Notes On SAPTA
Notes On SAPTA
Notes On SAPTA
PREAMBLE
The Government of the Peoples Republic of Bangladesh, the Kingdom of Bhutan, the Republic of
India, the Republic of Maldives, the Kingdom of Nepal, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Democratic
Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka hereinafter referred to as Contracting States,
Motivated by the commitment to promote regional cooperation for the benefit of their peoples, in a
spirit of mutual accommodation, with full respect for the principles of sovereign equality, independence and
territorial integrity of all States;
Aware that the expansion of trade could act as a powerful stimulus to the development of their
national economies, by expanding investment and production, thus providing greater opportunities of em-
ployment and help securing higher living standards for their population;
Convinced of the need to establish and promote regional preferential trading arrangement for strength-
ening intraregional economic cooperation and the development of national economies; Bearing in mind the
urgent need to promote the intraregional trade which presently constitutes a negligible share in the total
volume of the South Asian trade;
Recalling the direction given at the Fourth SAARC Summit meeting held in Islamabad in December
1988 that specific areas be identified where economic cooperation might be feasible immediately;
Guided by the declared commitment of the Heads of State or Government of the Member Countries
at the Sixth SAARC Summit held in Colombo in December 1991 to the liberalisation of trade in the region
through a step by step approach in such a manner that countries in the region share the benefits of trade
expansion equitably;
Cognizant of the mandate given by the Sixth SAARC Summit in Colombo to formulate and seek
agreement on an institutional framework under which specific measures for trade liberalisation among SAARC
Member States could be furthered and to examine the Sri Lankan proposal to establish the SAARC Preferential
Trading Arrangement (SAPTA) by 1997;
Recognising that a preferential trading arrangement is the first step towards higher levels of trade and
economic cooperation in the region,
Article 1
Definitions
(1) Least Developed Country means a country designated as such by the United Nations.
(2) Contracting State means any Member State of the South Asian Association for Regional Coopera-
tion (SAARC) which has entered into this Agreement.
(3) Serious injury means significant damage to domestic producers, of like or similar products resulting
from a substantial increase of preferential imports in situations which cause substantial losses in terms
of earnings, production or employment unsustainable in the short term. The examination of the
impact on the domestic industry concerned shall also include an evaluation of other relevant eco-
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nomic factors and indices having a bearing on the state of the domestic industry of that product.
(4) Threat of serious injury means a situation in which a substantial increase of preferential imports is of
a nature to cause serious injury to domestic producers, and that such injury, although not yet
existing, is clearly imminent. A determination of threat of serious injury shall be based on facts and
not on mere allegation, conjecture, or remote or hypothetical possibility.
(5) Critical circumstances means the emergence of an exceptional situation where massive preferential
imports are causing or threatening to cause serious injury difficult to repair and which calls for
immediate action.
(6) Sectoral basis means agreements amongst Contracting States regarding the removal or reduction of
tariff, nontariff and paratariff barriers as well as other trade promotion or cooperative measures for
specified products or groups of products closely related in enduse or in production.
(7) Direct trade measures means measures conducive to promoting mutual trade of Contracting States
such as long and mediumterm contracts containing import and supply commitments in respect of
specific products, buyback arrangements, state trading operations, and government and public pro-
curement.
(8) Tariffs means customs duties included in the national tariff schedules of the Contracting States.
(9) Paratariffs means border charges and fees, other than tariffs, on foreign trade transactions of a
tarifflike effect which are levied solely on imports, but not those indirect taxes and charges, which are
levied in the same manner on like domestic products. Import charges corresponding to specific ser-
vices rendered are not considered as paratariff measures.
(10) Nontariffs means any measure, regulation, or practice, other than tariffs and paratariffs, the
effect of which is to restrict imports, or to significantly distort trade.
(11) Products means all products including manufactures and commodities in their raw, semiprocessed
and processed forms.
