India’s free trade agreement (FTA) with New Zealand will come into force on October 20, opening the country’s market to Indian exporters at zero customs duty and paving the way for New Zealand to facilitate $20 billion in investments into India.
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and New Zealand’s Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay jointly announced the implementation date at a virtual conference on Monday. The agreement will take effect on Vijay Dashmi, symbolising new beginnings.
New Zealand has eliminated customs duties on all tariff lines covering Indian exports, removing peak tariffs of up to 10%. The move is expected to benefit Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), artisans, farmers and women entrepreneurs by improving price competitiveness in the overseas market.
Textiles, apparel, leather, footwear, gems and jewellery, engineering goods, automobiles and auto components, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, agricultural products and processed foods are among the sectors expected to gain. Duty-free access for wooden logs, coking coal and metal waste and scrap is also expected to support manufacturing supply chains.
$20 billion investment commitment
New Zealand has committed to facilitate $20 billion in investments into India, with potential benefits for agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure and start-ups. The investment initiative is expected to support innovation, entrepreneurship and employment generation.
“The success of this agreement will be measured by the opportunities it creates and the difference it makes to the lives of the people of New Zealand and India,” Goyal said, highlighting the opportunities for Indian exporters and the safeguards provided for farmers.
The agreement also provides New Zealand with improved access to India’s large consumer market, with tariff elimination or reductions on its exports.
Services, visas and education
New Zealand has offered market access to Indian service providers in around 118 sectors, alongside most-favoured-nation commitments in approximately 139 sub-sectors. Dedicated provisions cover health and traditional medicine services, including Ayurveda, yoga and other AYUSH systems.
Indian professionals will have access to an annual quota of 5,000 Temporary Employment Entry visas, while 1,000 Working Holiday visas will be available each year.
Indian students will face no numerical cap under the agreement. Post-study work rights will extend up to three years for graduates with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and up to four years for doctoral scholars.
Agricultural cooperation with safeguards
The agreement establishes an Agricultural Productivity Partnership to improve farm productivity through technology transfer, training and modern cultivation practices.
Dedicated action plans cover apples, kiwifruit and honey, with proposed Centres of Excellence in states including Nagaland, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. The initiatives aim to improve orchard management, reduce post-harvest losses and strengthen farm incomes.
However, dairy, sugar, edible oils and key agricultural commodities remain excluded from tariff concessions to protect Indian farmers, dairy producers, fisherfolk and rural communities. Import quotas for apples, kiwifruit and Mānuka honey are linked to the delivery of agricultural action plans, under the oversight of a Joint Agriculture Productivity Council.
The agreement also incorporates rules of origin, bilateral safeguards and anti-circumvention provisions to ensure that benefits reach eligible exporters.
First JCB machine export flagged off
India flagged off its first-ever JCB machine export to New Zealand as part of the announcement. Additional export initiatives covering agriculture, engineering, gems and jewellery, sporting goods, footwear and leather are planned.
Department of Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said the priority was to translate the agreement into tangible benefits for businesses and communities across India.
Negotiations began on March 16, 2025, and concluded on December 22, 2025. The agreement was signed on April 27, 2026.
The FTA supports the two countries’ strategic partnership roadmap, which targets doubling bilateral trade in goods and services to NZ$7 billion (₹35,000 crore) by 2030