THE COMMISSION OF THE CARTAGENA AGREEMENT,

HAVING SEEN:

Chapter XI of the Cartagena Agreement, Commission Decision 289, and Board Proposal 292/Amend. 1;

WHEREAS:

International passenger transportation by road is one of the effective instruments for consolidating the subregional economic space and accomplishing the objectives of the Cartagena Agreement;

As of the entry into effect of Decision 289, international passenger transportation by road has become developed and specialized, undergoing changes in standards of organization and operation that make it worthwhile to modernize its regulatory framework;

The increase in demand for this service calls for rules and regulations that will ensure its efficiency by determining clearly and precisely the contract conditions and the responsibilities of both carrier and user;

DECIDES:

CHAPTER I

DEFINITIONS

Article 1.- The following definitions shall be used for the application of this Decision and other Community provisions regulating international passenger transportation by road between the countries of the Cartagena Agreement:

Border Crossing Customhouse is that located at the border crossings authorized by the Member Countries, which is involved in controlling international passenger transportation by road.

Sphere of Operation is the territories of the Member Countries through which the carrier has been authorized to provide international passenger transportation by road.

International Travel Ticket, hereinafter "travel ticket", is the document issued by the authorized carrier in the name of an individual, through which the carrier commits itself to transport that person, on being paid a fare, from one city or locality to another on its itinerary, located in different Member Countries.

National Border Service Center (CENAF) or Binational Border Service Center (CEBAF) are the facilities located next to the authorized border crossings, with their necessary installations and equipment, where the national authorities congregate that control transportation, traffic, customs, immigration, health and other operations relating to the access of persons, vehicles and merchandise when they enter or leave the territory of a Member Country and where complementary facilitation services for those operations and user services are also offered.

Certificate of approval is the document that certifies that a bus is approved to provide international passenger transportation by road.

Closed Circuit is the transportation of an organized group of persons by an authorized carrier in approved vehicles, with an established itinerary that crosses two or more Member Countries and predetermined cities of departure and arrival located in the same country where the transportation starts.

Border Crossing is the crossing over their common border authorized by the Member Countries for the movement of persons, merchandise and vehicles.

Luggage is the clothing and items for the passengers' personal use, together with the articles needed for their art, profession or trade, whether carried in suitcases, packed in any other way or out in the open.

Equipment is the spare parts, tools, replacements, implements and accessories needed for the normal operation of the approved vehicles in international passenger transportation by road.

Frequency is each one-way trip assigned to the authorized carrier on a specified route.

Fleet is the group of approved and registered vehicles available to the authorized carrier for providing the service of international passenger transportation by road.

Approval is the administrative act through which the competent national authority rates a bus as being fit to provide international passenger transportation service by road.

Schedule is the established day and time for the departure of an approved vehicle starting an international passenger transportation service by road.

Itinerary is the sequential description of the cities or localities on the route between the origin and destination of the service, where the authorized carrier can collect and drop off passengers and parcels on an international trip.

Land Crew Card is the document issued by the national immigration authority of the Member Country of which the crew member is a national or which granted him/her a resident's visa. It is issued in the name of the individual and at the request of an authorized carrier and allows its bearer to enter, pass through in transit, stay in and leave the territories of the Member Countries as part of the crew of an approved vehicle in an international passenger transportation by road operation.

Passenger List is the document issued by the authorized carrier to be handed over to the immigration authorities, which contains information about the transportation company, approved vehicle, passengers and crew, as well as the origin and destination of the trip.

International passenger transportation by road operation, hereinafter "transportation operation", is the series of services rendered by the authorized carrier to the passenger and the activities it performs along the route, from the moment when the passengers board the bus to start the journey to the moment when they get off at their destination.

Competent National Authority is the regulatory governmental agency responsible for road transportation in each of the Member Countries, as well as for the comprehensive implementation of this Decision and its complementary provisions. The authorities are the following:

The national customs and immigration authorities are:

Country of Origin is the Member Country where the carrier was incorporated and has its company headquarters.

Passenger is the individual who is the user of the international transportation service and bearer of a travel ticket issued in his/her name.

Original Service Permit is the document accrediting that the carrier has been authorized by the competent national authority of its country of origin to provide international passenger transportation by road once it has obtained the corresponding complementary service permit.

Complementary Service Permit is the document granted to a carrier that possesses an original service permit, accrediting the authorization given to it by the competent national authority of a Member Country other than its country of origin, to provide international passenger transportation by road to or from its territory or through it.

Registration is the inscription by the competent national transportation authorities or the annotation by national customs authorities, of each of the approved vehicles to be used in the international transportation, for the purpose of exercising the corresponding control.

Route is the course to be covered, from the origin to the destination, by the approved vehicle in an international transportation operation.

Andean Road System is the main, interregional and complementary roads defined and identified as such through a Decision of the Cartagena Agreement.

Established Trip is the route and itinerary between the origin and destination that is assigned to the carrier for providing the international transportation service.

Passage in transit is the movement of the approved vehicle and its crew through the territories of the Member Countries while providing international transportation or as a result of it.

International Passenger Transportation by Road, hereinafter "international transportation", is the transportation of persons which, in reliance on travel tickets and a passenger list, the authorized carrier provides in approved vehicles, from a city of origin to a city of destination, located in different Member Countries, in accordance with the established routes, frequencies and itinerary.

Authorized Carrier is the company whose purpose it is to transport passengers by road, incorporated in one of the Member Countries in accordance with the pertinent national provisions for business associations or cooperatives, and which holds an original service permit and one or more complementary service permits.

Crew are the persons employed by the authorized carrier who are needed to drive the approved vehicle and serve the passengers.

Approved vehicle is the bus to which the competent national authority has granted a certificate of approval.

CHAPTER II

BASIC PRINCIPLES

Article 2.- This Decision establishes the conditions for providing the service of international passenger transportation by road among the Member Countries of the Cartagena Agreement, in order to liberalize the supply of that service.

Article 3.- The supply and provision of the international transportation service is grounded in the following basic principles: freedom of operation; access to the market; national treatment; transparency; non-discrimination; equality of legal treatment; free competition and most-favored-nation.

Article 4.- The Member Countries agree to homologize the authorizations and transportation documents and to eliminate all restrictive measures that affect or that may affect international transportation operations.

