The Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement)
took effect with establishment of the World Trade Organization on
January 1, 1995. TBTs include regulations (packaging, marking, and
labeling requirements), testing, and certification procedures. The
TBT Agreement tries to ensure that regulations, standards, testing,
and certification procedures do not create unnecessary
obstacles.
The agreement sets out a code of good practice for the
preparation, adoption, and application of standards by central
government bodies. The agreement states that procedures used to
decide whether an imported product conforms to national standards
must be fair and equitable. It discourages any methods that would
give an unfair advantage to domestically produced goods. It also
includes provisions describing how local government and
nongovernmental bodies should apply their own regulations-normally
they should use the same principles as apply to central
governments.
In order to encourage uniformity, the agreement urges countries
to use international standards where appropriate, but it does not
require them to change their levels of protection as a result. The
agreement also encourages countries to recognize each other's
testing procedures. That way, a product can be assessed to see if
it meets the importing country's standards through testing in the
country where it is produced.
Exporters need to know the latest standards in prospective
markets. To help ensure convenient access to this information, all
WTO member governments are required to establish national enquiry
points.
The additional market access provided by the tariff-cutting
provisions in the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture and by the
creation of tariff-rate quotas has shone a spotlight on other trade
barriers, including TBT measures.
While the TBT Agreement is not subject to negotiation in the
Doha Development Agenda, implementation issues are being
discussed. In the Doha Ministerial Declaration, members agreed
to take concrete action to address issues and concerns raised by
many developing-country members regarding the implementation of the
TBT Agreement. The Declaration urges members to provide, to the
extent possible, the financial and technical assistance necessary
to enable least-developed countries to respond adequately to the
introduction of any new TBT measures that may have significant
negative effects on their trade. Members are also urged to ensure
that technical assistance is provided to least-developed countries
to help them implement the TBT Agreement.
Other Relevant Multilateral Agreements: