India-New Zealand FTA: 100% exports get zero duty

Deal set for signing on April 27

India and New Zealand are scheduled to sign a long-pending bilateral trade agreement on April 27, according to Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. The signing follows years of discussions, with the deal also discussed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. Goyal made the comments during a visit to Agra alongside New Zealand’s Minister for Trade and Investment, Todd McClay. Officials have described the agreement as a step aimed at boosting trade ties and widening market access between the two countries. Beyond goods trade, multiple statements around the pact point to services, mobility, and investment facilitation as key themes.

How the agreement was concluded

Government-linked updates said the India–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was concluded in a record nine months. Formal negotiations were stated to have been launched on March 16, 2025, during Prime Minister Luxon’s visit to New Delhi, when he met Prime Minister Modi. The process was led by Goyal and McClay and concluded after five formal negotiation rounds, supported by additional in-person and virtual intersessions. Goyal has called the agreement “comprehensive and forward-looking” in later comments, indicating it extends beyond tariff cuts into areas such as education, research and development, innovation, services, tourism, and sports.

Market access: from 70% duty-free to zero duty on all exports

In Agra, Goyal said that “approximately 70 per cent of goods from India to New Zealand will reach there without any import duty.” Separate briefings around the concluded FTA have gone further, stating that New Zealand will eliminate tariffs on 100 per cent of its tariff lines, providing duty-free market access for all Indian exports from the date the agreement comes into force. The core takeaway for exporters is that a significant portion, and as later stated all, of India’s export tariff lines into New Zealand are intended to get zero-duty access under the agreement.

What New Zealand gets: tariff cuts on most exports to India

From New Zealand’s side, official statements and reporting said the FTA reduces or eliminates tariffs on approximately 95 per cent of New Zealand’s exports to India. Prime Minister Luxon was quoted as saying the agreement will open doors for New Zealand farmers, growers, and businesses, supporting exports, jobs, and incomes. Reporting also cited a forecast that the agreement could increase New Zealand’s exports to India by between USD 1,100 million and USD 1,300 million annually over the next two decades.

Sectors flagged for gains in India

Official statements highlighted a wide set of labour-intensive and manufacturing categories expected to benefit from improved market access. These included textiles, apparel, leather and footwear, marine products, gems and jewellery, handicrafts, engineering and manufacturing, automobiles, electronics, machinery, plastics, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. In a separate update focused on textiles and clothing, it was stated that New Zealand’s tariffs earlier went up to 10 per cent and that Indian exporters in the segment will get zero-duty access across 1,057 tariff lines. The same report said India’s textile and apparel exports stood at USD 36,900 million in 2024–25, while exports to New Zealand rose to USD 103 million. It added that New Zealand’s annual global textile imports are valued at nearly USD 1,900 million.

MSMEs and cluster-level exports: Agra leather and UP crafts

Goyal also pointed to potential opportunities for traditional and MSME-driven industries, naming Agra’s leather business and Uttar Pradesh handloom and handicrafts. He linked the opportunity set to India’s “one district one product” approach and referred to artisans and trades such as carpenters and handcarvers. For listed companies and the broader market ecosystem, the immediate relevance is indirect but visible: higher export competitiveness can support order flows for supply chains that include MSMEs, job-work units, and larger exporters in labour-intensive sectors.

Services openings, student mobility, and work pathways

Beyond goods, multiple disclosures highlighted services and mobility. Reporting said New Zealand offered market access across 118 services sectors and a Most-Favoured Nation commitment in about 139 sub-sectors, as per a Commerce Ministry statement. The services opportunity set mentioned IT and ITeS, finance, education, tourism, construction, and other areas. It was also stated that New Zealand has introduced first-ever annexes on health, traditional medicine, student mobility, and post-study work. Mobility provisions cited included working holiday visas, post-study work pathways, and a dedicated quota of 5,000 temporary employment visas for skilled Indian professionals.

Investment facilitation: USD 20,000 million over 15 years

A major investment-related datapoint highlighted in later reporting was New Zealand’s commitment to facilitating USD 20,000 million in foreign direct investment into India over 15 years. The target areas were described as manufacturing, infrastructure, services, innovation, and job creation. While the figure is framed as facilitation and not a guaranteed inflow, the number is large enough to matter for sectors that typically rely on long-horizon capital, including manufacturing and infrastructure-linked value chains.

Trade baseline and why the deal is material

Bilateral merchandise trade between India and New Zealand was reported at USD 1,300 million in FY 2024–25. Total trade including services was stated at approximately USD 2,400 million, with services such as travel, IT, and business services cited as meaningful contributors. This baseline provides context for how tariff elimination, services commitments, and customs and regulatory cooperation could influence volumes over time. Goyal said the agreement would act as a catalyst for trade growth “in a few months,” positioning implementation as an important next step for businesses assessing near-term benefits.

Key facts snapshot

What to watch after the signing

Subsequent updates will matter for exporters and investors tracking implementation. The agreement text and operational details on customs processes, non-tariff barriers, and SPS and Technical Barriers to Trade disciplines were referenced as part of the package, along with streamlined procedures and regulatory cooperation. Businesses will also look for clarity on how services commitments are scheduled and how mobility pathways operate in practice. With both governments positioning the pact as a broad economic partnership, the next concrete milestones will be the agreement’s entry into force and the publication of sector-specific schedules and procedures.