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Georgia

This page gathers key information on Georgia's negotiations to join the WTO.  Georgia became the 137th WTO Member on 14 June 2000.

> Page for Georgia as a Member

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WTO accession process in brief

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Georgia's Timeline

I. Overview
Application received 03/07/1996  WT/ACC/GEO/1
Accession Working Party established 18/07/1996  WT/GC/M/13
Terms of reference & accession Working Party membership  28/04/1997  WT/ACC/GEO/2  + ( revisions)
Chairperson of the Accession Working Party    
2nd 11/1998 - 08/1999 Ambassador Anne ANDERSON (Ireland)
1st 04/1997 - 03/1998 Ambassador Eveline HERFKENS (Netherlands)
Formal Meetings of the Working Party Convening notice Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation Statement(s) by Working Party members Delegation list Other documents for the meeting News item
1st 03-04/03/1998
2nd 13/10/1998
3rd 28/07/1999
Informal Meetings of the Working Party Date of the meeting Convening fax Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
Plurilateral Meetings Date of the meeting Convening fax Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
II. Multilateral Negotiations
Memorandum on the Foreign Trade Regime (MFTR)  07/04/1997  WT/ACC/GEO/3
Initial cycle(s) of Questions and Replies, following the circulation of the MFTR 13/10/1997  WT/ACC/GEO/4 (+  corrigendum & addendum)
13/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/7
27/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/7/Add.2
19/06/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/10
Factual Summary of Points Raised  01/09/1998 Informal circulation
Additional Questions & Replies 04/02/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/18
Elements of a Draft Report of the Working Party  24/02/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/7
Draft Report of the Working Party  18/05/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/9  (+  revision)
  22/07/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/12
Agriculture (WT/ACC/22/Add.1), including Questions and Replies  28/11/1997  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/2  (+  addenda & revision)
SPS Checklist (WT/ACC/22/Add.2
TBT Checklist (WT/ACC/22/Add.2
TRIPS Questionnaire (WT/ACC/22/Add.2
Import Licensing Procedures Questionnaire (WT/ACC/22 + revisions
Customs Valuation Checklist (WT/ACC/22 + revisions
State-Trading Questionnaire (WT/ACC/22 + revisions
Draft Subsidies Notification (WT/ACC/22/Add.2
Comprehensive Legislative Action Plan (LAP)  07/07/1998  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/5
Rule-specific Action Plans  05/03/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/19 (Intellectual Property) 
Legislation and implementing regulations    Click for details Legislation notice Notified legislation
08/04/1997  WT/ACC/GEO/3/Add.1
  •  Statute on Trademarks, approved by the Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 304 of 15 March 1992
  •  Statute on Inventions, approved by the Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 302 of 16 March 1992
  •  Statute on Industrial Designs, approved by the Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 303 of 15 March 1992
  •  Consumer Rights Protection Law of 20 March 1996
  •  Law on Monopolistic Activities and Competition
  •  Law on Promotion and Guarantees of Investment Activity
  •  Law on Value Added Tax
  •  Law on the National Bank of Georgia No. 764-IIs of 23 June 1995
  •  Law on Activities of Commercial Banks No. 121-IIs of 23 February 1996
  •  Law on Entrepreneurs No. 577-16 of 28 October 1994
  •  Draft Tax Code of 5 November 1996
  •  Concession Law
  •  Law on Establishing of the Unified Metering System No. 374-IS of 6 September 1996
  •  Standardization Law No. 372-II of 6 September 1996
  •  Law on Product and Service Certification of 6 September 1996
  •  A Summary (Synopsis) of the Draft Customs Law of Georgia
  •  Decree of the Head of State of the Republic of Georgia on the Establishment of Agricultural Land Use Tax
  •  Customs Law
  •  Resolution of the Tbilisi Municipality City Board No. 07.03.45 of 29 September 1994 On Making Minor Corrections to the Tbilisi Municipality City Board's Resolution No. 03.06 of 24 April 1993 and Approving the Instruction for Fixing Rental Change For the Use of Land Plots in Tbilisi
08/09/1997  WT/ACC/GEO/4/Add.1
19/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/7/Add.1 (+  addendum)
01/05/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/8
13/05/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/9
  •  Law on Customs Fees of 18 February 1998
  •  Law on Protection of Consumer Rights of 20 March 1996
  •  Law on Statistics of 12 November 1997
28/07/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/11
05/11/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/13
09/12/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/14
  •  Law on Administrative and Disposition of State-Owned Non-Agricultural Land
  •  Law on Declaration of Private Ownership of Non-Agricultural Land in Use of Physical and Private Legal Persons
14/01/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/15
  •  Draft Patent Law
  •  Draft Regulations Concerning Order of Determining the Customs Value of Goods Imported to Georgia
  •  Resolution No. 678 of 5 December 1998 "On Measures for the Implementation of Requirements of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade of the WTO"
11/01/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/17
25/02/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/18/Corr.1
  •  Decree of the President of Georgia No. 391 of 28 June 1998 "On Activities Addressing Regulation of Production, Import, Wholesale and Retail Trade in Tobacco Products in E108
  •  The Code of Administrative Court Procedures of Georgia, "Georgian Law on State Procurement
  •  Law On Administration and Allocation of Publicly-owned, Non-allocated, Non-agricultural Land
