Good Regulatory Practices and Its Evolving Relevance in Conformity Assessment

Good regulatory practices (GRPs) are principles that aid in the preparation of effective and efficient regulations. In international trade, it is the technical regulations (TRs) that require implementation of these practices. The WTO TBT and SPS agreements lay down specific rights and obligation for WTO member countries, but, while implementing these rights and obligations, more clarity is required with the changing trade environment. GRPs help in filling that gap. It brings objectivity to the table in the preparation of TRs through its tools such as regulatory impact assessment, administrative simplification, and public consultations. In the first section, the chapter looks at the history of GRP to help understand the importance of its tools and processes. The next section on “GRP at WTO” discusses the interplay of GRP in the triennial reviews of the WTO TBT agreement with the TR and conformity assessment. The chapter further discusses the principles of good regulatory practices by OECD. To implement these principles, the chapter further mentions the tools and processes that can be used in determining the conformity assessment procedure for a TR. Since good regulatory practices are being used as part of regulatory cooperation, their presence in the FTAs in recent times is captured and enumerated. Finally, the practices in some countries are highlighted with discussion on the status of GRP in India and how it can be implemented and refined.