Trade agreement between the EU and Japan enters into force

On 1 February 2019 the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA, also known as JEFTA (Japan-EU Free Trade Agreement)) between the EU and Japan enters into force. Negotiations for this trade agreement began in 2013, were finalized at the end of 2017, and were consented to by the European Parliament in December 2018. The first EU-Japan committee meeting is planned for April 2019 in Brussels.

The JEFTA abolishes the majority of the €1 billion of duties annually paid by EU companies exporting to Japan. President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, states that the JEFTA opens “a new marketplace home to 635 million people and almost a third of the world's Gross Domestic Product, bringing the people of Europe and Japan closer together than ever before. The new agreement will give consumers greater choice and cheaper prices . . . it will give small businesses on both sides the chance to branch out to a completely new market . . .”

To read more about JEFTA from the European Commission, please follow the links below:

• Enforced JEFTA-document

• Factsheets:

• A new EU trade agreement with Japan

• Agriculture

• Food safety and sanitary and phytosanitary measures (animal and plant health)

• Market Access

• Precautionary Principle

• Public procurement

• Regulatory cooperation

• Sustainable development

To access the JEFTA from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan please click here.

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