United Arab Emirates’ Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with South Korea entered into force in May 2026, initiating a phased tariff elimination over up to 10 years.
The United Arab Emirates and South Korea started a trade agreement on 1 May 2026 that removes or cuts customs duties on most goods traded between them, in steps over up to 10 years1.
The deal is the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), a trade agreement covering goods, services and investment. The two countries signed it on 29 May 20242.
In short, many goods made in the UAE or South Korea now pay lower import duties, or none, when they cross between the two countries. A shipment only gets the lower rate if it meets the agreement’s origin rules and each country’s list of tariff cuts.
How much will UAE–Korea tariffs fall?
Both countries have promised to cut duties on about 91.2% of tariff lines, the separate product entries in a customs tariff1. The duties will fall step by step, following each country’s Schedule of Tariff Commitments, its own list of cuts for each product1.
How far and how fast duties fall
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Trade says more than 90% of tariffs on goods trade will be removed over a period of up to 10 years1. It also says the deal removes or reduces duties on more than 90% of the value of trade between the two countries1.
Some products pay zero duty from day one, that is, from 1 May 20261. Others see their duty cut over several years1. The rate for each product is shown on the ministry’s online CEPA Market Access Dashboard, where a trader looks up the product by its HS code, the international product number used by customs1.
Which goods does the Korea deal cover?
South Korea’s official government news site, Korea.net, names some of the goods involved. It says tariffs on 91.2% of all items will be scrapped over 10 years3.
On the Korean export side, cars are the leading product sold to the UAE3. Korea.net also names three growing groups:
- food
- cosmetics and beauty products
- defence goods
For goods going the other way, the UAE is South Korea’s third-largest supplier of crude oil3. South Korea will phase out its tariffs on crude oil, its largest single import, over the next 10 years3.
What must a shipment prove to get the lower CEPA duty?
A shipment gets the lower duty only if it qualifies under the rules of origin, which decide where a product counts as made1. The rules differ by type of goods1.
What a shipment needs for the lower duty
For manufactured products, the agreement uses a "sufficient working or processing" rule1. A product can meet it in one of two ways:
- its tariff classification changes during making, for example when parts become a finished product
- local processing adds value of at least 40% of the FOB price, the price of the goods loaded on the ship
Some goods also have their own product-specific rules1. The UAE Ministry of Foreign Trade issues a certificate of origin, the paper that proves where goods were made, through its online services1. The procedures include checks to verify these certificates1.
What changes at the border for UAE–Korea trade?
The agreement asks both countries to make customs work faster and more open1. It covers advance rulings, which are written customs decisions on a product before it is shipped, and risk-based systems that decide which goods to inspect1.
Food safety, plant-health and product standards rules must be based on international standards1. They must be applied openly and must not treat goods from the other country unfairly1. Each country still keeps the right to protect human, animal and plant life and health1.
The deal also bans customs duties on electronic transmissions, such as software or files sent online1. It supports paperless trade and digital documents1.
Can the UAE or Korea raise duties again?
Yes, in some cases. Both countries keep their World Trade Organization rights to use anti-dumping duties, which are extra import taxes on goods sold abroad below their normal price1. They also keep countervailing duties against subsidised goods and global safeguard measures1.
The agreement adds a bilateral safeguard, an emergency brake between the two countries only1. If imports of a product rise so much after tariff cuts that they seriously harm local producers, the hurt country may pause its cuts or raise the duty for a time1. It must first carry out an investigation1.
Why did the Korea CEPA start early?
The start was brought forward to 1 May, ahead of schedule3. South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources said on April 3 that the two trade ministers agreed this in a videoconference3. The ministers were Yeo Han-koo for South Korea and Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi for the UAE3.
From signing to start
The agreement has 18 chapters with annexes2. A joint committee and subcommittees will meet regularly to manage it2. For a shipment moving now, the key test is the product’s HS code: the dashboard shows whether it already pays zero duty or waits for a later cut1.
Sources
- ↩ UAE – Korea CEPA – Ministry Of Foreign Trade https://www.trade.gov.ae/uae-korea-cepa
- ↩ United Arab Emirates – Republic of Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement https://www.moet.gov.ae/en/uae-korea-comprehensive-economic-partnership-agreement
- ↩ Effectuation of free trade accord with UAE moved up to May 1 : Korea.net : The official website of the Republic of Korea https://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Business/view?articleId=290328