Malaysia - European Union FTA

The Malaysia-EU FTA (MEUFTA) is Malaysia's most recent bilateral initiative with the European Union. MEUFTA is a preferential trading arrangement that is expected to facilitate free movement of goods, services and investment between Malaysia and the EU, which remains the largest economic bloc in the world.

- MEUFTA covers 16 areas negotiated across 13 Working Groups. The 16 areas are:

i) Market Access for Goods

ii) Services

iii) Investment

iv)Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)

v) Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) Measures

vi) Rules of Origin

vii) Intellectual Property Rights

ix) Competition

x) Government Procurement

xi) Sustainable Development Issues (Labour and Environment)

xii) Customs and Trade Facilitation

xiii) Trade Remedies

xiv) Dispute Settlement

xv) Mediation

xvi) Regulatory Transparency

xvii) Introductory, General and Institutional Matters

No. There are no a-priori exclusions. Flexibilities can be negotiated for very limited, highly sensitive sectors/ areas; however these flexibilities are likely to be in the form of longer timelines/ transitional periods rather than exclusions per se.

Negotiators are working towards concluding MEUFTA by mid-2012. Upon conclusion, it will take anywhere from 6 months to one year for both sides (Malaysia and the EU) to complete their necessary domestic procedures (including translating the MEUFTA into all the European languages for the EU), after which the MEUFTA will enter into force. Any preference granted under MEUFTA can only be enjoyed once the Agreement enters into force

For the Malaysian side, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) is the Lead Agency that coordinates MEUFTA negotiations. However, given the technical nature of the discussions, Working Groups, led by sectoral Ministries, are established to negotiate on areas of specific interest to them. For example, the Working Group on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) is led by Standards Malaysia, while Government Procurement is led by Ministry of Finance.

- For the European side, the Lead Agency is DG Trade, while the Working Groups are led by sectoral experts

A total of 13 Working Groups have been established, namely:

i) Market Access for Goods

ii) Services and Investment

iii) Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)

iv) Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) Measures

v) Rules of Origin

vi) Intellectual Property Rights

vii) Competition

viii) Government Procurement

ix) Sustainable Development Issues (Labour and Environment)

x) Customs and Trade Facilitation

xi) Trade Remedies

xii) Dispute Settlement/ Mediation

xiii) Regulatory Transparency/ Introductory, General and Institutional Matters

In addition, the Chief Negotiators also have Special Sessions that meet separately during each Round to consider:

- Cross-cutting issues that cannot be parked under a single Working Group, e.g., Border Enforcement Issues that are related to IPR and Customs;

- Specific issues not addressed elsewhere, e.g., Halal/ Animal Welfare;

- Management issues such as the negotiating process, confidentiality of the documents shared over the course of MEUFTA negotiations, media coverage and next steps; and

- Joint reports, decision points and work programmes submitted by the individual Working Groups.

The GSP scheme administered by the EU is a separate trade instrument from MEUFTA. Exports from Malaysia to the EU that are subject to the GSP scheme will continue to enjoy the tariff concessions granted by the scheme. Malaysia has also requested the EU to consider according GSP-plus benefits under MEUFTA.

As MEUFTA negotiations are still ongoing, MITI is unable to advise on the specific preferential duty for any product. Such information will only become available once the negotiations are concluded

Given the confidential nature of the documents, all papers/ draft texts that are being discussed and/or negotiated are shared with stakeholders on a need-to-know basis only. Stakeholders having specific interest in a certain area may request to be consulted, and MITI will consider this request.

MITI welcomes inputs/ comments/ feedback on any obstacle faced by Malaysian exporters of goods and services in the EU market. Such information can be submitted to the Coordinator of MEUFTA:

Ms. Arividya Arimuthu
Ministry of International Trade and Industry
Block 8, Government Offices Complex
50622, Jalan Duta, Kuala Lumpur