Pakistan ‘must reapply’ to retain GSP+ trade benefits as EU expands requirements

Pakistan will be required to submit a fresh application and commit to 32 international conventions, up from the current 27, to retain zero and reduced-tariff access to the European Union market under a revised Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) regime, an EU spokesperson was quoted as saying by Arab News. The European Union’s new GSP regulation, published on June 22, is set to take effect on January 1, 2027. Despite the transition, EU official clarified that there will be no automatic rollover or guaranteed approval for existing beneficiaries. Under the updated framework, Pakistan will continue benefiting from GSP+ access during a two-year transition period ending in 2028, provided it complies with current obligations. However, to secure access beyond the transition window, Islamabad must file a formal reapplication backed by a forward-looking action plan detailing the implementation of expanded human rights, labour, environmental, climate, and governance standards. “Like all other GSP+ countries, Pakistan will continue to benefit from GSP+ during the 2-year transition period until the end of 2028, subject to compliance with its obligations, ” the EU spokesperson said in a written statement to Arab News. The GSP+ status remains a vital economic pillar for Pakistan, which exported €7. 5 billion worth of duty-free or concessionary goods, primarily textiles and garments, to the bloc in 2024, saving an estimated €732 million in tariff exemptions. The requirement for a fresh application follows the European Commission’s 2023–2025 GSP monitoring report released in July. While acknowledging progress in certain sectors, the EU report highlighted persistent concerns regarding human rights, prison reforms, enforced disappearances, freedom of expression, child labour, and the protection of minority rights. Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the EU’s periodic assessment, it noted reservations over what it termed an unbalanced portrayal of Pakistan’s performance on human rights and rule-of-law indicators. Last week, while talking to Business Recorder, European Union Ambassador to Pakistan Raimundas Karoblis said that Pakistan has entered a ‘very critical’ juncture in its trade relationship with the European Union, with continued preferential access to its largest export market far from guaranteed unless Islamabad demonstrates credible and measurable progress on human rights, labour rights, environmental commitments and good governance. Karoblis had said the next phase of the EU’s GSP+ would place significantly greater emphasis on implementation rather than merely ratifying international conventions or putting legislation on the statute books. “GSP+ preferences are not for granted, ” the ambassador had said, stressing that there were “far from guarantees” over Pakistan’s position under the new system and that necessary political decisions now rested with the government. He had later described the country as being at a “very critical juncture”.

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