Soon after the conclusion of the negotiations and the finalization of the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA), the WCO Secretariat developed an Analysis of Section I of the TFA in order to:

• provide relevant information and guidance in terms of preparing Members for the implementation of the TFA provisions by using WCO instruments and tools;
• ensure a harmonized approach by Customs administrations; and
• present the basis for the TFA Implementation Guidance web tool, which was launched in May 2014.

The Analysis now complements the Implementation Guidance which is meant as a user-friendly tool, while the Analysis provides more detailed technical information.

Another important objective of the Analysis was to identify any relevant implications particularly in terms of whether there was a need to update existing or develop new WCO tools to fully support implementation of the TFA provisions.

The Analysis is considered to be a living document, as new instruments are being developed, the existing ones updated and as Members’ experiences are being explored.

The Analysis shows a high level of consistency between the TFA provisions and more than 50 WCO instruments and tools. The Analysis also shows that the WCO standards and tools to a large extent address the TFA requirements in terms of cooperation and coordination with other border agencies. It also points to the areas possibly needing more guidance.