Canada and India launched negotiations toward a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in 2010. The most recent round of negotiations was held in August 2017 in New Delhi.
India and Canada held a Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi on March 11, 2022. The two countries’ trade ministers underlined the robust trade and economic relationship between India and Canada and resolved to further strengthen the bilateral ties and economic partnership.
The Ministers agreed to formally re-launch the India-Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations.
Both sides agreed to consider an interim agreement or Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA) that could be concluded early as a transitional step towards the CEPA. Ministers agreed that an EPTA would be consistent with Article XXIV of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
Ministers further agreed that EPTA shall include high level commitments in goods, services, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, and dispute settlement, and may also cover any other areas mutually agreed upon.
Furthermore, Canada and India agreed to promote and protect bilateral investment, including through the intensification of negotiations toward a Bilateral Investment Agreement, while considering options to achieve this goal alongside CEPA.