On October 16, 2018, at the direction of the President, United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer notified Congress of the Trump Administration’s intent to negotiate a trade agreement with the United Kingdom, once the UK leaves the EU in March 2019. On November 16, USTR requested public comment on the Administration’s negotiating objectives for the U.S.-UK trade agreement.
Status of U.S.-UK Trade Negotiations
On May 5, 2020, United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and United Kingdom Secretary of State for International Trade Elizabeth Truss announced the formal launch of trade agreement negotiations between the United States and the United Kingdom. Since the launch, U.S and UK negotiators have held four sets of negotiating sessions in May, June, July-August, and September 2020 and plan to continue negotiating sessions on a similar schedule, as the teams work to agree on a comprehensive, ambitious trade agreement.
U.S.-UK Trade and Investment Working Group
In July 2017, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and the International Trade Secretary, Dr. Liam Fox, established the U.S.-UK Trade and Investment Working Group. The Working Group was established to provide commercial continuity for UK and U.S. businesses, workers, and consumers as the UK leaves the European Union and to explore ways to strengthen trade and investment ties. This work includes laying the groundwork for a potential future free trade agreement once the UK has formally exited the European Union.
As part of the U.S.-UK Trade and Investment Working Group, the United States and the United Kingdom (UK) have signed agreements on specific products listed below. These products were covered by existing agreements the United States maintains with the European Union (EU), which covered trade with the UK by virtue of its membership in the EU. These new U.S.-UK agreements will ensure that there is no disruption in trade of these specific products between the United States and the UK. On December 31, 2020, these agreements were entered into force by an exchange of letters between the United States and the UK.