EU and Korea Deepen Ties with Digital Trade Deal

The EU and the Republic of Korea have concluded negotiations for a landmark Digital Trade Agreement (DTA). EU Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič and Korean Trade Minister Cheong In-Kyo emphasized the importance of mutually beneficial rules around data and digital technologies, which increasingly permeate every sphere of life.

The Agreement reflects the EU's commitment to setting high-standard digital trade rules while connecting further the digital economies of the EU and Korea. The deal provides binding rules that build consumer trust; and ensure predictability and legal certainty for businesses, as well as trusted data flows; while removing and preventing the emergence of unjustified barriers to digital trade. The DTA promotes an approach to building digital and data rules with individuals and their rights at its core. It ensures the EU and Korea preserve policy space to develop and implement the policies required to address new challenges in the digital economy.

The provisions cover cross-border data flows, privacy, and personal data protection, customs duties on electronic transmissions, electronic contracts, authentication and trust services, source code protection, online consumer trust, unsolicited direct marketing communications, open government data, and regulatory cooperation on digital trade. In addition, this Agreement seeks to enhance digital trade in services and goods, by increasing legal certainty for European businesses in Korea. It recognizes the legal validity and enforceability of electronic contracts and encourages the use of electronic signatures.

This will enable European companies to serve their South Korean customers directly from Europe more efficiently. European consumers will benefit from improved consumer protection regulations and measures addressing unsolicited communications. The EU and Korea also agreed to deepen their 2010 FTA, by establishing a new specialized committee on emerging trade and economic issues. This committee will provide a dedicated platform for the EU and Korea to cooperate on topics of strategic importance such as economic security, overcapacity, and supply chain resilience.