Parties shall accept the determination of the
International Monetary Fund on whether:

15.2.1.1 a party's balance of payments situation justifies short-term restrictions under this Article;

15.2.1.2

15.2.1.3

a party has appropriate economic policies in place to permit the early elimination of such restrictions; and

the balance of payments situation justifies the extension of such restrictions beyond a period one year from the date they were initially instituted.

15.3 No Party shall institute or maintain restrictions under this Article if it maintains controls or exchange restrictions that are not in conformity with Article VIII of the Articles of Agreement of the International Monetary Fund.

Article 16

General Exceptions

16.1 Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to require any Party to furnish any information the disclosure of which it considers contrary to its essential security interests, nor to prevent any Party from taking any action which it considers necessary for the protection of its essential security interests: relating to fissionable materials or materials from which they are derived; relating to the traffic in arms, ammunition and implements or war and to such traffic in services as is carried on directly or indirectly for the purpose of supplying a military establishment; or taken in time of war or other emergency in international relations.

16.2 Subject to the requirement that such measures are not applied in a manner which would constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination between Parties where like conditions prevail, a disguised restriction on international trade in services, or a means of circumvention of the objectives of this agreement, nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to prevent any Party from adopting or enforcing measures: necessary to protect public morals, order or safety, human, animal, or plant life or health; necessary to ensure compliance with measures which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Agreement, including those relating to protection of intellectual property and prevention of fraudulent or deceptive practices; or relating to imposition or enforcement of indirect

taxes.

16.3 Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to prevent any Party from adopting or enforcing measures involving the imposition or enforcement of direct taxes.

Article 17

General Definitions

For the purposes of this Agreement:

17.1 "Activity associated with the provision of a covered service" includes the organization, control, operation, maintenance and disposition of companies, branches, agencies, offices, or other facilities for the conduct of business; the making, performance and enforcement of contracts; the acquisition, use, protection and disposition of property of all kinds including intellectual and industrial property; use of a commercial name of the provider's choice; the borrowing of funds; the purchase and issuance of equity shares, and the movement of information into and within a Party.

17.2 "Company" means any kind of corporation, company, association, or other organization, whether or not organized for pecuniary gain, or privately or governmentally owned.

17.3 "Company of a Party" means a company legally constituted under the laws and regulations of a Party or a political subdivision thereof.

17.4 "Covered service" means a service as defined in Article 2.2.

17.5 A "freely usable currency" is a currency that is so identified by the International Monetary Fund.

17.6 "Local government entity" means a government other than a central government (e.g., states, provinces, Laender, cantons, municipalities, etc.), its ministries or departments or any entity subject to the control of such a government in respect of the activity in question.

17.7 "Measure" includes any law, regulation, procedure, requirement, practice or administrative decision.

17.8 "National" of a Party means an individual who is a citizen of a Party.

17.9 "Payments for current transactions" means payments which are not for the purpose of transferring capital, and includes, without limitation,

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17.9.1

17.9.2

17.9.3

17.9.4

all payments due in connection with foreign trade,
other current business, including the provision of
services and technology, and normal short-term
banking and credit facilities;

payments due as interest on loans and as net
income from other investments;

payments of moderate amount for amortization of
loans or for depreciation of direct investments;
and

moderate remittances for family living expenses. "Person of a Party" means a national of a Party or a company of a Party.

17.10

17.11

"Provision of a covered service" includes, within or into the territory of a Party, the production, distribution, sale, marketing, delivery, or facilitation of a covered service, and the purchase or use thereof; and access to, and use of, domestic distribution systems and services of public telecommunications transport networks2, through:

17.12

17.11.1

17.11.2

17.11.3

establishment for provision of a covered service; through and any activity associated with the provision of a covered service;

cross-border provision of a service; or

provision of a service through the movement of consumers of one country for the purpose of purchasing the service, into the territories of Parties providing the service.

Provision of a service "by a person" also includes provision of a service on behalf of such person, for instance by an agent or legal representative, and provision of services between related persons, such as internal data transfers.

17.13

"Service provider" means a person of a Party which is

engaged in provision of a covered service.

2An Annex defining public telecommunications transport networks and elaborating provisions on access to the services of such networks would be included in the final agreement.

17.14

A "service provider of another Party" in Articles 8, 9 and 10 includes such a person of another Party providing covered services, and additionally persons within the territory of a Party which may or may not be persons of that Party but which are owned or controlled by persons of another Party.

CHAPTER V

(Institutions, competence, and decisionmaking)

Article 18

Committee on Trade in Services

18.1 There shall be established under this Agreement a Committee on Trade in Services (referred to in this Agreement as the "Committee") composed of representatives from each of the Parties. The Committee shall elect its own chairman and shall meet as necessary but not less than once a year for the purpose of affording Parties the opportunity to consuit on any matters relating to the operation of this Agreement or the furtherance of its objectives. The Committee shall have final decision-making authority with regard to the interpretation and application of this Agreement.

The Committee shall:

18.1.1

18.1.2

18.1.3

18.1.4

collect, analyze and publish information relating to international trade in services, in cooperation with other organizations active in this area;

encourage and facilitate consultation among
Members on all questions relating to this
Agreement;

aid the further development of trade in services through facilitation of future negotiations on trade in services; and

carry out such other responsibilities as may be assigned to it by the Parties.

18.2 The Committee may establish working parties, technical expert groups, panels, or other bodies as may be appropriate, which shall carry out such responsibilities as may be assigned to them by the Committee in accordance with the relevant provisions of this Agreement. The Committee may establish its own rules of procedure. The Committee shall review annually the implementation and operation of this Agreement taking into account the objectives thereof.

CHAPTER VI

(Consultations, Settlement of Disputes, and Enforcement)

Article 19

Consultations, Dispute Settlement and Enforcement

19.1 Each Party shall afford sympathetic consideration to, and shall afford adequate opportunity for prompt consultation regarding, representations made by another Party with respect to any matter affecting the operation of this Agreement.

19.2 If any Party considers that any benefit accruing to it directly or indirectly under this Agreement is being nullified or impaired, or that the achievement of any objective of this Agreement is being impeded by another Party, it may with a view to reaching a mutually satisfactory resolution to the matter request in writing consultations with the Party in question, providing an explanation of the reasons for the request. such request shall be notified to the Committee.

Any

[Further provisions under consideration pending consultation with Negotiating Group on Dispute Settlement.]

CHAPTER VI

(Final Provisions)

Article 20

Acceptance and Accession

20.1 This Agreement shall be open for acceptance by signature or otherwise by governments contracting parties to the GATT and by the European Economic Community whose agreed Schedules are annexed to this Agreement.

20.2 Any government contracting party to the GATT which is not a Party to this Agreement may accede to it on terms to be agreed between that government and the Parties. Accession shall take place by the deposit with the Director-General to the CONTRACTING PARTIES to the GATT of an instrument of accession which states the terms so agreed.

20.3 This Agreement shall be open to accession by any other government on terms, related to the effective application of rights and obligations under this Agreement, to be agreed between that government and the Parties, by the deposit with the Director-General to the CONTRACTING PARTIES to the GATT of an instrument of accession which states the terms so agreed.