The European Union and Australia are currently negotiating a free trade agreement to promote and increase trade between the two countries. We have already submitted some comments, but there is still a chance to contribute to the discussion and we’d be delighted for your input. The submission will be a collective effort developed by the network of Australian Business in Europe (ABIE) organisations, of which the German Australian Business Council is a member and will be submitted prior to the fourth round of negotiations to be held in Brussels in early July 2019.
Share your stories: successes and failures
We would be pleased to hear stories from both Australian and European businesses. The FTA negotiators want to understand the opportunities and challenges faced by businesses, big and small, when seeking to leverage free trade agreements to export their goods and services.
Have you successfully taken advantage of free trade agreements to export into new markets and reaped the rewards? This may have been in established markets such as the US or in developing markets such as northern Asia.
Or, did you try but it was a frustrating and unsuccessful experience? Are you wary of the risks or costs involved in exporting?
For either outcome, your stories and experiences are valuable to the negotiation process. DFAT is particularly interested in details of specific obstacles to trade and investment that the Australia-EU Free Trade Agreement could address.
Topics of interest in the Free Trade Agreement negotiations
Key topics discussed during the negotiations to date have included:
- Trade in Goods
- Rules of Origin
- Customs and Trade Facilitation
- Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters
- Trade Remedies
- State-owned enterprises
- Competition and Subsidies
- Government Procurement
- Technical Barriers to Trade
- Services and Investment
- E-Commerce/Digital Trade
- Intellectual Property
- SPS and Animal Welfare
- Trade and Sustainable Development
- Energy and Raw Materials
- Dispute Settlement
- Transparency and Good Regulatory Practices
- Small and Medium Enterprises
How to participate in the ABIE submission
To participate or if you have any questions, please contact GABC Office Administrator, Elizabeth Matters, at office@gabc.eu. She will collate the feedback from German Australian Business Council members which will be complied and included within the collective ABIE submission.
If you prefer, your information and stories can be included anonymously.
Make an independent submission
We also encourage both Australian and European companies to make an independent submission to DFAT. For submission information and examples: https://dfat.gov.au/trade/agreements/negotiations/aeufta/submissions/Pages/submissions.aspx
For background on the Australia-EU FTA negotiations:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-a-balanced-and-progressive-trade-policy-to-harness-globalisation/file-eu-australia-fta
https://dfat.gov.au/trade/agreements/negotiations/aeufta/Pages/default.aspx
http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/australia/
http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2018/december/tradoc_157565.pdf
http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1865
