Free trade agreements of the United Kingdom
Following its withdrawal from the European Union on 31 January 2020, the United Kingdom began negotiations on several free trade agreements to remove or reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade, both to establish new agreements and to replace previous EU trade agreements. Withdrawal ended 47 years of membership during which all its trading agreements were negotiated by the European Commission on behalf of the bloc. The UK did not actually withdraw from the European Single Market and the European Union Customs Union (and its trade agreements) until 31 December 2020.
These treaties are divided into two types of free trade agreements: continuity agreements and 'new' agreements. Continuity agreements, also named rollover agreements, use of a mutatis mutandis concept in order to quickly replicate the existing EU agreements, only having to call out those minor areas of differentiation. Most continuity treaties were provisionally applied, or through a "bridging mechanism", thus continuity was achieved. Trade agreements negotiated after Brexit are termed 'new', or enhanced agreements, these agreements have been negotiated from scratch or have been renegotiated to enhance the deal since Brexit.
As of May 2023[update], the United Kingdom has 38 active free trade agreements with nations and trade blocs, covering 99 countries and territories. Five of these are 'new' trade agreements, such as with Australia and New Zealand. The remaining 33 are continuity agreements. The UK has further arrangements covering 17 British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
In addition, the UK has also reached an agreement to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which it signed in July 2023 and is expected to join, after the 11 present members ratify, in 2024.
The UK's negotiating team will consult with its Strategic Trade Advisory Group throughout the negotiations.
Competence and ratification process
According to UK law the United Kingdom Parliament has the power to pass law in all policy areas.
Ratification
The responsibility for concluding treaties involving the UK lies with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs. This remains the case even when the negotiation of the treaty is led by another government department.
The Foreign & Commonwealth Office's legal advisers and Treaty Section:
- must be given the opportunity to comment on the drafts of all treaties under negotiation
- will advise on the form and substance of the treaty, though not substance which is technical and of which the other government department is the expert
- will advise on related matters such as the production of Full Powers and Instruments of Ratification
- will produce original signature copies of treaties and advise on the treaty signing ceremony
- will arrange for the treaty to be published and laid before Parliament
- is responsible for the registration of these treaties with the United Nations, allowing their subsequent publication in the United Nations Treaty Series
- will transfer of the treaties to the National Archives for preservation
Unless expressly authorised to do so by the United Kingdom government, Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories do not have the authority to contract treaties in their own right. The UK must extend the territorial scope of its ratification of treaties to include them. This may be done either at the time of ratification, or at some later date.
Active agreements
The following bilateral and plurinational agreements are currently in effect. Signature and entry into force dates are as listed by the World Trade Organization.
Nation(s) | No. of nations represented |
Signed | Effective | Coverage | Treaty | Trade value (2022) |
Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Albania | 1 | 5 February 2021 | 3 May 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £293m | |
Andean Countries Colombia Ecuador Peru |
3 | 15 May 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £5,815m | |
Australia | 1 | 16 December 2021 | 31 May 2023 | Goods & Services | New | £17,067m | |
Cameroon | 1 | 28 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £745m | |
Canada | 1 | 22 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £26,309m | |
CARIFORUM Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Dominica Dominican Republic Grenada Guyana Jamaica Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Suriname Trinidad and Tobago |
14 | 22 March 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £5,108m | |
Central America Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala Honduras Nicaragua Panama |
6 | 18 July 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £2,624m | |
Chile | 1 | 30 January 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £1,881m | |
Côte d'Ivoire | 1 | 15 October 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £539m | |
Eastern and Southern Africa Mauritius Seychelles Zimbabwe |
3 | 31 January 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £1,922m | |
Egypt | 1 | 5 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £4,896m | |
European Union | 31 | 30 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | New | £772,000m | |
Faroe Islands | 1 | 31 January 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £1,923m | |
Georgia | 1 | 21 October 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £457m | |
Ghana | 1 | 2 March 2021 | 5 March 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £1,807m | |
Iceland Liechtenstein Norway |
3 | 8 July 2021 | 1 December 2021 | Goods & Services | New | £56,325m | |
Israel | 1 | 18 February 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £6,881m | |
Japan | 1 | 23 October 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | New | £27,703m | |
Jordan | 1 | 5 November 2019 | 1 May 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £968m | |
Kenya | 1 | 8 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £1,364m | |
Kosovo | 1 | 3 December 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £13m | |
Lebanon | 1 | 19 September 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £771m | |
Liechtenstein Switzerland |
2 | 11 February 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £53,551m | |
