05 Relation between Access to Genetic Resources and
Intellectual Property
1. Each Party shall protect the access to its genetic resources
and to the traditional knowledge developed by its indigenous
peoples and local communities regarding the use of biological
resources that contain these genetic resources, from the
indiscriminate use of biological diversity, as well as
ensuring the participation in the benefits derived from the
use of its genetic resources.
2. Each Party shall agree to a fair and equitable participation
in the benefits derived from the access to its genetic
resources and from the use of its traditional knowledge and
folklore expressions.
3. Each Party shall ensure that the protection granted to the
intellectual property will safeguard its biological and
genetic heritage. Consequently, the licensing of patents on
inventions developed from material obtained from such
heritage or traditional knowledge shall comply with the
conditions under which this material was acquired according
to the relevant national and international laws and
regulations.

Section C – Enforcement

Article 15.06 Transparency
The Parties shall notify the Intellectual Property Committee of
this Agreement of their laws, regulations and procedures in
respect to intellectual property rights. In relation to final
judicial decisions and administrative rulings of general
application, the foregoing shall be published, or where such
publication cannot be made available, other means of
availability shall be provided to the public, so as to enable
the Parties and right holders to become acquainted with them.

Article 15.07 Intellectual Property Committee
1. The Parties hereby establish the Intellectual Property
Committee, as set out in Annex 15.07.
2. The Intellectual Property Committee shall meet at least once
a year, and upon request of a Party or the Commission, to
ensure the effective implementation and administration of
this Chapter.
3. The Committee will hear matters relating to this Chapter, and
without prejudice to the provisions of Article 17.05
(Committees) shall:
a) seek the most suitable means to effectively apply the
provisions of this Chapter;
b) review any proposed modification or addition upon request
of any of the Parties;
c) perform any task assigned by the Commission; and
d) establish subcommittees or technical groups.

Article 15.08 Dispute Settlement
When a Party requests consultations and notifies the Committee,
such action shall constitute the activation of the consultation
process as set forth in Article18.05 (Consultations).

Article 15.09 Technical Cooperation
The Parties shall establish a system of technical cooperation,
based upon mutually agreed terms and conditions and within the
framework of the WTO on matters relating to intellectual
property, and in the areas of newly developed issues related to
intellectual property, as well as:
a) promote and develop information disclosure and the transfer
of technology based on the technological content stated in
the patent documents, for which adequate databases must be
supplied;
b) promote and execute national as well as international
training programs on intellectual property rights and
related topics (including traditional knowledge,
biodiversity and folklore);
c) promote and strengthen training programs to ensure that
intellectual property rights and related topics are
observed;
d) execute and implement automated systems for managing all
intellectual property system and related topics; and
e) promote information exchange on technological issues as
well as legal aspects between the Intellectual Property
Office and other institutions.

PART SIX ADMINISTRATIVE AND INSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER 16 TRANSPARENCY

Article 16.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, administrative ruling of general
application means an administrative ruling or interpretation
that applies to all persons and fact situations that fall
generally within its ambit and that establishes a norm of
conduct but does not include:
a) a determination made in a administrative proceeding that
applies to a particular person, good, or service of another
Party in a specific case; or
b) a judicial ruling that adjudicates with respect to a
particular act or practice.

Article 16.02 Information Center
1. Each Party shall designate an office to serve as an
information center to facilitate communications between the
Parties, on any matter covered by this Agreement.
2. On request of another Party, the information center shall
identify the office or official responsible for the matter
and assist, as necessary, in facilitating communication with
the requesting Party.

Article 16.03 Publication
Each Party shall ensure that its laws, regulations, procedures
and administrative rulings of general application respecting any
matter covered by this Agreement are promptly published or
otherwise made available in such a manner as to enable
interested persons and Parties to become acquainted with them.

Article 16.04 Provision of Information
1. To the maximum extent possible, each Party shall notify the
other Party of any proposed or actual measure that the Party
considers might affect substantially the other Party’s
interest under this Agreement.
2. On request of another Party, a Party shall promptly provide
information and respond to questions pertaining to any actual
or proposed measure.
3. Any notification or information provided on actual or
proposed measures under this Article shall be without
prejudice as to whether the measure is consistent with this
Agreement.

Article 16.05 Guarantees of Hearing, Legality and Due Process
Each Party shall insure that in legal and administrative
proceedings related to the application of any measure referred
to Article 16.03 the guarantees of hearing, legality and due
process established in their own laws are respected in the sense
of Articles 16.06 and 16.07.

Article 16.06 Administrative Proceedings for the Adoption of
Measures of General Application
With a view to administering in a consistent, impartial, and
reasonable manner all measures of general application affecting
matters covered in this Agreement, each Party shall, in its
administrative proceedings applying measures referred to in
Article 16.03 to particular persons, goods, or services of
another Party in specific cases, ensure that:
a) wherever possible, persons of the other Party that are
directly affected by a proceeding are provided reasonable
notice, in accordance with domestic procedures, when a
proceeding is initiated, including a description of the
nature of the proceeding, a statement of the legal
authority under which the proceeding is initiated and a
general description of any issues in controversy;
b) such persons are afforded a reasonable opportunity to
present facts and arguments in support of their positions
prior to any final administrative action, when the time,
the nature of the proceeding, and the public interest
permit; and
c) its procedures are in accordance with domestic law.

Article 16.07 Review and Appeal
1. Each Party shall maintain judicial or administrative
tribunals or procedures for the purpose of the prompt review
and, where warranted, correction of final administrative
actions regarding matters covered by this Agreement. Such
tribunals shall be impartial and independent of the office or
authority entrusted with administrative enforcement and shall
not have any substantial interest in the outcome of the
matter.
2. Each Party shall ensure that, in any such tribunals or
procedures, the parties to the proceedings are provided with
the right to:
a) a reasonable opportunity to support or defend their
respective positions; and
b) a decision based on the evidence and submissions compiled
by the administrative authority.
3. Each Party shall ensure, subject to appeal or further review
as provided in its domestic law, that such decisions shall be
implemented by, and shall govern the practice of, the
competent authority with respect to the administrative action
at issue.

Article 16.08 Communications and Notifications
Except as agreed otherwise, it shall be understood that a
communication or notification to a Party has been completed, as
of its receipt by the National Office of the Secretariat of that
Party.

