India-New Zealand FTA to take effect on 20 October 2026

The India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement will enter into force on 20 October 2026, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and New Zealand's Minister for Trade and Investment Todd McClay announced during a virtual conference on 21 September, following completion of internal processes in both countries. The agreement was signed at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, on 27 April 2026, and New Zealand's Parliament passed the enabling legislation on 16 September.

From entry into force, every tariff line covering 100 per cent of India's exports to New Zealand becomes duty-free, putting Indian industry on the same footing as New Zealand's other trading partners. Sectors including textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, gems and jewellery, engineering goods and processed foods stand to benefit immediately as New Zealand's peak tariffs of up to 10 per cent are eliminated. Indian manufacturers will also get tariff-free access to inputs such as wooden logs, coking coal and metal scrap.

India has kept sensitive products including dairy, animal meat other than sheep, key agricultural commodities, sugar and edible oils outside tariff concessions. Market access for New Zealand's apples, kiwifruit and Manuka honey has instead been structured through tariff rate quotas with a minimum import price and seasonal import windows, alongside safeguards for domestic farmers. The agreement also establishes an Agriculture Productivity Partnership, with dedicated action plans for kiwifruit, apples and honey, and centres of excellence covering orchard management, post-harvest practices, supply chains, food safety and sustainable beekeeping, overseen by a Joint Agriculture Productivity Council.

The agreement includes a New Zealand commitment to facilitate 20 billion US dollars of investment into India, expected to benefit Indian agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure and start-ups. On services, it opens roughly 118 sectors, including IT, professional services, audio-visual, construction and tourism, to Indian companies and professionals, with most-favoured-nation treatment locked in across about 139 sub-sectors. Mobility provisions include a quota of 5,000 temporary employment entry visas annually for skilled Indians, 1,000 working holiday visas a year for young Indians, and uncapped student mobility with post-study work rights of up to three years for STEM graduates and four years for doctoral scholars. Indian pharmaceutical and medical device exporters also stand to benefit, with New Zealand agreeing to accept inspection approvals from regulators including the US FDA, EMA, UK MHRA and Health Canada.

Goyal said the agreement would give fresh momentum to the bilateral partnership, create greater synergies between the two economies and enhance overall competitiveness, noting that the entry-into-force date coincides with Dussehra-Vijaya Dashami. McClay said the agreement, concluded within nine months, was among the highest-quality trade deals New Zealand had negotiated, and would provide tangible benefits to businesses on both sides.

The agreement follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to New Zealand in July 2026, the first by an Indian prime minister to the country in four decades, during which the two countries announced a Strategic Partnership and endorsed a roadmap to 2030 that includes an aspirational goal of doubling bilateral two-way trade in goods and services to NZ$7 billion, or roughly ₹35,000 crore, by 2030.

Bilateral merchandise trade between India and New Zealand stood at around 1.1 billion US dollars in 2025-26.