Article 2
Establishment and Aims
1. By the present Agreement, the Contracting States establish the SAARC Preferential Trading Arrange-
ment (SAPTA) to promote and sustain mutual trade and the economic cooperation among the Contracting
States, through exchanging concessions in accordance with this Agreement.
2. SAPTA will be governed by the provisions of this Agreement and also by the rules, regulations, deci-
sions, understandings and protocols to be agreed upon within its framework by the Contracting States.
Article 3
Principles
(a) SAPTA shall be based and applied on the principles of overall reciprocity and mutuality of
advantages in such a way as to benefit equitably all Contracting States, taking into account
their respective levels of economic and industrial development, the pattern of their external
trade, trade and tariff policies and systems;
(b) SAPTA shall be negotiated step by step, improved and extended in successive stages with
periodic reviews;
(c) The special needs of the Least Developed Contracting States shall be clearly recognised and
concrete preferential measures in their favour should be agreed upon;
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(d) SAPTA shall include all products, manufactures and commodities in their raw, semiprocessed
and processed forms.
Article 4
Components
Article 5
Negotiations
1. The Contracting States may conduct their negotiations for trade liberalisation in accordance with any
or a combination of the following approaches and procedures:
(a) Product by product basis;
(b) Across the board tariff reductions;
(c) Sectoral basis;
(d) Direct trade measures.
2. Contracting States agreed to negotiate tariff preferences initially on a productbyproduct basis.
3. The Contracting States shall enter into negotiations from time to time with a view to further expanding
SAPTA and the fuller attainment of its aims.
Article 6
Additional Measures
1. Contracting States agree to consider, in addition to the measures set out in Article 4, the adoption of
trade facilitation and other measures to support and complement SAPTA to mutual benefit.
2. Special consideration shall be given by Contracting States to requests from Least Developed Contract-
ing States for technical assistance and cooperation arrangements designed to assist them in expanding their
trade with other Contracting States and in taking advantage of the potential benefits of SAPTA. The possible
areas for such technical assistance and cooperation are listed in Annex I.
Article 7
Schedules of Concessions
The tariff, paratariff and nontariff concessions negotiated and exchanged amongst Contracting States
shall be incorporated in the National Schedules of Concessions. The initial concessions agreed to by the
Contracting States are attached as Annex II.
Article 8
Extension of Negotiated Concessions
The concessions agreed to under SAPTA, except those made exclusively to the Least Developed
Contracting States in pursuance of Article 10 of this Agreement, shall be extended unconditionally to all
Contracting States.
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Article 9
Committee of Participants
Article 10
Special Treatment for the Least Developed Contracting States
1. In addition to other provisions of this Agreement, all Contracting States shall provide, wherever pos-
sible, special and more favourable treatment exclusively to the Least Developed Contracting States as set out
in the following subparagraphs:
(a) Duty-free access, exclusive tariff preferences or deeper tariff preferences for the export prod-
ucts,
(b) The removal of nontariff barriers,
(c) The removal, where appropriate, of paratariff barriers,
(d) The negotiations of longterm contracts with a view to assisting Least Developed Contracting
States to achieve reasonable levels of sustainable exports of their products,
(e) Special consideration of exports from Least Developed Contracting States in the application
of safeguard measures,
(f) Greater flexibility in the introduction and continuance of quantitative or other restrictions
provisionally and without discrimination in critical circumstances by the Least Developed
Contracting States on imports from other Contracting States.
Article 11
Nonapplication
Notwithstanding the measures as set out in Articles 4 and 6, the provisions of this Agreement shall not
apply in relation to preferences already granted or to be granted by any Contracting State to other Contracting
States outside the framework of this Agreement, and to third countries through bilateral, plurilateral and
multilateral trade agreements, and similar arrangements. The Contracting States shall also not be obliged to
grant preferences in SAPTA which impair the concession extended under those agreements.
