Guidance

The TRA's Pre-Application Office

Updated 12 April 2024

Primary legislation in The Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 (the Taxation Act)

Schedule 4 to the Taxation Act describes the principles of how dumping and subsidy investigations should be conducted. Schedule 5 covers safeguard investigations.

Secondary legislation in The Trade Remedies (Dumping and Subsidisation) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (the D&S Regs)

Part 6 of the D&S Regs describes how dumping and subsidy investigations should be conducted. Regulation 50 to 53 cover the initiation of an investigation, including how to make an application and how an application is assessed.

Secondary legislation in The Trade Remedies (Increase in Imports Causing Serious Injury to UK Producers) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (the Safeguarding Regs)

Part 5 of the Safeguarding Regs describes how to conduct safeguard investigations.

World Trade Organisation – relevant provisions

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) provides some guidance on how to conduct trade remedies investigations.

The following agreements provide further information:

• Agreement on the Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (Anti-Dumping Agreement) ;
• Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures
• Agreement on Safeguards

Introduction to the PAO’s role

When a UK industry applies for a trade remedy measure to counteract a trade practice such as dumping or subsidising of certain imports, we will review the application and investigate whether a measure is required.

In this guidance, we refer to the goods we are investigating as the ‘goods concerned’. We also refer to ‘like goods’, which are defined as goods which are similar to the goods concerned in the investigation in all respects or have characteristics which closely resemble them. In identifying like goods, we will consider the following non-exhaustive list of criteria:

• physical likeness, such as physical characteristics
• commercial likeness, including competition and distribution channels
• functional likeness, such as end-use or if the goods can be substituted for each other
• similarities in production, such as method and inputs
• other relevant characteristics

If you require more information regarding ‘like goods’, please see our guidance on the trade remedies investigations process. To support industries which may want to make an application for a trade remedy, the Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) has a Pre-Application Office (PAO). This acts as a liaison point with industries, interested parties to investigations and other stakeholders. The PAO provides informal guidance and support to potential applicants on how to complete an application and follow our processes, as well as answering more general queries about our work. You don’t have to engage with the PAO before making your application. You can submit your application directly through our online service.

Why contact our Pre-Application Office?

When you contact the PAO you can discuss your draft application without the strict deadlines involved in the formal application process. If you’re not familiar with the trade remedies process, you can find out what’s required to get your draft application to a point where you can submit it for formal consideration. You can then submit it via our online Trade Remedies Service.

Following the PAO’s guidance doesn’t guarantee that the TRA will initiate a case based on your application or that measures will be put in place. Once you submit your application formally, it will need to pass through our assessment stage, which involves in-depth critical analysis of your evidence.

The PAO advises on what an application should include and does not help industries, organisations or individuals write their application or review draft applications in the same level of detail as the formal application assessment stage. It will consider whether a draft application is properly documented but not carry out a “deep dive” into the data provided or comment on individual transaction. When considering whether an application is properly documented, we will look at whether you are providing the type of supporting evidence we would expect to see for each of the areas of the application form, from credible sources. We will highlight areas where the information may be insufficient and ask you to provide evidence to support your arguments.

In order for the PAO to assist you fully, make sure your draft application is as complete as possible, and contains the necessary information to be properly documented, as outlined below.

Things you need to know when you’re preparing your application

Trade remedies investigations are complex processes which can take a long time. We are required to ask for and assess a substantial amount of information. Please check before you apply, that this is the right route for you and your business.

Requirements for us to initiate an investigation

In order for us to accept an application and initiate an investigation, it must meet the following criteria:

• the application needs to have been made by, or on behalf of, a UK industry producing goods similar to the imports they want investigated, or by the Secretary of State
• the UK industry must have a sufficient market share (see the information below on the market share requirement)
• the application needs to be supported by the UK industry (producer support for the application must be greater than producer opposition and represent at least 25% of all UK production of these goods the application contains as much of the information required in the relevant regulations as is reasonably available

The market share requirement

For dumping and subsidy investigations, the market share requirement is met if we are satisfied that the UK industry’s market share is:

• at least 1% of the overall market share for the like goods in the UK
• a higher share that we consider appropriate given the goods in question and their particular market

For safeguard investigations, this same market share requirement must be met, for goods which are either like the imports in question or directly competitive. For more information on this, consult our guidance on safeguard investigations.

Standing requirement

For dumping and subsidy investigations, the standing requirement is met where an application:

• is supported by UK producers whose collective output makes up at least 25% of the total UK production of like goods
• is not opposed by other UK producers whose collective output is greater than or equal to that percentage.

Again, in safeguard investigations, the same standing requirement must be met, but for goods which are like or directly competitive to the goods we are investigating. For more information on this, consult our guidance on safeguard investigations. You will also need to be able to demonstrate injury to your industry and that it was caused by the imports in question.

Whichever type of investigation you are asking for, you will need to provide whatever evidence and information is listed in Schedule 1 of the regulations relating to the type of investigation you want, providing that the information is ‘reasonably available’ to you.