Article 16.09 Language
Unless the Parties agree otherwise,
a) notifications, communications and information supply that a
Party provides to the other Party, in accordance with this
Agreement, shall be in English.
b) the writings, allegations, notifications, communications,
hearings, and proceedings that the Parties present, in any
procedure described in Chapter 18 (Dispute Settlement)
shall be in English.

CHAPTER 17 ADMINISTRATION OF THE AGREEMENT

Section A - Commission, Sub-commission and Secretariat

Article 17.01 Administrative Commission of the Agreement
1. The Parties hereby establish the Administrative Commission of
the Agreement, which is composed of the officials referred to
Annex 17.01, or of the persons designated by them.
2. The Commission shall:
a) supervise the implementation and the correct application of
the provisions of this Agreement;
b) evaluate the results in the application of this Agreement;
c) monitor the development of the Agreement and recommend to
the Parties any modifications which it deems necessary;
d) resolve any disputes that may arise regarding the
interpretation or application of this Agreement, as
stipulated in Chapter 18 (Dispute Settlement);
e) supervise the work of all committees established or created
under this Agreement, as indicated in Article 17.05 (3); and
f) consider any matter that may affect the operation of this
Agreement, or any other to be entrusted by the Parties.
3. The Commission may:
a) establish and delegate responsibilities to committees,
permanent or ad hoc, and working groups of experts;
b) modify, in fulfillment of the Agreement’s objectives:
i) the schedules attached to Annex 3.04 (Tariff Reduction
Schedule) with the objective of incorporating merchandise
excluded from the tariff elimination;
ii) the period referred in Annex 3.04 (Tariff Reduction
Schedule) to speed the process;
iii) the rules of origin established in Annex 4.03 (Specific
Rules of Origin);
iv) the Uniform Regulations;
v) Annex I, II, III and IV of Chapter 10 (Investment); and
vi) Annex I, II and V of Chapter 11 (Cross-border Trade in
Services);
c) seek the advice of non-governmental persons or groups;
d) develop any regulations needed for the implementation of
this Agreement; and
e) take any other actions as are necessary in the exercise of
its functions if the Parties so decide.
4. Each Party shall implement, in accordance with its applicable
legal procedures, any modification referred to in
subparagraph 3(b).
5. The Commission shall establish its rules and procedures. All
decisions of the Commission shall be taken by consensus.
6. The Commission shall convene at least once a year in regular
session, and if requested by one of the Parties, in
extraordinary session. Regular sessions of the Commission
shall be chaired successively by each Party.

Article 17.02 Administrative Sub-commission of the Agreement
1. The Parties hereby establish the Administrative
Sub-commission of the Agreement, which is composed of the
officials as set out in Annex 17.02 or persons designated by
them.
2. The Administrative Sub-commission shall:
a) prepare and revise technical documents for decision-making
under this Agreement;
b) follow-up on the decisions taken by the Commission;
c) supervise the committees, the sub-committees and the
working groups of experts established under this Agreement
as described in Article 17.05(3), and in accordance with
Article 17.01(2); and
d) consider any other matter that may affect the operation of
this Agreement, assigned by the Commission.
3. The Commission shall establish its rules and procedures to
ensure the operation of the Administrative Sub-commission of
the Agreement.

Article 17.03 Secretariat
1. Each Party shall:
a) designate a permanent office or official responsible for
acting on behalf of the National Section of the Secretariat
of such Party and shall notify the Commission of the
address, phone number and any other relevant information
where its National Section is located;
b) be responsible for:
i) the operation and costs of the National Section; and
ii) the remuneration and expenses to be paid to arbiters,
their assistants and experts appointed as stipulated in
this Agreement, in Annex 17.03; and
c) designate a Secretary of its National Section, who shall be
the civil employee responsible for its administration.
2. The Secretariat shall:
a) assist the Commission and the Sub-commission;
b) support the arbitrating groups created pursuant to Chapter
18 (Dispute Settlement) and the procedures established in
Article 18.11 (Model Rules of Procedure);
c) support the work of the committees, sub-committees and
groups of experts established under the Agreement, as
instructed by the Commission;
d) carry out the communications and notifications pursuant to
Article 16.08 (Communications and Notifications); and
e) conduct any other matters instructed by the Commission.

Section B - Committees, Sub-committees and Groups of Experts

Article 17.04 General Provisions
1. The provisions in this Section shall apply to all the
committees, sub-committees and groups of experts established
under the framework of this Agreement.
2. Each committee, sub-committee and group of experts shall be
composed of representatives of the Parties. All decisions
shall be taken by consensus.

Article 17.05 Committees
1. The Commission may create committees other than the ones
established in Annex 17.05.
2. Each committee shall:
a) supervise the implementation of the Chapters of this
Agreement under its competency;
b) consider any actual measures submitted by a Party, that may
affect the effective implementation of the Agreement;
c) request technical reports by the competent authorities, and
take necessary actions to resolve the issue;
d) evaluate and recommend to the Commission any proposal for
modifications, amendments or any other additional
provisions to the Chapters of this Agreement under its
competency;
e) propose to the Commission to revise a Party’s effective
measures considered to be infringing the obligations under
this Agreement or causing the nullification or impairment
as established in Annex 18.02 (Nullification and
Impairment); and
f) carry out the matters instructed by the Commission as
established under this Agreement and any other mechanisms
derived from it.
3. The Commission and the Sub-commission shall supervise the
work of all committees established under this Agreement.
4. Each committee may establish its own rules and procedures,
and shall meet upon request of any of the Parties or the
Commission.
5. When it considers advisable, each committee may establish
sub-committees, assigning tasks according to the areas of
competency of each.

Article 17.06 Groups of Experts
1. Notwithstanding Article 17.01(3) (a), a committee or
sub-committee may create ad hoc groups of experts, for
completing the technical studies it deems necessary to carry
out its mandate, whose work shall be supervised. The group of
experts shall strictly complete the mandate entrusted to it,
in accordance within the terms and timeframes established and
shall report to its corresponding committee or sub-committee.
2. The rules and procedures of a group of experts may be
established by the corresponding committee or sub-committee.