Article 12
Communication, Transport and Transit
Contracting States agree to undertake appropriate steps and measures for developing and improving
communication system, transport infrastructure and transit facilities for accelerating the growth of trade within
the region.
Article 13
Balance of Payments Measures
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Agreement, any Contracting State facing serious economic
problems including balance of payments difficulties may suspend provisionally the concessions as to the quan-
tity and value of merchandise permitted to be imported under the Agreement. When such action has taken
place, the Contracting State which initiates such action, shall simultaneously notify the other Contracting
States and the Committee.
2. Any Contracting State which takes action according to paragraph 1 of this Article shall afford, upon
request from any other Contracting State, adequate opportunities for consultations with a view to preserving
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the stability of the concessions negotiated under the SAPTA. If no satisfactory adjustment is effected between
the Contracting States concerned within 90 days of such notification, the matter may be referred to the
Committee for review.
Article 14
Safeguard Measures
If any product, which is a subject of a concession with respect to a preference under this Agreement,
is imported into the territory of a Contracting State in such a manner or in such quantities as to cause or
threaten to cause, serious injury in the importing Contracting State, the importing Contracting State concerned
may, with prior consultations, except in critical circumstances, suspend provisionally without discrimination,
the concession accorded under the Agreement. When such action has taken place the Contracting State which
initiates such action shall simultaneously notify the other Contracting State(s) concerned and the Committee
shall enter into consultations with the concerned Contracting State and endeavour to reach mutually accept-
able agreement to remedy the situation. In the event of the failure of the Contracting States to resolve the issue
within 90 days of the receipt of original notification, the Committee of Participants shall meet within 30 days
to review the situation and try to settle the issue amicably. Should the consultations in the Committee of
Participants fail to resolve the issue within 60 days, the parties affected by such action shall have the right to
withdraw equivalent concession(s) or other obligation(s) which the Committee does not disapprove of.
Article 15
Maintenance of the Value of Concessions
Any of the concessions agreed upon under this Agreement shall not be diminished or nullified, by the
application of any measures restricting trade by the Contracting States except under the provisions as spelt out
in other Articles of this Agreement.
Article 16
Rules of Origin
Products contained in the National Schedules of Concessions annexed to this Agreement shall be
eligible for preferential treatment if they satisfy the rules of origin, including special rules of origin, in respect of
the Least Developed Contracting States, which are set out in Annex III.
Article 17
Modification and Withdrawal of Concessions
1. Any Contracting State may, after a period of three years from the day the concession was extended,
notify the Committee of its intention to modify or withdraw any concession included in its appropriate sched-
ule.
2. The Contracting State intending to withdraw or modify a concession shall enter into consultation and/
or negotiations, with a view to reaching agreement on any necessary and appropriate compensation, with
Contracting States with which such concession was initially negotiated and with any other Contracting States
that have a principal or substantial supplying interest as may be determined by the Committee.
3. Should no agreement be reached between the Contracting States concerned within six months of the
receipt of notification and should the notifying Contracting State proceed with its modification or withdrawal
of such concessions, the affected Contracting States as determined by the Committee may withdraw or modify
equivalent concessions in their appropriate schedules. Any such modification or withdrawal shall be notified
to the Committee.
Article 18
Withholding or Withdrawal of Concessions
A Contracting State shall at any time be free to withhold or to withdraw in whole or in part any item
in its schedule of concessions in respect of which it determines that it was initially negotiated with a State
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which has ceased to be a Contracting State in this Agreement. A Contracting State taking such action shall
notify the Committee, and upon request, consult with Contracting States that have a substantial interest in the
product concerned.
Article 19
Consultations
1. Each Contracting State shall accord sympathetic consideration to and shall afford adequate opportu-
nity for consultations regarding such representations as may be made by another Contracting State with re-
spect to any matter affecting the operation of this Agreement.
