The Australia–United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement to commence on 31 May 2023

05 May 2023

The Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (AUKFTA) is set to commence on 31 May 2023, as announced by the Hon. Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia, during his trip to the United Kingdom yesterday.

With no tariffs on over 99 per cent of Australian goods exports to the UK and access to expanding tariff quota volumes for some agricultural products, which will be eliminated completely within 10 years, the AUKFTA is expected to deliver unprecedented benefits to Australian businesses.

Promising to deliver significant benefits to Australian exporters, consumers, workers and, more broadly, our economy, Prime Minister Albanese commented:

“The Australia-UK FTA represents one of the most comprehensive, innovative and ambitious free trade agreements concluded by Australia to date and strengthens an already close relationship between Australia and the UK.”

To read the media release published by the Australian Government, click here.

Rigby Cooke Lawyers’ Customs & Trade group, led by Partner Andrew Hudson, will now work with International Forwarders & Customs Brokers Association of Australia (IFCBAA), the Food and Beverage Importers Association (FBIA) and the Export Council of Australia (ECA) to deliver detailed information to those in the supply chain on the issues to be addresses to take full benefit of the AUKFTA from the commencement date.

Contact us

For more information on the AUKFTA and what this means for your business, please contact our Customs & Trade team.

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