PREAMBLE
The undersigned, by virtue of the authority vested in them, have
concluded the following Agreement.
ARTICLE 1
PURPOSE OF THE AGREEMENT
This Agreement shall govern the exchange of International Busin-
ess Reply Service (IBRS) items between The Postal Administration
of Taiwan, Republic of China and The Public Postal Operator in
Sweden (Sweden Post Ltd. - Company registration number 556451-41
48) including any areas of which the postal administration of t-
hese two countries exercise IBRS responsibilities
ARTICLE 2
DEFINITIONS
As used in this Agreement, the following terms shall have the i-
ndicated meanings:
1.Administration - an abbreviated form used to refer to either
the Postal Administration of Taiwan, Republic of China or the
Public Postal Operator in Sweden (Sweden Post Ltd. - Company
registration number 556451-4148).
2.Articles and sections - articles and sections of this Agreeme-
nt, except when the context indicates an article which is or
can be inserted into an item.
3.Convention - The Universal Postal Convention as adopted by the
Congress of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) from time to time
.
4 Detailed Regulations - the Detailed Regulations of this Agree-
ment attached hereto.
5.International Business Reply Service (IBRS) - an international
mail service which allows a mailer to obtain a permit or lice-
nse to distribute pre-addressed cards and letters in mailings
to customers in another country, for return to the mailer usi-
ng IBRS without postage being affixed. Return postage for the-
se mail items is guaranteed and will be paid by the customer
using IBRS.
ARTICLE 3
GENERAL CONDITIONS FOR IBRS MAIL
1.Each Administration shall offer IBRS on a permit, license or
contract basis to customers who agree to use the service in a-
ccordance with requirements established by that Administration
.
2.Each Administration shall designate which of its exchange off-
ice(s) will be responsible for the dispatch or receipt of IBRS
items. IBRS items shall be dispatched to or from only those e-
xchange offices so designated.
ARTICLE 4
CHARGES TO BE COLLECTED FROM THE CUSTOMER USING IBRS
1.Each Administration shall fix the IBRS charges to be collected
from the customer using IBRS.
2.The fees charged by each Administration for returning IBRS it-
ems for delivery to the customer using IBRS shall be notified
to the International Bureau of the Universal Postal Union, wh-
ich will publish them in the Compendium of Information (Conve-
ntion).
ARTICLE 5
CONDITIONS OF ACCEPTANCE
1.Each IBRS item shall be either a card weighing not more than 2
0 grammes or an envelope weighing not more than 250 grammes.
2.Each IBRS item shall conform to the size limits applicable to
the equivalent letter-post items laid down in Article 20 of t-
he Convention, with the exception that an IBRS envelope may o-
nly weigh up to 250 grammes.
3.Each IBRS item shall conform to the appropriate format requir-
ements specified in the Detailed Regulations to make it readi-
ly identifiable in sorting offices as an IBRS item.
ARTICLE 6
QUALITY OF SERVICE
Each Administration shall ensure that IBRS items posted in its
territory are returned to the other Administration as quickly as
possible. All IBRS items shall be handled as airmail items. Dis-
patches of returned items shall be made every day.
ARTICLE 7
ACCOUNTING
1.For each IBRS item returned, the Administration where the item
is posted shall collect from the Administration to which the
item is destined a fee based on the costs for providing the s-
ervice, including collecting, handling, dispatching, and conv-
eying outbound IBRS items. The fee shall include the direct a-
nd indirect costs of providing such service, plus a reasonable
mark-up acceptable to both Administrations. Accounts shall be
settled annually.
2.The Administrations shall agree not to collect the fees autho-
rized in section 1 of this Article or the first year this Agr-
eement is in effect, so as to allow IBRS to generate sufficie-
nt volume to justify accounting. At the end of this one-year
period the Administrations shall discuss whether to commence
collection of the fees authorized in section 1 of this Article
or to continue not collecting those fees for another fixed pe-
riod of time.
3.The Administrations shall notify each other of IBRS traffic l-
evels on an annual basis.
ARTICLE 8
DETAILED REGULATIONS
The implementation of this Agreement shall be governed by the D-
etailed Regulations.
