RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE G/SCM/Q2/BRN/1
20March 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-1167)
Original: English Committee onSubsidies andCountervailing Measures
SUBSIDIES
Questions from theEUROPEAN COMMUNITY Regarding theNew
andFullNotification ofBRUNEI DARUSSALAM1
Thefollowing communication, dated 12March 1997, hasbeenreceived fromthePermanent
Delegation oftheEuropean Community.
_______________
Brunei Darussalam submitted on14November 1996totheWTO thatitmaintained nosubsidies
which require notification pursuant toArticle XVI:1 GATT 1994andArticle 25oftheWTO Subsidies
Agreement.
Inthisrespect, theEuropean Community hasobtained information ondifferent subsidy schemes
which were notnotified totheWTO although theirnotification appears toberequired pursuant to
Article 25.2oftheSubsidies Agreement.
SUBSIDY PROGRAMMES NOT NOTIFIED TOTHE WTO
A. TheInvestment Incentives Act
ThisAct,which isadministered bytheEconomic Development Board offers incentives inthe
form oftaxexemptions. Inthisrespect, three programmes areavailable:
- Pioneer Status
Acompany which hasbeengranted aPioneer Certificate iseligible forexemption from
corporate tax,taxes onimported capital goods andtaxes onimported rawmaterials.
- Expansion ofEstablished Enterprises
TheEconomic Development Board maydeclare anindustry tobeanapproved industry
ifthemanufacture oftheproduct isofeconomic benefit toBrunei. These companies
areeligible fortaxincentives.
- Incentives forforeign loans
TheBoard maygrant taxexemptions forany"approved foreign loan".
1G/SCM/N/3/BRN-G/SCM/N/16/BRN.
./.G/SCM/Q2/BRN/1
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B. Subsidies provided bytheBrunei Investment Agency
TheCommunity would likethefollowing clarifications regarding these schemes:
- CouldBruneiDarussalamexplainwhytheseprogrammeswerenotnotifiedtotheWTO?
- Could Brunei Darussalam supply anotification under Article 25,using thestandard
format?
- Could Brunei Darussalam clarify whatthecriteria foreligibility are?