Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)

1.1 What is RCEP?

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a free trade agreement. A free trade agreement is a deal where countries cut duties on each other’s goods and share common trade rules. That plain gloss is our own.

RCEP links the 10 ASEAN states with five partners. The five are Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea. That makes 15 countries. ASEAN is the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

The 2012 launch declaration recognises ASEAN Centrality. That means ASEAN sits at the centre of the plan. The gloss is our own.

1.2 Is RCEP led by China?

Brookings says RCEP is often labelled inaccurately as China-led. It calls RCEP a triumph of ASEAN’s middle-power diplomacy.

Brookings adds that neither China nor Japan was politically acceptable as the architect. So ASEAN was put in charge of the talks.

1.3 Why is it called the largest?

Australia’s DFAT calls RCEP the world’s largest free trade agreement by members’ GDP. The size depends on the year of the figure. So always name the year.

The leaders’ statement also says RCEP accounts for nearly 28% of global trade, on 2019 figures.

New Zealand’s MFAT says the 15 economies hold almost a third of the world’s people. The same page says 30%. Use 30% and name the year. Jakarta Globe wrote about 28 percent of global GDP in October 2025.

2.1 Where did the idea come from?

Two earlier plans came first. A 2001 plan proposed ASEAN plus three. In 2006 Japan proposed ASEAN plus six, adding Australia, India and New Zealand.

In November 2011 ASEAN ended the debate with its own model. That model was RCEP. The RCEP Support Unit says the idea was formally tabled at the 19th ASEAN Summit in Bali. The plan was to merge ASEAN’s separate deals into one.

2.2 When did the talks start?

Leaders launched the talks at the 21st ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in November 2012. The launch declaration says the leaders gathered on 20 November 2012. The Support Unit’s own list of statements shows 22 November. The declaration itself is the better guide.

The leaders said talks would start in early 2013. They aimed to finish by the end of 2015. The talks ran far past that date.

2.3 Who sat at the table?

Sixteen countries took part. Ten were ASEAN states. Six were ASEAN’s FTA partners: Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.

ASEAN already had separate FTAs with all six. RCEP was built upon those ASEAN-plus-one deals.

2.4 How long did the talks last?

By November 2019, 15 countries had finished the text of all 20 chapters. India still had significant outstanding issues. Card 5 explains them.

Counts of rounds differ. The Support Unit counts 28 full rounds in 2013 to 2019. New Zealand’s MFAT counts 31 full rounds from 2012. Do not use either number without its source.

3.1 Is RCEP only about tariffs?

No. RCEP has 20 chapters. They cover goods, services and investment. They also cover intellectual property, e-commerce, competition, small businesses, economic and technical cooperation and government procurement.

Grouping is ours. Chapter names are shortened from the 2019 leaders’ statement.

The 2020 leaders’ statement says some of these areas were not covered in the earlier ASEAN free trade agreements with these partners.

3.2 How are tariffs cut?

Article 2.4 says each country shall reduce or eliminate its duties on originating goods of other members. It follows the schedule in Annex I. Originating goods are goods that meet the origin rules. That gloss is our own.

Jakarta Globe says the pact aims to remove tariffs on 92 percent of traded goods within 20 years.

3.3 What do rules of origin do?

Rules of origin decide which goods count as made inside the group. Article 3.4 adds cumulation. Parts that meet the rules count as local when used in another member.

Take our own example. A car maker in one member buys parts from two others. Under cumulation, those parts can still count towards origin. New Zealand’s MFAT says RCEP gives one set of rules, so trade is simpler.

The parties began a review of Article 3.4 on the date of entry into force. It looks at wider cumulation.

3.4 What does RCEP leave out?

Brookings says RCEP says nothing about labour, the environment or state-owned enterprises. Those are key chapters in the CPTPP. It also says RCEP is not as rigorous as the CPTPP, and its IP rules add little.

Other free trade agreements among members stay in place. DFAT says businesses can choose which one to use.

4.1 When was RCEP signed?

The leaders witnessed the signing on 15 November 2020. They met online during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the 4th RCEP Summit, held within the 37th ASEAN Summit hosted by Viet Nam.

DFAT says ministers from the 15 signatories signed the text on that date. The Support Unit says the signing came after eight years of negotiations.

Do not mix up the years. India stepped out in 2019. The signing came in 2020.

4.2 When did it start?

Article 20.6 sets the rule. RCEP enters into force 60 days after at least six ASEAN and three non-ASEAN signatories deposit their ratification. That threshold was met in late 2021. RCEP entered into force on 1 January 2022 for the original ten parties.

Other signatories join 60 days after they deposit. So the dates differ by country.

DFAT’s page gives dates for 14 of the 15 parties. It gives none for Myanmar. Check the latest status before an exam.

5.1 What did India say?

On 4 November 2019, at the 3rd RCEP Summit in Bangkok, India decided not to join. The 2019 leaders’ statement says India had significant outstanding issues. It adds that India’s final decision would depend on resolving them.

The Government of India gave its own account in Parliament. The Commerce Minister’s written reply of 13 March 2020 says India stated that the structure of RCEP did not reflect the Guiding Principles. It also did not address India’s outstanding issues and concerns. So India did not join.

The same reply says the structure did not adequately address the concerns of India’s stakeholders. Prime Minister Modi said in Bangkok that it was not possible for India to join.

5.2 What worried India most?

The Economic Times reported in November 2019 that India runs a large trade deficit with RCEP countries. It said India sought protection from an import surge, especially from China.

