Describes trade agreements this country is a party to. Includes resources where U.S. companies can get information on how to take advantage of these agreements.
In October 2019, the United States and Japan signed the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement and the U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement, which entered into force on January 1, 2020. The U.S.- Japan Trade agreement eliminates or reduces tariffs on approximately $7.2 billion in U.S. agricultural exports and the U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement includes high-standard provisions that ensure data can be transferred across borders without restrictions, guarantee consumer privacy protections, promote adherence to common principles for addressing cyber security challenges, support effective use of encryption technologies, and boost digital trade. The government of Japan is expected to submit a bill to revise the U.S-Japan Trade Agreement to the Extraordinary session of the Diet in the fall of 2022, to reflect the changes the U.S. and Japan agreed in March 2022 on beef safeguard. See the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement text and the Fact Sheets.
A list of Japan’s other concluded trade agreements and EPAs, as well as those being negotiated, can be found at this link from Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Notable agreements include Japan and the European Union (EU) EPA, which has been in force in February 2019. See here for a text of the agreement. Since 2018, Japan and eight other countries (Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam) signed and ratified the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Two other countries (Brunei and Chile) are signatories but have not yet ratified the CPTPP.
Japan has 16 bilateral economic partnership agreements (EPAs) with the countries listed below. Japan has two additional EPAs – one with the European Union and another with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
| Australia | Peru |
| Brunei | Philippines |
| Chile | Singapore |
| India | Switzerland |
| Indonesia | Thailand |
| Malaysia | United Kingdom
|
| Mexico | United States |
| Mongolia | Vietnam |
On November 15, 2020, Japan, along with Australia, China, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, and all 10 ASEAN countries signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership free trade agreement. The agreement went into effect on January 1, 2022.
For information on sector-specific agreements between the United States and Japan visit the Department of Commerce Office of Trade Agreements Negotiation and Compliance (TANC) website.
Japan is a full member of the World Trade Organization (WTO).