On 30 November 2020, the European Commission took an early positive decision on the application of the Republic of Uzbekistan to obtain the status of a beneficiary of the Generalized System of Preferences plus (the "GSP +").
The decision was made on the basis of reports from monitoring groups of the European Commission on the implementation by Uzbekistan of the provisions of 27 international conventions in the field of human rights protection, observance of labor standards, environmental protection and good governance. Based on the analysis, the European Commission concluded that the Republic meets the criteria for participation in the "GSP +" and proposed to include it in the list of beneficiaries of this system.
According to the established procedures, the issue will now be referred to the European Council and the European Parliament for consideration and approval of this decision. After the adoption of the decision, Uzbek producers and exporters will be able to start using unilateral tariff preferences when exporting their goods to the European market. At the same time, the number of commodity items that Uzbek producers will be able to export to EU countries will grow to 6200.
Obtaining the status of the beneficiary of "GSP +" by Uzbekistan will create a solid foundation for sustainable growth and diversification of exports, which will also serve the dynamic development of mutually beneficial trade relations with the countries of the European Union.
The Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade, together with the relevant ministries and departments, are taking measures to interact with the EU member states in order to promptly discuss and answer questions to speed up the adoption of a final decision.
Originally published 21, December 2020
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