Austria, Sweden, and Finland joined the EU in 1995 and thus ceased to be EFTA members. Yes, the EFTA States are not obliged by the EFTA Convention to conclude preferential trade agreements as a group. The possibility of rejoining the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) after leaving the European Union might be something Britain ought to consider as Iceland’s Foreign Minister Guðlaugur Þór Þórðarson suggested last year. The United Kingdom was a member of the European Economic Area from 1 January 1994 to 31 December 2020, following the coming into force of the 1992 EEA Agreement. That variable picture has parallels within the EU, where Germany has held out the prospect of granting Britain a special status in its post-Brexit relationship while France has pushed for a more hardline approach. Membership of the EEA is a consequence of membership of the European Union. Its objective is to extend the Internal Market of the EU to the three participating EFTA States creating a homogeneous European Economic Area. Schengen is not a part of the EEA Agreement. These contributions are not managed by the EU, but by the EFTA Financial Mechanism Office in collaboration with the beneficiary countries. Liechtenstein joined the EFTA in 1991 (previously its interests had been represented by Switzerland). The Parties could agree to proceed to both negotiations at the same time. The Separation Agreement mirrors the relevant parts of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement and secures the rights of EEA EFTA and UK citizens that are already residing or working in the EEA EFTA States or the UK, respectively. The UK would withdraw from the EU and join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). The United Kingdom (UK) ceased to be a Contracting Party to the EEA Agreement after its withdrawal from the EU on 31 January 2020. Since 2001, the EFTA Convention has been updated continually in order to align its content with the Swiss-EU bilateral agreements and the EEA Agreement. EFTA4UK campaigns for the UK to rejoin the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). The worst case scenario is that we leave the EU as part of the UK, join EFTA as a holding position and then negotiate EU membership from there. She said it was important for all countries to set out their national interests in the debate. In addition to the EEA Grants, Norway has funded a parallel scheme since 2004 – the Norway Grants. Do EFTA States have access to the Single Market? The EEA EFTA States also have close bilateral contacts with EU institutions, both at ministerial level and at the level of senior officials and experts. Currently the beneficiary states include Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is an intergovernmental organisation, established in 1960 by the EFTA Convention for the promotion of free trade and economic integration between its Member States (today Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland), within Europe and globally. A UK membership would therefore mean better market access in the UK for these products than the current EFTA States have today. According to Article 56 of the EFTA Convention, “any State may accede to the Convention provided that the EFTA Council decides to approve its accession, on such terms and conditions as may be set out in that decision.”. The EEA EFTA States have agreed to treat the UK as an EU Member State during this period. The financial contributions of the EEA EFTA States to the EU related to the EEA Agreement are twofold. But that benefit of more clout also means Britain might demand conditions that would mainly help it - rather than its putative EFTA partners - when negotiating trade deals. UK: Reunited The benefits of EFTA include the Irish border – crucial for our United Kingdom – agriculture, business supply chains and the ability to deliver services in the EU. Switzerland set up several dialogues with the UK: (1) a so-called Continuity Dialogue which deals with horizontal issues and oversees progress in each area, and (2) Specific Dialogues in areas currently covered by the Swiss/EU agreements. Prime Minister Theresa May is undecided about her country’s future role in Europe after Britons voted to leave the European Union in a June referendum. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. 56.3 of the EFTA Convention states that a new EFTA Member State “shall apply to become a party to the free trade agreements between the Member States on the one hand and third states, unions of states or international organisations on the other.” As a member of a customs union, a country acceding to EFTA could not comply with this obligation. EFTA’s first objective was to liberalise trade between its Member States. This agreement largely mirrors the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU. By re-joining EFTA, the UK would not only ensure its continuance in the EEA, but it would also boost EFTA’s global profile and provide a counterbalance to the EU on the continent. It follows from Article 129 of the Withdrawal Agreement that, during the transition period, the UK shall be bound by the obligations stemming from the international agreements concluded by the EU, including the EEA Agreement. This follows from the two-pillar structure and Article 126 of the EEA Agreement, which states that the EEA Agreement applies to the territory of … The European Union (EU) has confirmed that travellers from the United Kingdom will need to register with the new ETIAS system from 2022. Apart from the various dialogues and negotiations, there has also been considerable interest from the UK for information about EFTA and the EEA. According to Article 128 of the EEA Agreement, “any European State becoming a member of the Community shall, and the Swiss Confederation or any European State becoming a member of EFTA may, apply to become a party to this Agreement. The EFTA States are engaged in numerous processes with the aim to maintain trade relations with the UK as close possible. Since Switzerland is an EFTA Member State, but not a part of the EEA, what will be the future trade relationship between Switzerland and the United Kingdom? What is EFTA and how is it different from the EU? The UK government has clearly indicated that it does not intend to apply for membership of EFTA. “It would be wrong to flag a veto or no veto now, and I believe anyway that we will find good solutions to these problems,” Solberg said. The suggestion that the UK could join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) or European Economic Area (EEA) for a transition period, or perhaps for good, is once again doing the rounds in Westminster. Art. Due to Liechtenstein’s participation in the Swiss customs territory, parts of these agreements have also been extended to Liechtenstein. What does the EFTA Convention say about new member states? Following requests from the UK, representatives from the EFTA States and the Secretariat have met with members of various committees of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, as well as from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The core of these rules relates to the free movement of goods, capital, services and persons throughout the 30* EEA States. The UK, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein have today signed the EEA EFTA Separation Agreement. Not everyone is satisfied, but enough people in both the Remain and Leave camps are satisfied enough with the compromise to take most of the heat out of the debate. This proposal is not only ill-informed, it … Sam Lowe, senior research fellow … The EEA Agreement guarantees equal rights and obligations within the Internal Market for individuals and economic operators in the EEA. Can the EFTA Member States also sign bilateral free trade agreements? She said her Conservative Party was in “continuous dialogue” with their peers across the North Sea led by May, whose first weeks in office have been dominated by a debate over the terms and timing of Britain’s divorce from the EU. Decisions by the EEA Council are taken by consensus between all EU Member States on the one hand and the three EEA EFTA States - Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway - on the other. The EFTA agreement requires accession to the four freedoms of persons, goods, services and capital. If the United Kingdom were to re-join EFTA, would it also become party to EFTA’s worldwide free trade agreements? Moreover, to enter into force, they would involve a ratification … Switzerland and the UK have concluded and signed several agreements in areas including trade, migration, air services, road transport, financial services and citizens´ rights. “Then all must be prepared for anything, if it turns out that Britain joins EFTA,” she said. This means that Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland would have to agree to the UK joining EFTA. In a context of relatively poor domestic economic performance, this situation prompted the UK government to submit a first application to join the EEC in 1961. So why not join EFTA and then accede to the EEA Agreement in the normal course? However, all of the four EFTA States participate in Schengen and Dublin through bilateral agreements. 4,179 applied to EFTA. EFTA membership does not preclude from entering into a customs arrangement with the EU; existing EFTA countries govern their relation to the EU through different instruments. The EFTA Convention from January 1960 states that any country may join EFTA “provided that the EFTA Council decides to approve its accession”. Within EFTA, all member countries have to approve new members, giving each a theoretical veto. If UK was to join EFTA, it could not readily enter its own trade agreements. Britain was a founding member of Efta in 1960, a free trade organisation that was an appendage to the European Economic Community, the forerunner of the … See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. EFTA states are not part of the EU Customs Union as outlined above. 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