The free trade agreement between EFTA and Thailand was signed in Davos on January 23. The agreement facilitates the reduction and elimination of tariffs, bilateral dispute resolution mechanisms, and a mutual understanding of technical and sanitary trade conditions.
The signing confirms the agreement between EFTA and Thailand on the terms that will apply to trade between the parties. However, before the agreement can be implemented, it must be ratified by both Norwegian and Thai sides, followed by a date for actual implementation. The time required for this depends on the political will on both sides.
Negotiated tariffs for the most important seafood products exported from Norway to Thailand can be found in the attachment "EFTA Thailand Tariffs."
The implementation of the terms will take effect from January 1 of the following year after the agreement is ratified and implemented by the parties. This means that regardless of when the agreement is formally ratified in 2025, the terms will not apply until January 1, 2026.
The reduction of tariffs will occur in equal, annual intervals. A reduction over 10 years for an original tariff of 5% will result in the following tariffs over the 10 years: 4.5% - 4% - 3.5% - 3% - 2.5% - 2% - 1.5% - 1% - 0.5% - 0%.
The agreement includes a clause that if Thailand negotiates better trade terms with other trading partners for frozen mackerel, 0303.54.10, EFTA can request the same or better terms in its agreement. This clause only applies to frozen mackerel.
To achieve preferential tariff treatment for a given product, the requirement of "non-alteration" must be met. This means that a product cannot be processed in any way in a third country before arriving in Thailand. If this occurs, the product will lose the possibility of preferential tariff treatment despite being of Norwegian origin. The standard tariff will then apply.
When determining the origin for chapter 3, the requirement of "wholly obtained" applies to all seafood products. This requirement covers products from aquaculture, farmed and produced in Norway, as well as all wild fish and shellfish caught by Norwegian vessels.
If you want more in-depth knowledge about free trade agreements, we recommend our seminars on free trade agreements and origin, in Ålesund, Bergen, and Bodø.