Mexico | 1 | 15 December 2020 | 1 June 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £5,868m | |
Moldova | 1 | 24 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £1,480m | |
Morocco | 1 | 26 October 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £3,288m | |
New Zealand | 1 | 28 February 2022 | 31 May 2023 | Goods & Services | New | £2,734m | |
North Macedonia | 1 | 3 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £2,768m | |
Pacific States Fiji Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands |
4 | 14 March 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £286m | |
Palestinian Authority | 1 | 18 February 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £69m | |
Serbia | 1 | 16 April 2021 | 20 May 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £904m | |
Singapore | 1 | 10 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £20,135m | |
South Korea | 1 | 22 August 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £18,349m | |
Southern Africa Customs Union and Mozambique Botswana Eswatini Lesotho Mozambique Namibia South Africa |
6 | 9 October 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £12,539m | |
Tunisia | 1 | 4 October 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £678m | |
Turkey | 1 | 29 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | £25,737m | |
Ukraine | 1 | 8 October 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £1,408m | |
Vietnam | 1 | 29 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £7,049m |
British Territories
The following agreements govern the United Kingdom's free trade with British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
Nation(s) | No. of nations represented |
Signed | Effective | Coverage | Treaty | Comment | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Akrotiri and Dhekelia | 31 | 30 December 2020 | 1 May 2021 | Goods & Services | New | Trade with the UK is governed within the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, due to Akrotiri and Dhekelia remaining a part of the European Union customs union. | |
British Overseas Territories Anguilla Ascension Island Bermuda British Antarctic Territory British Indian Ocean Territory British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Falkland Islands Montserrat Pitcairn Islands Saint Helena South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Tristan da Cunha Turks and Caicos Islands |
14 | 9 November 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | Continuity | This arrangement acts as a continuity free trade agreement between 14 Overseas Territories and the UK. | |
Crown Dependencies Customs Union Guernsey Isle of Man Jersey |
3 | 26 November 2018 | 9 December 2020 | Goods & Services | New | The United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies established a customs union which created a free trade area between the territories, and creates a common external tariff with other countries. | |
Gibraltar | 1 | 24 October 2019 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Continuity | Trade with Gibraltar is governed under the 'Financial Services and Markets Act 2000', Gibraltar and the UK amended this act in order to continue the agreement they had in the European Economic Area. |
Negotiations
The United Kingdom is currently negotiating free trade agreements with the following countries and trade blocs:
Nation (s) | No of nations represented |
Coverage | Treaty | Trade value (2022) | Status | Progress | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Algeria | 1 | Goods | Continuity | £2,346m | Negotiations stagnated | A continuity FTA has been offered to Algeria; neither party has signed the agreement. | |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £218m | Negotiations stagnated | A continuity FTA has been offered to Bosnia and Herzegovina; neither party has signed the agreement. | |
Canada | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £26,309m | Negotiations ongoing | Fifth round of negotiations took place in March 2023. | |
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Australia Brunei Canada Chile Japan Malaysia Mexico New Zealand Peru Singapore Vietnam |
11 | Goods & Services | New | £113,000m | Agreement signed on 16 July 2023 | Awaiting ratification of the UK's accession from member states. | |
Greenland | 1 | Goods | New | £4m | Negotiations stagnated | Negotiations opened in January 2022. | |
Gulf Cooperation Council Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates |
6 | Goods & Services | New | £61,300m | Negotiations ongoing | Fifth round of negotiations concluded on 16 November 2023. | |
India | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £35,940m | Negotiations ongoing | Thirteenth round of negotiations concluded on 18 December 2023. | |
Israel | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £6,881m | Negotiations ongoing | Second round of negotiations took place in May 2023. | |
Maldives | 1 | Goods | New | £432m | Discussions ongoing | Trade consultation closed on 2 August 2023. | |
Mexico | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £5,868m | Negotiations ongoing | Negotiations opened on 20 May 2022. | |
Montenegro | 1 | Goods & Services | Continuity | £69m | Negotiations stagnated | A continuity FTA has been offered to Montenegro; neither party has signed the agreement. | |
South Korea | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £18,349m | Negotiations ongoing | Negotiations opened on 22 November 2023. | |
Switzerland | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £53,551m | Negotiations ongoing | Third round of negotiations concluded on 14 December 2023. | |
Turkey | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £25,737m | Discussions ongoing | Trade consultation opened on 2 November 2023. | |
Ukraine | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £1,408m | Agreement signed on 20 March 2023. | This Digital Trade Agreement will expand upon the Ukraine-UK FTA when it is entered into force. | |
United States | 1 | Goods & Services | New | £279,150m | Negotiations stagnated | Fifth round of negotiations took place in October 2020. |
Potential enlargement
The following countries can accede to an existing plurilateral trade agreement with the United Kingdom.
