Community mutual recognition agreements, technical barriers to trade and the WTO’s most favoured nation principle

Article abstract:

Technical requirements for goods, introduced by the Community and other countries in the name of public policy, can create significant barriers to international trade. The Community has led the way in using mutual recognition to overcome such barriers, and in recent years has extended its use to liberalising trade with selected third countries. This article seeks to determine whether the Community's bilateral mutual recognition agreements in force, relating to the assessment of goods' conformity with technical requirements, are in compliance with the WTO's most favoured nation (MFN) principle. It concludes that the agreements with Australia and New Zealand are in breach of MFN obligations laid down in the WTO's General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, and offers some predictions as to the future mutual recognition activities of both the Community and the WTO.