Caption

The CEPA signing ceremony was held at Qasr Al Watan in Abu Dhabi on 29 July 2024 and was attended by UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and His Excellency Gabriel Boric Font, President of the Republic of Chile.

The UAE-Chile CEPA was signed by His Excellency Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, and His Excellency Alberto van Klaveren, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile.

The UAE–Chile CEPA has 21 chapters and their annexes. The CEPA provides for the elimination or reduction of tariffs on almost all goods; contains commitments addressing non-tariff barriers, liberalizes trade in services, opens new pathways for investment, enhances collaboration between the Partners, and more.

While the long-term value of the UAE-Chile CEPA lies in the long-term structural deepening of economic ties between the two Partners towards the diversification of supply chains and markets, and the creation of an institutional framework that gives the private sector a predictable, rules-based corridor for trade and investment between the two regions.

Trade in Goods

CEPA provides for tariff liberalization and contains comprehensive rules governing trade in goods between the Partners. It covers tariff elimination schedules, national treatment, customs valuation, import licensing, temporary admission, and treatment of repaired goods. It also sets disciplines on non-tariff measures, transparency, administrative fees, and export restrictions.

For detailed information on preferential tariff rates, please review the CEPA Market Access Dashboard below.

The CEPA provides for the immediate elimination or reduction of tariffs on almost all qualifying goods made in the territory of a Partner, including those made in free zones.

For detailed information on preferential tariff rates, please review the CEPA Market Access Dashboard below.

For goods to qualify for preferential tariff treatment, they must meet the Rules of Origin requirements that are flexible and seek to enhance two-way trade between the two Partners. CEPA supports the flow of goods in a simple, less costly, and timely manner through trade facilitation and customs cooperation arrangements.

The CEPA puts in place rules to ensure that product health and safety requirements are in line with international standards and do not become a barrier to trade.

CEPA reinforces the principle of fair trade by allowing for temporary relief against unfair trade or unforeseen surges in imports in accordance with the WTO agreements covering safeguards, subsidies, countervailing duties, and anti-dumping measures, as well as allowing for bilateral safeguard measures.

CEPA provides a competitive advantage for traded goods between the two Partners. Tariff reductions improve price competitiveness, while simplified rules of origin and customs procedures reduce transaction costs and provide for certainty and predictability in the trading processes. Supported by clear disciplines on non-tariff measures help prevent unexpected regulatory barriers. This is next to maintaining national production protection measures that allow each Partner to address serious damages due to increased exports or unfair training practices.

Dedicated Subcommittee offer the Partners and the business community a direct communication channel that supports overcoming market-access challenges and putting in place timely solutions.

Trade in Services

CEPA liberalizes trade in services between the two Partners building on the WTO services agreement. The CEPA ensures market access and national treatment of services suppliers from each Partner and ensures regulatory transparency.

The CEPA sets clear and transparent rules to facilitate the cross-border supply of services across a broad range of service sectors including professional services, telecommunications, financial services, distribution, and more.

For detailed information, please refer to the Trade in Services chapter, and its annexes on Schedules of Specific Commitments which include the services sectors and sub-sectors by clicking the link below.

Digital Trade

CEPA brings greater coherence to a continuously evolving digital trading landscape integral to today’s global economy by establishing common disciplines that enhance confidence and ensure that digital trade flows benefit both businesses and consumers.

Government Procurement

The CEPA set common rules for government purchase contracts and gradually opens up the government procurement market of each Partner on a reciprocal basis ensuring that supplied from each Partner can compete for such contracts on a fair and non-discriminatory basis.

The CEPA provides the conditions and requirements for bidders to have access to government contracts offered by specific public entities in various sectors and within certain thresholds. Noting that for the UAE market, opening is limited to federal-level entities.

Intellectual Property Rights Protection

CEPA complements existing international principles and standards for the treatment, protection, and enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) in a manner that is conducive to invention, innovation, and creativity.

Investment Promotion

The CEPA reaffirms each Partner’s commitment to create an attractive investment environment, by putting in place a farmwork for cooperation and dialogue to promote and facilitate two-way investment.

Global Value Chains

The CEPA promotes deeper UAE–Chile cooperation to help companies integrate more effectively into Global Value Chains, boosting competitiveness and diversification. The CEPA highlights the key role of the private sector, services, and technology in accessing regional and global production networks. Both Partners commit to sharing information, identifying opportunities, addressing obstacles, and supporting firms seeking to internationalize and expand within value chains.