CHAPTER 18 DISPUTE SETTLEMENT

Section A – Dispute Settlement

Article 18.01 Cooperation
The Parties shall at all times endeavor to agree on the
interpretation and application of this Agreement, and shall make
every attempt through cooperation and consultations to arrive at
a mutually satisfactory resolution of any matter that might
affect its operation.

Article 18.02 Scope of Application
Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, the dispute
settlement provisions of this Chapter shall apply:
a) with respect to the prevention or settlement of all
disputes between the Parties regarding the interpretation
or application of this Agreement;
b) wherever a Party considers that an actual or proposed
measure of the other Party is or would be inconsistent with
the obligations of this Agreement or that the other Party
has otherwise failed to carry out its obligations under
this Agreement; or
c) wherever a Party considers that an actual or proposed
measure of the other Party causes or would cause
nullification or impairment in the sense of Annex 18.02.

Article 18.03 Choice of Forum
1. The disputes arising in connection with the provisions of
this Agreement and the WTO Agreement or agreements negotiated
in accordance with the WTO Agreement may be settled in one of
those fora, as the complaining Party chooses.
2. Where a Party has requested the establishment of the arbitral
panel under Article 18.07, or has requested the establishment
of a panel under Article 6 of the Understanding on Rules and
Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes of the WTO
Agreement, the forum chosen shall be used to the exclusion of
the other.

Article 18.04 Perishable Goods
1. On disputes regarding perishable goods[3], the Parties and
the panel referred to in Article 18.07 shall do everything to
expedite the procedure. To this end, the Parties shall, by
mutual agreement, shorten the timeframes established in this
Chapter.
2. In cases of urgency, including issues regarding perishable
goods, the consultations shall begin within fifteen (15) days
upon receipt of the request.

Article 18.05 Consultations
1. A Party may request in writing consultations with the other
Party with respect to any actual or proposed measure or any
other matter that it considers might affect the operation of
this Agreement, as referred to in Article 18.02.
2. The Party shall deliver the request to the other Party, and
shall set out the reasons for the request, including an
identification of the actual or proposed measure or other
matter at issue, and the legal basis for the complaint.
3. The consulting Parties shall make every attempt to arrive at
a mutually satisfactory resolution of any matter through
consultations under this Article or other consultative
provisions of this Agreement. To this end, the Parties shall:
a) provide information to enable a full examination of how the
actual or proposed measure or other matter might affect the
operation and application of this Agreement; and
b) treat any confidential information exchanged in the course
of consultations on the same basis as the Party providing
the information.

Article 18.06 Commission – Good Offices, Conciliation and
Mediation
1. Any consulting Party may[4] request in writing a meeting of
the Commission, if the Parties fail to resolve a matter
pursuant to Article 18.04 or 18.05 within:
a) 30 days of delivery of a request for consultations;
b) 15 days of delivery of a request for consultations in
matters regarding perishable goods; or
c) such other terms as they may agree.
2. The requesting Party shall deliver the request to the other
Party and shall set out the reasons for the request,
including an identification of the measure or other matter at
issue, and the legal basis for the complaint.
3. Unless it decides otherwise, the Commission shall convene
within ten (10) days of delivery of the request and shall
endeavor to resolve the dispute promptly. The Commission may:
a) call on technical advisers or create working groups or
expert groups as it deems necessary;
b) resort to good offices, conciliation, mediation or other
dispute resolution procedures; or
c) make recommendations, in order to assist the consulting
Parties in reaching a mutually satisfactory resolution of
the dispute.
4. Unless otherwise decided, pursuant to this Article, the
Commission shall consolidate two or more proceedings
presented for its consideration, relating to the same
measure. The Commission may consolidate two or more
proceedings presented for its consideration, relating to
other matters whenever it deems appropriate to consider these
proceedings jointly.

Article 18.07 Establishment of an Arbitral Panel
1. If the Parties fail to resolve the matter within:
a) thirty (30) days after the Commission has convened pursuant
to Article 18.06;
b) thirty (30) days after the Commission has convened in
respect of the matter most recently referred to it, where
proceedings have been consolidated pursuant to Article
18.06 (4);
c) fifteen (15) days after a Party has delivered a request for
consultations under Article 18.05 in a matter regarding
perishable goods, if the Commission has not convened
pursuant to Article 18.06 (1);
d) thirty (30) days after a Party has delivered a request for
consultations under Article 18.05, if the Commission has
not convened pursuant to Article 18.06(3); or
e) such other terms as the consulting Parties may agree,
any Party that requested a meeting of the Commission in
accordance with Article 18.05 may request in writing the
establishment of an arbitral panel to consider the matter,
and shall set out the reasons for the request, including an
identification of the actual or proposed measure or other
matter at issue, and the legal basis for the complaint.
2. An arbitral panel shall be established upon delivery of a
request.
3. The complaining Party shall deliver the request to the other
Party, and shall set out the reasons for the request,
including an identification of the measure or other matter at
issue and the legal basis for the complaint.
4. The Parties may consolidate two (2) or more proceedings
regarding other issues whenever they deem it appropriate to
consider these proceedings jointly.
5. Arbitral panel procedures shall be considered invoked when
the Party complained against receives the request to
establish a panel. The Parties shall adopt all necessary
measures pursuant to Article 18.10 for the establishment of
said panel.
6. Unless otherwise decided by the Parties, the panel shall be
established and shall carry out its functions in consistency
with the provisions of this Chapter.
7. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, an arbitral panel may not be
established to review a proposed measure.

Article 18.08 Roster
1. Within three (3) months of the date of entry into force of
this Agreement, the Parties shall establish and maintain a
roster of up to twenty individual with the required
qualification to serve as panelists. Said roster shall be
composed of the “Roster Panelist of the Parties” and the “
Roster of Panelist of Non-Party Countries”. Each Party may
designate five (5) national panelists to form the “Roster of
Panelists of the Parties”, and five (5) panelists of
Non-Party countries to form the “Roster Panelists of
Non-Party Countries”.
2. The roster of panelists may be modified every three (3)
years. Notwithstanding, the Commission may revise, by request
of a Party, the roster of panelists before the expiration of
this period.
3. The members of the roster of panelists shall meet the
qualifications set forth in Article 18.09.

