WORLD TRADE WT/INF/4
25July1996
ORGANIZATION(96-2966)
DERESTRICTION OFDOCUMENTS
Atitsmeeting on18July1996, theGeneral Council adopted aDecision onProcedures for
theCirculationandDerestrictionofWTODocuments(WT/L/160).Paragraph1oftheDecisionprovides
asfollows: "Documents circulated afterthedateofentry intoforce oftheMarrakesh Agreement
Establishing theWorld Trade Organization (hereinafter referred toas"WTO Agreement") inanyWTO
document series shallbecirculated asunrestricted withtheexception ofdocuments specified inthe
attached Appendix, which shallbecirculated asrestricted andsubject toderestriction, orconsideration
thereof, asprovided. Notwithstanding theexceptions specified intheAppendix, anydocument that
contains onlyinformation thatispublicly available orinformation thatisrequired tobepublished under
anyagreement inAnnex 1,2or3oftheWTO Agreement shallbecirculated onanunrestricted basis."
Accordingly, allcurrently restricted documents circulated since 1January 1995 which would
otherwise havebeencirculated asunrestricted inpursuance oftheabove procedures, aretobeconsidered
unrestricted asof18July. TheSecretariat willshortly circulate alistofsuchdocuments inorder to
clarify theirtreatment. Itwillalsosubsequently circulate alistofother documents remaining restricted
which areeligible forconsideration forderestriction inaccordance withtheabove procedures.