By Peter Ungphakorn
POSTED OCTOBER 24, 2020 | UPDATED JANUARY 25, 2021
The UK-Japan free trade agreement was signed in Tokyo on October 23, 2020. This page provides user-friendly links to download different chapters and annexes of the entire agreement.
Why do this? On the UK government’s website, the files are sub-divided somewhat arbitrarily — in particular the long files of goods schedules are split at arbitrary places, making it difficult to identify what each file contains.
The files linked here were taken from that website (on October 24, 2020), then redivided and in some cases recombined into chapters and annexes, and labelled accordingly.
This should also help in comparing the agreement, chapter by chapter, with the EU-Japan agreement (full details here).
The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides the files somewhat differently.
The British government website contains a lot more useful information, in particular a summary, a report to Parliament, an impact assessment and some promotional material.
See also some analysis, below, including a report from the Commons International Trade Committee.
The page with the legal text also contains an explanatory memorandum (pdf).
An updated list of continuity agreements and other deals with non-EU countries is on the UK government website.
Agreement Between
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
and Japan for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership
TABLE OF CONTENTS AND PREAMBLE
CHAPTER 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS (Articles 1.1 to 1.9)
CHAPTER 2 TRADE IN GOODS
- SECTION A General provisions (Articles 2.1 to 2.5)
- SECTION B National treatment and market access for goods (Articles 2.6 to 2.21)
- SECTION C Facilitation of wine product export (Articles 2.22 to 2.30)
- SECTION D Other provisions (Articles 2.31 to 2.34)
CHAPTER 3 RULES OF ORIGIN AND ORIGIN PROCEDURES
- SECTION A Rules of origin (Articles 3.1 to 3.15)
- SECTION B Origin procedures (Articles 3.16 to 3.26)
- SECTION C Miscellaneous (Articles 3.27 and 3.28)
CHAPTER 4 CUSTOMS MATTERS AND TRADE FACILITATION (Articles 4.1 to 4.14)
CHAPTER 5 TRADE REMEDIES
- SECTION A General provisions (Article 5.1)
- SECTION B Bilateral safeguard measures (Articles 5.2 to 5.8)
- SECTION C Global safeguard measures (Articles 5.9 and 5.10)
- SECTION D Anti-dumping and countervailing measures (Articles 5.11 to 5.15)
CHAPTER 6 SANITARY AND PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES (Articles 6.1 to 6.16)
CHAPTER 7 TECHNICAL BARRIERS TO TRADE (Articles 7.1 to 7.15)
CHAPTER 8 TRADE IN SERVICES, INVESTMENT LIBERALISATION AND ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
- SECTION A General provisions (Articles 8.1 to 8.5)
- SECTION B Investment liberalisation (Articles 8.6 to 8.13)
- SECTION C Cross-border trade in services (Articles 8.14 to 8.19)
- SECTION D Entry and temporary stay of natural persons (Articles 8.20 to 8.28)
- SECTION E Regulatory framework
- SUB-SECTION 1 Domestic regulation (Articles 8.29 to 8.32)
- SUB-SECTION 2 Provisions of general application (Articles 8.33 to 8.35)
- SUB-SECTION 3 Postal and courier services (Articles 8.36 to 8.40)
- SUB-SECTION 4 Telecommunications services (Articles 8.41 to 8.57)
- SUB-SECTION 5 Financial services (Articles 8.58 to 8.67)
- SUB-SECTION 6 International maritime transport services (Articles 8.68 and 8.69)
- SECTION F Electronic commerce (Articles 8.70 to 8.86)
CHAPTER 9 CAPITAL MOVEMENTS, PAYMENTS AND TRANSFERS AND TEMPORARY SAFEGUARD MEASURES (Articles 9.1 to 9.4)
CHAPTER 10 GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT (Articles 10.1 to 10.17)
CHAPTER 11 COMPETITION POLICY (Articles 11.1 to 11.10)
CHAPTER 12 SUBSIDIES (Articles 12.1 to 12.10)
CHAPTER 13 STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISES, ENTERPRISES GRANTED SPECIAL RIGHTS OR PRIVILEGES AND DESIGNATED MONOPOLIES (Articles 13.1 to 13.8)
CHAPTER 14 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
- SECTION A General provisions (Articles 14.1 to 14.7)
- SECTION B Standards concerning intellectual property
- SUB-SECTION 1 Copyright and related rights (Articles 14.8 to 14.19)
- SUB-SECTION 2 Trademarks (Articles 14.20 to 14.25)
- SUB-SECTION 3 Geographical indications (Articles 14.26 to 14.34)
- SUB-SECTION 4 Industrial designs (Articles 14.35 and 14.36)
- SUB-SECTION 5 Unregistered appearance of products (Article 14.37)
- SUB-SECTION 6 Patents (Articles 14.38 to 14.40)
- SUB-SECTION 7 Trade secrets and undisclosed test or other data (Articles 14.41 and 14.42)
- SUB-SECTION 8 New varieties of plants (Article 14.43) SUB-SECTION 9 Unfair competition (Article 14.44)
- SECTION C Enforcement
- SUB-SECTION 1 General provisions (Articles 14.45 and 14.46)
- SUB-SECTION 2 Enforcement – civil remedies (Articles 14.47 to 14.55)
- SUB-SECTION 3 Enforcement of protection against misappropriation of trade secrets (Article 14.56)
