Tradeinservices policy interest in remittances

1
Trade-in-services policy interest in remittances

• Bill Cave
• OECD Statistics Directorate

2
The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)

• Following the Uruguay Round of trade
  negotiations
• GATS came into force 1 January 1995
• First worldwide agreement on trade in services
• GATS recognises four modes of delivery of
  services
• Mode 1 Cross - border
• Mode 2 Consumption abroad
• Mode 3 Commercial presence
• Mode 4 Presence of natural persons

3
Mode 4

• Makes movement of people a part of trade
  negotiations
• Related to market access
• Mode 4 in GATS-
• The supply of a service by a service supplier of
  one Member, through presence of natural persons
  of a Member in the territory of any other Member
• The purpose of the stay is to supply a service,
  when the service has been supplied the natural
  person leaves the country
• GATS definition is narrow but not well-defined

4
Scope of Mode 4 Narrow v Broad

• Supply of services through movement of natural
  persons
• GATS Mode 4
• Foreign self-employed service suppliers
• Foreign persons employed by foreign service
  supplier
• Employees of contractual service supplier
• Intra-corporate transferees
• Business visitors
• Foreign persons employed by host country service
  supplier

5
Information needs

• How much is mode 4 worth?
• Remittances thought to be imperfect but
  relevant indicator of current and potential mode
  4
• Bilateral flows
• Numbers of people
• Skills
• Occupation/Function
• Activity sector
• Duration of stay
• Bilateral flows
• Impacts

6
Concluding remarks

• Better measurement of international movement of
  people and remittances are of interest to trade
  policy
• UN TSG on Movement of Natural Persons is
  addressing the issue
• An alliance of different policy interests in
  remittances could help realise improved
  information in future
• To what extent should we work together?
• Our statistical resources are limited