WT/REG432/M/1  
 
8 April 2022 
(22-2886) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements  
Hundred and Second  Session    
 
FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED KINGDOM AND SINGAPORE  
(GOODS AND SERVICES)  
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF  28 MARCH  2022 
Chairm an: Ambassador Dr. Cleopa Kilonzo MAILU (Kenya)  
1.1.  The 102nd Session of the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (hereinafter "CRTA" or the 
"Committee") was convened in Airgram WTO/AIR/RTA/27/R EV.2 dated 18 March 2022.  
1.2.  Under Agenda Item H.I I of the Session, the CRTA considered the Free Trade Agreement 
between the  United Kingdom and Singapore , goods  and services  (hereinafter "the Agreement"). The 
Chairman  stated that the Factual Presentation had been prepared by the Secretariat on its own 
responsibility in full consultation with the Parties, in accordance with para graph 7(b) of the 
Transparency Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements (document WT/L/671).  
1.3.  The Chairman  indicated that the Agreement had been provisionally applied by the Parties  from 
1 January 2021. It had been notified on 31 December 2020 under Article  XXIV:7(a) of the GATT  1994 
and Article V:7(a) of the GATS  (documents  WT/REG432/N/1 and S/C/N/1030, respectively ) as an 
agreement creating a free trade area for trade in goods and services  within the meaning of Article 
XXIV of the GATT 1994 and Article V of the GATS, respectively . The text of the Agreement and its 
Annexes was available on the Parties' official websites and in the WTO RTA database. The Factual 
Presentation on the goods and s ervices aspects of the Agreement (document  WT/REG432/1/Rev.1 
dated 4 March 2022) and questions and replies on th e Agreement (document WT/REG4 32/2 dated 
18 March 2022) had been distributed. The Secretariat had informed that the only modification in the 
Factual Presentation circulated as Rev.1 was found in Table 5.1 that listed all RTAs in force for both 
Parties, in particular the inclusion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as 
an Agreement in force, and not yet notified.  
1.4.  The representa tive of the United Kingdom  thanked the Chairman. He stated that the 
UK-Singapore Free Trade Agreement ( hereinafter Agreement ) had entered into force on 11 February 
2021, and it was the first UK FTA with an ASEAN Member State. He indicated that the Agreemen t 
transitioned, as far as possible, the effects of the EU -Singapore Free Trade Agreement (hereinafter 
"EUSFTA") which itself had entered into force on 21 February 2019.  
1.5.  He noted that Singapore was the UK 's top trading partner in the ASEAN region with the trade 
relationship worth over GBP 15.5 billion in 2021. Over 10,000 British businesses exported goods to 
Singapore, and many used the country as their regional headquarters. He stressed that this was the 
largest continuity deal in the Indo-Pacific region and  provided a gateway to one of the most 
important regions for the UK 's trading future. It sat alongside other co -operation with Singapore on 
trade issues of the future and in the WTO. He pointed out that the Agreement had enabled the  
Parties to work towards the recently signed, and he stressed, ground -breaking, Digital Economy 
Agreement that mobilised the benefits of digital trade for the Parties.  
1.6.  Both Parties' trade was dominated by manufactured products which, in 2020, made up 72% 
and 66% of the UK's merchandise exports and imports, respectively, and 74% and 69% of exports 
and imports, respectively, for Singapore.  WT/REG432/M/1  
 
