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The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) grant zero or reduced tariff rates to
beneficiary countries. Least developed countries (LDCs) generally receive preferential
treatment for certain products and deeper tariff cuts.
As stated in Resolution 21 (ii) taken at the UNCTAD II Conference in New Delhi in 1968,
"… the objectives of the generalized, non-reciprocal, non-discriminatory system of
preferences in favour of the developing countries, including special measures in
favour of the least advanced among the developing countries, should be:
(a) to increase their export earnings;
(b) to promote their industrialization; and
(c) to accelerate their rates of economic growth."
Countries granting GSP preferences notify these to the UNCTAD Secretariat. Information on
GSP-granting countries and on beneficiary countries can be found on
UNCTAD’s About the GSP page.
Information below, regarding GSP preferences that benefit countries in the Americas has been
compiled using UNCTAD and national sources. The date of compilation is indicated; some
preferences may have changed.
| GSP-granting countries: beneficiary countries
in the Americas |
| Australia |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Haiti
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| Belarus |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia,
Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana,
Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Vincent
and the Grenadines, Suriname Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela (non-OAS members:
Anguilla, Aruba, British Virgin Islands, Montserrat).
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011  |
| Canada |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,
El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico,
Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitt and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent
and the Grenadines, Suriname Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela (non-OAS
members: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Montserrat, Netherlands
Antilles, US Virgin Islands).
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011 |
| European Union |
The EU revised its GSP scheme. The new EU GSP
comprises three arrangements:
- The standard/general GSP arrangement
Beneficiary countries in the Americas: Colombia, Honduras, Nicaragua.
- The GSP+ enhanced preference scheme, available to countries that
ratify and implement international conventions relating to human and labor rights,
environment and good governance.
Beneficiary countries in the Americas: Bolivia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru
- Everything but Arms (EBA) arrangement, which grants duty-free, quota-free
access to all products except for arms and ammunitions to least developed countries (LDCs)
Beneficiary countries in the Americas: Haiti
Source: The EU’s Generalized Scheme of Preferences |
| Japan |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil,
Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama,
Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitt and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Suriname Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela (non-OAS members: Anguilla,
Montserrat)
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| Korea |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2013): Haiti
Source: Handbook on the Preferential Tariff Scheme of the Republic of Korea in favour
of least developed countries, 2013 (Annex 1) |
| New Zealand |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,
El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico,
Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitt and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent
and the Grenadines, Suriname Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela (non-OAS
members: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Montserrat, Netherlands
Antilles, US Virgin Islands).
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011 |
| Norway |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica,
Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti,
Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Lucia, Suriname,
Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011 |
| Russian Federation |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama,
Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitt and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Suriname Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela (non-OAS members: Anguilla, Aruba,
Bermuda, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles)
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011 |
| Switzerland |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil,
Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada,
Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru,
Saint Kitt and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname,
Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela (non-OAS members: Anguilla, Aruba,
Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, St. Pierre and Miquelon, US Virgin Islands).
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011 |
| Turkey |
Beneficiary countries in the Americas
(as of 2011): Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama,
Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitt and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela, (non-OAS members: Anguilla, Aruba,
Bermuda, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, St. Pierre and Miquelon, US Virgin Islands).
Source: UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences, List of Beneficiaries, 2011 |
| United States |
The US GSP program was authorized under
Title V of the Trade Act of 1974 and is subject to renewal by Congress. The program
was most recently extended until July 31, 2013 and has not been renewed. The GSP
program provides duty and quota-free access for about 3,500 products from 127
developing countries and an additional 1,500 products from 44 least-developed countries.
Beneficiary countries in the Americas (as of July 2013): Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Dominica, Ecuador, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Paraguay, St Kitts
and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Source: USTR: United States Generalized System of Preferences Guidebook, July 2013 |
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| Other Preferential Schemes |
| Canada
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CARIBCAN
Beginning on June 15, 1986, Canada extended duty-free access to the Canadian market
for most commodities originating in Commonwealth Caribbean countries. On November 28,
1986, a decision by the Contracting Parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT) waived until June 15, 1998, the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 1
of the General Agreement, "only to the extent necessary to permit the Government of
Canada to provide duty-free treatment to eligible imports of Commonwealth Caribbean
countries benefiting from the provisions of CARIBCAN, without being required to extend
the same duty-free treatment to like products of any other contracting party" (L/6102).
CARIBCAN is scheduled to expire on December 31, 2013 and to be replaced by a
CARICOM-CANADA free trade agreement.
Beneficiary countries:
OAS: Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana,
Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad
and Tobago; Non-OAS: Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands,
Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
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| United States
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US CBI
The United States provides preferential market access to a group of Caribbean Basin
countries through the trade programs known collectively as the Caribbean Basin
Initiative (CBI) . The CBI was launched in 1983 through the Caribbean Basin Economic
Recovery Act (CBERA), and expanded in 2000 through the U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade
Partnership Act (CBTPA). The CBTPA entered into force on October 1, 2000 and
continues in effect until September 30, 2020, or the date on which a free trade
agreement as described in legislation enters into force between the United States
and a CBTPA beneficiary country. The CBI is also affected by provisions in the US
Trade Act of 2002, which harmonized apparel eligibility criteria among the Andean
Trade Preferences Act, the African Growth and Opportunity Act, and the CBTPA
programs and increased the upper limits for duty-free treatment of knit apparel
articles and t-shirts from the Caribbean Basin.
Beneficiary countries in the Americas (as of January 2014): OAS members:
Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana,
Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines,
and Trinidad and Tobago. Non-OAS members: Aruba, British Virgin Islands, Curacao,
Montserrat.
Eight countries are beneficiaries under CBTPA: Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Haiti,
Jamaica, Panama, St. Lucia, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Source: USTR  and Tenth Report to Congress on the Operation of the Caribbean Basin
Economic Recovery Act December 31, 2013 |
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HAITI – Hope Act
Additional preferences are granted to Haiti, the hemisphere’s only Least-Developed
Country (LDC) through the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership
Encouragement Act of 2006 (HOPE). The HOPE Act was extended through the Food
Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 (also known as the ”Farm Bill”) which included
an extended HOPE Act (HOPE II) and the Haiti Economic Lift Program of 2010 (HELP).
The HOPE Act provided duty-free entry to the United State garments manufactured in Haiti.
HOPE II includes:
- an extension of duty-free access to the U.S. market until 2018
- an extension of eligible woven products from three years to 10 years;
- an increase in the Tariff Preference Level (TPL) for woven and knit products from
50,000,000 to 70,000,000 square meter equivalent;
- co-production with and direct shipment from the Dominican Republic; and
- the inclusion of luggage, headgear, and sleepwear.
Sources:
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Andean Trade Preference Act
The Andean Trade Preference Act was enacted in 1991 to combat drug production and
trafficking in the Andean countries: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. The
program offers trade benefits to help these countries develop and strengthen
legitimate industries. ATPA was expanded under the 2002Trade Act, and is now
called the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA). The program
offers duty-free treatment to certain imports from eligible countries, provided
that the countries meet certain criteria. The ATPA has been extended through
July 31, 2013.
Beneficiary countries: At the time of the 2011 re-authorization, only
Colombia and Ecuador were eligible beneficiary countries. Colombia is no longer
an eligible beneficiary country under the ATPA as of May 15, 2012, when the
United States-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (CTPA) entered into force
(19 U.S.C. 3805 Note). Unless renewed by Congress, the ATPA/ATPDEA will expire
on July 31, 2013.
Sources:
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