Article 18.09 Qualifications of the Panelists
1. The panelists shall meet the following qualifications:
a) have expertise or experience in law, international trade,
other matters covered by this Agreement, or the resolution
of disputes arising under international trade agreements;
b) be chosen strictly on the basis of objectivity,
reliability, and sound judgment;
c) be independent of, and not be affiliated with or take
instructions from, any Party; and
d) comply with a Code of Conduct to be established by the
Commission.
2. Individuals may not serve as panelists for a dispute in which
they have participated pursuant to Article 18.06.

Article 18.10 Composition of Arbitral Panel
1. In the establishment of the arbitral panel, the Parties shall
observe the following procedures:
a) the arbitral panel shall be composed of three members;
b) the Parties shall endeavor to agree on the designation of
the chair of the arbitral panel within fifteen (15) days of
receipt of the request for the establishment of the
arbitral panel;
c) if the Parties do not reach an agreement within the
above-mentioned timeframe, the chair shall be chosen by
drawing lot from the “Roster of Panelists of Non-Party
Countries”;
d) within fifteen (15) days after the designation of the
chair, each Party shall select a panelist from the “Roster
of Panelists of the Parties” and the panelist selected
could be of either of the Party’s nationality; and
e) if a Party does not select a panelist, the panelist shall
be chosen by drawing from the “Roster of Panelists of the
Parties” and shall be of that Party’s nationality.
2. Where a Party considers that a panelist has violated the Code
of Conduct, the Parties shall hold consultations and decide
whether to remove that panelist and select a new one pursuant
to the provisions of this Article.

Article 18.11 Model Rules of Procedure
1. Upon the entry into force of this Agreement, the Commission
shall establish the Model Rules of Procedure in accordance
with the following principles:
a) the procedures shall ensure the right to at least one
hearing before the arbitral panel and an opportunity for
each Party to provide initial and rebuttal written
submissions; and
b) the hearing before the arbitral panel, the deliberations
and the preliminary report, as well as all the writings and
communications presented in it shall be confidential.
2. Unless the Parties otherwise agree, the arbitral panel shall
conduct its proceedings in accordance with the Model Rules of
Procedure.
3. Unless the Parties otherwise agree, within twenty (20) days
of receipt of the request for the establishment of the
arbitral panel, the terms of reference shall be:
"To examine, in the light of the provisions of this
Agreement, the matters submitted for its consideration and to
make findings, decisions, and recommendations as provided in
Articles 18.13 (2) and 18.14”.
4. If a complaining Party claims that a matter causes
nullification or impairment of benefits referred to in Annex
18.02, the terms of reference shall so indicate.
5. When a Party requests that the arbitral panel makes findings
on the extent of the adverse trade effects brought upon by
the measure adopted by the other Party and it is considered
by the Party as inconsistent with the Agreement, or that the
measure has caused nullification or impairment in the sense
of Annex 18.02, the terms of reference shall state it.

Article 18.12 Role of Experts
Upon request of a Party, or ex officio, the arbitral panel may
seek information and technical advice from any persons or
institutions that it deems appropriate under the Model Rules of
Procedure.

Article 18.13 Preliminary Report
1. Unless the Parties otherwise agree, the arbitral panel shall
base its preliminary report on the communications and
arguments presented by the Parties, as well as the relevant
provisions of this Agreement and any information received,
pursuant to Article 18.12.
2. Unless the Parties otherwise agree, within ninety (90) days
after the last panelist is selected, the arbitral panel shall
present to the Parties a preliminary report containing:
a) findings of fact, including any findings pursuant to a
request under Article 18.11 (5);
b) a decision about whether the measure in question is or
could be inconsistent with the obligations arising from
this Agreement, or is a cause of nullification or
impairment in the sense of Annex 18.02 or any other
decision requested in the terms of reference; and
c) its recommendations, if any, to settle the dispute.
3. Panelists may furnish separate opinion in writing on matters
in which consensus has not been reached.
4. Either Party may submit written comments to the arbitral
panel on its preliminary report within fourteen (14) days of
presentation of the report. After considering any written
comments on the preliminary report, the arbitral panel upon
request of a Party, or ex officio, may:
a) reconsider its report; and
b) take any steps deemed appropriate.

Article 18.14 Final Report
1. Within thirty (30) days of the presentation of the
preliminary report, unless the Parties otherwise agree, the
arbitral panel shall notify the Parties of its final report
reached by majority of votes, including any separate
opinions, in writing, on matters in which there is no
consensus.
2. No arbitral panel may, in either its preliminary report or
its final report, disclose the identity of the panelists that
voted with the majority or the minority.
3. Unless the Parties otherwise agree, the Parties shall release
the final report to the public within fifteen (15) days of
its notification to the Parties.

Article 18.15 Implementation of the Final Report
1. The final report of the arbitral panel shall be compulsory
for the Parties to implement under the terms and conditions
specified in it. The term of implementation shall not exceed
six (6) months from the date on which the final report was
notified to the Parties, unless the Parties otherwise agree.
2. When the final report of arbitral panel determines that a
measure has not conformed to a Party’s obligations under
this Agreement, the Party complained against shall be
prevented from implementing the measure or shall eliminate
the non-conformity.
3. When the final report of arbitral panel determines that a
measure is causing nullification or impairment in the sense
of Annex 18.02, it shall indicate the level of nullification
or impairment and may suggest mutually satisfactory
adjustments for the Parties.