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  1.7.  On the specifics of the Agreement, he stated that its provisions were applied mutatis mutandis , 
with the technical chang es necessary to the EU-Singapore Agreement as if it had been concluded 
between the UK and Singapore in the first instance.  Therefore, the Agreement  allowed companies 
to continue enjoying the same EUSFTA benefits when trading between the Parties. That inclu ded 
tariff elimination for goods trade, increased access to services and government procurement 
markets, as well as reduction of non -tariff barriers including in four major sectors: electronics; motor 
vehicles and vehicle parts; pharmaceutical products and  medical devices; and renewable energy 
generation. In the spirit of continuity, the UK and Singapore had committed to maintain the same 
timeline for tariff reductions as the EUSFTA and to start the clock from the entry into force of the 
EUSFTA. Upon the Agreement's  entry into force, tariffs would remain eliminated for 84% of all tariff 
lines for Singapore 's exports to the UK. Virtually all of the remaining tariffs would be eliminated by 
21 November 2024, similar to the EUSFTA. Singapore would also continue to bind the current level 
of duty -free access under the EUSFTA for all UK products entering Singapore.  He noted that by 
21 November 2024, tariffs on virtually all remaining products would be removed (including on meats 
and seafood, textiles, and consumer g oods) , and Asian food products that had been made in 
Singapore could also enter the UK tariff free up to an annual quota of 350 ton nes.  
1.8.  To ensure maximum continuity of effect for traders, he indicated that the rules of origin Protocol 
in the Agreement largely replicated the outcomes of the EU -Singapore Agreement. For example, the 
product specific rules were the same, as were the origin quotas (although, he noted, that they had 
been resized to reflect the size of the UK 's market), and both Part ies had agreed to the cumulation 
of EU inputs in their exports to one another. The Agreement also provided for future cumulation with 
other ASEAN countries providing the relevant conditions were met. 
1.9.  To reflect the UK and Singapore 's existing relationship in financial services, and accounting for 
the amendments that had been made to the EU -Singapore FTA, both Parties had agreed on a joint 
declaration on financial services aiming to deepen their existing regulatory cooperation. Th is included 
committing Singa pore to future requests to digital wholesale bank licenses and to engage the UK in 
any developments regarding limits imposed on e -wallets. As had been stated in the Factual 
Presentation , the UK and Singapore were continuing their discussions on those two i ssues.  
1.10.  In the UK's view, the Agreement had  maintained benefits for SMEs , including simplified 
customs procedure . Simplifying such procedures and reducing other barrier to trade, allowed small 
businesses as well as the larger ones, to benefit from their exp orts becoming cheaper for 
Singaporean importers, and vice versa .  
1.11.  In conclusion, the representative of the United Kingdom thanked Singapore for its cooperation 
both in the development of the Agreement, but also for the meeting of the Committee . He also 
thanked the WTO Secretariat for the work and preparation for the meeting, as well as the Members 
for their interest in coming to the Session.  
1.12.  The representative of Singapore  thanked the UK for its detailed and comprehensive 
presentation of the Agreement and for its strong partnership in that exercise. He also thanked  the 
WTO Secretariat for the hard work in putting together the Factual Presentation.   
1.13.  He stated that the Agreement was a symbol of the historical and longstanding partnership 
between Singapore and the UK. It was also an important signal of their shared commitment to an 
open, rules -based multilateral trading system. As a high standard agreem ent, the Agreement had 
provided tangible benefits by giving  Singapore and UK companies certainty and clarity in their 
trading arrangements.  
1.14.  The UK and Singapore were like -minded partners that shared many common interests. Their 
economies had been  deeply i ntertwined, anchored by substantive trade and investment linkages and 
people -to-people ties. The UK was Singapore 's 5th largest trading partner for goods and second 
largest trading partner for services in Europe. The UK had also been Singapore 's 5th larges t foreign 
investor. Singapore, in turn had been the UK 's top ASEAN trading partner and investor.  
1.15.  He noted that  the pandemic had accentuated the importance of bilateral and multilateral trade 
relations. Singapore had continued to be a firm supporter of an open and robust trading system. Its 
bilateral trade with the UK had remained strong despite the severe economic and health challenges WT/REG432/M/1  
 
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  that had been posed by the COVID -19 pandemic. The Agreement  had helped to cushion the impact 
and would support a resilient  and sustainable recovery from the pandemic.  
1.16.  The Parties had  continued to maintain a strong stance in favour of free trade and 
multilateralism. The Agreement  provided certainty and predictability while opening doors for 
companies wanting to expand into ov erseas markets. It also ensured that trade connectivity between 
the Parties was underpinned by a modern and comprehensive free trade agreement – the first 
between the UK and a country in Southeast Asia. Under th e comprehensive agreement, companies 
stood to  benefit from substantive commitments, as the UK had already mentioned, in tariff 
elimination for goods trade, increased access to their respective services and government 
procurement markets, as well as the reduction of non -tariff barriers. There were als o provisions on 
modern trade issues like intellectual property protection.  
1.17.  In conclusion, the representative of Singapore  thanked Members for their interest in th e 
exercise and affirmed Singapore's commitment to the WTO as well as th e process  in the CRTA .  
1.18.  The representative of European Union  congratulated the Parties on the conclusion of the 
Agreement. She thanked the Parties for the transparency provided and for their answers to the EU 's 
questions.  
1.19.  The representative of Japan  thanked the Parties and the Secretariat for all their efforts for 
preparing th e Factual Presentation. He also expressed appreciation for the responses received to 
Japan's  questions on specific aspects of the Agreement concerning the origin declaration and  the 
rules of origin.  
1.20.  The representative of the United S tates thanked the Parties  for the clarity in presenting the 
core elements of their Agreement  and wished them the best of luck in implementation.  
1.21.  The Chairman  noted the consideration of the goods and s ervices aspects of the Free Trade 
Agreement  between the United Kingdom and Singapore  had allowed the Committee to clarify a 
number of questions and conclude oral discussion of the RTA in accordance with paragraph 11 of 
the Transparency Mechanism. Any deleg ations wishing to ask follow -up questions were invited to 
forward submissions in writing to the Secretariat by 4 April 2022 and the Parties were asked to 
submit replies in writing by no later than 25 April 2022. In accordance with paragraph 13 of the 
Trans parency Mechanism all written submissions, as well as the minutes of th e meeting would be 
circulated promptly, in all WTO official languages, and made available on the WTO website.  
1.22.  The Committee took note  of the comments made.  
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