Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement negotiations

TPP market snapshot (including Australia)

  • GDP: US$27,558.3 billion (2012)
  • GDP per capita: US$34,786 (2012)
  • Population: 792.2 million (2012)
  • Trade with Australia: AU$211,856 million (2012)

About the TPP negotiations

The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) is a viable pathway for realising the vision of a free trade area of the Asia-Pacific. This agreement will build on the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (P4) between Brunei Darussalam, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore, which entered into force in 2006.

The TPP includes the P4 Parties as well as Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the USA and Vietnam.

The Australian Government will pursue a TPP outcome that eliminates or at least substantially reduces barriers to trade and investment. The TPP is more than a traditional trade agreement; it will also deal with behind-the-border impediments to trade and investment.

It is intended that the TPP be a living agreement that remains relevant to emerging issues and allows for membership expansion. While expanded membership of the TPP is desirable, those seeking membership would need to demonstrate commitment to early and comprehensive liberalisation so as to maintain the momentum that has been generated by existing TPP parties.

Australia's decision to participate in the TPP in 2008 followed an extensive public consultation process. Overall, there was widespread interest in and support for Australia's participation in the TPP. Input received through the consultation process is being used to inform the Government's priorities and objectives for Australia's ongoing work on the TPP.

Key interests and benefits

  • The TPP has the potential to form a building block for Asia-Pacific regional economic integration. It is in Australia’s interests to be involved in order to shape the direction of the initiative.
  • Regional rules of origin will provide new opportunities for Australian exporters to tap into global supply chains.
  • The TPP could provide additional market access for goods and services into the markets of existing FTA and future TPP partners.
  • Inclusion of Investment and Financial Services chapters in the TPP could provide improved opportunities for Australian financial services providers by mitigating barriers, such as foreign restrictions on capital and investment flows.
  • The TPP provides a framework for engaging with countries with which we do not have an existing bilateral trade arrangement. For example, there is potential for better access for dairy products and mining services to Peru through the TPP.

Map of TPP countries - quick facts

Map of TPP countries

Australia

TPP negotiations commenced in Melbourne in March 2010.

New Zealand

New Zealand commenced refrigerated shipping of meat and dairy in 1882 after observing Australia's first frozen meat shipment to the United Kingdom in 1880.

Peru

Peru has been a destination for Australian alpaca fleece exports since 2006.

Vietnam

Australian wine accounts for 15% of Vietnam's total wine imports (Austrade).

Leaders of TPP member states and prospective member states.
Leaders of TPP member states and prospective member states on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Yokohama, Japan, 11 November 2010. Photo credit: Gobierno de Chile

News

Japan welcomed as new member

Australia has warmly welcomed Japan as a new member of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. TPP ministers meeting in the margins of the APEC Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Surabaya, Indonesia, extended the invitation to Japan to join in the negotiations, and Japan accepted the invitation on 21 April. Japan’s inclusion in the negotiations brings the number of TPP countries to 12. TPP countries would now account for nearly 40 per cent of global GDP and almost 35 per cent of Australia's total two-way trade.

Media release: Australia welcomes Japan to Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations

Invitation to stakeholders – TPP consultation meetings in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra

Stakeholders with an interest in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement negotiations are invited to participate in stakeholder consultation meetings in mid-2013. The purpose of the meetings will be to provide an update on the negotiations after the 17th round of negotiations held on 15 – 24 May in Peru, and provide an opportunity for further stakeholder input. 

The meetings will be held in Sydney (29 May), Melbourne (30 May), Adelaide (27 June), Perth (28 June) and Canberra (2 July). RSVP essential for attendance in meetings. More information on the time and venue of each meeting is set out below.

Wednesday 29 May – Sydney

The TPP stakeholder consultation meeting will be held at 9:30 am at the New South Wales State Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Level 10 Angel Place, 123 Pitt Street (between Martin Place and Hunter Street). A separate meeting on the TPP Intellectual Property and E-commerce negotiationswill be held at 11:30 am at the same venue.

Please send your RSVP by 10 May to tpp@dfat.gov.au. Please briefly indicate your name, position and organisation, the sessions you would like to attend, and any specific areas of interest with your response.

Thursday 30 May – Melbourne

The TPP stakeholder consultation meeting will be held at 9:30 am at the Victorian State Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Level 14 Casselden Place, 2 Lonsdale Street (corner of Spring Street). A meeting on the TPP Intellectual Property and E-commerce negotiationswill be held at 11:30 am at the same venue.

Please send your RSVP by 10 May to tpp@dfat.gov.au. Please briefly indicate your name, position and organisation, the sessions you would like to attend, and any specific areas of interest with your response.

