NOTIFICATION OF CHANGES AFFECTING THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF A REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENT
Addendum
The following communication, dated 4 April 2025, has been received from the Delegations of the
EFTA States (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) and North
Macedonia.
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Notification of the entry into force of Decision No. 1 of 2021 of
the EFTA-North Macedonia Joint Committee concerning amendments to Protocol B
concerning the definition of the concept of originating products and methods of
administrative cooperation.
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1.
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Member(s)
notifying:
North Macedonia and the EFTA States
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2.
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Date
of notification:
4 April 2025
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3.
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Notification pursuant
to:
[X] Paragraph 14 of the Transparency
Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements (_WT/L/671)
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4.
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Changes affect:
[X] goods
[ ] services
[ ] both
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5.
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Original RTA being
modified:
Free Trade Agreement between the EFTA States and North Macedonia
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6.
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WTO document reference
of original notification of RTA:
_WT/REG117/N/1
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7.
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Parties to the
Agreement:
North Macedonia and the EFTA States (Iceland, Liechtenstein,
Norway and Switzerland)
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8.
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Date
of adoption: 23 July 2021
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9.
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Date(s)
of entry into Force/provisional-application: 1 April 2022
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10.
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Brief description of the
changes:
The revised rules of the Regional
Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin (PEM
Convention) introduce a new set of modernised rules of origin designed to
promote trade between the Contracting Parties to the PEM Convention. The EFTA
States and North Macedonia have agreed to amend and replace Protocol B to the
Free Trade Agreement (FTA) concerning the definition of the concept of
“originating products” and Methods of Administrative Cooperation,
incorporating a dynamic link to the PEM Convention and applying the revised
rules of the PEM Convention on a bilateral basis pending their adoption by
the Joint Committee of the PEM Convention.
Key changes include greater flexibility in the cumulation of
origin, introducing simplified, more flexible product-specific rules, as well
as allowing for the issuance of electronic origin certificates. These updates
aim to reduce administrative burdens, simplify trade documentation, and offer
businesses more opportunities within the PEM zone.
As Protocol B are referenced in
the Bilateral Agreements on Agriculture between the respective EFTA States
and North Macedonia, the amendments also necessitated corresponding changes
to the bilateral agricultural agreements. These revisions ensure that the
updated rules of origin and related procedures are consistently applied
across the FTA and the Bilateral Agricultural Agreements, maintaining
coherence, and facilitating smoother trade operations between the Parties.
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11.
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Text and related schedules, annexes and protocols are:
[X] submitted
to the WTO Secretariat (electronic format)
[X] available
from the following official Internet link(s):
EFTA:
https://www.efta.int/sites/default/files/documents/legal-texts/free-trade-relations/macedonia/Joint%20Committee%20Decisions/All%20Joint%20Committee%20Decisions/EFTA-North%20Macedonia-Decision-incorporating-PEM-Convention.pdf
https://www.efta.int/trade-relations/free-trade-network/north-macedonia
North Macedonia:
https://economy.gov.mk/mk-MK/news/dogovor-za-slobodna-trgovija-megu-republika-makedonija-i-efta-drzavite.nspx
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