Nicaragua: footwear with duty-free access to the U.S. and the European Union

MANAGUA, Nicaragua - Oct. 24, 2014 - PRLog -- All footwear manufactured in Nicaragua has duty-free access to the United States, the European Union and other important markets. The numerous preferential access agreements the country has subscribed have transformed it into an attractive export platform towards more than 1.5 billion people around the world.

One of the preferential access agreements that are relevant for footwear exports is the Free Trade Agreement between Central America, the United States and the Dominican Republic (DR-CAFTA). This agreement, which came in force on April 1st, 2006, stipulates that products assembled in the DR-CAFTA region can benefit from the tax-free access to the United States.

Another important agreement for the footwear industry is the Association Agreement between Central America and the European Union. This agreement came in force a year ago on August 1st, 2013, and grants free trade to 91 percent of the countries’ tariff universes, including a wide variety of footwear.

Additionally, Nicaraguan-made footwear also has duty-free access to Mexico, Panama and Chile as stipulated in the framework of the free trade agreements with these countries.

Although Nicaragua has a long tradition of artisan footwear manufacturing, 2010 marked the beginning of industrial production and high-volume exports of fine leather footwear towards the United States and the European Union markets, as a result of the beneficial trade preferences that exist. Currently, the main export destinations are the United States, Costa Rica and Panama.

For more information write to footwear@pronicaragua.org