WTO | Regional trade agreements

Basic InformationWTO Consideration ProcessRTA Provisions

Agreement name:	European Free Trade Association (EFTA)
Coverage:	Goods & Services	Type:	Free Trade Agreement & Economic Integration Agreement
Status:	In Force	Notification under:	GATT Art. XXIV & GATS Art. V
Date of signature (G):	04-Jan-1960	Date of notification (G):	14-Nov-1959
Date of signature (S):	21-Jun-2001	Date of notification (S):	15-Jul-2002
Date of entry into force (G):	03-May-1960	End of implementation period:	1966
Date of entry into force (S):	01-Jun-2002
Current signatories:	Iceland; Liechtenstein; Norway; Switzerland
Original signatories:	Austria; Denmark; Norway; Portugal; Sweden; Switzerland; United Kingdom
RTA Composition:	Plurilateral
Region:	Europe
All Parties WTO members?	Yes	Cross-Regional:	No

Related agreements

EFTA - Accession of Iceland

Official Web Address

European Free Trade Association (EFTA)

Text of the agreement

Text of Agreement	E

Annexes & related documents

Annexes	E

Consideration status (G):	Report adopted	Consideration status (S):	Factual Abstract issued

Related documents

Document series:

Document type	Symbol	Language
Notification (G)	L/1105	E F
Notification (S)	S/C/N/207	E F S
Notification / Corrigendum (S)	S/C/N/207/Corr.1	E F S
Agreement (S)	WT/REG154/1	E F S
Factual Abstract (S)		E
Standard Format for information on RTAs (S)	WT/REG154/2	E F S
Questions and Replies (G)	L/1167	E
Note on the Meeting of the CRTA (S)	WT/REG154/M/1	E F S
Note on the Meeting of the CRTA (S)	WT/REG154/M/2	E F S
Report	BISD 9S/70 (L/1235)	E
Biennial report (G)	WT/REG85/R/B/1	E F S
Biennial report (G)	WT/REG85/R/B/2	E F S
Biennial report (G)	WT/REG85/R/B/3	E F S
Biennial report (G)	WT/REG85/R/B/4	E F S

Document type	Language
Factual Abstract (S)	E

RTA Provisions Glossary

For details on these provisions, please consult the Glossary.

Last modified on: 01/12/2017

Topics
	Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQ)
	All quantitative import restrictions prohibited
	Rules of Origin (RoO)
		Change of Tariff Classification Criteria (CTC)
		Regional Value Content Criteria (RVC)
		Other Criteria(s)
		De minimis rules
		Outward-processing allowed
		Cumulation among Parties
		Cumulation with non-Parties permitted
	All Export Duties and Charges prohibited
	All Export restrictions, including quantitative restrictions, prohibited
	Sanitary and Phytosanitary measures (SPS)
		Specifically reaffirms or incorporates WTO SPS Agreement
	Technical regulations, standards, technical barriers to trade (TBT)
		Transparency obligations (TBT)
		Mandatory recognition of conformity assessment results
	Safeguard Mechanisms (Goods)
		Specifically reaffirms or incorporates WTO Safeguard Agreement
		RTA-specific safeguard measures always permitted
		Special safeguard in Agriculture
	Anti-Dumping measures
		Prohibition of intra-RTA Anti-Dumping measures
	Countervailing measures
		Prohibition of intra-RTA countervailing measures
	Subsidies (Goods)
	Sector-specific chapter/section or other legal instrument (Goods)
	Services
		Hybrid structure (Services)
		Standstill provision (Services)
		MFN provision (Services)
	Rendez-Vous/Review/Evolutionary clause (services)


	Investment Liberalization Provisions
		MFN provision (Investment)
		National Treatment with regard to the entry of investment (establishment)
		Investment liberalization
	Rendez-Vous clause (Investment)
	Provisions on capital transfers
	Mutual Recognition
	Movement of Natural Persons
	Sector-specific chapter/section or other legal instrument (Services)
	General Exceptions
	Security Exceptions
	Accession
		Accession open to all third parties
	Dispute Settlement (DS)
		Ad hoc Adjudicative Process
	Government procurement
	Intellectual property rights
		Specifically reaffirms or incorporates WTO TRIPS Agreement
		Copyrights and neighbouring rights
		Patent
		Trademarks
		Industrial Designs
		Layout-Designs (topographies) of integrated circuits
		Geographical Indications (GIs)
		Enforcement
	Competition
	Provisions on designated monopolies or State Owned Enterprises (SOEs)