In application of the provisions of the present Law, the following terms and expressions shall have the meanings assigned thereto, unless the context requires otherwise:

State: United Arab Emirates

Ministry: Ministry of Economy

Minister: Minister of Economy

Department: Department concerned with fighting harmful practices in international trade at the Ministry.

Authority: Federal Customs Authority.

Committee: Advisory Committee for Fighting against Harmful Practices in International Trade

Customs Department: Competent Customs Department at the concerned Emirate.

Government Entity: Any Federal or Local government agency concerned in the application of the present Law and its Implementing Regulation.

GCC States: Member States of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf.

Concerned Gulf Authorities: Office of the Technical Secretariat, the Standing Committee for Harmful Practices in International Trade and GCC Industrial Cooperation Committee.

Organisation: World Trade Organisation.

Organisation’s Agreements: Agreements arising from the Final Act Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations ratified by Federal Decree No. (21) of 1997.

Harmful Practices in International Trade: Practices involving dumping, ad hoc subsidies, and increase of imports.

Dumping: Exporting the product to the State at an export price that is lower than the ordinary value for a similar product at the exporting country in the course of ordinary trade.

Subsidy: Monetary assistance or any form of support granted by the government of the country of origin or any public agency therein to support income or prices, according to the definition included in Article (16) of GATT Agreement 1994, in the interest of the recipient of support.

Increase of imports: Importation of a product in increasing quantities in absolute or relative terms in relation to the production of the national or Gulf industry and under conditions that may cause serious harm or threat to the national or Gulf industry.

Measures: Anti-dumping, countervailing and preventive measures.

Anti-dumping Measures: Procedures taken to face the cases

of dumping.

Countervailing Measures: Procedures taken to face the cases

of ad hoc subsidy.

Preventive Measures: Procedures taken to face the cases of increase of imports.

Temporary Measures: Procedures taken temporarily during the investigation period and when temporary positive results are reached.

Final Measures: Procedures taken after the end of investigation or when final positive results are reached.

Complaint: Written request submitted according to the form prepared for that purpose.

National Industry: The total number of the State’s producers of similar products or whose total production constitutes a large proportion of the gross national production of such products in the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations. National industry in the prevention investigations means the total number of the country's producers of a product that is similar or directly competitive or whose total production of similar products constitutes a large proportion of the total national production of this product.

Gulf Industry: The total number of the GCC States’ producers of similar products or whose total production constitutes a large proportion of the gross national production of such products in the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations. Gulf industry in the prevention investigations means the total number of the GCC States’ producers of a product that is similar or directly competitive or whose total production of similar products constitutes a large proportion of the total Gulf production of this product.

Concerned Parties: Foreign exporter or producer or the importer of the product subject-matter of investigation or the producers whose industrial inputs include the product subject-matter of investigation, the government or private entities representing consumers or protecting their interests or the governments of the exporting countries or any other local or foreign parties interested in the product subject-matter of investigation.

Damage: Damage in anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations means the occurrence of material harm or the threat of such occurrence or physical disability of the establishment of national or Gulf industry. Damage in prevention investigations means the occurrence of serious harm or threat of its occurrence to the national or Gulf industry.

Gross Damage: A harm that causes a total and significant weakening that affects the national or Gulf industry concerned.

Threat of Gross Damage: Imminent severe damage resulting in significant weakening that affects the national or Gulf industry concerned.

Regular Value: The amount paid or the price payable for a similar product in the normal course of trade when directed to consumption in the country of export.

Export Price: The amount paid or the price to be paid for the product subject-matter of investigation by the importer when sold from the exporting country.

Dumping Margin: The difference between the normal value and the export price during the period under investigation.

Subsidy Amount: The amount that represents the interest accruing to the recipients during the period under investigation.

National Market: The State’s Market.

GCC Market: GCC States’s Markets.

Similar Products: Products that match or are identical to the product subject-matter of investigation in all aspects or any other products whose specifications are similar to the specifications or characteristics of the product subject-matter of investigation in case of absence of such product.

Ad hoc Subsidy: Subsidy that results in taking Countervailing Measures.

Supported Imports: Imports of products subject-matter of investigation that received ad hoc support.

Product subject matter of Investigation: The product imported to the state as described by the declaration of initiation of the investigation.

Unified Law: Unified Law for Anti-Dumping and the Countervailing and Preventive Measures for the Countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf.