CHAPTER III

ON THE SCOPE OF APPLICATION

Article 5.- Such international passenger transportation by road as is carried out between Member Countries of the Cartagena Agreement or through their territories, shall be governed by this Decision and its complementary provisions.

This legislation is also applicable when the approved vehicle must be transported over a given segment and without transferring the passengers, through another means of transportation, be it by sea, river, lake or land, whose use is necessary in order to be able to continue the international transportation operation.

Article 6.- The provisions of this Decision, as well as the complementary regulations, are applicable also when the crew and the approved and registered vehicles are moved without passengers from one Member Country to another in order to start or continue an international transportation operation, or to return to their country of origin after having concluded it.

Article 7.- The established trips for international passenger transportation by road are the following:

a) Between cities of two bordering Member Countries;

b) Between cities of two Member Countries with passage in transit through one or more Member Countries; and

c) Between cities of two or more Member Countries.

Article 8.- During the international transportation, authorized carriers may collect and drop off passengers whose origin and destination are cities or localities on the itinerary, located in different Member Countries.

The authorized carrier, in order to be able to collect or drop off international passengers in Member Countries other than that of its origin, must first obtain a complementary service permit in those countries.

The provisions of this article are applicable to the transportation of postal packages and parcels.

Article 9.- The international transportation provided by carriers from third countries through the territories of one or more Member Countries, shall be regulated by the national legislation of each of the Member Countries through which they pass in transit or by the provisions of international agreements in force.

Article 10.- The international transportation shall be provided over the routes and in keeping with the frequencies and itineraries coordinated by the competent international authorities and assigned by them.

The routes that make up the Andean Road System and the authorized border crossings, as well as such routes or border crossings as the Member Countries may authorize, shall be used in coordinating and assigning routes.

Article 11.- When two or more Member Countries agree to authorize new routes or border crossings for international transportation among them, those routes or border crossings shall be utilized by the authorized carriers of the other Member Countries.

Article 12.- The original and the complementary service permits and certificate of approval do not grant the authorized carrier the right to provide local passenger transportation by road in the Member Countries.

Article 13.- Authorized carriers, on a complementary basis, may engage in the international transportation of postal packages and parcels. This service shall be provided only in approved and registered vehicles.

Article 14.- In order for the authorized carrier to provide the service of international passenger transportation by road, it shall not be necessary for the Member Country of passage in transit or destination on the established trips it intends to offer, to have authorized a company from its country to offer the same established trip or another whose destination or through which it will pass in transit is the carrier's country of origin.

The fact that an authorized carrier from the other Member Country involved in that established trip has not yet started operating or has suspended its operations may not be used to determine the launching of the transportation service or to impede its provision.

Article 15.- The stipulations of this Decision are not applicable to border transportation, which shall be governed by such provisions as the bordering Member Countries may agree upon.

Article 16.- The Member Countries, in their respective territories, grant the authorized carriers to which they have issued complementary service permits, the right to open offices and branches, as well as to offer and provide international transportation service.

Article 17.- The Member Countries, in their respective territories, shall grant approved and registered vehicles freedom of passage in transit for purposes of international transportation.

Article 18.- An authorized carrier having obtained a complementary service permit shall enjoy, in the Member Country that issued that permit, treatment that is no less favorable than that which, in similar circumstances, is given to authorized carriers from that country.

Article 19.- The Member Countries shall give authorized carriers to which they have issued complementary service permits, treatment that is no less favorable than that which, in similar circumstances, they grant to carriers from third countries.

Without prejudice to the stipulation of the previous paragraph, bordering Member Countries may grant each other's carriers special terms, in order to facilitate passage in transit and transportation operations locally, so long as these are limited to the demarcated contiguous border zone.

Article 20.- Any Member Country that adopts a measure affecting international transportation in regard to the movement of approved vehicles and crews, shall immediately report it to the other Member Countries and to the Board of the Cartagena Agreement.

This same procedure shall be followed for the signing, adherence to or ratification, as well as the denunciation, of bilateral or multilateral agreements or conventions relating to international passenger transportation by road, signed with another Member Country or third countries

CHAPTER IV

ON THE CONDITIONS FOR THE TRANSPORTATION

Article 21.- Only a carrier that possesses the authorizations established in this Decision may offer international passenger transportation by road.

By the same token, that carrier, in providing the service, may not receive treatment that is different because its form of business organization is not the same.

Article 22.- A carrier interested in providing international transportation must obtain an original service permit and a complementary service permit.

It must also secure a certificate of approval and register each one of the buses belonging to its fleet.

The international transportation service shall be provided only upon fulfillment of the requirements set out in this chapter.

Article 23.- In order to be able to apply for an original and a complementary service permit, the carrier must be incorporated in any of the Member Countries of the Cartagena Agreement.

The company shall be governed by the legislation of the Member Country where it is incorporated and by the Community provisions for Andean multinational enterprises.

The establishment of offices or branches shall be regulated by the legislation of the Member Country where they are set up.

Article 24.- The authorized carrier shall maintain a fleet of at least three approved vehicles in operation. The competent national authority that issues the original service permit may require a larger number of buses in light of the routes, frequencies and distances to be covered.

Article 25.- International passenger transportation by road shall be carried out as a direct transportation operation.

Only for duly justified reasons of force majeure or an act of God may the authorized carrier transfer the passengers and their luggage, as well as the postal packages and parcels it is transporting, from one vehicle to another.

Transportation over national segments is not considered international passenger transportation by road.

Article 26.- All international passengers, during the transportation, shall bear travel tickets and their names shall be on the passenger list. That list will be handed over to the immigration officials at the authorized border crossings, on entering and leaving each one of the Member Countries of origin, passage in transit, and destination of the transportation.

Article 27.- The drivers' licenses issued by a Member Country and used by drivers in the international transportation, shall be recognized as valid in the other Member Countries through which they pass in transit.

The license category shall correspond to the classification of the approved vehicle being driven.

Article 28.- Licenses belonging to the drivers of approved vehicles, when these are providing international transportation service, may not be retained in the case of traffic violations that are punishable by fine alone.

Article 29.- The authorized carrier and its legal representative in each of the Member Countries within its sphere of operation, are jointly and severally liable for the payment of any fines imposed on the drivers of the company's approved vehicles for traffic violations committed during the international transportation service.

Article 30.- The passage in transit of approved vehicles shall be regulated by automotive vehicle traffic regulations in effect in the Member Country through which they pass.

