GENERAL AGREEMENT GATS/SC/92
15April 1994
ONTRADE INSERVICES (94-1090)
VENEZUELA
Schedule ofSpecific Commitments
(This isauthentic inSpanish only)
____________________VENEZUELA -SCHEDULE OFSPECIFIC COMMITMENTS
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
I. HORIZONTAL COMMITMENTS
ALL SECTORS INCLUDED
INTHIS SCHEDULE
-Unbound, except formeasures
affecting theentry andtemporary stay
ofnatural persons inthefollowing
categories:
Sellers ofservices. Natural persons who
represent oneormore suppliers ofservices ofa
party andengage inthepromotion andsaleof
those services inVenezuela, atthewholesale
level. Thiscategory isnotincluded inthecase
ofthefinancial services sector
Administrative staff, managers andexecutives.
Persons whointervene inthedecision making
andpolicy formulation oftheenterprise,
represent itand/or mayreplace itsowner inall
orpartofhisfunctions
Specialists. Persons whohave specialized
knowledge inaspecific area, andareconsidered
essential fordelivery ofaservice
GATS/SC/92
Page1VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page2
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Thefollowing requirements andlimitations apply
totheabove-mentioned categories:
a) Stayofoneyear, renewable, entitling the
holder tomultiple entries during thatperiod
b) Citizens ofaparty willbesubject tothe
restrictions laiddown inthecurrent labour
lawwithwhatever amendments maybe
made infuture. Atpresent theyareas
follows:Unbound, except formeasures affecting the
categories ofnatural persons indicated inthe
column onmarket access
-chiefs ofindustrial relations, chiefs of
personnel, captains ofships oraircraft,
supervisors oranyperson exercising
similar functions must beVenezuelan
nationals
-90% ofthepersonnel ofanenterprise,
whether employees ormanual
workers, must beVenezuelan nationals
-thetotal remuneration paidto
foreigners, including bothmanual
workers andemployees, maynot
exceed 20% ofthetotal remuneration
paidtopersonnel ineither category
TheMinistry ofLabour mayauthorize
temporary exceptions totheabove
provision after having examined a
particular case:VENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
a) Inthecaseofactivities thatrequire special
technical know-how andifthere areno
Venezuelan personnel available
b) Inthecaseofimmigrants entering the
country under contract totheGovernment
c) Inthecaseofsmall andmedium sized
enterprises
- When foreign personnel arerecruited,
preference willbegiven topersons having
children born onVenezuelan territory, or
married toVenezuelans, orwhohave
established their domicile inVenezuela or
whohave thelongest period ofresidence in
thecountry
II. SECTOR-SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS
1. BUSINESS SERVICES
A. Professional services 1) Unbound
2) None1) Unbound
2) None
GATS/SC/92
Page3VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page4
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
a) Legal advisory services
(CPC 861)
b) Accounting andauditing
services
(CPC 8621)
d) Architectural services
(CPC 8671)3) Unbound
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section3) Unbound
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
e) Engineering and
integrated engineering
services
(CPC 8672-8673)
f) Urban planning and
landscape architectural
services
(CPC 8674)
B. Computer andrelated
services
(CPC Division 84)1) None, onlylegal representation required
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) None, onlylegal representation required
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal sectionVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
F. Other business services
a) Advertising services,
planning, saleand
placement ofadvertising
fordisplay invarious
media
(CPC 87120)1) None, onlylegal representation required
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) None, onlylegal representation required
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
b) Market research and
public opinion polling
services
(CPC 864)1) None, onlylegal representation required
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
c) Economic and
management consulting
services
(CPC 865)1) Unbound
2) None
3) Unbound
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) Unbound
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
GATS/SC/92
Page5VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page6
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
h) Services incidental to
mining
(CPC 8675-883-5115)1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
(t) Translation and
interpretation services
(CPC 87905)1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal sectionVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
2. COMMUNICATION
SERVICES
B. Courier services
Private courier services
(CPC 751)1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
C. Telecommunication
servicesTheState hastheexclusive power toestablish andoperate communication systems, andmaygrant licences orconcessions to
natural orlegal persons domiciled inthecountry. Thecriteria forgranting licences orconcessions areofanadministrative and
technical nature
o) Other
Cellular mobile telephone
services
(CPC 75213)1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
GATS/SC/92
Page7VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page8
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Radio based services
(PCN, telepoint)
(CPC 75299)
Satellite services and
systems (CPC 75299)1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
3. CONSTRUCTION AND
ENGINEERING
SERVICES
Construction and
engineering services
include:
architecture, town
planning andlandscaping;
civilengineering;
structures, foundations,
roads; water supply and
hydraulic engineering;
maritime installations;
soilmechanics,
geotechnics, geophysics;1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal sectionVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
petroleum engineering;
mining/mineralogical
engineering; electrical
engineering,
telecommunications;
instruments andcontrol
engineering; mechanical
engineering; metallurgical
engineering;
chemical/process
engineering;
environmental
engineering; industrial
engineering;
Agronomical/forestry
engineering;
systems/computer
engineering; other fields
ofspecialization falling
within theabove headings
(CPC Section 5)
GATS/SC/92
Page9VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page10
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Contracting ofworks and
supply ofservices forthe
national petroleum and
petro-chemical industry.
