The India-U.K. Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a type of Free Trade Agreement and Economic Integration Agreement between the Republic of India and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Its origin lies in the "Enhanced Trade Partnership" agreed upon in May 2021 by Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and Narendra Modi, with formal negotiations launching in January 2022. The agreement was created to significantly boost bilateral trade and economic cooperation, particularly supporting the U.K.'s post-Brexit trade diversification efforts.
The CETA was finalized on May 6, 2025, signed on July 24, 2025, and is scheduled to become effective on July 15, 2026. The core mechanism involves reciprocal tariff elimination and reduction across its 29 chapters. The U.K. has committed to securing duty-free access for 99% of India's exports, covering nearly the entire trade basket. In return, India will remove or reduce tariffs on 90% of its tariff lines, covering 92% of existing goods imports from the U.K. This includes immediate zero-tariff access for 64% of U.K. tariff lines, with 85% of tariff lines becoming eligible for tariff-free entry after a staging period of 10 years.
A key provision is the opening of India's central government procurement market to U.K. businesses for the first time. The agreement connects to the broader India–UK Vision 2035 strategic framework. Recently, the Finance Ministry notified the Customs Tariff (Determination of Origin of Goods under Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between India and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) Rules, 2026 on July 3, 2026, under the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, which will come into force with the CETA to prevent misuse of preferential tariffs. This new rule set is essential for the operationalisation of the agreement.