Article 31.- The identification used by a Member Country for the vehicles registered in that country (license plates or other specific means of identification) that is employed on the approved vehicles, shall be recognized as valid in the other Member Countries through which those vehicles pass in transit.

The Member Countries shall not demand that the approved vehicle that passes through their territories in transit while providing international transportation service or as a result of it, use special or additional identification to that indicated in the previous paragraph.

Article 32.- The insurance policy referred to in articles 50d) and 51d) of this Decision shall be submitted to the respective competent national authority before the service may be started.

The authorized carrier may not provide international transportation service if its civil liability and passenger casualty insurance policy has expired.

Article 33.- The authorized carrier, in the cities of origin, shall have on hand at all times the itineraries and destinations of its assigned routes, with identification of the public or private facilities available for passenger service and the dispatch and reception of the approved vehicles.

Before starting operations, it shall also report the addresses of those facilities located in their respective countries, to the competent national authorities that issued it the original and the complementary service permits.

Article 34.- Before starting the service, the authorized carrier shall establish the schedule of each frequency and report it to the respective competent national authority that issued it the original or the complementary service permit. Compliance with the set starting date and time of the established trip is mandatory.

Any change shall be reported to the respective competent national authority before it is implemented.

Article 35.- Authorized carriers may, within their assigned frequencies, dispatch as many vehicles as needed to cover the demand for the service.

Article 36.- The international transportation may be suspended by:

a) Court order;

b) Order of the competent national authority as a result of an administrative proceeding; or

c) Decision of the authorized carrier

In the case of item c), the competent national authority shall be notified at least fifteen calendar days before its implementation.

The stipulation of the preceding paragraph is applicable also to the transportation of postal packages and parcels.

The suspension of the passenger transportation service at the carrier's decision may not last longer than ninety calendar days, except in duly justified cases of force majeure or acts of God.

Article 37.- Failure to reinitiate the passenger transportation service at the expiration of the cited period or that granted by the authority in the case of force majeure or an act of God, shall be considered its abandonment.

Article 38.- For tax purposes, the pertinent provisions for avoiding double taxation among the Member Countries, provided for in the legislation of the Cartagena Agreement, shall be applied to the international transportation.  

CHAPTER V

ON THE TRANSPORTATION AUTHORIZATIONS

Article 39.- The national authority of each country that is responsible for road transportation is the competent entity for issuing to the carriers the original and the complementary service permits, as well as the certificate of approval for the vehicles comprising their fleet.

Article 40.- The original and the complementary service permits shall be granted by administrative resolution of the competent national authority, and shall be issued in keeping with the legal procedures and provisions of the respective Member Country.

Article 41.- The original service permit shall be granted by the competent national authority of the carrier's country of origin.

The complementary service permits shall be issued by the competent national authority of each of the Member Countries in the carrier's sphere of operation where it intends to operate.

Article 42.- The original and the complementary service permits shall each have two annexes containing information about the approved vehicles, the sphere of operation and the service routes, frequencies and itineraries.

Article 43.- The frequencies, as well as the routes and itineraries for the authorized carriers' service shall be decided and coordinated bilaterally or multilaterally among the competent national authorities. In the event that they fail to reach an agreement, the mediation of the Andean Committee of Land Transportation Authorities may be requested.

Article 44.- It is up to the competent national authority of the carrier's country of origin to assign its routes, frequencies and itineraries in each of the Member Countries within its sphere of operation and for each established trip.

The pertinent annex of the original service permit will record the assignment, which shall be reported to the competent national authorities of the Member Countries where the carrier will be providing the service.

Article 45.- The Member Country that is informed by the competent national authority, of the assignment of routes, frequencies and itineraries, shall allow for the service to be provided in keeping with the assignment referred to in article 44, unless it has a sound objection to it.

Article 46.- The routes and frequencies should be assigned on the basis of objective criteria, such as the company's real capacity to provide service on the routes and with the frequencies requested and transparently.

In any case, that assignment shall not favor monopolies, oligopolies or market domination.

Article 47.- The routes and itineraries assigned by the Member Country issuing the permit, together with the authorized frequencies, shall be recorded in the respective annex of the complementary service permit.

Article 48.- The original service permit shall be accepted by the Member Countries where complementary service permits are requested, as proof that the carrier is qualified to provide international transportation service.

Article 49.- The original and the complementary service permits are non transferable. As a result, the international transportation service may not be provided by a person other than that cited in those permits.

Article 50.- The carrier shall submit a written application for the original service permit, attaching the following documents and information:

a) Copy of the company's incorporation documentation and by-laws if they exist, with the respective record of their registration; in their absence, the incorporation certificate issued by the competent authority, stating the corporate purpose, reforms, owner's equity, and duration;

b) Copy of the appointment of the company's legal representative or, in its absence, a certificate of that appointment issued by the competent authority;

c) Full address of the company's headquarters;

d) Letter of commitment to take out the Andean Civil Liability Insurance Policy for the International Road Carrier with its Additional Crew Accident Policy. If the crew carries another kind of insurance covering injury, the carrier is not obliged to take out the additional policy, provided that the risk coverage and insured sums are equal to or larger than those established by the Andean Policy;

e) Sphere of operation, indicating the Member Countries in whose territories it intends to operate, including its country of origin;

f) Service routes, itineraries and frequencies in each Member Country within its sphere of operation and for each established trip to be offered; and

g) List and identification of the vehicles whose approval and registration it requests. It shall stipulate which vehicles belong to the company and which have been leased. The documents and information requested in article 78 shall be attached thereto.

Article 51.- The carrier shall submit a written application for the complementary service permit, to which it shall attach the following documents and information:

a) Copy of the original service permit and its annexes;

b) Copy of the notarial power of attorney indicating the appointment of the legal representative, with full power to represent the company in all administrative, commercial and legal acts in which it shall be involved in the Member Country where it is applying for a permit;

c) Full address of the company's legal representative in that Member Country;

d) Letter of commitment to take out the Andean Civil Liability Insurance Policy for the International Road Carrier and Additional Crew Injury Policy;

e) Service routes, itineraries and frequencies in the Member Country where it is applying for the permit and for each established trip to be offered; and

f) List and identification of the approved vehicles with which it shall operate in that Member Country and for whose registration it is applying. It shall indicate which vehicles belong to the company and which have been leased.

In the case of item f), the carrier is not obliged to present the documents or provide the information stipulated in article 78.