Article 18.16 Suspension of Benefits
1. Unless the Parties notify the Commission of their agreement
on the final report, within fifteen (15) days after the
expiration of the timeframe determined by the arbitral panel,
the panel shall determine if the Party complained against has
conformed to the report.
2. The complaining Party may suspend the Party complained
against from the benefits arising from this Agreement that
have an effect equivalent to the benefits not received, if
the arbitral panel decides that:
a) a measure is inconsistent with the obligations of this
Agreement, and the Party complained against has not
implemented the final report within the term established by
the panel; or
b) a measure is the cause of nullification or impairment in
the sense of Annex 18.02, and the Parties do not reach a
mutually satisfactory agreement of the dispute within the
term established by the panel.
3. The suspension of benefits shall last until the Party
complained against implements the final report or until the
Parties reach a mutually satisfactory agreement of the
dispute.
4. In considering what benefits to be suspended pursuant to this
Article:
a) the complaining Party should first seek to suspend benefits
in the same sector or sectors that are affected by the
measure, or other matter that the panel has found to be
inconsistent with the obligations of this Agreement or to
have caused nullification or impairment in the sense of
Annex 18.02; and
b) if the complaining Party considers not feasible or
effective to suspend benefits in the same sector or
sectors, it may suspend benefits in other sectors.
5. Once benefits have been suspended, the Parties, upon written
request of a Party, shall establish an arbitral panel for
determining if the final report has been enforced, or if the
level of benefits suspended by the complaining Party is
excessive to the Party complained against, in accordance with
this Article. When possible, the panel shall be composed of
the same panelists who resolved the dispute.
6. When the arbitral panel established in paragraph 5 is
composed of the same panelists who resolved the dispute, it
shall submit a final report within thirty (30) days as of the
request mentioned in paragraph 5. When the arbitral panel
established in paragraph 5 is not composed of the same
panelists, the panel shall submit a final report within sixty
(60) days of the meeting in which it was established, or when
the Parties so decide.
7. When the Party complained against cannot comply with the
final report, within thirty (30) days after the arbitral
panel submits the final report, the said Party may request
consultations with the complaining Party to reach an
agreement on alternative measures to compensate the
complaining Party.
8. If an agreement on alternative measures is not reached, the
complaining Party may suspend the benefits, notwithstanding
the provisions established in above paragraphs 2 and 4, to
the extent necessary to persuade the Party complained against
to comply with the final report. In the application of this
provision, the difference in the development levels of the
Parties will be taken into consideration.

Section B – Domestic Proceedings and Settlement Of Private
Commercial Disputes

Article18.17 Interpretation of the Agreement Before Judicial and
Administrative Proceedings
1. If an issue of interpretation or application of this
Agreement arises in any domestic judicial or administrative
proceedings of a Party that the other Party considers as
meriting its intervention, or if a court or administrative
body solicits the views of a Party, that Party shall notify
the other Party. The Commission shall endeavor to agree on an
appropriate response as expeditiously as possible.
2. The Party in whose territory the court or administrative body
is located shall submit any agreed interpretation of the
Commission to the court or administrative body in accordance
with the rules of that forum.
3. If the Commission does not agree upon an interpretation or
responses, a Party may submit its own views to the judicial
or administrative proceeding in accordance with the rules of
that forum.

Article 18.18 Private Rights
No Party may provide for a right of action under its domestic
law against the other Party on the grounds that a measure of the
other Party is inconsistent with this Agreement.

Article 18.19 Alternative Dispute Resolution
1. Each Party shall, to the maximum extent possible, encourage
and facilitate the use of arbitration and other means of
alternative dispute resolution for the settlement of
international commercial disputes between private parties in
the free trade area established by this Agreement.
2. To this end, each Party shall provide appropriate procedures
to ensure observance of agreements to arbitrate and for the
recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards in such
disputes.
3. The Commission may establish an Advisory Committee on Private
Commercial Disputes comprising persons with expertise or
experience in the resolution of private international
commercial disputes. The Committee shall report and provide
recommendations to the Commission on general issues referred
to it by the Commission respecting the availability, use, and
effectiveness of arbitration and other procedures for the
resolution of such disputes in the free trade area
established by this Agreement.

CHAPTER 19 EXCEPTIONS

Article 19.01 Definitions
For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
understood as:
Fund: the International Monetary Fund;
international capital transactions: “international capital
transactions”, as defined in the Articles of Agreement of the
International Monetary Fund;
payments for current international transactions: “payments for
current international transactions”, as defined in the Articles
of Agreement of the International Monetary Fund;
tax convention: a convention for the avoidance of double
taxation or other international taxation agreements or
arrangements; and
transfers: international transactions and related international
transfers and payments.

Article 19.02 General Exceptions
1. Article XX of GATT 1994 and its interpretative notes are
incorporated into and made an integral part of this
Agreement, for purposes of:
a) Part Two (Trade in Goods), except to the extent that any of
its provisions apply to services and investment; and
b) Part Three (Trade Barriers), except to the extent that any
of its provisions apply to services and investment.
2. Subparagraphs a), b) and c) of Article XIV of the GATS, are
incorporated into and made an integral part of this
Agreement, for purposes of:
a) Part Two (Trade in Goods), to the extent that any of its
provisions apply to services;
b) Part Three (Trade Barriers), to the extent that any of its
provisions apply to services; and
c) Part Four (Investment, Services and Related Matters).

Article 19.03 National Security
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed:
a) to require a Party to furnish or allow access to any
information the disclosure of which it determines to be
contrary to its essential security interests;
b) to preclude a Party from applying measures that it
considers necessary for the protection of its essential
interests in security matters:
i) relative to the trade in armaments, ammunitions and
military equipments and the trade or operations in goods,
materials, services and technology that are carried out
with the main direct or indirect purpose of supplying a
military institution or other defense organization;
ii) applied in war time or in other cases of grave
international tension; or
iii) applied to national policies or international
agreements to avoid the proliferation of nuclear
weapons and other nuclear explosives;
c) to impede a Party from adopting measures for the
fulfillment of the obligations derived form the United
Nations Charter for the Maintenance of Peace and
International Security.