The provisions of the present Law shall apply to the harmful practices in international by other than GCC States, in accordance with the Organisation’s Agreements.

1- The national industry or its representative may file a complaint against harmful practices in the international trade either directly to the Department or through the governmental authority concerned in each Emirate that refers it to the Department.

2- Based on a decision by the Minister or his authorised representative and without receiving a complaint from the national industry or its representative, the Department may initiate an investigation against harmful practices in international trade should there be sufficient evidence of a harmful practice in international trade that causes harm to the national industry.

3- The complaint against harmful practices in international trade that are caused to the national industry shall be submitted, accepted, and studied, procedures of initiation of investigation shall be taken, the investigation shall be conducted and ended, and reviewal shall be made in addition to any proceedings related thereto shall be done in accordance with the provisions of this Law and the controls and conditions prescribed in the Implementing Regulation of the present Law.

1- By a decision of the Minister or his delegate, an investigation committee shall be formed of the Department’s technical staff for each complaint separately. Such committee shall be entrusted with keeping all the documents related to the investigation and carrying out all the investigation procedures in accordance with the provisions of the present Law and its Implementing Regulation.

2- The period of investigation against harmful practices in international trade may last for twelve months at most from the date of commencement of the investigation. In the event that the investigation could not be completed during said period, it may be extended for a further period by a decision of the Minister based upon the recommendation of the Department, provided that the whole period does not exceed 18 months at most.

Measures may be taken in any of the following cases:

1- If it is proved that the products subject-matter of investigation have been received at exorbitant prices or that ad hoc subsidy has been given for them, and have caused material damage to an existing national industry or threatened of the occurrence of such damage or that they were intended to cause material delay of establishment of a national industry and that there is a causation relationship between them.

2- If it is proved that the products subject-matter of investigation are being delivered to the national market in increasing quantities either in absolute or relative terms and under conditions that would cause serious harm to the national industry which produces similar or directly competitive products or threatens to inflict such harm and if that there is a causality relationship between them.

The measures shall be as follows:

1- The imposition of anti-dumping fees and final countervailing fees, not exceeding the dumping margin or the final subsidy amount.

2- The imposition of charges or adoption of temporary guarantees to fight dumping or ad hoc subsidies, not exceeding the dumping margin or the tentative subsidy amount.

3- The imposition of final preventive measures against the increase of imports in the form of fees or quantitative restrictions.

4- The imposition of temporary protective fees against the increase of imports for a maximum period of 200 days.

The imported product shall not be subject to an anti-dumping measure and a countervailing measure dealing with the same case of dumping or export-oriented subsidy.

1- The Department shall have the competence to receive and study complaints and undertakings and conduct investigations and reviews against harmful practices in the international trade faced by the national industry.

2- A committee called the Advisory Committee to Combat Harmful Practices in International Trade shall be formed by a decision of the Minister. The Committee shall be represented by a number of relevant federal and local authorities and shall have competence to study the conclusions reached by the Department with respect to the harmful practices in international trade submitted to it in accordance with Article 4 of the present Law.

3- The Minister or his delegate shall issue the decisions concerning the implementation of the provisions of the present Law and its Implementing Regulation based on the recommendations of the Advisory Committee.

4- The Implementing Regulation of the present Law shall specify the operating procedures of the Committee and the conditions and procedures relating to the imposition of provisional and final measures and undertakings.

1- The Ministry shall provide all notifications required by the Organization's agreements concerning the combat of dumping, subsidies, countervailing and preventive measures to the Organization.

2- Decisions and notifications concerning investigations of harmful practices in international trade shall be published in accordance with the procedures applicable in the Ministry.

1- The employees of the Ministry and of any other governmental entity who, in the scope of application of the provisions of this law and its Implementing Regulation and the decisions issued pursuant thereto, had access to information or data of confidential nature or that has been described by the concerned parties as confidential, shall keep this information confidential and shall not disclose it to any other party except with a written permission from the party having declared such information or based on an order issued by a competent judicial authority.

2- The concerned or interested parties shall provide non-confidential summaries to the Department, whose details shall allow for an understanding of the substance of the information of confidential nature or of those presented as confidential.

3- The Implementing Regulation of the present Law shall specify the methods of handling confidential information and the procedures of disclosure thereof.