Article 52.- The application referred to in articles 50 and 51 shall be signed by the company's legal representative in the Member Country where the permit is being requested.

Article 53.- The competent national authority of the respective Member Country, before granting the original service permit, shall evaluate the carrier's work record and capacity.

Article 54.- The competent national authority shall have a period of thirty calendar days in which to issue and deliver to the carrier the original or the complementary service permit.

The period indicated in the previous paragraph shall run as of the date of presentation of the application, together with all of the documents and information required in articles 50 and 51, as applicable.

If the documents and information presented are incomplete or faulty, the company shall be asked to complete or rectify them; in that case, the period shall begin on the day when the requirements have been fulfilled.

Article 55.- The carrier shall request the complementary service permit or permits within ninety calendar days after the date of issue of the original service permit; if it fails to do so, the competent national authority that granted the original permit shall annul it.

The original service permit shall also be annulled if, within that same period computed as of the date of issue of the complementary permit, the authorized carrier does not start operating or, if having started its services, it interrupts them for an equal length of time, save as provided for in article 36.

Article 56.- The original service permit is valid for five years. The period of validity of the complementary service permit is subject to that of the original permit.

The term of both permits shall be extended automatically for like periods of time upon expiration, provided that the competent national authority that granted them has not issued a final Resolution suspending or annulling the permits.

Article 57.- The extension of the validity of the original and the complementary service permits shall be stated on the back of those documents.

Article 58.- If a projected service trip involves passing, between its origin and destination, through one or more Member Countries that have not granted the authorized carrier complementary service permits, those countries shall allow the approved vehicles that are providing the international transportation service to pass in transit through their territories.

In this case, the authorities having granted the original and the complementary service permits shall report this fact, by letter or facsimile, to the competent national authority of the Member Country or Countries through which the vehicles pass in transit.

That communication shall indicate the company's name, the kind of permit issued, the date of its issue, the routes, frequencies and itinerary assigned for each established trip, and the list of approved vehicles.

Article 59.- The competent national authority that has been notified pursuant to the previous article, shall proceed to register the approved vehicles and request their registration by the customs authorities of its country.

Article 60.- With the fulfillment of the stipulations of articles 58 and 59, the Member Countries through which they pass in transit shall permit the approved vehicles to move freely through their territories.

Article 61.- When passing in transit through a Member Country under the circumstances envisaged in article 58, vehicles are authorized to make technical stops only, such as for mechanical repairs, fuel replenishment, food provisioning, and overnight stays by passengers and crew. In that case, passengers may not be collected or dropped off and postal packages and parcels may not be picked up or delivered.

Article 62.- The authorized carrier may, at any moment, request from the competent national authority of its country of origin, a change in its sphere of operation, as well as its assigned routes, frequencies or itineraries.

Article 63.- If any amendments or changes are made in the company's partnership contract or by-laws which alter the text of the original or the complementary service permits, the authorized carrier shall request that those permits be modified accordingly.

Article 64.- The original and the complementary service permits may be suspended or annulled by the competent national authorities that granted them. The suspension or annulment shall be accomplished through an administrative resolution that shall be issued in accordance with the national legal procedures and provisions of the respective Member Country.

The resolution shall state the causes for the action to be taken and the authorized carrier shall be notified thereof.

Article 65.- The authorized carrier, with the prior specific consent of the competent national authority, may occasionally provide closed circuit international passenger transportation in approved vehicles.

The competent national authority that authorized closed circuit international passenger transportation shall inform the competent national authority of the other Member Country involved in the established trip, by letter or facsimile, about the authorization granted and shall indicate the name of the authorized carrier, the list of crew members, the starting and ending dates of the established trip, the authorized route, the cities and places to be visited, and the characteristics of each approved vehicle.

The mere fact of communicating the information stipulated in this article is sufficient for the respective Member Country to permit the vehicle's circulation and the provision of the service.

CHAPTER VI

ON THE CREW

Article 66.- In each approved vehicle used for the international transportation, the authorized carrier shall employ a main and auxiliary drivers and such other persons as it deems necessary to serve the passengers in order to ensure adequate service.

The drivers shall have their drivers' licenses with them at all times and these must be valid.

Article 67.- The main driver is responsible for the correct provision of the international transportation, the care and good use of the certificate of approval and the list of passengers, and for keeping order, the protection and care of the passengers and other crew members inside the bus and the safety of the luggage and postal parcels being carried.

He also represents the authorized carrier before the controlling authorities along the route.

Article 68.- The drivers of the approved vehicles shall comply with the land transportation provisions in effect in the Member Countries in whose territory they circulate.

Article 69.- The crews of the approved vehicles may not perform in any Member Country other than that of which they are citizens or in which they reside, any paid activity other than the transportation in which they are engaged.

Violation of this provision shall be punished according to the law of the Member Country where it occurs.

Article 70.- The drivers and other crew members must be trained in traffic and land transportation, road safety and other matters that are essential for the provision of efficient and safe service.

The authorized carriers shall prepare and carry out ongoing training programs for the crew.

Article 71.- The Member Countries shall adopt mechanisms for monitoring and evaluating the training programs.

Article 72.- Authorized carriers shall cover the expense of returning the crews of their approved vehicles when they must leave a country after having completed the transportation. They shall also cover such expenses if crew members are unable to continue the trip because they fail to comply with national legislation.

CHAPTER VII

ON VEHICLE APPROVAL

Article 73.- The international transportation shall be carried out in approved vehicles (buses), which shall be registered with the competent national transportation and customs authorities of the Member Countries through whose territories they will pass in transit or where they will provide the service.

Article 74.- Buses owned or leased by the carrier, which are registered in the carrier's country of origin or in another Member Country, may be approved.

The leasing contract may be signed in a Member Country or in a third country.

Article 75.- For each approved vehicle, a certificate of approval shall be issued at the carrier's request by the competent national authority of the Member Country that granted the original service permit.

Article 76.- Leased vehicles that come from a third country and that are to be used for the international transportation shall be admitted into the country under a temporary importation regime for the period of time stipulated in the respective contract.

Article 77.- The approval and registration of the buses shall be applied for at the same time as the original service permit.

The authorized carrier may also, at any time, request the approval of new vehicles, as well as the modification of the characteristics indicated in article 78b).