Article 19.04 Balance of Payments
1. No provision in this Agreement shall be interpreted as
impeding a Party from adopting or maintaining measures that
restrict transfers when the Party faces serious difficulties
in or threats to its balance of payments, provided that the
restrictions are compatible with this Article.
2. The Party shall notify the other Party within thirty (30)
days after the adoption of a measure in accordance with
paragraph 1. In the event that both Parties become party to
the Articles of Agreement of the International Monetary Fund,
the procedure of paragraph 3 should be followed.
3. As soon as it is feasible, after a Party applies a measure
according to this Article and to its international
obligations, the Party shall:
a) submit all restrictions to current account for revision to
the Fund according to Article VIII of the Articles of
Agreement of the International Monetary Fund;
b) initiate consultations with the Fund with respect to the
measures of economic adjustment geared to address the
fundamental economic problems causing the difficulties; and
c) adopt or maintain economic policies according to such
consultations.
4. The measures adopted or maintained according to this Article
shall:
a) avoid unnecessary damage to the commercial, economic and
financial interests of the other Party;
b) not be more burdensome than necessary to deal with the
difficulties in, or threats to the balance of payments;
c) be temporary and progressively eliminated as the balance of
payments situation improves;
d) be compatible with those of paragraph 3 (c), as well as
with the Articles of Agreement of the International
Monetary Fund; and
e) be applied on a national treatment or most-favored-nation
treatment basis, whichever is better.
5. A Party may adopt or maintain a measure according to this
Article that grants priority to the essential services for
its economic program, whenever the Party does not impose a
measure for the purpose of protecting a specific industry or
sector, unless the measure is compatible with paragraph 3
(c) , and with Article VIII (3) of the Articles of Agreement
of the International Monetary Fund.
6. The restrictions imposed on transfers must:
a) be compatible with Article VIII (3) of the Articles of
Agreement of the International Monetary Fund, when they are
applied to payments for current international transactions;
and
b) be compatible with Article VI of the Articles of Agreement
of the International Monetary Fund and be applied only in
conjunction with measures on payments for current
international transactions in accordance with paragraph 3
(a).

Article 19.05 Disclosure of information
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to require a Party
to furnish or allow access to confidential information, the
disclosure of which would impede, or otherwise be contrary to
its Constitution, public interest, or laws regarding personal
privacy, financial matters and banking accounts of individual
clients of financial institutions.

Article 19.06 Taxation
1. Except as set out in this Article, nothing in this Agreement
shall apply to taxation measures.
2. Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the rights and
obligations of any Party under any tax convention. In the
event of any inconsistency between this Agreement and any
such convention, that convention shall prevail to the extent
of the inconsistency.
3. Notwithstanding paragraph 2:
a) Article 3.03 (National Treatment) and such other provisions
of this Agreement as are necessary to give effect to that
Article shall apply to taxation measures to the same extent
as does Article III of the GATT 1994; and
b) Article 3.12 (Export Taxes) shall apply to taxation
measures.
4. For purposes of this Article, taxation measures do not
include:
a) a customs duty as defined in Chapter 2 (General
Definitions); nor
b) the measures listed in exceptions b), c) and d) to that
definition.
5. Subject to paragraph 2:
a) Articles 10.03 (National Treatment) and 11.03 (National
Treatment) shall apply to the taxation measures on income,
capital gains or on the taxable capital of enterprises that
relate to the purchase or consumption of particular
services; and
b) Articles 10.03 (National Treatment) and 10.04 (Most Favored
Nation Treatment); 11.03 (National Treatment) and 11.04
(Most Favored Nation Treatment); shall apply to all
taxation measures, other than those on income, capital
gains or on the taxable capital of enterprises, taxes on
estates, successions and donations,
except that nothing in those Articles shall apply:
i) to any most-favored-nation obligation with respect to an
advantage accorded by a Party pursuant to any tax
convention;
ii) to any existing taxation measure which provides
different tax treatment between residents and
non-residents;
iii) to a non-conforming provision of any existing taxation
measure;
iv) to the continuation or prompt renewal of a non-conforming
provision of any existing taxation measure;
v) to an amendment to a non-conforming provision of any
existing taxation measure to the extent that the
amendment does not decrease, at the time of its
application, its conformity with any of those articles; or
vi) to the adoption or enforcement of any new taxation
measure aimed at ensuring the equitable or effective
imposition or collection of taxes and does not
arbitrarily discriminate among persons, goods or
services of the Parties, or arbitrarily nullify or
impair advantages granted by those articles, in the
sense of Annex 18.02 (Nullification and Impairment).

CHAPTER 20 COOPERATION

Part I – General Provisions

Article 20.01 General Objective
The main objective of this Chapter is to establish the
guidelines within which the Government of the Republic of China
(Taiwan) shall strengthen the cooperation relationship with the
Government of the Republic of Guatemala, reaffirming its
importance in the economic, financial and technical areas, as a
way to contribute to the accomplishment of the objectives and
principles derived from this Agreement.

Article 20.02 Specific Objectives
The specific objectives of this Chapter are the following:
a) to strengthen and diversify cooperation activities between
the Parties;
b) to strengthen cooperation in order to develop, improve,
intensify and diversify commercial relationships and
environmental management systems;
c) to strengthen and diversify financing modalities for
development;
d) to encourage cooperation for the protection and improvement
of the environment within the territory of the Parties for
the wellbeing of present and future generations;
e) to improve the capacity of the public and private sectors
to benefit from the opportunities offered by this
Agreement; and
f) to cooperate with the establishment of commercial,
financial, and technological flows and investment between
the Parties.

Article 20.03 Application Principle
None of the provisions of this Chapter shall be construed as
granting either Party the rights to enforce its legislation in
the territory of the other Party.

Article 20.04 Right to Act
None of the Parties shall have the right to act in its
legislation against the other Party, based on the knowledge that
the other Party has acted inconsistently with this Chapter.

Article 20.05 Information Protection
1. None of the provisions of this Chapter shall be construed as
forcing either of the Parties to provide or give access to
information:
a) whose disclosure might hinder the enforcement of its
legislation; or
b) whose disclosure is protected by the laws relative to
confidential business and commercial information, personal
privacy, or confidentiality in decision-making by the
Government.
2. Confidential information shall only be disclosed by express
will of both Parties or by explicit authorization of one
Party to the other.

Article 20.06 Dispute Settlement
None of the provisions of this Chapter shall apply to the
dispute settlement mechanism contained in this Agreement.

Part – II Cooperation

Article 20.07 Cooperation Activities
1. The Parties may develop and initiate cooperation activities
with the participation of experts from national and
international institutions considered appropriate in order to
accomplish the objectives and to fulfill the obligations
according to the terms of this Agreement.
2. The cooperation activities shall be carry out taking into
consideration:
a) the economic, environmental, geographical, social, cultural
and legal system differences between the Parties;
b) the national priorities agreed upon by the Parties;
c) the need to prevent duplication of the existing cooperation
activities; and
d) the intention of both Parties to develop and implement
cooperation activities through initiatives taken by the
Parties.

