Member DashboardNAFTA renegotiation signed; ready for ratification
The United States, Mexico and Canada announced the final step in the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) November 30, when President Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau and Mexican President Pena Nieto signed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in Buenos Aires. Details are outlined in a Presidential Fact Sheet.
USMCA is intended to replace NAFTA, which took effect in 1994. The agreement includes updates to multiple trade chapters, comprehensive intellectual property protections and new provisions for digital trade. It does not address steel and aluminum tariffs, which remain in effect.
Key chapters to note include:
- Rules of Origin
- Customs Administration
- Technical Barriers to Trade
- Sectoral Annexes
- Intellectual Property
- Environment
The agreement needs to be ratified by each country. The United States can pass the USMCA into law under the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) in early 2019, although press reports indicate that Congress will not vote on the USMCA until later in 2019.