Article 78.- In applying for the approval of the buses, the carrier shall append the following documents and information to its request:

a) Copy of the vehicle registration or of the vehicle ownership registration for each vehicle; and

b) Characteristics of each vehicle: license plate number, make, year of manufacture, chassis number or series, number of axles, kind of vehicle, number of seats and external dimensions.

When applying for the approval of a leased bus, a copy of the respective leasing contract shall be attached.

Article 79.- In order for buses to obtain approval, they must meet the standards contained in the Technical Regulations on the Limitations on Weight, Type and Dimension of Vehicles for International Road Transportation and their corresponding annex.

Article 80.- Only buses less than seven years old may be approved and used for international transportation.

Article 81.- The certificate of approval shall be valid for five years. If the leasing contract expires or the age limit stipulated in article 80 is reached in less than five years' time, the period of validity of the certificate of approval shall be established accordingly.

Article 82.- The competent national authority shall issue and deliver the bus certificates of approval, together with the original service permit.

When new vehicles are to be approved, this shall be accomplished within a period of eight calendar days after the date of presentation of the application accompanied by the respective documents and information.

Article 83.- Vehicles approved by a Member Country shall be recognized by the other countries as suitable for international passenger transportation by road.

Article 84.- In order to apply for registration of the approved vehicles in Member Countries other than the carrier's country of origin, it is necessary to attach a copy of the original service permit and its respective annex.

Article 85.- The competent national authority that registers the approved vehicles shall communicate this fact to the customs authority of its country, requesting their registration also.

Article 86.- The national transportation and customs authorities shall have periods of two and four working days, respectively, in which to register the approved vehicles.

Article 87.- Vehicles shall bear their respective certificates of approval during the international transportation.

Article 88.- The authorized carrier shall report to the competent national authority of the Member Country that granted it the original service permit, about the withdrawal of any approved vehicles from its fleet, so that note may be taken in the respective annex and the pertinent certificate of approval and registration may be annulled.

Article 89.- The competent national authorities shall permit the use of a vehicle that has not been given approval, belonging to the carrier, a third party or another authorized carrier, in order to continue an international transportation operation that for reasons of force majeure or an act of God cannot proceed in the original vehicle. The service shall continue to be provided under the responsibility of the authorized carrier that issued the passenger list and travel tickets.

CHAPTER VIII

ON THE TRANSPORTATION CONTRACT AND THE OBLIGATIONS

First Section of the Contract

Article 90.- Each passenger that uses the international transportation shall be covered by a transportation contract whose conditions shall be established on the travel ticket.

The travel ticket proves the existence of the transportation contract.

Article 91.- The issuing of the travel ticket by the authorized carrier and its acquisition by the passenger implies the acceptance and submission of both parties to the contract terms.

Article 92.- The travel ticket shall be issued by the authorized carrier on an individual basis and in the passenger's name.

Article 93.- Through the travel ticket, the authorized carrier commits itself to transport the passenger from a city of origin to a city of destination located in different Member Countries, using a preestablished route, itinerary and schedule.

Article 94.- The travel ticket shall be numbered and shall contain the following information and stipulations:

a) Company name and address of the authorized carrier;

b) Passenger's family and given names;

c) Passenger's city and country of origin and city and country of destination;

d) Place and date of issue of the travel ticket;

e) Total price of the travel ticket, including tax;

f) Starting date and time for the trip;

g) Conditions for endorsement, postponement, refund and expiration;

h) General features of the insurance coverage;

i) General description of what is considered to be luggage; and

j) Maximum permitted luggage weight or volume per passenger.

The authorized carrier may, on the back of the travel ticket or on a separate sheet attached to it, establish general clauses for the contracting of the international transportation, which shall be accepted by the passenger at the moment of its purchase.

A sheet attached to that travel ticket shall give the addresses of the terminals on the itinerary.

Article 95.- The travel ticket shall be issued in as many copies as needed to comply with the transportation itinerary commitment to the passenger. It shall contain one copy that shall remain in the authorized carrier's possession and another in the passenger's.

Article 96.- Before starting the trip, the authorized carrier shall let passengers know their assigned seat numbers.

Article 97.- Passengers deciding not to make the trip or to postpone it shall communicate this fact seventy-two hours before the scheduled starting time. In the former case, they shall be entitled to a refund of ninety percent of the fare stated on the ticket after the deduction of taxes.

The travel ticket expires if passengers do not use it on the stated starting date for the trip and fail to communicate the fact that they will not be making or are postponing the trip, as stipulated in the previous paragraph. Tickets without any starting date expire one calendar year after their issue date.

If their travel tickets expire, passengers shall not be entitled to demand a refund of the value of those tickets.

Article 98.- The lack or loss of a travel ticket, as well as any irregularity in the information it contains, shall not affect the existence or the validity of the transportation contract or relieve the authorized carrier of its obligations or responsibility to the passenger if the relationship is proven by other legally accepted means.

The omission of an item or some of the information stipulated in article 94 does not affect the juridical validity of the travel ticket.

Article 99.- Any stipulation contained on the travel ticket or in the general contract clauses that deviates directly or indirectly from the provisions of this chapter, if to the passengers' detriment, shall be null and without any effect whatsoever. The foregoing shall not affect the other stipulations contained on the travel ticket or in the general contract clauses.

Article 100.- The stipulations of this Decision and their complementary provisions are applicable to the transportation contract, together with the national provisions of the respective Member Country in all matters not covered by those stipulations and their provisions.

Article 101.- The provisions of this chapter are applicable to all such claims as may be filed against the authorized carrier, its representatives or agents with regard to the performance of the transportation contract.

Second Section

On the Responsibility

Article 102.- The authorized carrier is the only party responsible to the passenger for the performance of the transportation contract, although during the operation the carrier may use the services of third parties --in the latter case, provided that this does not generate a new transportation contract.

It is also liable to third parties for any such damages and losses as may be caused during the operation.

Article 103.- Passengers must carry the documents and fulfill the necessary requirements for entry into, passage in transit through, a stay in, and departure from the Member Countries through whose territories they travel. The authorized carrier is responsible for providing the pertinent information.

Passengers shall furnish the authorized carrier with the necessary information and documents for carrying out customs formalities with the respective authorities. The authorized carrier is not obliged to examine the documents and information given to it to determine whether they are reliable.

Passengers are responsible for any damage that could result from the irregularity of or failure to present the documents and information required.

Article 104.- The authorized carrier is liable for any damages and losses that could be caused by the loss or incorrect use of the documents provided by passengers during their trip.

