The text of the Interim Trade Agreement between the European Union, on one hand, and the Southern Common Market, the Argentine Republic, the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Republic of Paraguay, and the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, on the other hand, which will be provisionally applied as of 1 May 2026, is published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The European Commission has prepared practical information for companies regarding the start of provisional application, which is available on the Taxation and Customs Union (page in English) page and on the Access to Markets (page in English) page.
The agreement will gradually eliminate duties entirely for 91 percent of goods exported by EU companies to Mercosur countries. This will result in annual savings of more than four billion euros.
Areas where the agreement will bring the most benefits for exporters
The sectors for which exports at the EU level are expected to increase the most due to the reduction or elimination of customs duties (motor vehicles by 200 percent, amounting to approximately 20.7 billion euros; machinery by 35 percent, amounting to approximately 5.4 billion euros; and chemical products by 50 percent, amounting to approximately 4.8 billion euros) are listed below.
Until now, the following customs duties applied to products of EU origin when imported into Mercosur countries:
- cars: 35 percent,
- clothing: 35 percent,
- leather footwear: 35 percent,
- spirits: 20 to 35 percent,
- wines: 27 percent,
- machinery: 14 to 20 percent,
- car parts: 14 to 18 percent,
- chemical products: up to 18 percent,
- medicines: up to 14 percent.
Mercosur also has great consumer potential for high-quality EU products such as wines, cheeses, and dairy products, which are currently subject to high customs duties:
- champagnes and sparkling wines: 20 to 35 percent,
- spirits: 20 to 35 percent,
- chocolate: 20 percent,
- whisky and other spirits: 20 to 35 percent,
- wafers, biscuits: 18 percent,
- candied peaches: 55 percent,
- refreshing beverages: 20 to 35 percent.
Greatest opportunities for the Slovenian economy
A study by the Center of Business Excellence of the Faculty of Economics shows that, given the planned liberalization, the agreement offers opportunities for Slovenian export companies for toys, electrical appliances, machinery, paper products. Among the growth sectors, the study highlighted five sectors: machinery, electronic products, wood and paper industry, non-metallic products, metals.
Industrial products currently account for 99 percent of Slovenian exports to Mercosur countries. Of this:
- medicines (7.5 percent),
- parts of rotating machines (six percent),
- medical instruments (six percent),
- semi-finished aluminum products (5.3 percent),
- immunological products (4.4 percent),
- machine parts (3.9 percent).
Other areas of the agreement
According to an analysis by the European Commission, total EU exports of agricultural products are expected to increase by 49 percent, amounting to 1.2 billion euros. The export potential will increase for most agricultural products, especially for fruit and vegetables (expected by 36 percent, amounting to 185 million euros), vegetable oils (by 21 percent, amounting to 185 million euros), dairy products (by 102 percent, amounting to 85 million euros), beverages (by 53 percent, amounting to 608 million euros).
The agreement includes a specific chapter dedicated to small and medium-sized enterprises, ensuring that they can take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the agreement. More than 30,000 EU small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) already export to Mercosur countries. By improving the business and investment environment, EU SMEs will have new opportunities for successful market access.
The agreement will eliminate import duties on 92 percent of goods originating from Mercosur countries exported to the EU, which will allow for a balanced market opening for the EU. Sensitive agricultural products such as beef, sugar, or poultry will be imported at a preferential tariff rate only within the framework of quotas.
For Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, the interim agreement completely eliminates export duties on raw materials and industrial goods or applies them at a zero rate. It also reduces export duties on agricultural products (Argentina) or eliminates them (Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil).
In relation to industrial goods, Brazil has committed to maintaining duty-free access for important raw materials needed for the EU’s economic diversification (nickel, copper, aluminum, raw materials for steel production, steel, titanium). Preferential and stable access to raw materials is crucial from the perspective of economic security and external competitiveness.
For the first time, Mercosur countries are opening their public procurement markets, which means new opportunities for EU providers to participate in public tenders, even in those Mercosur countries that are not members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement.
The agreement brings the elimination of technical and regulatory trade barriers for trade in goods, in particular by promoting the use of self-certification and alignment with international standards. An agreement has been reached to reduce duplication of testing in the electronics sector in low-risk areas. There is also a special annex on motor vehicles, which promotes the use of United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE) regulations and reduces duplication of testing in the sector.
The agreement also brings benefits in trade in services – it regulates access to service sectors and the facilitation of trade in services between the EU and Mercosur countries, both through local establishment and cross-border. A chapter on e-commerce was also adopted, which is a novelty for Mercosur countries.
The agreement also regulates a high level of protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights. A high level of protection and enforcement is also provided for EU geographical indications, comparable to the level in the EU, for 344 names of quality food, wine and spirits in the EU, including six geographical indications of the Republic of Slovenia (Kranjska klobasa, Kraška panceta, Kraški zašinek, Kraški pršut, Slovenian honey, Štajersko prekmursko pumpkin seed oil).
The right to regulate in the public interest is an important legal standard.
Assessment of the benefits of the agreement for the EU and the Slovenian economy
The total impact of the agreement with the Mercosur countries on the entire EU economy is expected to be around 80 billion euros upon full implementation of the agreement, according to data available to the European Commission. The calculation made by the European Commission does not take into account indirect benefits, benefits from improved access to the public procurement market, savings for companies due to improved protection of intellectual property rights, or the reduction of administrative burdens, which are more difficult to measure.
Both the European Commission analysis and the study by the Center for Business Excellence of the Faculty of Economics (pdf, 1,603 KB) show the opportunities opening up for companies with the start of the provisional application of the Interim Trade Agreement with Mercosur countries.
Več informacij o sporazumu in dodatnih mehanizmih je na voljo tudi na spletni strani Sveta EU.