ARTICLE 9
ARBITRATION
Any dispute which arises between the Administrations concerning
the interpretation or application of this Agreement that can not
be resolved by the Administrations to their mutual satisfaction
shall be settled by arbitration, following the arbitration proc-
edures of the Universal Postal Union at the time that the dispu-
te is submitted by an Administration for arbitration. The arbit-
rators shall be chosen from other postal Administrations that p-
rovide a service analogous to IBRS.
ARTICLE 10
ALTERNATION OR AMENDMENTS; ADDITIONAL RULES AND
REGULATIONS
1.This Agreement or the Detailed Regulations may be altered or
amended by mutual consent, by means of correspondence between
officials of each Administration who have been authorized to
make such alterations or amendments.
2.Each Administration is authorized to adopt internal implement-
ing rules and regulations for IBRS not inconsistent with this
Agreement or the Detailed Regulations.
ARTICLE 11
ENTRY INTO FORCE
1.This Agreement shall enter into force on the date mutually ag-
reed upon by the Administrations, after it has been signed by
their authorized representatives.
2.This Agreement shall expire three (3) months after either Adm-
inistration notifies the other in writing of termination.
ARTICLE 12
EXECUTION
This Agreement may be executed in two counterparts, each of whi-
ch shall be deemed to be an original.
Taipei, 14 July 1995
For the Postal Administration of Taiwan, ROC
[Signed]
Perng-Cherng Hsiung
Director of International Department
Directorate General of Posts
Stockholm, 12 June 1995
For the Public Postal Operator in Sweden
Sweden Post Ltd.
[Signed]
Jan-Erik Leistedt
Head of International Letters
Sweden Post International
DETAILED REGULATIONS OF THE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS REPLY SERVICE
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE POSTAL ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAIWAN, REPUBLIC
OF CHINA AND SWEDEN
The following Detailed Regulations have been drawn up to govern
implementation of the International Business Reply Service (IBRS
) Agreement between the Postal Administration of Taiwan, Republ-
ic of China and The Public Postal Operator in Sweden (Sweden Po-
st Ltd. - Company registration number 556451-4148).
ARTICLE 101
DEFINITIONS
The definitions set forth in Article 2 of the IBRS Agreement sh-
all be applicable to these Detailed Regulations.
ARTICLE 102
INFORMATION TO BE SUPPLIED BY THE ADMINISTRATIONS
1.Prior to the entry into force of the IBRS Agreement, each Adm-
inistration shall notify the other Administration of:
a) All prohibitions and restrictions on the entry of IBRS items
into areas for which it exercises IBRS responsibilities;
b) The provisions of its regulations applicable to the conveya-
nce of IBRS items;
c) its IBRS format requirements (including a sample of a confo-
rming item marked to show such requirements); and
d) The locations of its exchange office(s) that will be respon-
sible for the dispatch or receipt of the IBRS items.
2.Any change to the information mentioned in section 1 of this
Article shall be communicated in writing immediately to the o-
ther Administration, except that an Administration shall give
advance notice of redesignation of, or addition to, the excha-
nge office(s) that it uses for IBRS.
ARTICLE 103
ADDRESS OF THE ADDRESSEE
To be admitted for mailing, each IBRS item shall bear, in Roman
letters and Arabic numerals on the item itself, the addressee's
name, complete return address including (if any) postal code, a-
nd (if required) permit, license or contract number.
ARTICLE 104
GENERAL MAKE-UP OF MAILS
1.IBRS items shall be included in closed mails.
2.The IBRS items in each dispatch shall be bundled separately f-
rom the rest of the mail. These bundles shall be included in
the final pouch of the dispatch.
ARTICLE 105
LETTER BILLS
1.A letter bill, on Universal Postal Union form C 12, shall acc-
ompany each dispatch.
2.The letter bill shall be marked so as to indicate clearly that
the dispatch contains IBRS items.
3.The total number and total weight of IBRS items in each dispa-
tch shall be entered in the "Other information" block in Table
V of the letter bill. The number of IBRS cards and of IBRS en-
velopes shall be noted separately.
