The rules on international trade in services are contained in the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), which is the first multilateral agreement on trade in services. The GATS, which entered into force on 1 January1995, applies to all WTO Members. The main objectives of the Agreement are to establish a framework of rules and disciplines that help ensure transparency and predictability for trade in services and to promote progressive liberalization through successive rounds of negotiations. It aims at the expansion of trade in services as a means of promoting economic growth and development. The GATS Council is in charge of overseeing the implementation of the Agreement. The GATS mandates Members to enter into successive rounds of negotiations in services.
The GATS has a universal coverage, that is, it covers all services (except services supplied in the exercise of government authority and measures affecting air traffic rights.