Nation (s) | Trade agreement being joined | Status | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
Haiti | CARIFORUM | Haiti will be covered by the CARIFORUM-UK Economic Partnership Agreement if they sign it and bring it into effect. | |
Comoros Madagascar Zambia |
Eastern and Southern Africa | Out of the remaining COMESA members, Comoros, Madagascar, and Zambia have agreements in place allowing them to join the ESA-UK Economic Partnership Agreement:
|
|
East African Community Burundi DR Congo Rwanda South Sudan Tanzania Uganda |
Kenya | Article 143 of the UK-Kenya Partnership Agreement enables any other EAC member to make an accession request to the UK-Kenya EPA Council. | |
Cook Islands Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia Nauru Niue Palau Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu |
Pacific States | The Pacific States-UK Economic Partnership Agreement states that 10 other Pacific nations are currently eligible to apply for accession.
|
Obsolete agreements
The following free trade agreements were previously active, however they have since been superseded or terminated.
Nation (s) | No of nations represented | Signed | Effective | Obsolete | Coverage | Note | Superseded by | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
France | 1 | 23 January 1860 | 23 January 1860 | 1 January 1892 | Goods | Became obsolete after the introduction of the Méline tariff by the French Government. | — | |
Belgium |
1 | 23 July 1862 | 23 July 1862 | 1 August 1897 | Goods | Prime Minister Salisbury decided to withdraw from the treaty, because of a clause that was contrary to the policy of Imperial Preference. | — | |
Ireland | 1 | 19 December 1965 | 1 July 1966 | 1 January 1973 | Goods | After both nations' bids to join the EEC were rejected, Ireland and the UK agreed to the Ireland-UK Free Trade Area. This was superseded upon both parties' accession to the EEC. | European Economic Community | |
Colombia | 1 | 18 October 2019 | 1 January 2021 | 28 June 2021 | Goods & Services | Colombia-UK Continuity FTA was provisionally applied until Colombia could ratify the Andean-UK Continuity FTA, which superseded this agreement. | Andean Countries Colombia Ecuador Peru |
|
Iceland Norway |
2 | 8 December 2020 | 1 January 2021 | 8 July 2021 | Goods | Iceland-Norway Continuity FTA was superseded by the updated FTA with Liechtenstein, which expanded the coverage to include services. | Iceland Liechtenstein Norway |
Former trade bloc memberships
The United Kingdom was previously a member of the following trade blocs, which include multilateral free trade with fellow members.
Nation (s) | No of nations represented | Signed | Effective | Obsolete | Coverage | Note | Superseded by | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
European Free Trade Association Austria Denmark Iceland Norway Portugal Sweden Switzerland |
7 | 4 January 1960 | 3 May 1960 | 31 December 1972 | Goods & Services | The UK was a founding member of the European Free Trade Association, however left the organisation in order to join the European Economic Community, along with Denmark. | European Economic Community | |
European Economic Community Belgium Denmark France Greece Ireland Italy Luxembourg Netherlands Portugal Spain West Germany/Germany |
11 | 22 January 1972 | 1 January 1973 | 1 November 1993 | Goods & Services | The UK joined the European Economic Community, along with Denmark and Ireland. The EEC was incorporated into the European Union. | European Union | |
European Union | 27 | 7 February 1992 | 1 November 1993 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | Following the result of the Brexit referendum, the UK invoked Article 50 in March 2017. The UK officially withdrew from the EU on the 1 January 2021. | EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement |
Obsolete EU agreements
The following agreements are European Union free trade agreements which the United Kingdom was a party of until Brexit, however continuity agreements were not reached to replace them.
Nation (s) | No of nations represented | Signed | Effective | Obsolete | Coverage | Note | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Algeria | 1 | 22 April 2002 | 1 September 2005 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | The UK has no free trade agreement with Algeria. | |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1 | 16 June 2008 | 1 June 2015 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | The UK has no free trade agreement with Bosnia and Herzegovina. | |
EU Overseas Countries and Territories Aruba Bonaire Curaçao French Polynesia French Southern and Antarctic Lands Greenland New Caledonia Saba Saint Barthélemy Saint Pierre and Miquelon Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten Wallis and Futuna |
13 | 27 November 2001 | 2 December 2001 | 1 January 2021 | Goods | The UK has no free trade agreement with any of the EU Overseas Countries and Territories. Greenland and the UK have opened negotiations for a free trade agreement. | |
Montenegro | 1 | 15 October 2007 | 1 May 2010 | 1 January 2021 | Goods & Services | The UK has no free trade agreement with Montenegro. |
UK top trading partners
Exports | Imports | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Trade Partner | £millions | % of Total | Rank | Trade Partner | £millions | % of Total |
European Union | 153 951 | 47.8% | European Union | 223 393 | 46.8% | ||
1. | United States | 47 098 | 14.6% | 1. | China | 63 557 | 13.3% |
2. | Germany (EU member) | 29 595 | 9.2% | 2. | Germany (EU member) | 53 759 | 11.2% |
3. | Netherlands (EU member) | 27 085 | 8.4% | 3. | United States | 39 379 | 8.2% |
4. | Ireland (EU member) | 21 834 | 6.8% | 4. | Netherlands (EU member) | 31 786 | 6.7% |
5. | France (EU member) | 19 441 | 6.0% | 5. | Norway (EFTA) | 27 112 | 5.7% |
6. | China | 18 793 | 5.8% | 6. | Belgium (EU member) | 23 331 | 4.9% |
7. | Belgium (EU member) | 14 939 | 4.6% | 7. | France (EU member) | 23 128 | 4.8% |
8. | Switzerland (EFTA) | 10 309 | 3.2% | 8. | Italy (EU member) | 17 604 | 3.7% |
9. | Italy (EU member) | 9 112 | 2.8% | 9. | Spain (EU member) | 14 472 | 3.0% |
10. | Spain (EU member) | 7 878 | 2.4% | 10. | Ireland (EU member) | 13 861 | 2.9 % |
EU | 300.3 | 43.0% | EU | 372.2 | 51.4% | ||
Non EU | 398.3 | 57.0% | Non EU | 352.3 | 48.6% | ||
World | 698.6 | 100% | World | 724.5 | 100% |
Historically, WTO imports and exports are based on the rule of origin, while EU imports/exports are based on single market statistics.
The figures above are for 2020 & 2021
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
See also
- Accession of the United Kingdom to CPTPP
- Economic Partnership Agreements
- Free trade agreements of Canada
- Free trade agreements of India
- Free trade agreements of Israel
- Free trade agreements of New Zealand
- Free trade agreements of the European Union
- Free trade agreements of the United States
- Free trade agreements of Turkey
- Foreign relations of the United Kingdom
- List of multilateral free trade agreements
- List of bilateral free trade agreements
- UK common framework policies – UK internal market policies post-Brexit
- United Kingdom–Crown Dependencies Customs Union – Free trade area