ET gave the deficit as $105 billion, of which China alone was $54 billion. A trade deficit means imports are bigger than exports. ET called Chinese manufactured goods and New Zealand dairy products the main worry.

ET listed other concerns too.

• Specific rules of origin and an auto-trigger mechanism against import surges.
• E-commerce and trade remedies.
• Keeping 2014 as the base year for tariff cuts.
• Strong reservations from domestic industry and dairy farmers.

Vijay Thakur Singh, the Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (East), told a press conference in Bangkok that India conveyed its decision not to join.

5.3 What did Jaishankar say later?

ET reported on 18 November 2020 that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said India took a call that RCEP, as it stood, was not in its interest. He said it would have had fairly immediate negative consequences for the economy. He called it not a generic position on trade.

6.1 What is the Ministers' Declaration?

On 11 November 2020 the RCEP Ministers said India was not in a position to sign in 2020. The leaders welcomed the Declaration in their statement of 15 November 2020. DFAT says leaders endorsed it that day.

The Declaration has three parts.

• The agreement is open for accession by India from its entry into force, under Article 20.9.
• Talks start at any time once India sends a written request.
• Until it accedes, India may attend RCEP meetings as an observer.

The leaders also said RCEP remains open to India. They called India one of the 16 original participating countries.

6.2 How does accession work?

Article 20.9 opened RCEP to any State or separate customs territory 18 months after entry into force. The Support Unit gives that date as 1 July 2023. Joining needs the consent of the existing parties.

The Joint Committee adopted accession procedures on 21 September 2024. Five economies have asked to join.

• Bangladesh
• Chile
• Hong Kong, China
• Sri Lanka
• Uruguay

New Zealand’s MFAT says a fast-track process is in place if India wishes to re-join.

7.1 Which countries are in RCEP?

The Support Unit lists 15 participating countries.

India is not on the list.

7.2 Why do ASEAN's 11 and RCEP's 10 differ?

ASEAN says Timor-Leste joined on 26 October 2025. That makes eleven ASEAN Member States. The RCEP list still shows ten ASEAN states.

Jakarta Globe reported on 30 October 2025 that ASEAN signalled Timor-Leste would work on joining RCEP. No timeline was given. So ASEAN has 11 members, while RCEP has 15 participants, as read on 8 October 2026.

8.1 Who takes the decisions?

The RCEP Ministers’ Meeting (RMM) is the highest decision-making body, under Article 18.1. It brings together the trade ministers. They decide by consensus.

The RCEP Joint Committee (RJC) is made up of senior officials. Article 18.3 gives it the job of overseeing the work. It reports to the RMM.

8.2 What are the subsidiary bodies?

The Joint Committee set up five bodies at its 1st meeting on 26 to 27 April 2022.

• Committee on Goods (COG)
• Committee on Services and Investment (CSI)
• Committee on Sustainable Growth (CSG)
• Committee on Business Environment (CBE)
• Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin (SCROO)

8.3 Is there an RCEP Secretariat?

The RCEP Support Unit sits in the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta. The Joint Committee may establish and supervise an RCEP Secretariat. In 2025 the leaders asked for the establishment of an effective RCEP Secretariat.

9.1 How do the two pacts compare?

Brookings says India and the United States were to be members of RCEP and the CPTPP, respectively. Both withdrew.

9.2 Is there any overlap?

Yes. Canada’s trade page names Australia, Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam among CPTPP members. All seven are RCEP parties too.

10.1 How is India working with ASEAN?

India hosted the 13th meeting of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Joint Committee. It met in New Delhi from 6 to 10 July 2026. The Joint Committee itself met on 7 July. The talks review the pact.

PIB says ASEAN accounts for around 11 per cent of India’s global trade. Bilateral trade reached USD 128 billion in 2025-26.

10.2 Was the review planned earlier?

Yes. The Commerce Minister’s reply of 13 March 2020 listed 23 trade negotiations. Item 16 was the India-ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (1st review).

Jaishankar said in 2020 that India’s RCEP decision was not a generic position on trade.

11.1 What did the 2025 summit ask for?

The 5th RCEP Summit met in Kuala Lumpur on 27 October 2025. The leaders told ministers and officials to push on several fronts.

• Advance the accession of applicants while keeping RCEP standards.
• Work towards an effective RCEP Secretariat.
• Prepare for the General Review, scheduled for 2027.

Article 20.8 sets the review five years after entry into force, and every five years after that.

11.2 What happened in 2026?

The 5th RCEP Ministers’ Meeting was held in Manila on 21 September 2026. The Support Unit posted a document titled “Next Steps for RCEP Accession Process” with it. The 4th Ministers’ Meeting was in Kuala Lumpur on 25 September 2025.

12.1 What did UPSC ask?

UPSC’s official key for Series A gives (b) ASEAN. The key gives no reasons. Our own reading is that RCEP joins the 10 ASEAN states with five partners.

12.2 Which mix-ups does this topic invite?

• 15 members. India is not one. India began in the group of 16.
• India left in 2019. RCEP was signed in 2020. It entered into force in 2022.
• Two dates in November 2020. The Ministers’ Declaration is dated 11 November. The leaders endorsed it on 15 November.
• “Withdrew” or “did not join”. Several official pages say withdrew. India’s reply says did not join.
• Size changes with the year. About 30% of GDP on 2019 figures. 27.6% on 2024 data.
• ASEAN has 11 members. RCEP has 15 participants.
• RCEP is not the CPTPP. The CPTPP has 12 economies (our sum) and was concluded in 2018.
• Round counts differ. 28 on one page, 31 on another.