Declaration by the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia concerning the Territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and the Authority of the Commonwealth Government [Annex III to C(71)86].

"In considering the 'Statement by the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia Concerning Acceptance by the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia of the Obligations of Membership in the Organisation' it is felt that the Council would find it useful to have before it the following information about certain matters relating to such membership.

The Government of Australia wishes to inform the Council of the fact that 'the Commonwealth of Australia' comprises the six component States of the Australian Federation, together with mainland federal territories, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. The Government is also responsible for the international relations of the Territory of Papua and New Guinea and of certain other small island territories, which are collectively known as the External Territories, and which do not form part of the Commonwealth of Australia. It is the understanding of the Government of Australia that the obligations of Members of the Organisation are not applicable in their overseas territories, except where, and to the extent that, it is so stated.

The Government of Australia also wishes to inform the Council that the States of Australia, and not the Commonwealth of Australia itself, may have constitutional authority to act with respect to some of the matters which are within the scope of the obligations resting on Members of the Organisation. The Commonwealth of Australia undertakes, however, to discharge the obligations of a Member of the Organisation to the fullest extent compatible with the constitutional system of Australia."

Declaration of the Government of New Zealand made before the OECD Council [Annex III to C(73)70]:

"The Government of New Zealand declares that its accession to the Convention shall not extend to the island territories for whose international relations it is responsible."

Declaration by the Netherlands made at the time of deposit of the instrument of ratification to the OECD Convention:

"...........

Having seen and considered the Convention on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, together with its Supplementary Protocols, signed in Paris on 14 December 1960, of which the terms are: We hereby approve, for the Kingdom in Europe, Surinam, the Dutch Antilles and Dutch New-Guinea, in all its provisions, the Convention and the Protocols reproduced above, We declare that they are accepted, ratified and confirmed and We promise that they will be inviolably observed.

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Communication of the United Kingdom dated 16 November 2015:

"General position on treaties

The United Kingdom (UK) is responsible for the Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories in international law. The long-standing practice of the UK when it consents to be bound by a treaty, is to do so on behalf of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and any of the Crown Dependencies or Overseas Territories that wish the treaty to apply to them. It is also possible for treaties to be extended to dependencies and territories at a later stage. Once a treaty has been extended to any dependency or territory, its provisions will similarly apply to them as with the UK, unless the contrary is specifically stated in a particular case. In certain circumstances, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories may be authorised to conclude their own treaties by a process of entrustment.

Position in relation to the OECD Convention

The OECD Convention has been extended to the Bailiwick of Jersey and Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Gibraltar and Bermuda on 20 July 1990. This means that the OECD Convention applies to these dependencies and territories and they are part of UK for the purpose of its membership of the OECD. OECD Decisions and Recommendations apply to the same extent to these dependencies and territories as they do to the UK.

When the UK ratified the OECD Convention on 2 May 1961, it did not specify what territorial application should be given to the Convention. To clarify this situation, the Ambassador of the United Kingdom in France wrote as follows to the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Roland Dumas on 20 July 1990:

"... I have the honour to draw your attention to the Convention on Economic Co-operation and Development signed in Paris on 14th December 1960 and ratified by the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on 2nd May 1961, and to inform you that the United Kingdom Government hereby certifies that the said Convention applies to the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, Gibraltar and Bermuda. I am addressing a copy of this letter to the Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development...".

The Head of the UK Delegation to the OECD also wrote to the Secretary-General as follows: "... We (...) have formally transmitted [the above] declaration to the Government of France (...). Accordingly, I can confirm that future decisions and recommendations adopted by the Organisation under Article 5 of the Convention shall extend to those territories specified in the Declaration unless the contrary is specifically indicated in a particular case. Furthermore, the obligations to which the UK has subscribed under past decisions and recommendations, including those in the Codes of Liberalisation, will also apply to those territories under the same conditions as currently apply to the UK..."."   

Communication by the United States:

In an exchange of correspondence with the OECD Legal Directorate, dated 24 November 1987, the US Mission to the OECD declared: "Where a treaty does not require special notice concerning application to territories, US law and practice are that ratification for and in the name of the United States constitutes ratification with respect to all territory under the US authority and jurisdiction, except as the United States may otherwise expressly declare". Therefore, as the US has made no declaration concerning the territorial application of the Convention on the OECD at the dates of signature or of deposit of their Instrument of ratification, the Convention on the OECD applies to Puerto Rico, to the US Virgin Islands and to all other territories under US authority and jurisdiction.

Declaration by the United States, at the time of the deposit of the instrument of ratification (different from the above communication made by the Delegation of the US on the territorial application of the Convention). This Declaration is an interpretation by the Senate of the legal consequences of the accession of the United States to the Organisation.

".........

AND WHEREAS the Senate of the United States of America by their resolution of March 16, 1961, two-thirds of the Senators present concurring therein, did advise and consent to the ratification of the said Convention and the two protocols relating thereto "with the interpretation and explanation of the intent of the Senate that noting in the Convention, or the advice and consent of the Senate of the ratification thereof, confers any power on the Executive to bind the United States in substantive matters beyond what the Executive now has, or to bind the United States without compliance with applicable procedures imposed by domestic law, or confers any power on the Congress to take action in fields previously beyon the authority of Congress, or limits Congress in the exercise of any power it now has.";
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