Vietnam signs free trade deal with EFTA nations in Hanoi
Vietnam and EFTA members Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland have signed the VEFTA free trade agreement in Hanoi, capping 14 years of negotiations.
Vietnam has signed a free trade agreement with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in Hanoi, in the presence of the country’s top leader To Lam, AFP reported.
The Vietnam–EFTA Free Trade Agreement (VEFTA) was signed on Sunday by trade minister Le Manh Hung alongside EFTA representatives: Swiss president Guy Parmelin, Liechtenstein prime minister Brigitte Haas, Iceland’s foreign minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir and Norway’s state secretary Astrid Bergmål, according to Vietnam’s trade ministry and VietnamNet.
The deal eliminates or reduces customs duties on industrial, fish and agricultural products, and covers services, investment, intellectual property, government procurement and sustainable development.
Around half of Norway’s exports to Vietnam will be tariff-free when the agreement enters into force, rising to more than 98 per cent within seven years, the Norwegian government said. Bilateral trade between Vietnam and EFTA members has averaged $2bn annually, Vietnam’s trade ministry said.
Negotiations began in 2012, stalled in 2018, were relaunched in September 2025 and concluded in July. The signing comes as Vietnam and EFTA states seek to diversify trade amid disruption from US tariffs, the Straits Times and CNA reported.
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