Services

In the frame of WTO regulation of trade in services is fulfilled in compliance with General Agreement on Trade in Services.

According to  General Agreement on Trade in Services trade in Services means as services delivery implemented by following methods:

1st  method– cross-border delivery (cross-border trade)

Upon cross-border delivery the service crosses the frontier by means of telecommunication or postal communication at that a supplier and customer  do not move the services over the border.  

2nd method – consumption abroad (consumption abroad)

Service consumer both as a physical and juridical person moves over the border where receives or consumes the service. The Service supplier does not move over the border.

3rd method – commercial presence (commercial presence, right of establishment)

Company rendering the service crosses the border to open representation office or affiliate via which the service will be rendered.  

4th method – presence of natural persons (presence of natural persons)

The service supplier moves over the border to the country of consumers’ presence to render services.

The main obligation the member-countries take on themselves upon accession to WTO in compliance with General Agreement on Trade in Services is rendering the services to the consumers of any country under the same favorable regime they use upon rendering similar services to similar consumers of any member-country. At that any member of WTO can continue exercising restrictive measure non-consistent with RNB provided that measure is entered into the list of exemptions.  

Every country upon accession forms such list of exemptions. Exemption per period of validity shall not exceed 10 and shall be reconsidered not later than five years at subsequent rounds of negotiations on services sphere liberalization.