New Zealand’s parliament approved a free‑trade agreement with India on Wednesday, a move welcomed by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon who said the deal would create jobs and raise incomes for Kiwis. The pact, signed on 27 April, grants India duty‑free access to 100 per cent of its exports, including textiles, leather footwear, gems and jewellery, engineering goods and processed foods.
Under the agreement, New Zealand will lower tariffs on a broad range of Indian products, while India will liberalise 70 per cent of tariff lines covering 95 per cent of bilateral trade value, keeping 29.97 per cent of categories out of the pact. Excluded items include dairy, certain agri‑goods, sugar, arms and ammunition, and some metals and aluminium products. New Zealand will receive duty‑free access to goods such as wooden logs, coking coal, sheep meat and leather raw hides, and will reduce levies on petroleum oil, vegetable oils and select machinery over phased periods. New Zealand products that benefit from tariff cuts include wine, pharmaceuticals, polymers, aluminium and steel articles.
The agreement also opens 118 New Zealand services sectors to Indian market access, covering computer‑related services, professional services, telecommunications, construction, education, finance, tourism and travel. It creates a temporary employment entry visa for Indian professionals in skilled occupations, allowing up to 5,000 visas at any time for stays of up to three years. Additionally, New Zealand will establish a dedicated pathway for student mobility and post‑study work visas with India.
India and New Zealand committed USD 20 billion in foreign direct investment over 15 years, a second FDI commitment for India under a trade deal. Bilateral goods and services trade reached USD 2.4 billion in 2024, with merchandise trade falling 11 per cent to USD 1.15 billion in 2025‑26 from USD 1.3 billion in 2024‑25.
