VI.  Trade Regulations and Standards

Tariffs and Import Taxes:

Barbados is an active member of the CARICOM, and as such, has
implemented CARICOM's common external tariff for goods.  In February
1994, Barbados attempted to replace a highly restrictive and
non-transparent import licensing system with a surtax on goods of up to
100 percent of the customs value of the product, but implementation has
been controversial.  The surtax is currently being evaluated by the
Government of Barbados and final rules should be published by the end
of 1994.

Prohibited Imports:

A negative list also exists (on goods which cannot be imported): that list
was being revised as of the date of this report.  Barbados also charges a
20 percent stamp duty on imports from outside CARICOM; imports from
CARICOM countries are charged 10 percent stamp duty.  Most imports are
also subject to a consumption tax of 5-30 percent, assessed on the cost
including freight plus duty value of the good.

Membership in Free Trade Arrangements:

Barbados is a member of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
(1947) and has signed, but not yet implemented, the provisions of the
World Trade Organization (1994).

Export Controls:

Most products manufactured in Barbados are eligible for duty-free and
quota-free entry to major world markets:

-    Under the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) and the Generalized
     System of Preferences (GSP), many products made in Barbados
     enter the United States duty free provided one of either two
     requirements are met:  1) at least 35 percent of the product's value
     originated in Barbados, or  2) at least 20 percent of the product's
     value originated in Barbados if not less than 15 percent originated
     in the United States or Puerto Rico.

-    Under CARIBCAN, products manufactured or assembled in Barbados
     can be exported to Canada free of duty if at least 60 percent of the
     ex-factory price of the product originated in Barbados or Canada

-    Under the Lom  IV Convention, certain products meeting specified
     rules of origin can be shipped to countries of the European Union
     and their overseas departments free of duty.

-    As a member of the Caribbean Community Common Market
     (CARICOM), products manufactured in Barbados can be exported
     free of customs duties to the markets of the other twelve CARICOM
     states if they meet a minimum value-added criterion or a change in
     customs classification.

-    Under a recent CARICOM-Venezuela agreement,
     Barbadian-manufactured products can be exported to Venezuela
     duty-free if at lease 50 percent of their value is local value-added
     or if the final product is classified under a different tariff heading
     than any of the material inputs.

-    In July 1994, CARICOM signed a trade agreement with Colombia that
     allows immediate duty-free treatment into Colombia of a list of
     goods which comprised 86 percent of CARICOM exports to Colombia
     (in a particular base year), as well as elimination of tariffs over
     three years on certain goods which comprised four percent of
     CARICOM exports to Colombia (in that same period).  At the end of
     the three-year period, the two sides plan to negotiate Colombia's
     tariff liberalization on the remaining goods as well as tariff
     concessions to be made by the four major CARICOM economies
     (Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Barbados) and the
     Bahamas.  The agreement with Colombia has a 40 percent regional
     content rule of origin.