2. The Committee may, at the request of a Contracting State, consult with any Contracting State in
respect of any matter for which it has not been possible to find a satisfactory solution through such consultation
under paragraph 1 above.
Article 20
Settlement of Disputes
Any dispute that may arise among the Contracting States regarding the interpretation and application
of the provisions of this Agreement or any instrument adopted within its framework shall be amicably settled
by agreement between the parties concerned. In the event of failure to settle a dispute, it may be referred to
the Committee by a party to the dispute. The Committee shall review the matter and make a recommendation
thereon within 120 days from the date on which the dispute was submitted to it. The Committee shall adopt
appropriate rules for this purpose.
Article 21
Withdrawal from SAPTA
1. Any Contracting State may withdraw from this Agreement at any time after its entry into force. Such
withdrawal shall be effective six months from the day on which written notice thereof is received by the
SAARC Secretariat, the depositary of this Agreement. That Contracting State shall simultaneously inform the
Committee of the action it has taken.
2. The rights and obligations of a Contracting State which has withdrawn from this Agreement shall
cease to apply as of that effective date.
3. Following the withdrawal by any Contracting State, the Committee shall meet within 30 days to
consider action subsequent to withdrawal.
Article 22
Entry into Force
This Agreement shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the notification issued by the SAARC
Secretariat regarding completion of the formalities by all Contracting States.
Article 23
Reservations
This Agreement may not be signed with reservations nor shall reservations be admitted at the time of
notification to the SAARC Secretariat of the completion of formalities.
Article 24
Amendments
This Agreement may be modified through amendments to this Agreement. All amendments shall
become effective upon acceptance by all Contracting States.
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Article 25
Depositary
This Agreement shall be deposited with the Secretary General of SAARC who shall promptly furnish a
certified copy thereof to each Contracting State.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned being duly authorized thereto by their respective Governments
have signed this Agreement on the SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement.
Done at DHAKA this ELEVENTH day of APRIL One Thousand Nine Hundred Ninety Three in eight originals in
the English language.
HAROLD HEART
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
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Annex I
(a) The identification, preparation and establishment of industrial and agricultural projects in the territo-
ries of Least Developed Contracting States which could provide the production base for the expan-
sion of exports of Least Developed Contracting States to other Contracting States, possibly linked to
cooperative financing and buyback arrangements;
(b) the setting up of manufacturing and other facilities in Least Developed Contracting States to meet
intra-regional demand under cooperative arrangements;
(c) the formulation of export promotion policies and the establishment of training facilities in the field of
trade to assist Least Developed Contracting States in expanding their exports and in maximising their
benefits from SAPTA;
(d) the provision of support to export marketing of products of Least Developed Contracting States by
enabling these countries to share existing facilities (for example, with respect to export credit insur-
ance, access to market information) and by institutional and other positive measures to facilitate
imports from Least Developed Contracting States into their own markets;
(e) bringing together of enterprises in other Contracting States with project sponsors in the Least Devel-
oped Contracting States (both public and private) with a view to promoting joint ventures in projects
designed to lead to the expansion of trade;
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Annex II
(circulated separately)
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Annex III
RULES OF ORIGIN
RULE 1: Originating products - Products covered by preferential trading arrangements within the framework
of the SAPTA imported into the territory of a Contracting State from another Contracting State which are
consigned directly within the meaning of Rule 5 hereof, shall be eligible for preferential concessions if they
conform to the origin requirement under any one of the following conditions:
(a) Products wholly produced or obtained in the exporting Contracting State as defined in Rule 2; or
(b) Products not wholly produced or obtained in the exporting Contracting State, provided that the
said products are eligible under Rule 3 or Rule 4.
