Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade

E88069

The Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade is a World Trade Organization treaty that disciplines how governments design and apply technical regulations, standards, and conformity assessment procedures so they do not create unnecessary obstacles to international trade.


Statements (48)
Predicate Object
instanceOf World Trade Organization agreement
international treaty
multilateral trade agreement
administeredBy World Trade Organization
adoptedAt Marrakesh
adoptedOn 1994-04-15
aimsTo encourage the use of international standards
enhance transparency of technical regulations and standards
ensure that technical regulations do not create unnecessary obstacles to international trade
promote non-discrimination in the preparation, adoption and application of technical regulations
allows measures necessary to prevent deceptive practices
measures necessary to protect animal or plant life or health
measures necessary to protect human health or safety
measures necessary to protect the environment
appliesTo central government bodies
conformity assessment procedures
local government bodies
non-governmental standardizing bodies under certain conditions
standards
technical regulations
bindingOn all WTO members
citationForm WTO TBT Agreement
clarifies relationship between technical regulations and international standards
containsPrinciple avoidance of unnecessary obstacles to trade
equivalence of technical regulations
harmonization with international standards
most-favoured-nation treatment
mutual recognition of conformity assessment results
national treatment
transparency
distinguishedFrom Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
enteredIntoForce 1995-01-01
establishesBody Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade
hasLegalStatus annex 1A agreement to the WTO Agreement
language English
French
Spanish
monitoredBy WTO Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade
obliges WTO members to establish national enquiry points for technical regulations and standards
WTO members to notify proposed technical regulations that may have a significant effect on trade
partOf Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization
predecessor Standards Code
Tokyo Round Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade
shortName TBT Agreement
subjectMatter labelling requirements
product standards
technical barriers to trade
testing and certification procedures

Referenced by (13)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade ("TBT Agreement")
Standards Code ("TBT Agreement")
shortName
Standards Code ("Tokyo Round Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade")
alternativeName
WTO panels ("Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement")
appliesLaw
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade ("WTO TBT Agreement")
citationForm
Standards Code
fullName
Council for Trade in Goods
oversees
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade ("Tokyo Round Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade")
predecessor
Uruguay Round (1986–1994)
producedAgreement
Agreement on Preshipment Inspection
relatedTo
Standards Code ("WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade")
replacedBy
Tokyo Round
resultedIn
Standards Code ("WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade")
successor

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