Decision by the Commission of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership regarding Uruguay’s Formal Request to Commence the Accession Process

21 November 2025

In light of the formal request to commence negotiations on acceding to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) received from the Oriental Republic of Uruguay (Uruguay) on 1 December 2022; and

Pursuant to Article 5 (Accession), Article 27.2 (Functions of the Commission), Article 27.3 (Decision Making) and Article 27.4 (Rules of Procedure of the Commission) of the CPTPP, and the Accession Process in the Annex to the Decision of 19 January 2019 CPTPP/COM/2019/D002 (Accession Process) adopted by the CPTPP Commission (the Commission);

The Commission decides as follows:

Commencement of the Accession Process

1. Further to Subsection 2.1 (Request to commence accession process) of the Accession Process, the accession process requested by Uruguay as an aspirant economy is hereby commenced.

Establishment of an Accession Working Group

2. A working group to negotiate the accession of Uruguay (Accession Working Group) is hereby established with the following terms of reference and composition:

   Terms of Reference: "Pursuant to Article 5 (Accession) of the CPTPP and Sections 3 and 5 of the Accession Process: (i) to examine the request of the Government of Uruguay to accede to the CPTPP, including documentation provided by Uruguay to demonstrate its ability to comply with the terms of the CPTPP and any other information from Uruguay as requested by the CPTPP Parties; (ii) to conduct negotiations on Uruguay's accession to the CPTPP; and (iii) to submit to the Commission, after finalising negotiations, a written report on terms and conditions for Uruguay's accession to the CPTPP."

   Membership: The Accession Working Group will comprise government representatives from each Party.

   Chairing arrangements: Senior Officials will decide the chairing arrangements for the Accession Working Group established by this Decision at a later time.

3. Pursuant to Article 27.4.4 (Rules of Procedure of the Commission) of the CPTPP and the Accession Process, the Accession Working Group may, as appropriate, establish its rules of procedure and timetable for the conduct of its work.
4. The Accession Working Group may, as appropriate, establish subsidiary groups to carry out its functions.
5. While the Accession Working Group does not include government representatives from Uruguay, it may invite Uruguay to its meetings to negotiate the accession terms and conditions, or for any other reasons.

This Decision is effective as of the date of adoption by the Commission and shall be made publicly available by the Chair of the Commission.