Article 105.- Passengers have a right to demand that the authorized carrier transport them from the city of origin to that of destination, in accordance with the established terms of the travel ticket.

If, for reasons attributable to the authorized carrier, the trip fails to be started, the carrier shall refund to the passengers the entire cost of their travel tickets. If the cause is one of force majeure or an act of God, it shall refund ninety percent of the ticket cost minus tax.

If the trip is interrupted after it has started, the authorized carrier shall be obliged to pay passengers the travel costs involved in reaching their respective destinations via a similar transportation medium.

Article 106.- The authorized carrier may not allege damage to or the lack of a vehicle, or mistakes in operation, or the negligence of its subordinates, as a pretext for freeing itself from its responsibility.

Article 107.- Passengers shall be covered, in all international transportation and throughout the trip, by an injury insurance policy previously taken out by the authorized carrier.

Article 108.- In the case of an accident, the authorized carrier is obliged to give passengers and crew the necessary assistance. It shall also, and immediately, cover the medical, hospitalization, surgical, pharmaceutical and internment costs without this signifying that it recognizes its responsibility for the event.

An action may be brought to recover those expenses from any party that may have the obligation to pay them.

Article 109.- An authorized carrier that has not taken out or that does not hold a valid injury insurance policy for passengers and crew shall, in the event of an accident, cover on its own account the expenses indicated in the previous article.

Article 110.- Before starting the trip, passengers carrying luggage with them shall hand it over to the authorized carrier, which is obliged to issue a numbered claim or receipt for each suitcase or bundle received.

Article 111.- The failure of passengers to appear on the date and at the time stipulated for the start of the trip frees the authorized carrier from its contractual obligation to them. The same thing applies in the event that, after the trip has started, passengers decide on their own to interrupt it at any point along the route.

Article 112.- The authorized carrier shall not transport:

a) Persons who, at the moment of boarding or during the trip, are in abnormal physical or emotional states that could threaten the order or safety of the transportation, or who are under the influence of alcoholic beverages or drugs;

b) Animals and objects that may disturb or pose a threat to passengers or crew; or

c) Persons carrying weapons, ammunition, explosives, chemicals, or inflammable substances.

Article 113.- The authorized carrier shall not be responsible for the contents of suitcases or bundles carried by passengers as luggage, nor for the contents of such postal packages and parcels as it may carry. The liability lies with the respective passenger or sender.

Article 114.- The carrier's civil liability shall not exceed the amounts established as coverage for the Andean policy.

CHAPTER IX

ON THE JURISDICTION AND COMPETENCE

Article 115.- Any conflict or difference stemming from the application or performance of an international transportation contract that does not involve provisions of public order contained in this Decision, shall be regulated by the law envisaged in the contract. In the event of a failure to reach an agreement, the provisions of this Decision shall be applicable, and in all matters not covered by the former, the pertinent national legislation shall apply.

Article 116.- Any legal actions emanating from the transportation contract shall be brought before the judge or court designated in that contract.

In the event that no designation is made or that that stipulated in the contract is legally inapplicable, those lawsuits may be brought, indistinctly and at the choice of the plaintiff, before any competent judge or court of the jurisdiction of the:

a) Residence of the defendant;

b) Place where the event occurred;

c) Place of origin of the passenger's trip; or

d) Place of destination of the passenger's trip.

Article 117.- The executed judgments or final judgments handed down by a judge or court of a Member Country in the implementation of this Decision may be enforced in the territory of another Member Country if in the interest of a party with some right emanating from it, without need for homologizing or exequatur.

If a sentence is to be executed outside the national territory of the judge or tribunal that pronounced it, it is necessary to comply with the legally mandated formalities of the state where its execution is requested.

Article 118.- Legal actions emanating from the transportation contract shall lapse in a period of one calendar year after the event or breach that motivated the action to be brought.

CHAPTER X

ON THE CUSTOMS ASPECTS

Article 119.- National customs authorities shall keep a registry of authorized carriers and approved vehicles.

Authorized carriers and approved vehicles shall be registered with the national customs authority of each of the Member Countries through which they pass in transit or where they provide service.

Article 120.- The Member Countries shall permit the departure and temporary entry into their territories of approved and registered vehicles, without having to pay export or import duties when those vehicles are in the process of providing international transportation service or circulating through them as a result of the latter.

The stipulation of the previous paragraph applies also to the necessary equipment for use in the approved vehicles and goods for passenger use and consumption that they transport and that are included on a list prepared by the carrier, such as the auxiliary fuel tank that is part of the bus's structure, provided that that tank does not alter original design of the bus.

Article 121.- The Member Countries shall permit the temporary importation of spare parts and pieces to be used to repair approved vehicles if they have any malfunction in a Member Country other than that where the vehicles are registered.

Article 122.- The equipment and the spare parts and pieces referred to in articles 120 and 121 shall be brought in duty-free, provided that they originated or were nationalized in a Member Country.

Such spare parts and pieces as have been replaced shall be reexported to the country from which they came or destroyed under customs control and the authorized carrier shall assume the cost involved.

Article 123.- The approved vehicles, by the mere fact of their registration, by operation of law become a demandable guaranty before customs authorities, of the payment of such export and import duties, taxes, surcharges, interest and fines as may possibly be due or applicable to the vehicles and equipment that temporarily enter a Member Country in a transportation operation.

The vehicle's guaranty may be replaced by another that satisfies the customhouse, issued by a bank or an insurance company. This guaranty may be global for several transportation operations or individual for a single one, and shall be issued in as many copies as there are countries through which it shall travel.

Article 124.- The customhouse shall not demand guaranties different from those stipulated in the previous article, to ensure payment of any such duties, taxes, surcharges and interest as may possibly be demandable for the approved vehicles and the equipment that temporarily enter or leave the country.

Article 125.- Approved vehicles that are leased become a guaranty before the customhouse, for the purposes referred to in article 123, provided that there is an express written declaration to this effect signed by the lessor or owner of the vehicle.

The cited declaration may be contained in the respective contract or in an additional clause.

Article 126.- Approved vehicles that temporarily enter the territory of a Member Country may remain there for a period of thirty calendar days. That period may be extended by the customhouse upon receipt of a justified request.

If the approved vehicles fail to leave the country within the period established in the previous paragraph, the authorized carrier shall be subject to the sanctions provided for by the respective national legislation.

