BRAZIL – MEASURES AFFECTING IMPORTS OF RETREADED TYRES

The WTO Panel found that Brazil's import ban on retreaded tyres (via Portaria SECEX 14/2004 and Portaria DECEX 8/1991) and its associated fines (Presidential Decree 3.179/3.919) are inconsistent with Article XI:1 of GATT 1994. The Panel also ruled that the State of Rio Grande do Sul's marketing restrictions (Law 12.114/12.381) violate Article III:4. While the Panel acknowledged that Brazil's policy of reducing waste tyre accumulation to protect human, animal, and plant health falls within the scope of Article XX(b), it concluded the measures were not justified because they were applied in a manner that constituted "unjustifiable discrimination" and a "disguised restriction on international trade," primarily due to the significant volume of used tyres imported via court injunctions to benefit domestic retreaders.

• The Panel determined that Portaria SECEX 14/2004 and Portaria DECEX 8/1991 are inconsistent with Article XI:1 of GATT 1994 because they prohibit the issuance of import licenses for retreaded tyres, effectively creating an import ban.
• Brazil's policy of reducing waste tyre accumulation to protect human, animal, and plant life and health is a legitimate objective that falls within the scope of Article XX(b) of GATT 1994.
• The Panel found that the accumulation of waste tyres in Brazil creates significant health risks, specifically the proliferation of mosquitoes carrying dengue, yellow fever, and malaria, as well as toxic emissions from tyre fires.
• Despite being provisionally justified, the import ban failed the requirements of the Article XX chapeau because the granting of court injunctions allowing the import of used tyres significantly undermined the stated objective of avoiding waste tyre accumulation.
• The Panel ruled that the import ban is applied as a 'disguised restriction on international trade' because it restricts foreign retreaded tyres while allowing domestic retreaders to source used casings via court injunctions.
• The fines imposed by Presidential Decree 3.179 (as amended by 3.919) are inconsistent with Article XI:1 as they act as a restrictive disincentive to importation and are not justified under Article XX(b) or XX(d).
• The laws of the State of Rio Grande do Sul (Law 12.114 and Law 12.381) are inconsistent with Article III:4 of GATT 1994 because they accord less favourable treatment to imported retreaded tyres than to like domestic products.
• The Panel exercised judicial economy regarding the MERCOSUR exemptions, deciding not to rule on them because the primary measures (the ban and fines) were already found to be inconsistent with GATT rules.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2007). BRAZIL – MEASURES AFFECTING IMPORTS OF RETREADED TYRES. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Brazil_Tires_Report_7Jul07.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. BRAZIL – MEASURES AFFECTING IMPORTS OF RETREADED TYRES. 2007. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Brazil_Tires_Report_7Jul07.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=BRAZIL – MEASURES AFFECTING IMPORTS OF RETREADED TYRES |date=12 June 2007 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Brazil_Tires_Report_7Jul07.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2007brazil, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{BRAZIL – MEASURES AFFECTING IMPORTS OF RETREADED TYRES}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2007}, month = jun, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Brazil_Tires_Report_7Jul07.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }