Businesses navigating free trade agreements can often find it an overwhelming process of finding the right information. Below we’ve broken down what free trade agreements (FTAs) are, countries Australia has them with, and links to comprehensive resources to assist businesses within Australia navigating freight forwarding – if you have any questions our team at Personalised Freight Solutions will be able to help you.
What are Free Trade Agreements (FTAs)?
A free trade agreement (FTA) is an international treaty between two or more economies that reduces or eliminates certain barriers to trade in goods and services, as well as investment. FTAs benefit Australian exporters, importers, producers and investors by reducing and eliminating certain barriers to international trade. The Oxford English Dictionary records the use of the phrase “free trade agreement” with reference to the Australian colonies as early as 1877.
Free trade agreements in force
The following are Australia’s free trade agreements (listed with the entry-into-force date).
- Australia-New Zealand (ANZCERTA or CER) – 1 January 1983
- Singapore-Australia (SAFTA) – 28 July 2003
- Australia-United States (AUSFTA) – 1 January 2005
- Thailand-Australia (TAFTA) – 1 January 2005
- Australia-Chile (ACl-FTA) – 6 March 2009
- ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand (AANZFTA) – 1 January 2010 for eight countries: Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Burma, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam. For Thailand: 12 March 2010. For Laos: 1 January 2011. For Cambodia: 4 January 2011. For Indonesia: 10 January 2012
- Malaysia-Australia (MAFTA) – 1 January 2013
- Korea-Australia (KAFTA) – 12 December 2014
- Japan-Australia (JAEPA) – 15 January 2015
- China-Australia (ChAFTA) – 20 December 2015
- Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) – 30 December 2018
- Australia-Hong Kong (A-HKFTA) and associated Investment Agreement (IA) – 17 January 2020
- Peru-Australia (PAFTA) — 11 February 2020
- Indonesia- Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA) – 5 July 2020
- Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus – 13 December 2020
- Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) – 1 January 2022 for ten countries: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, Japan, Laos, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. For Republic of Korea: 1 February 2022.
FTAs not yet in force
- Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (AI-ECTA)
- Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (A-UKFTA)
- Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
FTAs under negotiation
- Australia-European Union Free Trade Agreement
- Australia-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Free Trade Agreement
- Australia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement
- Australia-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
- Environmental Goods Agreement
- Pacific Alliance Free Trade Agreement
- Trade in Services Agreement
if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact the PFS team today.