Snapshot

The UAE and Jordan have strengthened their economic relations through a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which was signed on October 6, 2024 and came into force on May 15, 2025.

This CEPA, which is the UAE's first agreement with an Arab country, is expected to enhance trade, investment, and economic cooperation between the two partners.

Trade in Goods

Preferential Tariff Rates

Under the UAE-Jordan CEPA tariff concessions schedule would apply to all goods, except for exempted goods under Greater Arab Free Trade Agreement for health, religious, environmental, and security reasons, which constitute approximately 2% of tariff items.

Maintaining levels of goods trade liberalization between the two sides at more than 98% of tariff items, covering more than 99.5% of UAE goods exported to Jordan.

Goods produced in both countries, including free zones, shall also benefit from the agreement.

Origin, Health & Safety Rules

All exported goods must also meet the prescribed rules of origin and comply with health, safety, and relevant technical requirements.

Customs Facilitation

The CEPA makes it easier for goods to move across borders in a simple, less costly, and timely manner through setting up a Customs Cooperation and Mutual Administrative Assistance Agreement that provides the legal basis for wide ranging and future arrangements to recognise the Authorized Economic Operators program of each side.

Trade Remedies

The CEPA reaffirms the rules on trade remedies contained in the WTO agreements and establishes a cooperation and notification process on trade remedies. The CEPA maintains the ability of each partner, subject to a fair and transparent investigation, to impose temporary tariffs to counter unfair practices or to offset an unforeseen surge in imports of like products that causes or threatens to cause harm to the domestic industry.

Trade in Services

The CEPA aims to facilitate the gradual liberalization of services markets between the UAE and Jordan in a manner that is consistent with domestic laws and regulations. The CEPA provides a framework for predictable rules and disciplines for trade in services, while ensuring that service providers receive favourable treatment across a wide range of sectors and subsectors, including professional, financial, logistics, maritime, travel and tourism, and air transport services. For detailed information, please refer to the Trade in Services chapter, and its annexes on Schedules of Specific Commitments which includes the services sectors and sub-sectors.

Digital Trade

The CEPA brings greater coherence to a continuously evolving digital trading landscape integral to today’s global economy. Enhancing confidence in digital trade and ensuring that digital trade flows benefit both businesses and consumers. These disciplines include maintaining the practice of not imposing any customs duties on electronic transactions, reaffirming the importance of cybersecurity, and providing for an economic collaboration framework on digital trade issues.

Intellectual Property Rights Protection and Enforcement

The CEPA complements existing international principles and standards for the treatment, protection, and enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) in a manner that is conducive to invention, innovation, and creativity.

Administration and Implementation

The CEPA establishes a governance structure comprised of designated focal points, committees and subcommittees that meet regularly and are tasked with the administration and implementation of the different aspects of the CEPA.

Investment

The CEPA reaffirms both sides commitment to protect investment under the Bilateral Investment Treaty (2009). The CEPA also sets up a Technical Council on Investment to promote and enhance investment flows, identify opportunities for expanding investment and overcoming investment impediments and to engage with the business community.

Benefits for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

The CEPA recognizes the specific needs of SMEs and seeks to support their internationalization. The CEPA makes it easy for SMEs and entrepreneurs to grow their businesses and attract investment by containing a comment on each partner to provide market and business relevant information as well as putting in place joint platforms to assist SMEs in developing linkages and building capacities.

Settlement of Trade Disputes

The CEPA sets up a state-to-state trade dispute settlement mechanism that reinforces the partners’ commitment to ensuring that each fully benefits from trade liberalization.

Economic Cooperation

The CEPA contains commitments for deeper and future-looking cooperation among the two partners in a variety of areas and issues that will enhance trade liberalization and foster investment opportunities.