Petroleum technology 3)
(CPC Section 5)
(CPC 85103-853)1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
7. FINANCIAL SERVICES
Insurance
(CPC 812, excluding
Pension Funds)1) Unbound
2) Unbound1) Unbound
2) Unbound
a) Lifeinsurance services
(81211)
b) Non-life insurance
services
(8129)3) Insurance companies inthecapital ofwhich
foreigners holdashare ofmore than20per
centcannot beauthorized. Must takethe
form ofpublic limited companies3) None, without prejudice tothecontents of
themarket access columnVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists inaccordance withtheoffer
forthepresence ofnatural persons. The
President andatleast three-quarters ofthe
Vice-Presidents, Directors, Managers,
Assistant Managers andtechnical orlegal
consultants ofinsurance companies must be
Venezuelans domiciled inthecountry4) None, without prejudice tothecontents of
themarket access column
Reinsurance 1) Unbound 1) Unbound
2) Thelawrequires national insurance
companies tocede onthedomestic market
atleast 40percentofreinsurance
premiums from their automatic contracts,
andalsotocede tonational companies any
reinsurance surplus thatremains after they
have exhausted their capacity forautomatic
reinsurance2) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
3) Foreign participation inthecapital of
reinsurance companies incorporated in
Venezuela cannot exceed 20percent.
Must taketheform ofpublic limited
company3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
GATS/SC/92
Page11VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page12
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Thelawrequires national insurance
companies tocede onthedomestic market
atleast 40percentofreinsurance
premiums from their automatic contracts,
andalsotocede tonational companies any
reinsurance surplus thatremains after they
have exhausted their capacity forautomatic
reinsurance
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
forthepresence ofnatural persons. The
President andatleast three-quarters ofthe
Vice-Presidents, Directors, Managers,
Assistant Managers andtechnical orlegal
consultants ofreinsurance companies must
beVenezuelans domiciled andresiding in
thecountry4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Insurance. Auxiliary
services, excluding
Pension Funds
(CPC 814)1) Unbound 1) UnboundVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Insurance andreinsurance
brokerage
(CPC 81401)2) Insurance contracts concluded abroad are
voidinVenezuela even ifconcluded by
national enterprises, unless thepremium
hasactually been paidtoanenterprise in
Venezuela, inaccordance withnational
rates, inthefollowing cases:2) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
a) Insurance ofpersons, ifatthetime when
thecontract wassigned theinsured person
wasdomiciled inVenezuela
b) Insurance ongoods located inthenational
territory
c) Insurance onships, aircraft andother
vehicles registered inVenezuela
TheNational Executive maydetermine other
types ofinsurance which must becontracted in
thecountry inorder tobeoperative inVenezuela
GATS/SC/92
Page13VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page14
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
3) Companies ofwhich foreigners holdmore
than20percentofthecapital cannot be
authorized. Norcantheestablishment in
thecountry ofagencies orsubsidiaries of
foreign insurance brokerage firms or
representatives ofagents orbrokers of
foreign insurance companies notdomiciled
orresiding inthecountry. They must take
theform ofpublic limited companies or
private limited-liability companies3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
fornatural persons. ThePresident andat
least three-quarters oftheVice-Presidents,
Directors, Managers, Assistant Managers,
andtechnical andlegal consultants of
insurance andreinsurance brokerage
companies authorized inthecountry must
beVenezuelans domiciled andresiding in
thecountry4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Banks andcredit
institutions
(CPC 81115-81116-
8112-8113-81333-81339)1) Unbound 1) UnboundVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
a) Acceptance ofdeposits
andother repayable funds
from thepublic
(CPC 81115-81116)2) Unbound 2) Unbound
b) Lending ofalltypes,
including inter alia
consumer credit,
mortgage credit, factoring
andfinancing of
commercial transactions
(CPC 8113 excluding
81139)3) New banking institutions cannot be
authorized unless theyare100percent
Venezuelan-owned.* Representative offices
offoreign banks maybeauthorized but
theymaynottapfunds inVenezuela. They
mayonlyactasintermediaries forlending3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
c) Financial leasing with
option topurchase
(CPC 8112)Branches offoreign banks other thanthose
ofLatin American countries aresubject to
operating restrictions andcannot: accept
saving deposits ofresidents, accept deposits
ofpublic entities, issue negotiable
certificates ofdeposit, increase their capital
*Theforeign participation stillretained bynational financial institutions (notmore than20percentofthecapital) maybeceded toother foreign investors,
butifitisreduced itcannot subsequently beraised again.