  •  Law On Declaration of Private Ownership of Non-agricultural Land in Possession of Physical Persons and Private Legal Persons"
  •  Draft Law of Georgia On Commodity Markets and Exchange Business
  •  Draft Decree of the President of Georgia On Accession of Georgia to WTO
  •  Law of Georgia "On Protection of Selected Achievements
10/03/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/21
28/04/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/21/Add.1
03/06/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/22
  •  Presidential Decree N 232 on the Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal
03/06/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/23
09/06/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/24
25/06/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/26
01/07/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/27
04/08/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/29
14/09/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/30
Consultation documents    Click for details Consultation notice Notified consultation document
21/11/1997  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/1
  •  Information on Policy Measures Affecting Trade in Services
03/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/6
  •  Check List of Documents
03/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/6/Rev.1
  •  Check List of Documents
19/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/5
  •  Statistical data on foreign trade of Georgia by commodity groups (1996)
  •  Statistical data on foreign trade of Georgia by commodity groups (January-November 1997)
03/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/7/Add.1
  •  Statistical data on foreign trade of Georgia by HS (1996-1997)
03/02/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/6/Rev.2
  •  Check List of Documents
13/10/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/12
  •  Developments in Georgia since the first Working Party meeting
05/11/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/13
  •  Plan of the measures on the consecutive planning of the requirements of international standards, sanitary, veterinary, phytosanitary and ecological norms
  •  Programme of the implementation of the requirements of the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade
13/11/1998  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/6 
  •  Preliminary list of concessions in goods on a provisional basis
18/12/1998  WT/ACC/GEO/16
  •  Developments in Georgia since the second Working Party meeting (September 1998)
04/02/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/6/Rev.1   Preliminary list of concessions in goods on a provisional basis
05/03/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/20
  •  Information on Privatisation in Georgia
18/05/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/6/Rev.2   Preliminary list of concessions in goods on a provisional basis
21/05/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/8   Preliminary list of concessions and commitments in services
01/06/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/25
  •  Developments since the conclusion of the bilateral round of negotiations in April, 1999
01/07/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/28
  •  Plan for the development and implementation of standards in Georgia, 1999-2002
05/07/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/10 
  •  Consolidated list of specific commitments in services, reflecting the results of the negotiations
21/07/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/11 
  •  Consolidated list of concessions and commitments in goods, reflecting the results of the negotiations
III. Bilateral Market Access Negotiations 
Goods Offer(s)  19/02/1998  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/4  (+  revisions & corrigendum)
Services Offer(s)  02/02/1998  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/3  (+  revisions)
Register of Bilateral Market Access Agreements 
Draft Goods Schedule  26/07/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/12/Add.1  (+  corrigendum)
Draft Services Schedule  22/07/1999  WT/ACC/SPEC/GEO/12/Add.2  (+  revision)
Goods and Services Technical Verification Meetings 
IV. Summary of Final Meeting of the Working Party
V. Accession Package (“Terms of Accession”, de-restricted) 
Ministerial Conference/General Council Decision on the Accession 06/10/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/32
Protocol of Accession  06/10/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/33
Report of the Working Party 31/08/1999  WT/ACC/GEO/31
Goods Schedule (Schedule of Concessions and Commitments Annexed to the GATT 1994)  31/08/1999   WT/ACC/GEO/31/Add.1
Services Schedule (Schedule of Specific Commitments Annexed to the GATS)  30/08/1999   WT/ACC/GEO/31/Add.2
VI. Accessions Commitments Database (ACDB) 
Specific Accession Commitments   http://acdb.wto.org/ click on “Report by Member”, select “Georgia” in drop down list then click on “View Report”
VII. Instrument of Acceptance 
Notification of Acceptance and Entry Into Force of the Protocol of Accession 15/05/2000  WT/LET/341
VIII. Date of Membership
  14/06/2000 137th Member News item
IX. Since 1995, this is the…
9th economy that joined the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement.

Note:
The de-restriction of documents is a key component of the transparency obligations of the Multilateral Trading System.  Paragraphs 1 and 2(e) of the Ministerial Council Decision WT/L/452 of 14 May 2002 provide that “documents relating to working parties on accession shall be restricted and shall be automatically de-restricted upon the adoption of the report of the working party” by the Ministerial Conference/General Council.  The time of completion of the de-restriction process depends on the amount and complexities of the documents involved.  Prior to 2002, the de-restriction of accession-related documents was governed by a different set of rules (i.e. General Council Decision WT/L/160/Rev.1 of 26 July 1996), which only affect documents circulated prior to 2002.