Trade and Women’s Economic Empowerment

The CEPA acknowledges that women play a critical role in driving sustainable, inclusive, and resilient economic growth. Under the CEPA the Partners strengthens bilateral cooperation to empower women as workers, traders, business leaders, and entrepreneurs. The Parties commit to promoting equal opportunities and improving women’s participation in trade by sharing best practices, advancing women’s skills and leadership, and expanding access to finance, digital tools, and international markets, as well as putting in place practical initiatives that help more women benefit from CEPA-driven trade opportunities.

Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs)

CEPA recognizes the specific needs of SMEs and seeks to make it easier for SMEs and entrepreneurs to grow their businesses and attract investment by providing information and putting in place joint platforms to assist SMEs in developing linkages and building capacities.

Economic Cooperation

The CEPA establishes a broad, forward-looking framework for economic cooperation between the UAE and Chile to maximize the benefits of the CEPA and support sustainable, inclusive growth.

The Parties commit to working together to strengthen trade and investment ties across priority sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, ICT, e-commerce, financial services, and environmental goods and services. Cooperation is implemented through an Annual Work Programme developed by both Parties, ensuring activities remain relevant, mutually beneficial, and directly supportive of CEPA implementation. The chapter also enhances collaboration on competition policy, responsible business conduct, and private-sector engagement through Chambers of Commerce and joint business initiatives. Areas of cooperation include the manufacturing industries; agriculture, forestry and fisheries; trade and investment promotion; human resource development; tourism; information and communications technology; promotion of electronic commerce; financial services, and trade in environmental goods and services. In addition, the Partners may agree on other new areas of cooperation that are in their mutual interests and contribute to achieving the objectives of CEPA

Importantly, the CEPA includes comprehensive cooperation provisions on labor, environment and climate, reaffirming both countries’ commitments to international environmental agreements and outlining joint work on circular economy, biodiversity, water and waste management, low-carbon technologies, renewable energy, and climate-change mitigation aligned with the Paris Agreement.

Transparency

The CEPA reinforces openness, fairness, and good governance and requires both Partners to publish or make accessible their laws, regulations, and international agreements relevant to the operation of the trade and investment relations. Moreover the CEPA puts in place a mechanism for the Partner to collaborate and respond to information requests in a timely manner.

Dispute Settlement

The CEPA’s state-to-state trade dispute settlement mechanism underscores the Partners’ commitment to resolving trade disputes in a timely manner that preserves the levels of trade liberalization and benefits the economy.

Exceptions

The CEPA maintains each partner’s right to be free to take measures in exceptional cases to protect legitimate public policy objectives, human life and health or public morals or for security reasons.

The CEPA further provides clarity on taxation, which fall outside the purview of the CEPA unless such taxes discriminate against imported good, as well on balance-of-payments matters were a Party can take necessary measures to safeguard financial stability.

Administration of the Agreement

CEPA establishes an administrative and communication structure that is mainly comprised of specialised committees and subcommittees that manage and oversee the implementation of the different aspects of the CEPA.

CEPA Key Benefits:

• Provides for tariff liberalization, with the agreement eliminating or reducing customs duties on approximately 99.5% of bilateral trade flows,
• Introduces flexible and business-friendly rules of origin, making it easier for companies to qualify for preferential access.
• Streamlines customs procedures and reduces administrative burdens, which lowers trade costs and speeds up logistics.
• Creates new openings service suppliers, particularly in professional services, ICT, finance, logistics, tourism, and creative industries, supported by clearer market-entry disciplines and more predictable regulatory frameworks.
• Strengthens the digital trade environment, ensuring non-discriminatory treatment of digital products, enabling cross-border data flows, promoting e-invoicing, e-authentication and paperless trade, and supporting a secure, trusted online marketplace for consumers and businesses.
• Supports innovation and knowledge-based industries through enhanced protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights, cooperation between IP authorities, and mechanisms that encourage technology transfer and creative-sector growth.
• Promotes and facilitates investment flows, offering improved transparency and regulatory cooperation, reinforcing the UAE’s position as a gateway to South America and offering Chilean investors a predictable and open environment to expand into the Middle East, Africa, and Asia via the UAE.