UK‑Mexico CPTPP trade relationship now live
- New access for UK exporters to markets including food and drink producers such as chocolate, cheese and pork
- Greater freedom for UK services professionals to operate within market
UK businesses can now trade with Mexico more easily and cheaply.This is thanks to the terms of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) which has now entered into force for both countries.British businesses will benefit from improved opportunities for food and drink trade with Mexico:
- chocolate producers will benefit from 0% tariffs when exporting to Mexico, where they currently face tariffs of up to around 25%
- there will be shared tariff-free access for cheese into Mexico, with further shared duty-free quotas for other dairy products
- there will be opportunities for the pork industry with duty free access for pork from day one
Business travel to Mexico will also be easier. As the UK's current trading arrangements with Mexico contains only limited commitments on temporary business travel, new comprehensive commitments for UK businesspersons within CPTPP make it easier for UK firms to support their business operations in Mexico. Provisions include:
- the ability for dependents to accompany Intra-Corporate Transferees
- commitments on Investors, Independent Professionals and Contractual Service Suppliers for the first time
UK financial services firms will enjoy greater legal certainty when trading with clients based in Mexico, such as when providing portfolio management and e-payment cards services.UK companies will also benefit from the certainty, security and lower costs that CPTPP provides, including provisions on data flows, protection of source code and cryptography, and a ban on unjustified data localisation.Cumulation of content from other CPTPP countries also has huge advantages for industries with complex supply chains, notably automotive, one of our largest exports to Mexico worth 162.3 million in the four quarters to the end of Q4 2025.
For more details for how CPTPP could help grow your business in Mexico and beyond, consult our Market Guides.
Additional Information:
Costa Rica to join UK as member of £13 trillion global trade bloc - GOV.UK
