RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – President Jair Bolsonaro sent today (14) to Congress the additional protocol that extends the agreement between Mercosur and Colombia. The text provides for the liberalization of trade in services and must be approved by Congress to enter into force.
The agreement’s extension was submitted days before Colombian President Iván Duque’s visit to Brazil on the 19th. Last week, representatives of the two countries had signed a memorandum to increase bilateral trade.
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Among the provisions of the additional protocol forwarded to Congress are the temporary admission of service providers in the signatory countries, cooperation for mutual recognition of professions and diplomas, and the establishment of tribunals or regulatory procedures. The text also provides lists of specific commitments between the countries.
In 2017, Mercosur and Colombia signed a trade agreement to establish a free trade area between the countries, stimulate investments, and increase economic, energy, scientific, and technological cooperation.
The agreement also established annual import quotas for automotive products, with a preference margin of 100% for what is within limits and 54% for Colombia, and 55% for Brazil for what exceeds the quotas or for products not covered by them.
In 2018, the Mercosur countries and Colombia signed the first protocol to include services in the economic agreement. However, the text underwent a revision, and a new protocol was signed in December last year.
In a statement, the General Secretariat of the Presidency said the protocol would increase legal certainty and predictability, improving the business environment and cheapening trade in services between Brazil and Colombia.
“It should, therefore, generate increased opportunities for Brazilian service providers, expand Brazil’s attractiveness for Colombian investments, and facilitate the importation of Colombian services that contribute to increasing the productivity of the Brazilian domestic market and its competitiveness abroad,” the statement highlighted.