Article 20.08 Commercial and Industrial Cooperation
1. The Parties shall support and encourage measures to develop
and strengthen the actions aiming to initiate a dynamic,
integrated and decentralized administration of commercial and
industrial cooperation in order to create favorable
conditions for economic development while acknowledging their
mutual interests.
2. Said cooperation shall focus particularly on the following:
a) to strengthen contacts among the economic agents of the
Parties, through conferences, seminars and trade missions
to identify commercial and technical opportunities, as well
as to hold roundtable meetings, general and specific trade
fairs for various sectors for the purpose of identifying
and exploring areas of mutual commercial interests, to
intensify trade, investment, industrial cooperation and
projects for the transfer of technology;
b) to strengthen and expand the existing dialogue among
economic operators of the Parties by promoting consultation
activities and additional coordination within this scope in
order to identify and eliminate cooperation barriers;
c) to encourage respect for the rules of competition, to
guarantee the consistency of global measures and to help
train human resources in foreign trade;
d) to promote industrial cooperation initiatives, in the
context of the privatization and liberalization processes
for the purpose of encouraging investments through
industrial cooperation among companies of the Parties;
e) to promote the participation of the Parties in pilot
projects and special cooperation programs for the
improvement of capacities in matters of statistics and
computer science, as well as in matters of negotiation
opportunities with shipping companies; and
f) to promote cooperation projects in areas of market
intelligence and research, taking into account technical
assistance in production, administration, and
commercialization of export businesses, as well as the
promotion of technology transfer.

Article 20.09 Cooperation in the Small and Medium Enterprise
Sector
1. The Parties will promote a favorable environment for the
development of the small and medium enterprises.
2. This cooperation will consist of the following:
a) to encourage contacts among economic agents, to promote
joint venture investments and the establishment of
alliances between enterprises and information networks that
allow the Parties to foster financial cooperation among
them, particularly those seeking to develop micro, small
and medium enterprises; and
b) to facilitate the administrative procedures in order to
provide better financial access for the commercial,
manufacturing and export sector.

Article 20.10 Cooperation in Matters of Export Opportunities
1. The Parties will establish a cooperation program aiming to
carry out studies on export opportunities and on inactive
production capabilities, as well as identifying possible
investing fields, joint investments and strategic alliances
that shall enable the expansion and diversification of trade
flow between the Parties and towards other markets.
2. Cooperation programs will also be established regarding
export opportunities, taking into account:
a) technical assistance and the strengthening of the
productive and export sectors, and in general
diversification and technology transfer;
b) support to specific programs in order to strengthen the
development of the export sector; and
c) cooperation for the development of strategies and programs
that contribute to the increase, diversification and
improvement of product quality, especially offering
vocational training, consulting services and facilitating
technology transfer.

Article 20.11 Cooperation in the Area of Tourism
1. The main cooperation objective in the area of tourism between
the Parties is to improve the exchange of information and
establish the most appropriate practices to guarantee the
balanced and sustainable development of tourism.
2. For the purposes of this Article, the Parties will focus
particularly on the following:
a) to respect the integrity and interests of the local
communities;
b) to promote investments and joint investments that for the
expansion of tourism;
c) to exchange information regarding tourism development;
d) to provide assistance in the areas of statistics and
computer science, as well as the creation of business
databases;
e) education and training;
f) organization of events and the participation in tourism
fairs;
g) cooperation in feasibility studies; and
h) support in commercial promotion agreed by the Parties for
micro, small and medium enterprises in the tourism sector.

Article 20.12 Cooperation Regarding Environment and Natural
Resources
1. In all the cooperation measures that result from this
Agreement, the Parties must take into account the need to
preserve the environment and ecological balance.
2. The Parties commit themselves to develop cooperation
activities in order to:
a) prevent environmental degradation;
b) promote the conservation and sustainable use of natural
resources;
c) develop, disseminate and exchange information and
experiences regarding environmental legislation;
d) promote the use of economic incentives so as to encourage
their compliance;
e) strengthen environmental measures at different government
levels;
f) promote training of human resources, education in matters
related to the environment and joint research projects;
g) develop channels for social participation; and
h) promote cleaner production systems that contribute to
environmental improvement and maintenance in the territory
of the Parties.
3. The Parties will promote mutual access to programs in matters
according to their specific characteristics, including
cleaner production programs in micro, small and medium
enterprises.
4. As a result of this cooperation, the Parties may enter into a
sectoral agreement regarding environmental and natural
resources, if it is considered relevant.

Article 20.13 Cooperation in the Energy Sector
1. The objective of the cooperation between the Parties shall be
to develop their respective energy sectors, focusing on
promoting the transfer of technology and information exchange
regarding their respective legislations.
2. The cooperation in this sector will be carried out,
fundamentally, by means of information exchange, training of
human resources, technology transfer and joint technological,
development and infrastructure projects agreed upon by the
Parties, as well as the design of more efficient energy
generation processes, the rational use of energy, support for
the use of alternative and renewable energy sources that
protect the environment, and promotion of recycling projects
and waste management for energy use.
3. To promote cooperation with the institutions in charge of
energy issues and formulation of energy policies.

Article 20.14 Cooperation in the Transportation Sector
1. The cooperation between the Parties regarding transportation
matters will seek to:
a) support the improvement and modernization of transportation
systems according to the capacity of the Parties; and
b) promote operational standards.
2. For the purposes of this Article, the Parties will give
priority to:
a) information exchange among experts regarding their
respective transportation policies and other topics of
common interest; and
b) technical assistance to support the improvement and
modernization of the transportation system, in every
modality.
3. The Parties will study every aspect regarding exchange of
information on international maritime transportation
services, in order to prevent this from becoming barriers to
mutual trade expansion.

Article 20.15 Cooperation in Agricultural and Rural Sectors and
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards
1. The objective of cooperation in this area is to support and
promote agricultural policy measures aimed at promoting and
consolidating the efforts of the Parties in the sector of
agriculture as well as to achieve agricultural and rural
sustainable development.
2. Each Party may provide the other Party with advice,
information and technical cooperation on mutually agreed
terms and conditions in order to strengthen its sanitary and
phytosanitary measures as well as activities, procedures and
systems concerning this matter.
3. For the purposes of this Article, the Parties will make
efforts in the following areas, but not limited thereto:
a) diversification and restructuring of agricultural sectors;
b) mutual information exchange related to the evolution of the
agricultural policies of the Parties;
c) technical assistance for productivity increase and exchange
of alternative agricultural technologies;
d) technical and scientific experiments; and
e) measures intended to increase the quality of agricultural
goods and support commercial promotion activities.