Excepted are those cases in which vehicles fail to leave for duly proven reasons of force majeure or an act of God.

Article 127.- If the authorized carrier's responsibility is established, it must pay the customhouse, within the stipulated period, the amount due for such duties, taxes, surcharges, interest and fines as may have been imposed on it. If it fails to do so, the vehicle shall be seized and its ownership transferred or the economic guaranty shall be cashed, pursuant to national legislation.

If the liquid proceeds of the sale fail to cover the amount of the duties, taxes, surcharges, interest and fines demandable, the authorized carrier shall cover the difference within the period set by the customhouse; if it fails to make that payment, the carrier's approved vehicles or goods may be seized to proceed as stipulated above.

Article 128.- In all cases where a vehicle is seized, the authorized carrier may present a guaranty to the satisfaction of the customhouse in order to secure the vehicle's release so that it may continue with the transportation while the administrative or judicial proceedings move ahead. Excepted are cases in which a vehicle is seized for a drug trafficking crime and the preliminary investigations have established the authorized carrier's alleged responsibility.

Article 129.- If the authorized carrier is found guilty of having committed a customs violation or crime, the customhouse shall so inform the competent national authority of that country, which in turn shall inform the competent national authority of the carrier's country of origin, so that the corresponding measures may be taken.

Article 130.- The national customs authorities shall control the departure and temporary entry, as well as the re-entry, of approved vehicles used in the international transportation, when they cross a border, in order to verify their compliance with the stipulations of this Decision.

Article 131.- The customs seals placed on the containers for postal packages or the baggage compartments of the approved vehicles shall comply with the conditions and characteristics established in Decision 327.

The placement of the customs seals shall be governed by the contents of the Regulations of this Decision.

Those customs seals shall be accepted and recognized as valid by the Member Countries in their respective territories.

Article 132.- When for reasons of force majeure or of an act of God, an approved vehicle must remain in a Member Country for a longer period of time than that established in article 126, the customhouse shall not demand an additional guaranty.

CHAPTER XI

ON THE IMMIGRATION ASPECTS

Article 133.- The crews of the approved vehicles need only to present their Land Crew Cards and their national identification documents in order to enter, pass through in transit, stay in, and leave the Member Countries.

Article 134.- National immigration authorities shall issue Land Crew Cards only in the name of individuals, national or foreign, who hold residents' visas of the Member Countries where they are applying for that card, after being requested to do so by an authorized carrier.

They may also be issued by the Consuls of the Member Countries, who shall report that fact in writing to the immigration authorities of their countries, remitting the documentation submitted by the carrier.

Article 135.- Land Crew Cards shall be valid for a period of twelve months. They may be renewed for like periods of time.

Article 136.- When engaged in international transportation and carrying their card, holders of Land Crew Cards shall not require a visa to enter the territories of the Member Countries through which they travel in the course of the service.

Article 137.- Land Crew Cards permit their holders when engaged in international land transportation in Member Countries other than those of which they are nationals or residents, to remain in those countries for a period of thirty days, which is open to renewal.

Article 138.- Passengers must fulfill the requirements of each of the Member Countries through which they travel, in order to enter, pass through, stay in, or leave those countries.

Article 139.- The authorized carrier shall prepare a passenger list for each international transportation operation it carries out.

The passenger list shall be issued in an original copy, which shall be kept by the authorized carrier, and two copies for each Member Country on the route between the origin and destination. One of the copies shall be handed over by the crew to the immigration authority at the border of each Member Country, at the passengers' entry and departure.

Article 140.- The passenger list shall contain the following information:

a) Company name of the authorized carrier;

b) Identification of the approved vehicle;

c) Date of issue of the passenger list, as well as the countries of origin and destination of the trip;

d) Family and given name, nationality, identification document number, and Land Crew Card number of the crew members if they are carrying this document;

e) Sequential number, family and given name, nationality, class and identification document (passport) number, profession or occupation, origin and destination of the passengers; and

f) Signature of the authorized carrier or its representative or agent.

Article 141.- The Andean Immigration Card to be used in the international transportation shall be printed up by the authorized carriers. They shall use the form established in the respective regulations and the card shall contain the required information and the series number provided for that purpose by the national immigration authority of the Member Country of origin, passage in transit, or destination.

On each trip, the crew shall distribute the Andean Immigration Card among the passengers who shall fill it out.

These cards, together with the respective passports and required documents, shall be presented to the immigration authorities at the border crossings.

Article 143.- It shall not be necessary for purposes of immigration control, for passengers to descend from the bus in order to personally carry out the respective formalities with the immigration authority, except in cases when the latter deems it necessary.

The respective authority shall board the vehicle in order to make the necessary verifications.

CHAPTER XII

ON THE COMPETENT NATIONAL AUTHORITIES

Article 144.- The competent national authorities designated and accredited by the Member Countries shall be responsible for the implementation of this Decision and its complementary provisions in their respective territories.

Article 145.- The competent national authorities shall, furthermore:

a) Coordinate with the other authorities of their country, the implementation of the operative and procedural aspects established in the Decisions and the complementary provisions that regulate international passenger transportation by road, as well as the transportation of postal packages and parcels;

b) Coordinate the execution of the operative aspects of the international passenger transportation by road, with the competent national authorities of the other Member Countries.

c) Promote mechanisms for coordination with their countries' authorized carriers and users of the international passenger transportation by road;

d) Promote the establishment of Facilitation Commissions for International Land Traffic and Transportation; and

e) Give the Board of the Cartagena Agreement and the Pro-Tempore Secretariat of the Committee such information about international passenger transportation by road as is requested, as stipulated in this Decision and its complementary provisions, as well as in the Agreements or Resolutions approved by the CAATT.

Article 146.- The competent national authorities shall keep a national registry of the authorized carriers, as well as of the approved vehicles that operate in their countries, together with their corresponding routes, frequencies and itineraries and any changes, suspensions or annulments.

CHAPTER XII

ON THE NATIONAL OR BINATIONAL BORDER SERVICE CENTERS

Article 147.- The Member Countries shall adopt the necessary measures for establishing and organizing the National Border Service Centers (CENAF) or the Binational Border Service Centers (CEBAF) at each of the authorized border crossings for the international transportation.

Article 148.- The competent national authorities shall take the necessary actions for their operation, together with the national authorities of the different government ministries that exercise the control and provide complementary services at the borders.

