EU-Indonesia relationship: new step towards preferential agreement

As with any new agreement between the EU and its foreign partners, the round of negotiations with Indonesia is long.

A brief review of the new partnership:

• The negotiations were officially launched in July 2016.
• The 19th cycle negotiations were held in July 2024.
• The negotiations on rules of origin were finalised on 24 January 2025.
• On July 13, 2025, a political agreement was concluded between the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
• Finally, the 23 September 2025The negotiators have signed the substantial conclusion of the agreement, which means that the texts are now technically finalized.

The next steps are:

• Legal review and harmonization of language versions within the Commission.
• Presentation to the European Council.
• Transmission to the European Parliament for consent.
• Finally, the ratification process in the Member States and Indonesia.

The Parties shall seek to implement the 1 January 2027.

Like most trade agreements, this will:

• To grant exemption from customs duties to 80% of imports of products originating in Indonesia in the EU (an estimated EUR 600 million per year of customs duties saved for importers).
• To reduce significantly the customs duties on European exports to Indonesia, particularly in the agricultural, industrial and equipment sectors.

The agreement will also cover harmonisation of regulations on common issues such as deforestation, sustainability, the environment and labour law.

Concerning preferential origin, Certificate of origin on invoice or knowledge of the importer (i.e. no declaration from the exporter) will be the two means of proving this at the time of customs clearance. For EU exporters, we do not yet have confirmation of the status to be used, i.e. the Approved Exportor or the REX (Register Exporter) system.