The United Kingdom and Australia Friday signed a new free trade agreement. This is the first UK trade agreement to be negotiated and signed since their formal withdrawal from the European Union in 2020.

The trade agreement will remove the majority of tariffs on goods exported from the UK to Australia. The tariffs removal will “unlock £10.4 billion of additional trade.”

The trade agreement aims to reduce investment risks and promote UK exports into Australia. Further, the agreement contains a provision that provides for UK workers in the services sector to gain Australian work visas without Australia’s requirement for being in a “skilled occupation.” The provision is the first of its kind, which Australia has agreed to.

By providing “guaranteed certainty of access” to Australia, the trade agreement is expected to promote UK businesses making long-term decisions about their business operations with respect to the Australian market.

Dan McGrail, Chief Executive Officer of trade association RenewableUK, said that the agreement will help the UK and Australia to achieve their goals with respect to climate change as the countries have better access to exporting and importing “green technologies and expertise.”

Nicola Watkinson, Managing Director, International Trade and Investment, of TheCityUK, commented:

This agreement with Australia … is the first wholly new agreement negotiated with an advanced economy, and it furthers the UK objective to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The agreement rightly focuses on issues important to the services sectors representing 80% of the UK economy, such as recognition of professional qualifications, data and digital provisions, which all create new opportunities for UK exporters.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the UK’s International Trade Secretary, commented that Friday’s agreement is the first agreement to show “what the UK can achieve as an agile, independent sovereign trading nation.”