Mapping Services Liberalisation Commitments in European Union Regional Trade Agreements

In recent years, there has been a surge in the conclusion of regional trade agreements (‘RTAs’) by the European Union with trading partners across the world. These RTAs have gradually become more elaborate and substantive, thereby liberalising inter alia certain aspects of trade in services. This paper aims to map services liberalisation commitments in these RTAs in order to gain an overview of the obligations which apply to the EU and its counterparties as a result of these agreements. The RTAs are therefore divided into four categories: RTAs with (potential) EU Member State countries, agreements concluded with European neighbours, RTAs that are part of a wider development objective and trade agreements that aim primarily at opening up global markets to European services providers. An analysis of the services provisions in these agreements reveals many similarities, but also highlights subtle differences which reflect that an RTA is not a unilateral declaration but is the product of negotiations. The mapping exercise includes both RTAs that have entered into force and agreements which have been concluded but not yet signed or ratified. RTAs under negotiation are addressed briefly as well.nrpages: 48status: publishe