The Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) signed between Mauritius and India on 22 February 2021, comes into force on 1 April 2021.
The CECPA represents an important milestone in the trade and economic relationship between Mauritius and India, provides access to a market of more than 1.3 billion inhabitants to Mauritius. The Agreement has three key components namely Trade in Goods, Trade in Services and Economic Cooperation.
Trade in Goods
Mauritius will enjoy trade preferences on a selected list of 615 products consisting of duty-free access for 376 products, reduced duties on 127 products and Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQ) on 112 products. Preferential market access has been obtained on products of export interest including medical devices, instant noodles, soap and detergents.
The products subject to TRQ, including, inter-alia:
On the import side, Mauritius will provide preferential access on 310 products, with Tariff Rate Quotas on 88 products including spices, tea, plastic articles, wooden furniture, amongst others.
It is to be noted that all goods meet the CECPA rules of origin and should be accompanied by a CECPA certificate origin issued by their respective Government Authorities in order to benefit from tariff preferences in both countries. In the case of Mauritius, the CECPA certificates will be issued by MRA Customs.
Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQ) upon imports from India will be granted on a first come first serve basis in accordance with the date and time of validation of the bill of entry submitted for home consumption and will be managed by the MRA Customs Department. Information on the utilization of TRQs at importation are available on the website of MRA Customs: https://tradenetmns.mu/viewquota/searchQuota.
As regards exports to India, Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQ) will be allocated to Mauritian exporters by indian auhtorities on a first come first serve basis, with no end date.
Trade in Services
On trade in services, India has committed to provide market access on some 94 service sectors, including professional services, business services, financial services and telecommunications services. The Agreement also provides a framework for Professional Bodies of the two countries to negotiate mutual recognition of educational and professional qualifications, within one year from its entry into force in the fields of architecture, engineering, medical, dental, accounting and auditing sectors.
Economic Cooperation:
The CECPA also provides for the incorporation therein of a chapter on Economic Cooperation on which negotiations have been completed. The chapter covers some 25 sectors in which both Parties have agreed to enhance their collaboration such as Pharmaceuticals, Agro-industry, SMEs, Manufacturing, Ocean economy, ICT, Financial services, amongst others.