In order for the CENAF or CEBAF to provide the appropriate services, the competent national authorities, together with the other authorities referred to in the previous paragraph, shall adopt binational manuals of procedure to facilitate their operation.

CHAPTER XIV

ON THE ANDEAN REGISTRY OF AUTHORIZED CARRIERS AND APPROVED VEHICLES

Article 149.- An Andean Registry of Authorized Carriers and one of Approved Vehicles are hereby created, to be entrusted to the Board of the Cartagena Agreement, which shall take the necessary action for their organization and operation.

Article 150.- The competent national authorities shall furnish the Board of the Cartagena Agreement with the necessary information for the implementation of the Registries provided for in the previous article, on a timely basis and regularly.

That information shall consist of: the name of the authorized carrier; name and address of the legal representative; address of the company's headquarters and of the cities on its itinerary; and the original and the complementary service permits granted, as well as their annulments, renewals, expiration date, and any changes made in them.

They shall also report on the approval of the vehicles that make up the authorized carriers' fleets, their withdrawal and any changes in their characteristics.

The competent national authorities shall the information supplied to the Board of the Cartagena Agreement keep up to date.

CHAPTER XV

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 151.- Twice a year the authorized carriers shall submit monthly statistical data about the movement of passengers and number of journeys per established trip, to the competent national authority of their countries of origin. The consolidated information shall be given to the Board of the Cartagena Agreement.

The Board of the Cartagena Agreement, after hearing the opinion of the Andean Committee of Land Transportation Authorities, shall establish the pertinent form for recording the information.

Article 152.- Each Member Country shall inform the competent national authorities of the other Member Countries, on a timely basis, about the conditions demanded for the circulation of approved vehicles, which in no case may be stricter than those required for the movement of the vehicles registered in the country in question.

Article 153.- Authorized vehicles engaged in providing the international transportation service shall not be submitted to customs, immigration, police and sanitary formalities at places other than the border.

Such inspections as must be carried out along the route for legal reasons of national security or if there is evidence of the commission of customs violations are excepted from the stipulation of the previous paragraph.

Article 154.- The public offer of international transportation service to be provided along national segments is considered to be deceitful advertising that is subject to legal sanction by the respective Member Country.

Article 155.- The Member Countries, within a period of one hundred and eighty calendar days as of the date this Decision enters into effect, shall, bilaterally or multilaterally, agree upon the schedules and any other operational or service procedure necessary for the international transportation at the authorized border crossings.

Those agreements shall be adopted jointly and in coordination by the transportation, customs, immigration, plant and animal health, police, and any other authorities that exercise that control.

The Member Countries shall adopt the necessary measures for providing continuing and uninterrupted service at the border crossings.

Article 156.- International passenger transportation by road is recognized by the Member Countries as an export service.

Article 157.- Authorized carriers shall offer the international transportation service under conditions of free and equitable competition. They shall also offer their rates freely.

Article 158.- Each Member Country shall establish the provisions regarding the public or private facilities for passenger service and the dispatch and reception of the approved vehicles.

Article 159.- In implementing this Decision, the Member Countries shall make the necessary efforts to achieve appropriate solutions for resolving the problems stemming from Bolivia's geographic enclosure.

Article 160.- In cases not envisaged in this Decision and its complementary provisions, the national legislation and regulations of the corresponding Member Countries shall be applicable.

Article 161.- Any modification of the company name or change in designation of the competent national authority, as well as of the other national authorities involved in the control of international transportation operations, shall be communicated to the Board of the Cartagena Agreement and to the other Member Countries through the corresponding liaison bodies.

CHAPTER XVI

COMPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS

Article 162.- The Board of the Cartagena Agreement, after hearing the opinion of the Andean Committee of Land Transportation Authorities (CAATT), shall approve via a Resolution the Regulations and forms for the authorizations and documents to be used for the transportation, that may be necessary to comply with the stipulations of this Decision.

The forms and the information to be entered in them may also be modified.

Article 163.- The Board of the Cartagena Agreement after hearing the opinion of the Andean Committee of Land Transportation Authorities (CAATT), shall approve via a Resolution the regulations for controlling the service of international passenger transportation by road.

Article 164.- The Board of the Cartagena Agreement, after hearing the opinion of the Andean Committee of Land Transportation Authorities (CAATT), when deemed necessary, shall establish via Resolution the risks to be covered and the amounts of coverage of the insurance policies to be used in the operations of international passenger transportation by road.

Article 165.- Until the Community legislation referred to in the Second Temporary Provision has been approved, the national legislation and regulations of each of the Member Countries in which the service is provided shall be applicable to the transportation of postal packages and parcels.

CHAPTER XVII

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 166.- This Decision replaces Decision 289 of the Commission of the Cartagena Agreement.

Article 167.- This Decision shall enter into force as of the date of its publication in the Official Gazette of the Cartagena Agreement.

TEMPORARY PROVISIONS

FIRST: The Member Countries, at the proposal of the Board and within a period of ninety calendar days after this Decision becomes effective, shall approve a Community provision that establishes the violations and the system of penalties for the authorized carriers.

SECOND: The Member Countries, at the proposal of the Board and within a period of one hundred and eighty days after this Decision becomes effective, shall approve a Community provision for regulating the complementary service of transportation of postal packages and parcels in the vehicles authorized for international passenger transportation by road.

THIRD: The authorized carriers, within one hundred and eighty calendar days after this Decision becomes effective, shall adjust their original and their complementary service permits, together with their annexes and the vehicle certificates of approval and the transportation documents, to the stipulations of this Community provision. Failure to update those permits and certificate shall lead to their lapsing.

FOURTH: Such authorized carriers as on the date this Decision enters into force are operating with approved vehicles whose date of manufacture is earlier than that stipulated in article 80, may continue to provide the international transportation service for a period of one year. At the conclusion of that period, their certificates of approval shall be annulled.

FIFTH: The Board of the Cartagena Agreement, after hearing the opinion of the Andean Committee of Land Transportation Authorities and within a period not to exceed ninety calendar days after this Decision becomes effective, shall adopt via Resolution the criteria for rating the capacity of the authorized carrier.

SIXTH: The provisions of Decision 359 that do not run counter to this Decision shall remain in force until the Board adopts the regulations for the latter via a Resolution.

Signed in the city of Lima, Peru, on the seventeenth of January of nineteen ninety-seven.