This means your application will need to provide a large quantity and wide range of information about your operations, including details of prices, products and costs. This data will need to span a long period of time – approximately five years. You will need to present arguments and other evidence in support of your concerns. If the case is formally submitted, you may be asked to provide further information throughout the application assessment process or, if the case is initiated, during the investigation.

The Pre-Application Office process

You can contact the PAO via email on contact@traderemedies.gov.uk. Someone will then be allocated to help you. They can answer any questions you have about the TRA and the UK’s trade remedies system and advise you on how to submit an application. It is your decision whether you wish to follow the advice provided and when you choose to submit your application formally, if at all.

When we discuss your application with you, we will consider whether it is properly documented, in accordance with the requirements described in our guidance.

If you are having difficulties finding information you need to complete your application, we may be able to direct you to published sources which could help you find the data you need – for example, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) statistics, statistics from other government departments and public bodies and data from trade associations and research institutions.

Possible issues you may encounter with your application

If your application is incomplete or flawed, we may consider that it’s not properly documented. In these instances we won’t recommend that you formally submit it through our online service, although it will be your decision whether you choose to follow those recommendations.

The section below describes some of the more common, likely problems that may arise and how we will identify and address these issues.

1. You aren’t eligible to apply for an investigation

As laid out by the Taxation (Cross-Border Trade) Act 2018, you must be a UK producer to be eligible to ask for an investigation. We will also review the goods you manufacture in order to determine whether the imports in question are relevant to your business.

2.The case is not in our remit

The TRA is responsible for handling applications from producers of goods. For instance, if you are a service provider, we aren’t the appropriate organisation to deal with your complaint.

We can only act in cases where dumped or subsidised imports or a sudden increase in imports are affecting the market for UK goods. We can’t act in cases involving other issues.

3. You have not made a comprehensive argument

Your draft application should include a clear and well-presented argument which outlines all the points you wish to make in your application. Make sure you have completed every section of the application, with any sections which aren’t relevant to you clearly marked as not applicable. You need to cover all the information asked for in the relevant legislation, providing that it is ‘reasonably available’ to you.

4. Flawed basis

Even if you have made a full and clear argument in your application, the basis for your argument may be flawed – for example, it may be based on out of date or irrelevant information. It may also be based on a lack of detailed understanding of the way that an exporter or foreign industry carries out business. If this is the case, this is likely to affect the quality of the evidence you supply and your overall application and make it less likely that your request for an investigation will be approved.

5. Origin of evidence unclear or sources not credible

To support your application, you must provide the sources of the evidence/numerical data you are relying on. This is to demonstrate that your application is based on verifiable facts with quantified data, as far as is possible.

In our Pre-Application Office review, we will check that the sources you have used are credible, up to date and relevant and that the origin of the evidence is clear. Acceptable sources include (but are not limited to) publicly available databases, financial reports and other company documents.

We will not be able to assess your application properly if, for instance, you haven’t provided sources for your evidence and information or you have cited a source but it is unreliable, such as an ‘opinion’ web-page, or it cannot be found, such as an out-of-date website link.

6. You cannot demonstrate causation or your application does not pass one of the basic tests

Even if your argument is well-supported and clearly explained with credibly sourced evidence, we cannot recommend that you submit it formally if it doesn’t meet the basic tests which will be applied in an investigation. If we determine that your draft application is unlikely to pass one or more of these tests, we will advise you of this. The main tests your application will need to pass are:

• that there is dumping or subsidisation taking place, or there has been a sudden surge of imports
• that your industry is suffering injury
• that there is a causal link between the trade practice you are complaining about and the injury to your industry
• you have sufficient standing to make the application
• you have a sufficient market share to make the application

This list of scenarios is not exhaustive. We may decide that there are other reasons that it is not properly documented and, if so, we will discuss these with you.

What happens next?

Once we advise you that your draft application meets the requirements for a properly documented application, you should formally submit your application, if you’re ready to do so. Alternatively, as explained above, we may advise you that we don’t believe your application should be submitted formally. If we advise against submitting it, we will explain our reasons. You may submit it anyway, if you wish to do so.

During an investigation, we need to use data close to the initiation date of the investigation, so any delay in submitting your application may affect the usability of your data. If data becomes out of date, then it may not provide an accurate picture and may impact on the credibility of your application.

As explained above, when you formally submit your application, it will still need to pass through the TRA’s assessment stage, which involves in-depth critical analysis of your evidence. The PAO is a supporting and advisory function only and does not offer guarantees that cases will be initiated or measures imposed.

Once your application is within our case management system, the Pre-Application Office cannot help you any further with your application.

Independence and confidentiality of data in the Pre-Application Office

The PAO is independent from the TRA’s investigation process. Staff who have reviewed material as part of the PAO will take no part in the assessment of an application or determination of a case once initiated. This means that it can review draft applications and answer queries without affecting any future case. The PAO will not share your information with any of the case teams or discuss your application with them. You will need to submit all the required information as part of your application through our online Trade Remedies Service.

We handle confidential information in accordance with the relevant regulations. If you send us confidential commercial information, please make sure you clearly mark it as confidential.

For further information on the TRA and its investigative processes, please see our guidance on the trade remedies investigations process.