GATS/SC/92
Page15VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page16
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
d) Payment andmoney
transmission services
(CPC 81339)oroffices, issue bonds ofanykind, issue
capitalization securities andsellforeign
exchange acquired from theCentral Bank
ofVenezuela. They cannot have callable
liabilities inexcess offourteen times their
networth
e) Guarantees
(CPC 81339)
f) Foreign exchange
operations
(CPC 81333)
g) New operations and
services*4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
forthepresence ofnatural persons. The
President andthree-quarters oftheVice-
Presidents, Directors, Managers,
Secretaries andother executives ofbanks
andcredit institutions must beVenezuelans
residing inthecountry**4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Foreign exchange houses
(CPC 81333)1) Unbound 1) Unbound
*Inthecaseofnewservices oroperations, thesemustbecompatible withthenature ofthebankinquestion, withthelimitations established bytheNational
Executive, afterreceiving theopinion oftheCentral Bank ofVenezuela.
**Thisprovision doesnotapply tobranch offices ofbanks currently operating inVenezuela.VENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Buying andselling of
foreign bank notes and
travellers cheques from
ortothepublic2) Unbound
3) Only Venezuelan-owned enterprises maybe
authorized
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
onthepresence ofnatural persons2) Unbound
3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Capital markets 1) Unbound 1) Unbound
Mutual funds
(CPC 81191)2) None
3) Must taketheform ofpublic limited
companies. Must invest their funds
exclusively inlawful securities2) None
3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
onthepresence ofnatural persons4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
GATS/SC/92
Page17VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page18
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
Mutual fund management
companies
(CPC 81319)1) Unbound
2) Unbound1) Unbound
2) Unbound
3) Must taketheform ofpublic limited
companies. Mutual fund management
companies maynotsimultaneously provide
services tomore thanonemutual fund
when theinvestment goals andsales plans
areofthesame type, intheopinion ofthe
National Securities Commission.
Iftheyareadministered byother
companies, mutual funds established in
Venezuela must bemanaged bya
management company likewise constituted
inVenezuela forthatpurpose3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
onthepresence ofnatural persons4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Investment advisory
services
(CPC 81332)1) Unbound
2) None1) Unbound
2) NoneVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
3) Inthecaseofadvisory services relating to
investment inforeign securities orfor
acting asacontact withforeign brokers or
representing them, such authorization
depends onthecountry 'seconomic and
financial situation intheopinion ofthe
Commission
TheNational Securities Commission may
revoke orcancel authorizations relating to
advisory services forinvestment inforeign
securities orforacting asacontact with
brokers abroad orrepresenting them when
initsopinion thecountry 'seconomic and
financial conditions areunsuitable forsuch
activities3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
onthepresence ofnatural persons4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Securities brokerage
(CPC 81321, 81323)1) Unbound
2) None1) Unbound
2) None
GATS/SC/92
Page19VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page20
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
3) Authorization ofthepublic offering of
foreign securities inVenezuela depends on
whether thisisinthenational interest, with
theprior assent oftheNational Executive
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
onthepresence ofnatural persons.
Administrators ofabrokerage house must
beresident inthecountry3) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
Banks andcredit
institutions, insurance and
capital market
Provision andtransfer of
financial information, and
financial dataprocessing
andrelated software by
providers ofother
financial services
(sub-paragraph (o)ofthe
Annex onFinancial
Services)1) None*
2) None*
3) None*
4) Unbound, except formanagers, executives
andspecialists, inaccordance withtheoffer
onthepresence ofnatural persons1) None*
2) None*
3) None*
4) None, without prejudice tothecontent of
themarket access column
*Without prejudice totherightofVenezuela toprotect personal information, privacy andtheconfidential nature ofpersonal records andaccounts.VENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
9. TOURISM AND
TRAVEL RELATED
SERVICES
A. Hotel andresort
operators, including
restaurants
(CPC 641-642)1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Preference given tograduates of
Venezuelan tourism institutes. Unbound,
except asindicated inthehorizontal section1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
B. Travel agencies,
wholesale tourism
services
(CPC 6471)1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Preference given tograduates of
Venezuelan tourism institutes. Unbound,
except asindicated inthehorizontal section1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
GATS/SC/92
Page21VENEZUELA (continued)GATS/SC/92
Page22
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
D. Other
l) Holiday camps
(CPC 6419)1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Preference given tograduates of
Venezuelan tourism institutes. Unbound,
except asindicated inthehorizontal section1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal section. Only foreigners who
have been resident inVenezuela foran
uninterrupted period ofmore thanfive
years mayownandoperate tourist camps
2) Auxiliary tourism
enterprises
(CPC 83101-951-963-
964-9701-9702)1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Preference given tograduates of
Venezuelan tourism institutes. Unbound,
except asindicated inthehorizontal section1) None
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound, except asindicated inthe
horizontal sectionVENEZUELA (continued)
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orsubsector Limitations onmarket access Limitations onnational treatment Additional commitments
11. TRANSPORT
SERVICES
A. Maritime transport
services
b) Freight transportation
(CPC 7212)1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
H. Auxiliary transport
services (maritime
transport only)
a) Cargo handling services
(CPC 741)
b) Storage andwarehouse
services
(CPC 742)1) Unbound*
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section1) Unbound*
2) None
3) None
4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal section
*Unbound duetolackoftechnical feasibility.
GATS/SC/92
Page23