Thursday 27 June – Adelaide

The TPP stakeholder consultation meeting will be held at 09:00 am at the South Australian State Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Level 5 Allianz House, 55 Currie Street.

Please send your RSVP by 19 June to tpp@dfat.gov.au. Please briefly indicate your name, position and organisation, and any specific areas of interest with your response.

Friday 28 June – Perth

The TPP stakeholder consultation meeting will be held at 09:30 am at the Western Australia State Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Level 17 Exchange Plaza, Sherwood Court (off St Georges Terrace).

Please send your RSVP by 19 June to tpp@dfat.gov.au. Please briefly indicate your name, position and organisation, and any specific areas of interest with your response.

Tuesday 2 July – Canberra  

The TPP stakeholder consultation meeting will be held at 10:00 am at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, located in the R.G. Casey Building on John McEwen Crescent, Barton. A meeting on the TPP Intellectual Property negotiationswill be held at 11:30 am at the same venue.

Please send your RSVP by 24 June to tpp@dfat.gov.au. Please briefly indicate your name, position and organisation, the sessions you would like to attend, and any specific areas of interest with your response.

Round sixteen – March 2013, Singapore

The 16th round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement negotiations were held in Singapore from 4 – 13 March 2013. Negotiators made good progress with a view to concluding negotiations before the end of 2013.

Update on the sixteenth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round fifteen – December 2012, Auckland

The 15th round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations was held in Auckland, New Zealand from 3–12 December 2012. Negotiators made good progress in Auckland with the hope of concluding negotiations by the end of 2013. 

Update on the fifteenth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round fourteen – September 2012, Leesburg

TPP negotiations continued to make progress at the 14th negotiating round held in Leesburg, Virginia from 6 - 15 September 2012. Good progress was made in text negotiations in a number of chapters and in the negotiations on market access commitments.

Update on the fourteenth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

TPP Ministers Meeting in Vladivostok - September 2012

On 6 September in the margins of the APEC Leaders meeting in Vladivostok, Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Trade Ministers met to review the progress of TPP negotiations. Ministers provided a Report to TPP Leaders outlining the substantial headway that has been to date. TPP Leaders confirmed their commitment to concluding a comprehensive, truly regional TPP agreement as rapidly as possible, and welcomed new Members Canada and Mexico to the negotiating group.

TPP Ministers' Report to Leaders [PDF 99 KB]

TPP Leaders' statement [PDF 90 KB]

Round thirteen – July 2012, San Diego

The thirteenth round of negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement was held on 2-10 July 2012 in San Diego, California. Australia, along with TPP negotiating partners Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam, made important progress at the round and further moved negotiations on chapter texts closer to conclusion.

Update on the thirteenth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Japan's interest in the TPP

Japan has formally expressed interest in joining the TPP negotiations. Australia and other TPP countries have welcomed its interest and are now undertaking a bilateral process with Japan to discuss its readiness to join, and its capacity to maintain both the ambition and pace of the negotiations. This is the same process that each TPP country undertook when they sought to join the TPP, with final decisions taken by a consensus of all current TPP parties.

To assist in this process we would welcome further submissions and comments from stakeholders considering Japan's possible involvement in the TPP. Submissions can be made by email to tpp@dfat.gov.au. Please note all submissions will be made publicly available on the DFAT website unless the author specifies otherwise.

New Members Canada and Mexico

Australia has warmly welcomed Canada and Mexico as new members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Their inclusion in the negotiations, announced during the G20 Leaders' Summit in Los Cabos in June 2012, brings the number of parties seeking to conclude a wide-ranging accord on trade and economic integration across the Asia-Pacific region to 11.

Media release: Australia welcomes Mexico to Trans-Pacific Partnership talks

Media release: Australia welcomes Canada to Trans-Pacific Partnership talks

Round twelve - May 2012, Dallas

The US hosted the twelfth round of TPP negotiations in Dallas, Texas from 8 – 18 May 2012. Better-than-expected progress was made during the ten-day round as negotiators further narrowed differences on many areas of the legal text, and negotiating groups are on a clear path towards concluding most of the more than 20 chapters of the agreement. Issues that could not be resolved at the round will be addressed by specific intersessional work plans.

Update on the twelfth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round eleven – March 2012, Melbourne

Australia hosted the eleventh round of TPP negotiations in Melbourne from 1-9 March 2012. The round was the first full round involving all negotiating groups since the TPP Leaders met in Honolulu in mid-November last year.

Update on the eleventh round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Release of confidentiality letter

During the Chicago round in September 2011 TPP negotiators were asked to release the letters setting out an understanding among TPP countries on the handling of negotiating texts and other documents exchanged in the course of the negotiations.

