WTO trade facilitation negotiations – current agenda and perspectives

This paper sets out the main customs trade facilitation issues in the context of the new round of multi-lateral trade negotiations launched under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) - the Doha Development Agenda - which is of direct relevance to EU traders and customs administrations. Beyond the more traditional customs-related dimensions in recent trade rounds which were primarily concerned with tariff-oriented measures (duty rates, valuation and origin issues), the enlarged scope of these negotiations will be more facilitation-oriented. It will therefore involve issues such as customs-related operations and procedures, obligations with respect to economic operators, use of information technology and overall efficient management of the import/export function.