AMENDMENTS OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON THE HARMONIZED COMMODITY DESCRIPTION AND CODING SYSTEM ("Off. Herald of RS - Treaties", No. 1/2021)

"THE CUSTOMS CO-OPERATION COUNCIL,

HAVING REGARD to the International Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, concluded on 14 June 1983,

HAVING REGARD to the Protocol of Amendment to the said Convention, dated 24 June 1986,

NOTING the recommendations of the Harmonized System High Level Working Group,

CONSIDERING that it is necessary to make certain amendments to Article 8 of the said onvention with a view to:

(i) establishing a procedure to facilitate the re-examination process; and

(ii) placing a two re-examination limit on certain matters decided by the Harmonized System Committee,

CONSIDERING that the limit of two re-examinations would not apply to any matters already under re-examination prior to the entry into force of the amended texts,

On the advice of the Harmonized System Committee,

RECOMMENDS to the Contracting Parties, in accordance with Article 16 of the Convention, to replace Article 8 of the said Convention by the following text:

ARTICLE 8

Role of the Council and re-examination procedure

1. The Council shall examine proposals for amendment of this Convention, prepared by the Harmonized System Committee, and recommend them to the Contracting Parties under the procedure of Article 16 unless any Council Member which is a Contracting Party to this Convention requests that the proposals or any part thereof be referred to the Committee for re-examination.

2. Subject to paragraphs 3 to 6 of this Article, with respect to the Explanatory Notes, Classification Opinions, other advice on the interpretation of the Harmonized System and recommendations to secure uniformity in the interpretation and application of the Harmonized System prepared by the Harmonized System Committee, any Contracting Party to this Convention may enter a request for (i) re-examination of the matter by the Harmonized System Committee or (ii) referral of the matter to the Council. No Contracting Party may request a re-examination by the Harmonized System Committee or a referral to the Council of a matter under this paragraph if the matter has been re-examined two times by the Harmonized System Committee.

3. The Explanatory Notes, Classification Opinions, other advice on the interpretation of the Harmonized System and recommendations to secure uniformity in the interpretation and application of the Harmonized System, prepared during a session of the Harmonized System Committee under the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 7, shall be deemed to be approved by the Council if, as of the end of the second month following the month during which that session was closed, no Contracting Party to this Convention has notified the Secretary General that it enters a request for re-examination by the Harmonized System Committee or referral to the Council in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article.

4. Once a matter has been referred to the Council under the provisions of paragraph 2 of this Article, the Council shall approve such Explanatory Notes, Classification Opinions, other advice or recommendations, unless any Council Member which is a Contracting Party to this Convention requests that they be referred in whole ori n part to the Harmonized System Committee for re-examination.

5. The Harmonized System Committee shall consider a matter in respect of which a request for re-examination has been made at its first session after that matter has been referred to it under paragraphs 2 to 4 of this Article and shall take a decision at the same session unless circumstances require otherwise.

6. Under the provisions of paragraph 2 of this Article, the Harmonized System Committee may re-examine any Explanatory Note, Classification Opinion, other advice on the interpretation of the Harmonized System or Harmonized System related recommendation, no more than two times after it is first prepared by the Harmonized System Committee."