RULE 2: Wholly produced or obtained - Within the meaning of Rule 1 (a) the following shall be considered
as wholly produced or obtained in the exporting Contracting State:
(a) raw or mineral products extracted from its soil, its water or its seabeds:1
(b) agricultural products harvested there;2
(c) animals born and raised there;
(d) products obtained from animals referred to in paragraph (c) above;
(e) products obtained by hunting or fishing conducted there;
(f) products of sea fishing and other marine products taken from the high seas by its vessels;3/4
(g) products processed and/or made on boards its factory ships 4/5 exclusively from products
referred to in paragraph (f) above;
(h) used articles collected there, fit only for the recovery of raw materials;
(i) waste and scrap resulting from manufacturing operations conducted there;
(j) goods produced there exclusively from the products referred to in paragraph (a) to (i)
above.
RULE 3 : Not wholly produced or obtained
(a) Within the meaning of Rule 1(b), products worked on or processed as a result of which the total value
of the materials, parts or produce originating from nonContracting States or of undetermined origin
used does not exceed 50 per cent of the f.o.b. value of the products produced or obtained and the
final process of manufacture is performed within the territory of the exporting Contracting State shall
be eligible for preferential concessions subject to the provisions of Rule 3(c) and Rule 4.
(b) Sectoral agreements 6
(c) The value of the nonoriginating materials, parts or produce shall be:
(i) The c.i.f. value at the time of importation of materials parts or produce where this can be
proven: or
(ii) The earliest ascertainable price paid for the materials, prices or produce of undetermined
origin in the territory of the Contracting State where the working or processing takes place.
RULE 4: Cumulative rules of origin - Products which comply with origin requirements provided for in Rule 1
and which are used by a Contracting State as input for a finished product eligible for preferential treatment by
another Contracting State shall be considered as a product originating in the territory of the Contracting State
where working or processing of the finished product has taken place provided that the aggregate content
originating in the territory of the Contracting State is not less than 60 percent of its f.o.b. value7.
RULE 5 : Direct consignment - The following shall be considered as directly consigned from the exporting
Contracting State to the importing Contracting State:
(a) if the products are transported without passing through the territory of any non-Contracting State:
(b) the products whose transport involves transit through one or more intermediate nonContracting States
with or without transhipment or temporary storage in such countries, provided that:
(i) the transit entry is justified for geographical reason or by considerations related exclusively to
transport requirements;
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(ii) the products have not entered into trade or consumption there; and
(iii) the products have not undergone any operation there other than unloading and reloading or
any operation required to keep them in good condition.
RULE 6: Treatment of packing - When determining the origin of products, packing should be considered as
forming a whole with the product it contains. However, packing may be treated separately if the national
legislation so required.
RULE 7: Certificate of Origin - Products eligible for preferential concessions shall be supported by a Certifi-
cate of Origin8 issued by an authority designated by the government of the exporting Contracting State and
notified to the other Contracting States in accordance with the Certification Procedures appearing on pages 15
and 16 of this Annex.
RULE 8:
(a) In conformity with Article 15 of the Agreement on SAPTA and national legislations, any Contracting
State may prohibit importation of products containing any inputs originating from States with which it
does not have economic and commercial relations.
(b) Contracting States will do their best to cooperate in order to specify origin of inputs in the Certificate
of Origin.
RULE 9: Review - These Rules may be reviewed as and when necessary upon request of one-third of the
Contracting States and may be open to such modifications as may be agreed upon.
RULE 10: Special criteria percentage- Products originating in Least Developed Contracting States can be
allowed a favourable 10 percentage points applied to the percentage established in Rules 3 and 4. Thus, for
Rule 3, the percentage would not exceed 60 per cent, and for Rule 4, the percentage would not be less than
50 per cent.
1
Include mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials as well as mineral of metal ores.
2
Include forestry products.
3
Vessels shall refer to fishing vessels engaged in commercial fishing, registered in a Contracting States country
and operated by a citizen or citizens or governments of Contracting State or partnership, corporation or associa-
tion, duly registered in such Contracting States country, at cost 60 per cent of equity of which is owned by a
citizen or citizens and/or government of such Contracting State or 75 percent by citizens and/or governments of
the Contracting States. However, the products taken from vessels engaged in commercial fishing under bilateral
agreements which provide for chartering/leasing of such vessels and/or sharing of catch between Contracting
States will also be eligible for preferential concessions.
