THE Philippines is seeking broader preferential access to the European Union market through a free trade agreement (FTA), before its benefits under the EU’s Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) expire, Trade Undersecretary Allan Gepty said on Tuesday.
GSP+ is a special EU trade program that grants eligible developing countries duty-free access to about two-thirds of EU tariff lines. In exchange, beneficiary countries must implement international conventions on human rights, labor rights, environmental protection and good governance.The Philippines could lose its GSP+ eligibility after the World Bank classified it this year as an upper-middle-income country. The country’s gross national income per capita has reached $4,850, exceeding the $4,636 threshold.Under EU rules, a beneficiary may graduate from GSP+ if it retains upper-middle-income status for three consecutive years. The current EU GSP framework is also scheduled to expire at the end of 2027.Philippine and EU officials announced on Tuesday that they had reached an agreement on a bilateral free trade deal. European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič said the agreement would liberalize more than 94 percent of tariff lines, covering over 97 percent of traded goods on both sides.Gepty said Philippine negotiators were pushing for wider product coverage in the EU market, although he declined to identify the specific products for which the country was seeking concessions.“The more product coverage, the better for us,” he said.Agricultural products are typically among the most difficult issues in trade negotiations because both sides seek to protect their farmers and domestic industries, Gepty said.He stressed the need to conclude the Philippine-EU FTA quickly to prevent any disruption in preferential market access after the country loses its GSP+ privileges.Many Philippine exports currently enter the EU duty-free under GSP+. Without the program or an FTA, some products could face tariffs of as much as 34 percent, potentially making them less competitive in the European market.Unlike GSP+ — which the EU grants unilaterally and may withdraw if eligibility requirements are no longer met — an FTA would establish reciprocal and more permanent market-access commitments between the Philippines and the 27-member bloc.Gepty said the proposed agreement would go beyond tariffs and trade in goods. It would also cover services, investments, intellectual property rights, competition policy, government procurement, technical barriers to trade, customs cooperation and procedures aimed at reducing the cost of doing business.