Article 20.16 Cooperation Regarding Technical Barriers to Trade
1. Each Party shall promote technical cooperation between the
standardization and metrology groups, in order to provide
technical assistance or information to the extent of their
possibilities and in the terms mutually agreed upon for the
purpose of contributing to the implementation of this Article
so as to be able to strengthen activities, processes, systems
and standardization measures and metrology.
2. The Parties are committed to make joint efforts for the
purpose of negotiating technical cooperation with countries
which are not part of this Agreement.
3. The Parties shall seek to develop technical cooperation
programs to fulfill the obligations agreed in this Article,
taking into account the different levels of development in
the standards, accreditation procedures, certification and
oil institutions of the other Party. For this purpose, the
Parties agree to strengthen their respective competent
authorities on process issues and systems in this field as
follows:
a) development, implementation and review of technical
cooperation and institutional programs;
b) promotion of bilateral exchange of institutional and
regulatory information;
c) promotion of bilateral cooperation through their respective
agencies for international and multilateral standards
including metrology;
d) promotion of cooperation to develop surveillance systems in
matters of control and food safety, effective medicine and
the like, to accomplish the system equivalence; and
e) technical assistance in inspection systems and good
manufacturing practices.

Article 20.17 Ministerial Cooperation Committee
1. The Parties hereby establish the Ministerial Cooperation
Committee (“the Committee”) made up of Minister of Foreign
Affairs and the Minister of Economic Affairs or their
designees in the case of the Republic of China (Taiwan); and
the Minister of Economy or his designee in the case of the
Republic of Guatemala.
2. The Committee shall have the following functions:
a) to promote activities that foster cooperation;
b) to review any matter of mutual interest the Parties might
decide to study in a timely and expeditious manner;
c) to follow up cooperation programs contemplated in this
Chapter;
d) to create, in addition to what is established in this
Chapter, the institutions and technical mechanisms to
support its development.
3. The Parties agree that representatives of the private sector
of their respective countries may participate in meetings of
the Committee after consultation between them and by mutual
agreement.
4. The Committee will meet within the first year following the
entry into force of this Agreement and, unless otherwise
agreed, annually thereafter alternatively in the Republic of
China (Taiwan) or the Republic of Guatemala, in order to
review the implementation of this Chapter and its progress,
as well as to consider the status of the cooperation
activities developed under this Chapter. Extraordinary
meetings may be convened after request of either Party.
5. The chairmanship of the Committee shall be alternated
annually between the Parties, and all the decisions will be
adopted by consensus.

Article 20.18 Contact Points
1. The Parties shall designate contact points in order to pursue
the decisions adopted by the Committee, as well as
cooperation programs agreed upon by the Committee for the
purpose of fulfilling the objectives of this Chapter.
2. The Parties agree to notify each other regarding the
designation of these contact points, three (3) months after
this Agreement enters into force.

Article 20.19 Work Plan
The Parties shall develop a work plan that reflects the national
priorities regarding cooperation activities and to be agreed by
the Committee. The work program may include short, medium and
long term activities. The Committee shall be in charge of
supervising the satisfactory implementation of this Plan.

Article 20.20 Public Information
1. The Parties will agree on the modalities of information given
to the public regarding the activities, including the
meetings of the Parties and the cooperation activities
undertaken in accordance with this Chapter.
2. The Parties will make an effort to create opportunities to
involve the public in activities undertaken for the
implementation of this Chapter, whenever appropriate.

CHAPTER 21 FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 21.01 Modifications
1. Any modification to this Agreement shall require the
agreement of both Parties.
2. When so agreed, and approved in accordance with the
applicable legal procedures of each Party, a modification or
addition shall constitute an integral part of this Agreement.

Article 21.02 Reservations
This Agreement cannot be subject to reservations or
interpretative declarations by either Party at the moment of its
ratification, without the written consent of other Party.

Article 21.03 Entry into Force
1. This Agreement shall have indefinite duration and shall enter
into force between the Republic of Guatemala and the Republic
of China (Taiwan) on January 1, 2006, provided that the
Parties have exchanged their corresponding instruments of
ratification certifying that the procedures and legal
formalities have been concluded.
2. If this Agreement were not to enter into force on the date
mentioned in paragraph 1, it would enter into force on
January 1 of the following year after the exchange of the
corresponding instruments of ratification certifying that the
procedures and legal formalities have been concluded, unless
the Parties agree on a different term.

Article 21.04 Annexes
The Annexes to this Agreement constitute an integral part of it.

Article 21.05 Withdrawal
1. Either Party may withdraw from this Agreement.
2. Such withdrawal shall enter into force 180 days after the
Party provides notice to the other Party, without prejudice
to a different date the Parties may agree.

Article 21.06 Authentic Texts
The English, Spanish and Chinese texts of this Agreement are
equally authentic. In case of differences in the interpretation
of the texts of this Agreement, the English version shall
prevail.


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being properly authorized
by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.

DONE in Guatemala City, the Republic of Guatemala, in duplicate,
in the English, Spanish and Chinese languages, this twenty-
second day of September of the year two thousand and five.

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF
THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) THE REPUBLIC OF GUATEMALA
CHEN SHUI-BIAN OSCAR BERGER PERDOMO
PRESIDENT PRESIDENT

WITNESS OF HONOR:
HO MEI-YUEH MARCIO CUEVAS QUEZADA
MINISTER OF ECONOMIC AFFAIRS MINISTER OF ECONOMY





[1] The Parties understand that neither tariff rate quotas nor
quantitative restrictions would be a permissible form of
safeguard measure.
[2] The Parties understand that it does not mean that they have
to resort to the WTO, the mentioned agreements shall be
applied bilaterally in this agreement.
[3] For greater certainty, the term “perishable goods” means
perishable agricultural and fish goods classified in
chapters 1 through 24 of the Harmonized System.
[4] This shall not be understood as a preliminary step needed to
request the establishment of an arbitral panel, pursuant to
Article 18.07.