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UKFT Guide to the UK-New Zealand Trade Agreement

14/08/2023

UKFT has recently published new guides for members, including UK-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement; UK- Australia Free Trade Agreement; Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.


UKFT has published a new guide for members on the UK-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (UK-NZ), which was was signed on 28 February 2023 and entered into force on 31 May 2023.

To access your copy or to find out about membership, please contact info@ukft.org

The agreement is an important UK post-Brexit trade agreement and one of New Zealand’s most ambitious free trade agreements with any country, other than Australia. New Zealand also has a bilateral agreement with China.  

In general terms, under the UK-New Zealand FTA, only goods manufactured in the UK of material of either UK or New Zealand origin will qualify for 0% duty and vice versa. All other goods would enter NZ on the MFN rate which can be between 0–10% for fashion and textiles.  

This document sets out the key benefits for UK exporters to New Zealand of goods 100% made in the UK for export to New Zealand as well as providing guidance on goods made in the UK that use inputs that are not from the UK or New Zealand.  

The UK has also signed a similar, but not identical, agreement with Australia and has concluded negotiations to enter the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) of which New Zealand and Australia are also members. Members are advised to read UKFT’s separate briefing documents on CPTPP which has different rules on origin. In general, the UK-NZ agreement Rules of Origin (ROO) and Product Specific Rules (PSRs) will be more generous to UK companies manufacturing goods in the UK with EU inputs than CPTPP.   

The guide outlines:

  • Rules of Origin (ROO) and Product Specific Rules (PSR) of the UK-New Zealand agreement
  • Statements of Origin
  • VAT required on import/export at the border
  • Labelling requirements for goods in target country
  • Intellectual property issues
  • Differences between UK-NZ and UK AUS FTA
  • What a declaration of origin (which is the basis for a claim for preferential tariff treatment) should include 

Not a member?

For more details on membership click here  or contact info@ukft.org

Helping UK fashion and textile companies to trade overseas

UKFT has produced a series of guides to some of the key export markets for UK fashion and textiles and the latest Free Trade Agreements. We have also produced guides to some of the key import markets for UK fashion brands.

The information set out in these guides provide a basic overview, however, UKFT has much more information and experience of how these markets work.

UKFT GUIDES TO IMPORT AND EXPORT MARKETS