The investigation procedures provided for in this Law and its Implementing Regulation shall not preclude the customs release of imports of the product under investigation.

1- In applying the provisions of this Law and its Implementing Regulation, the Ministry may request the data, information and statistics necessary for the investigations concerning the combat of dumping, ad hoc subsidies and increase of imports from any governmental body in the State having the required data.

2- The government entity shall provide the Ministry with the data, information and statistics required within a period not exceeding fifteen working days from the date of receipt of the application.

3- The Department shall use the data and statistics mentioned in paragraph (1) of this Article to the extent required by the investigation procedures, and in such a way as to preserve the confidentiality of the information.

1- The measures imposed in accordance with the provisions of this Law and its Implementing Regulation shall apply to imports of the product subject-matter of investigation imposed for the purpose of consumption within the State.

2- The amounts and guarantees payable for the temporary and final measures imposed on imports of the product subject-matter of investigation shall be collected in accordance with the provisions of this Law and its Implementing Regulation and based on a mechanism determined in coordination between the Ministry and the Authority and the customs administrations.

3- The proceeds of the imposition of the final measures on the imports of the product subject-matter of investigation shall be deposited with the Treasury of the State after the deduction of the service performance fees determined in coordination between the Ministry, the Authority and the customs administrations.

4- The proceeds of the temporary measures shall be treated during the period of their application as a deposit, in accordance with the following:

a- If a decision is issued on the investigation establishing the existence of any harmful practices in international trade and damage and a causation relationship between them, they shall be treated as final measures.

b- If a decision is issued on the investigation establishing that there are no harmful practices in international trade or damage or any causation relationship between them, any cash security, bank guarantee or fee that has been collected for the product subject-matter of investigation shall be released.

5- The Authority shall provide the Ministry with periodic statistics on the value and quantity of imports of the products subject to the measures and the proceeds of the fees resulting from the application of these measures.

Should there be sufficient indicators or when the import trend of a product threatens to cause damage to the national industry, the import of the product concerned shall be subjected to registration or follow-up procedure for a temporary period in accordance with the procedures and controls on which a decision shall be issued by the Cabinet based on the Minister’s proposal.

1- Should there be any damage in the Gulf industry caused by the presence of harmful practices in international trade, such damage shall be faced in accordance with the procedural and substantive rules prescribed in the Implementing Regulation of the present Law.

2- The Ministry shall participate in the investigation of harmful practices in international trade that cause damage to the Gulf industry, conducted by the concerned Gulf authorities according to the Unified Law.

3- The Ministry shall coordinate with the governmental entities in the State to implement all decisions issued by the Gulf authorities concerned with investigating harmful practices in international trade that cause harm in the Gulf industry.

Without prejudice to any more severe penalty provided for in any other law, whoever violates the provisions of Article (10) of this Law shall be sentenced to imprisonment and to a fine of no less than AED (250,000 or either one of those two penalties.

1- The Federal Courts of Appeal shall have jurisdiction to hear appeals against final decisions issued by the Minister or his delegate in implementation of the provisions of the present Law and its Implementing Regulation.

2- A lawsuit for annulment of the administrative decisions referred to in Clause (1) of this Article shall not be heard after 3 (3) months from the date of publication of the contested administrative decision, or of the notification of said decision to the concerned party, or the establishment that he had certain knowledge thereof.

3- The validity of said period shall be interrupted when a grievance is filed to the Minister. A decision shall be issued on such grievance within thirty days from the date of its submission. If a rejection decision is issued, it shall be reasoned and should thirty days lapse after the submission of the grievance without a response from the Minister, it shall be deemed as rejected. The time-limit for filing a lawsuit shall be counted from the date of explicit or implicit rejection of the grievance, as the case may be.

The Ministry's employees who are selected by a decision of the Minister of Justice, in agreement with the Minister, shall be granted law enforcement authority to prove any violation of the provisions of this Law and the decisions issued in implementation thereof, within the scope of competence of each of them.

Upon the proposal of the Minister of Finance, the Cabinet shall issue a decision specifying the fees required for the implementation of the provisions of the present Law.

Upon the proposal of the Minister, the Cabinet shall issue the Implementing Regulation of the present Law within (90) days from the date of its issuance.

Any provision that is contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions hereof shall be abrogated.

The present Law shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall come into force as of the day following the date of its publication.