Ireland participates in the free trade arrangements of the European Union (EU) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO).  For a list of trade agreements with the EU and its Member States, as well as concise explanations, please see Trade and Related Agreements Database.

United States and European Union Trade Agreement Regarding Tariffs on Certain Products

On August 21, 2020, the United States and the European Union announced a trade agreement regarding reductions on tariffs on certain products of interest to each side.  The agreed tariff modifications entered into effect on December 18, 2020, for the European Union, with the publication in the Official Journal of the EU of Regulation 2020/2131 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and on December 22, 2020, for the United States.  Under the agreement, the European Union eliminated tariffs on imports of certain live and frozen lobster products on a Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) basis, retroactive to August 1, 2020.  European Union tariffs will be eliminated for a period of five years, and the European Commission will initiate procedures aimed at making the tariff elimination permanent.  The United States reduced by fifty percent its tariff rates on prepared meals, certain crystal glassware, surface preparations, propellant powders, cigarette lighters, and lighter parts.  United States tariff reductions are also on an MFN basis and retroactive to August 1, 2020.