. /.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SCM/Q3/LCA/4
19 April 2002
(02-2214)
Committee on Subsidies
and Countervailing MeasuresOriginal:  English
SUBSIDIES
Requests Pursuant to Article 27.4 of the Agreement
on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures
Questions Posed by the UNITED STATES
Regarding the Notification of ST. LUCIA1
The following communication, dated 17 April 2002, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of the United States.
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The following questions are submitted with respect to the request for extension of the
transition period for export subsidies under Article 27.4 of the Agreement on Subsidies andCountervailing Measures Agreement (ASCM).  Thes e questions are preliminary in nature and are
submitted without prejudice to our final position.  We reserve the right to ask further questions.
Fiscal Incentives Act No. 15 of 1974
Micro and Small Scale Business Enterprises Act
Free Zone Act
1. Because the benefits under these programmes can be for extended periods of time, please
explain how St. Lucia w ould modify these programmes so that subsidies do not extend beyond any
extension period provided.
2. Please provide the customs duty and internal tax rates companies would normally pay absent
these programmes.
3. Please provide additional explanation regarding the Special Income Tax Concessions and tax
credits in accordance with the number of nationals employed on a continuous basis under the Free
Zone Act.  How are these incentives determined and provided?
4. Could St. Lucia please explain whether any subsidies under these programmes are contingent
upon the use of domestic goods?  In particular, in light of the local value-added requirements of the
Fiscal Incentive Act, please comment on whether this aspect of the programme constitutes a
prohibited subsidy under Article 3.1(b) of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures.
5. Are the benefits provided under the Micro and Small Scale Business Enterprises Act
contingent upon export performance?
                                                     
1 G/SCM/N/74/LCA, G/SCM/N/71/LCAG/SCM/Q3/LCA/4
Page 2
6. Could St. Lucia please explain whether it maintains any statistical information on the number
of companies located in Free Zones, the industries represented by these companies, and the value and
volume of exports from the Free Zone? If so, please provide that information.
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