The Meeting of Contracting Parties to the A.T.A. Convention

Confirmed by the Council - June 2003

Please note that the terms of reference can be set only by the Contracting Parties.

Established : 1963

Duration : Unspecified

1. Mandate

The Contracting Parties shall meet when necessary in order to consider the operation of the Convention and also to consider measures to secure uniformity in the interpretation and application of the Convention. The meeting shall also consider amendments to the Convention.

2. Membership

Contracting Parties to the A.T.A. Convention shall have the right to be represented at the meeting. There are no specific provisions for non-Contracting Parties or representatives of international organizations to attend the meeting as observers. In practice, however, invitations for the meeting are sent to non-Contracting Parties as well as international organizations.

3. Purpose and Scope

To achieve the mandate, the Meeting of Contracting Parties should :

• examine questions relating to interpretation and application of the Convention raised by the Contracting Parties or issuing and guaranteeing associations;
• examine proposals for amendments to the Convention;
• consider disputes concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention referred by the Contracting Parties in dispute, and make recommendations for their settlement.

4. Key Deliverables

Recommend amendments to the Convention to the Contracting Parties.

5. Means of Operation

Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson:

The Convention is silent on the election of a Chairperson and a Vice-Chairperson. However, in practice, they are elected at the start of the meeting.

Agenda:

In practice, the Agenda for each meeting is drawn up by the Secretary General. It includes any proposals for amendments to the Convention communicated by the Contracting Parties, together with any other items requested.

6. Resources Required

Meetings:

The meeting is to be convened by the Secretary General at the request of any Contracting Party and is, in principle, held at the WCO Headquarters in Brussels. Rules of Procedure for the meetings are to be decided by the Contracting Parties, but no decision can be taken on any matter unless more than half of the Contracting Parties are present. The meetings are normally held in conjunction with a meeting of the Administrative Convention for the Istanbul Convention. The two meetings usually last a total of two days.

General administrative arrangements:

The general administrative arrangements for the meeting of the Contracting Parties, including the date and duration of each session and the priorities to be fixed for the items on the Committee’s Agenda, are the responsibility of the Secretary General.