Rules of origin (ROO) are the laws and regulations used in international trade to define where a product was made. ROO are important when implementing trade policy tools such as anti-dumping and countervailing duties, and in the context of regional trade agreements (RTAs) and free trade agreements (FTAs). The globalization of the supply chain has, however, made it increasingly difficult to determine where a product originally comes from, since raw materials and parts used to make finished goods are drawn from all over the world. The Committee on Trade and Investment (CTI) has therefore agreed to work toward the harmonization of these rules among APEC member economies.
Last page update: January 2018
Current Activities
Recent projects and advances made on ROO-related issues include:
A Public Private Dialogue (PPD) on ROO, was held at the margins of the meetings of the Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures (SCCP) and the Committee on Trade and Investment (CTI) held in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam, on 22 August 2017.The PPD built on APEC’s past work facilitating the exchange of best practices and identifying areas where more work on ROO still needs to be done.