Eu-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (Eusfta)

The trade agreement provides for 70 years of copyright protection. It provides for fair remuneration for producers of sound recordings broadcast or broadcast in public. This will be implemented by November 2021. The agreement will bring Singapore`s copyright laws in line with countries that allow sound recording producers to collect broadcasting and public performance licence fees. The agreement also contains provisions on tariffs, trade facilitation and intellectual property protection, while trade barriers are removed and sustainable development obligations are strengthened by the protection of workers` rights and the environment. However, between December 2019 and May 2020, EU exports to Singapore fell by 16% compared to the same period of the previous year, to EUR 12.5 billion, due to the negative impact of Covid-19 on merchandise trade. For the free trade agreement to enter into force, the EU (parliament and council) and Singapore must ratify the agreement. On 13 February 2019, the European Parliament approved both the free trade agreement and the investment protection agreement, and the free trade agreement is expected to enter into force as soon as possible. [7] [9] Under the EEA, companies in Singapore and the EU enjoy preferential access for trade in goods, services and government procurement in each other`s markets. The European Union (EU) is Singapore`s third largest trading partner for goods, Singapore`s largest services trade market and the world`s largest domestic market. EU Member States: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The Investment Protection Agreement will offer investors the possibility of a modern and reformed investment dispute settlement mechanism, the investment court system.

It encouraged businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, to continue to enjoy the benefits of the agreement. On 16 May 2017, the Court of Justice, the highest court in the European Union, ruled that the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (ECIA) was a joint agreement and therefore needed to be ratified not only by EU institutions, but also by the national and regional parliaments of EU member states. This final decision is not a surprise in itself, as a non-binding opinion by General Counsel Eleanor Sharpston last December indicated that the EUS could only be concluded by the EU and the Member States acting in concert.