- SUB-SECTION 4 Enforcement – border measures (Article 14.57) SUB-SECTION 5 Enforcement – criminal remedies (Article 14.58)
- SUB-SECTION 6 Enforcement in the digital environment (Article 14.59)
- SECTION D Cooperation and institutional arrangements (Articles 14.60 to 14.63)
CHAPTER 15 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE (Articles 15.1 to 15.7)
CHAPTER 16 TRADE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (Articles 16.1 to 16.18)
CHAPTER 17 TRANSPARENCY (Articles 17.1 to 17.9)
CHAPTER 18 GOOD REGULATORY PRACTICES AND REGULATORY COOPERATION
- SECTION A Good regulatory practices and regulatory cooperation
- SUB-SECTION 1 General provisions (Articles 18.1 to 18.3)
- SUB-SECTION 2 Good regulatory practices (Articles 18.4 to 18.11)
- SUB-SECTION 3 Regulatory cooperation (Articles 18.12 and 18.13)
- SUB-SECTION 4 Institutional provisions (Articles 18.14 to 18.16)
- SECTION B Animal welfare (Article 18.17)
- SECTION C Final provisions (Articles 18.18 and 18.19)
CHAPTER 19 COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF AGRICULTURE (Articles 19.1 to 19.8)
CHAPTER 20 SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES (Articles 20.1 to 20.5)
CHAPTER 21 TRADE AND WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT (Articles 21.1 to 21.4)
CHAPTER 22 DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
- SECTION A Objective, scope and definitions (Articles 22.1 to 22.3)
- SECTION B Consultations and mediation (Articles 22.4 to 22.6)
- SECTION C Panel procedure (Articles 22.7 to 22.24)
- SECTION D General provisions (Articles 22.25 to 22.30)
CHAPTER 23 INSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS (Articles 23.1 to 23.6)
CHAPTER 24 FINAL PROVISIONS (Articles 24.1 to 24.7)
ANNEXES
(only the existing Annexes are listed)
[Note: the annex numbers correspond to chapter numbers for the subject]
ANNEX 2-A TARIFF ELIMINATION AND REDUCTION
* The tariff tables in the original files are images. They have been converted to searchable text using optical character recognition (OCR) by Twitter user “slroot” @schnoogsl (see tweet) on this page
ANNEX 2-B LIST OF GOODS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLES 2.15 AND 2.17
ANNEX 2-C MOTOR VEHICLES AND PARTS
- APPENDIX 2-C-1 UN REGULATIONS APPLIED BY BOTH PARTIES
- APPENDIX 2-C-2 UN REGULATIONS APPLIED BY ONE OF THE PARTIES AND NOT YET CONSIDERED BY THE OTHER PARTY
ANNEX 2-D & E FACILITATION OF SHOCHU EXPORT; FACILITATION OF WINE PRODUCT EXPORT
ANNEX 3 RULES OF ORIGIN
- ANNEX 3-A INTRODUCTORY NOTES TO PRODUCT SPECIFIC RULES OF ORIGIN
- ANNEX 3-B PRODUCT SPECIFIC RULES OF ORIGIN
- APPENDIX 3-B-1 PROVISIONS RELATED TO CERTAIN VEHICLES AND PARTS OF VEHICLES
- ANNEX 3-C PRODUCTS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 3.5
- ANNEX 3-D INFORMATION REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 3.5
- ANNEX 3-E TEXT OF THE STATEMENT ON ORIGIN
ANNEX 6 FOOD ADDITIVES
ANNEX 8 SERVICES
- ANNEX 8-A REGULATORY COOPERATION IN FINANCIAL SERVICES
- ANNEX 8-B SCHEDULES FOR CHAPTER 8
- ANNEX I RESERVATIONS FOR EXISTING MEASURES
- ANNEX II RESERVATIONS FOR FUTURE MEASURES
- ANNEX III BUSINESS VISITORS FOR ESTABLISHMENT PURPOSES, INTRA-CORPORATE TRANSFEREES, INVESTORS AND SHORT-TERM BUSINESS VISITORS
- ANNEX IV CONTRACTUAL SERVICE SUPPLIERS AND INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONALS
- APPENDIX IV LIMITATIONS OF BUSINESS ACTIVITIES OF CONTRACTUAL SERVICE SUPPLIERS AND INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONALS IN JAPAN
- ANNEX 8-C UNDERSTANDING ON MOVEMENT OF NATURAL PERSONS FOR BUSINESS PURPOSES
ANNEX 10 GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT
ANNEX 14 GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
- ANNEX 14-A LAWS AND REGULATIONS OF THE PARTIES RELATED TO GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
- ANNEX 14-B LIST OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
PROTOCOL ON MUTUAL RECOGNITION
Some analysis
- House of Commons International Trade Committee report, November 19, 2020 — pdf, HTML, links to reports and transcripts (look for 2020). The British government’s response (pdf)
- Overview. By Professor Panos Koutrakos
- On Chapter 12: subsidies. By George Peretz QC
- On geographical indications in Chapter 14
- On the implications for the UK automotive industry. A Twitter thread (CEPA = UK-Japan; EPA = EU-Japan)
Updates:
January 25, 2021 — adding government response to Commons committee report, and Koutrakos’ overview, under “Some analysis”
November 19, 2020 — adding Commons International Trade Committee report under “some analysis”
October 26, 2020 — adding text-searchable versions of the UK and Japan goods schedules; “some analysis” section (more links will be added as new analysis emerges)
Picture credits: all rights-free CC0
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