4
In respect of vessels or factory ships operated by government agencies the requirement of flying the flag of a
Contracting State does not apply.
5
For the purpose of this Agreement, the term factory ship means any vessels, as defined, used for processing
and/or making on board products exclusively from those products referred to in paragraph (f) above.
6
In respect of products traded within the framework of sectoral agreements negotiated under SAPTA, provision
may need to be made for special criteria to apply. Consideration may be given to these criteria as and when the
sectoral agreements are negotiated.
7
Partial cumulation as implied by Rule 4 above means that only products which have acquired originating
status in the territory of one Contracting State may be taken into account when used as inputs for a finished
product eligible for preferential treatment in the territory of another Contracting State.
8
A standard Certificate of Origin to be used by all Contracting States is annexed and approved by the Contracting
States.
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ADDENDUM
The SAARC Council of Ministers at its Twenty-first Session held in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, on 18-19
March 1999, approved the amendments to the Rules 3(a), 4 and 10 relating to the Rules of Origin (Annex-II)
of the SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement (SAPTA) with immediate effect.
Within the meaning of Rule 1(b), products worked on or processed as a result of which the total value of the
materials, parts or produce originating from non-Contracting States or of undetermined origin used does not
exceed 60 per cent of the f.o.b. value of the products produced or obtained and the final process of manufac-
ture is performed within the territory of the exporting Contracting State shall be eligible for preferential con-
cessions subject to the provisions of Rule 3(c) and Rule 4.
Products which comply with origin requirements provided for in Rule 1 and which are used by a Contracting
State as input for a finished product eligible for preferential treatment by another Contracting State shall be
considered as a product originating in the territory of the Contracting State where working or processing of the
finished product has taken place provided that the aggregate content originating in the territory of the Con-
tracting State is not less than 50 percent of its f.o.b. value.
Products originating in Least Developed Contracting States can be allowed a favourable 10 percentage points
applied to the percentage established in Rules 3 and 4. Thus, for Rule 3, the percentage would not exceed 70
per cent, and for Rule 4, the percentage would not be less than 40 per cent.
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CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN
1. Goods consigned from Reference No.
(exporter's business name, address, country) SAARC PREFERENTIAL TRADING ARRANGEMENT
(SAPTA)
(Combined declaration and certificate)
5. Tariff item 6. Marks and 7. Number and kind of 8. Origin 9. Gross weight 10. Number and
number numbers of packages: Criterion or other date of invoices
packages description of goods (see notes quantity
overleaf)
...................................................................
(country)
..............................................................
(importing country)
............................................................ .........................................................................
Place and date , signature of authorised signatory Place and date, signature and stamp
of Certifying authority
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I. General Conditions
Preference products must be wholly produced or obtained in the exporting Contracting State in
accordance with Rule 2 of the SAPTA Rules of Origin, or where not wholly produced or obtained in the
exporting Contracting States must be eligible under Rule 3 or Rule 4.
b) Products not wholly produced or obtained: the entry in Box 8 should be as follows :
1. Enter letter B in Box 8, for products which meet the origin criteria according to Rule 3.
Entry of letter would be followed by the sum of the value of materials, parts or produce
originating from nonContracting States, or undetermined origin used, expressed as a per-
centage of the f.o.b. value of the products; (example B 50 per cent);
2. Enter letter C in Box 8 for products which meet the origin criteria according to Rule 4. Entry
of letter C would be followed by the sum of the aggregate content originating in the terri-
tory of the exporting Contracting State expressed as a percentage of the f.o.b. value of the
exported product; (example C 60 per cent);
3. Enter letter D in Box 8 for products which meet the special origin criteria according to Rule
10.
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