Release of confidentiality letter

Round ten – December 2011, Kuala Lumpur

TPP negotiating parties conducted a mini-round in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 5 - 9 December. Only a small number of negotiating groups met during the week. The nine negotiating parties convened in Malaysia following a meeting of TPP Leaders in Honolulu in mid-November.

Update on the tenth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

TPP Leaders' meeting in Honolulu - November 2011

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Leaders, including Prime Minister Gillard, met in Honolulu on 12 November in the margins of the APEC Leaders' meeting to review progress in the negotiations and consider next steps.

TPP Leaders' meeting - progress review

Round nine – October 2011, Lima

The ninth round of TPP negotiations concluded on 28 October in Lima, Peru. The 10 day round had around 870 delegates in attendance, including negotiators, stakeholders and media.

Update on the ninth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round eight – September 2011, Chicago

The eighth round of TPP negotiations was held in Chicago, United States, from 6–15 September 2011. TPP Parties continued to work towards settling the broad outlines of an agreement by the APEC Leaders Meeting in Honolulu in November.

Update on the eighth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round seven – June 2011, Ho Chi Minh City

The seventh round of TPP negotiations was held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from 15–24 June 2011. TPP Parties (Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam) continued to make steady progress across all negotiating groups.

Update on the seventh round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round six – March/April 2011, Singapore

Australia and its TPP partners continued to make progress toward a high-quality, 21st century agreement at the sixth round of TPP negotiations held in Singapore from 24 March to 1 April 2011. Negotiators at this round focussed on narrowing the gaps in positions on the draft text and discussing initial market access offers.

Update on the sixth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round five – February 2011, Santiago

Chile hosted the fifth round of TPP negotiations in Santiago from 14–18 February 2011, with the nine TPP countries advancing further toward their goal of developing a high quality, comprehensive, 21st century regional trade agreement.

Update on the fifth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round four – December 2010, Auckland

The fourth round of TPP negotiations was held in Auckland from 6–10 December 2010, with the nine TPP Parties continuing to make steady progress across the full range of issues under discussion.

Update on the fourth round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations

Round three – October 2010, Brunei

The third round of TPP negotiations was held in Brunei from 4–9 October 2010 with the participation of new member, Malaysia. TPP Parties reached consensus early in the week on Malaysia joining the negotiations, and Malaysia then participated in the Brunei negotiations for the remainder of the week. Malaysia is the first country to join the negotiations since the group launched negotiations in March 2010. TPP Parties remain committed to further expanding membership over time to countries across the Asia-Pacific that can meet the high-quality, ambitious objectives of the TPP.

Update on the third round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations – Malaysia joins

Round two – June 2010, San Francisco

The second round of TPP negotiations, held in San Francisco from 14–18 June 2010, resulted in significant progress on both the broad architecture of the agreement, and on a range of specific issues to be covered in the TPP.

Update on the second round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations – solid progress

Round one – March 2010, Melbourne

The first formal round of TPP negotiations was held in Melbourne on 15–19 March 2010, with the participation of over 200 officials from Australia, the US, New Zealand, Chile, Singapore, Brunei, Peru and Vietnam. It was a productive first round that got the negotiations off to a strong start.

Update on the first round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations – a strong start

Submissions

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade continues to welcome public submissions and comments on Australia's participation in TPP negotiations. Submissions may be emailed to tpp@dfat.gov.au or posted by mail to:

Goods and Investment Branch
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
R.G. Casey Building
John McEwen Crescent
Barton ACT 0221

All submissions will be made publicly available on the DFAT website unless the author specifies otherwise.

Submission texts

Submissions have been received from a wide range of interested parties including industry, business, community and labour representatives and government agencies.

Organisations listed

Some organisations/entities have provided permission to be listed publicly as having made a submission to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on Australia's participation in the TPP.

Where an organisation/entity has agreed to have their submission made available, a link to the text of their submission appears next to their name.

Copyright and content

Copyright in submissions resides with the author(s), not with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The views expressed in these submissions are the views of the author(s) and should not be understood as reflecting the views of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Format

Submissions were provided to the Department in a range of formats with varying quality, including Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF and scanned facsimile.

To maintain consistent quality, those documents approved for publication have been made available in PDF format wherever possible.

Submissions received

Note: If you cannot access these files, please contact us and we will arrange to send you an alternative format.

For business

Austrade has identified potential opportunities for Australian suppliers of goods and services in a number of sectors. Austrade's country page supplies general information on doing business and on specific export opportunities in:

Australia has existing trade agreements with:

Australia is also negotiating a bilateral trade agreement with Japan.

Resources

Country factsheets

Media releases and speeches

Contact us

  • Email: tpp@dfat.gov.au
  • Mail:
    Goods and Investment Branch
    Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
    R.G. Casey Building
    John McEwen Crescent
    Barton ACT 0221