Non-tariff barriers are all those measures filed by a State to protect the country's economy and trade that do not involve the payment of a impuesto. Unlike tariff barriers, this type of tariff It does not involve the payment of a tax, but rather hinders or prevents the importation of certain goods and services through regulations.
What are non-tariff barriers for?
The objective of non-tariff barriers is to restrict the introduction of certain goods that suppose direct competition with products manufactured in the country. The purpose of this system is the protection of the national production of a country against that of other foreign countries. The only problem with non-tariff barriers is that they are not as easy to measure as non-tariff barriers. customs barriers, since it has neither price increases nor levies.
What types of non-tariff barriers exist?
Within these protectionism measures before the foreign tradeThere are several kinds of non-tariff barriers that a government can implement. These are classified as follows according to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the World Bank and the International Trade Center:
- A) Sanitary and phytosanitary measures against possible diseases or pests that the trade of certain products may bring about.
- B) Technical barriers to trade
- C) Inspection prior to dispatch
- D) Trade defense measures
- E) Quotas, prohibitions, non-automatic licenses ...
- F) Measures to control prices, rates and surcharges
- G) Financial measures
- H) Measures that affect competition
- I) State commercial companies
- J) Trade measures related to investment
- K) Distribution restrictions
- L) Restrictions on after-sales services
- M) Restrictions on public purchases
- N) Measures related to intellectual property
- Ñ) Rules of origin
- O) Measures on exports
These in turn can be classified according to the level of protectionism they have:
- Drastic non-tariff barriers: this would be the case of those measures that imply the prohibition of certain imports or the creation of limit quotas on the import of some goods.
- Light non-tariff barriers: for those measures that consist, for example, in raising the demand in quality controls or establishing a series of precise requirements regarding the packaging of the goods sold.