ARTICLE 106
VERIFICATION OF DISPATCHES AND THEIR CONTENTS
1.Upon receipt of a dispatch containing IBRS items, the Adminis-
tration of destination shall verify that the dispatch is cons-
istent with the entries on the letter bill.
2.The contents of each dispatch shall be verified as soon as po-
ssible, at an office designated by the Administration of dest-
ination, to confirm their conformity with the letter bill.
ARTICLE 107
NOTIFICATION OF IRREGULARITIES
1.Any evidence of missing or damaged IBRS bags or items shall be
reported immediately to the Administration of origin by telex
or telefax, if appropriate, and shall be confirmed by verific-
ation note on Universal Postal Union form C 14.
2.All other actions taken in connection with any irregularity s-
hall be governed by the regulation of the Administration of d-
estination.
ARTICLE 108
PERIOD OF RETENTION OF RECORDS
1.Documents and other records relating to IBRS shall be retained
for a minimum period of 18 months following the date to which
they refer.
2.A record concerning a dispute or an inquiry shall be retained
until the matter has been settled. If the inquiring Administr-
ation, duly informed of the result of an inquiry, allows six (
6) months to elapse from the date of the communication without
raising any objections, the matter shall be regarded as settl-
ed.
ARTICLE 109
SPECIFICATIONS FOR IBRS CARDS AND ENVELOPES
1.Only two types of IBRS items shall be acceptable, namely:
a) Postcards weighing up to 20 grammes; and
b) Envelopes weighing up to 250 grammes.
2.All forms of printing are permissible, provided that the mark-
ings are legible to the satisfaction of both Administrations.
However, handwriting, typewriting, or handstamping m8y not be
used to prepare the address side. All printing must be in a d-
ark colour contrasting clearly with a white or light shaded b-
ackground. Vivid colours or dyes containing phosphorescent su-
bstances are not permitted.
3.The top right hand comer of the envelope or card must contain
the symbol of a postage stamp with a bold diagonal line super-
imposed and the words NE PAS AFFRANCHIR (NO STAMP REQUIRED).
4.Above the address, two solid horizontal bars must be printed.
Each bar must be at least 3 mm thick, and the bars must be at
least 14 mm apart. Between the bars there must be printed two
lines of text. On the first line must be printed the words RE-
PONSE PAYEE (REPLY PAID). On the second line must be printed
the name of the country of destination. Both lines of text be-
tween the horizontal bars must be printed in capital letters.
5.An airmail indication stating the words "By air mail" and/or "
Par avion" must be printed in the top left-hand corner. The i-
ndication "Prioritaire" ("Priority") and "Par avion" shall al-
so be acceptable.
6.Items consisting of envelopes or packets bearing a label conf-
orming to the specifications in sections 1-5 of this Article
and to the regulations in the Manual of the Convention shall
also be admitted as IBRS items.
7.IBRS items may contain correspondence, printed papers and goo-
ds of no commercial value.
8.The following size and weight requirements apply to IBRS cards
:
a) Minima: 90 X 140 mm, with a tolerance of 2 mm
b) Maxima: 120 X 235 mm, with a tolerance of 2 mm
c) Thickness: Must be sufficiently stiff to withstand processi-
ng without difficulty.
9.The following size and weight requirements apply to IBRS enve-
lopes:
a) Minima: to have a surface measuring not less than 90 x 140mm
, with a tolerance of 2 mm. In roll form: length plus twice
the diameter: 170 mm, but the greatest dimension may not be
less than 100 mm.
b) Maxima: length, width and depth combined: 900 mm, but the g-
reatest dimension may not exceed 600 mm, with a tolerance of
2 mm. In roll form: length plus twice the diameter: 1040 mm,
but the greatest dimension may not exceed 900 mm, with a to-
lerance of 2 mm.
c) Maximum weight: 250 grammes.
10. No wording other than specified in this Article shall appear
on the face of the envelope, card or label.
ARTICLE 110
ENTRY INTO FORCE AND DURATION
1.These Detailed Regulations shall enter into force on the same
date as the IBRS Agreement.
2.These Datailed Regulations shall have the same duration as the
IBRS Agreement.