Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will visit the UK from June 25 to 27 ahead of the July 15 deadline to activate the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), according to a government statement.
During the visit, Goyal is scheduled to hold a high-level bilateral meeting with his British counterpart, Peter Kyle. She added, “Participation represents an important step towards activating the agreements and strengthening the economic partnership between the two countries.”
The bilateral meeting will focus on harmonizing regulatory roadmaps, simplifying cross-border customs coordination, and finalizing administrative mechanisms to facilitate the smooth implementation of the CETA and the Double Contribution Agreement (DCC). As part of the rebalancing exercise, London extended the exemption from social security contributions for Indian professionals in the UK from three years to five years. DCC is a reciprocal arrangement.
During the meetings, the two Ministers will review readiness to implement CETA’s tariff liberalization commitments, which will provide enhanced market access opportunities for Indian exports in the UK.
The statement said the discussions will also cover the DCC’s operational roadmap, which is expected to create a streamlined mechanism to address dual Social Security contribution requirements for eligible temporary workers, thus supporting greater mobility for professionals and businesses.
He added that the two sides will continue to discuss the activation of mutual market access commitments across key service sectors and review measures aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and investment relations.
As part of the visit, Goyal will participate in a series of government-to-business (G2B) meetings with industry leaders, investors and corporate representatives to further strengthen business partnerships between India and the UK.
The Minister will address the opening plenary session of the India Global Forum (IGF), where he will speak on the theme “Capital, Innovation and the British-Indian Moment”. The session will focus on emerging opportunities for global companies in the context of the upcoming implementation of CETA between India and the UK.
Goyal will also hold independent interactions with senior executives of leading global companies, including HSBC (Global Trade Solutions) and Rolls-Royce, to discuss strategic investments, industrial collaborations and expansion of manufacturing partnerships in India, the statement said.
The Minister will participate in a plenary business session and interactive lunch hosted by the UK-India Business Council (UKIBC). The engagement will bring together executives and representatives of leading multinational companies, including the Tata Group, Tata Consultancy Services, HSBC, Prudential PLC, De Beers and Baker McKenzie, to discuss trade, investment and business cooperation opportunities under the India-UK Economic Partnership.
To deepen engagement with institutional investors and global industry leaders, Goyal will lead an exclusive roundtable discussion hosted by Asia House. Senior executives from leading international financial and industrial institutions, including JP Morgan, Standard Chartered, Lloyds Banking Group, Morgan Stanley and Arup, will participate in discussions on India’s industrial competitiveness, investment landscape and integration with global supply chains, he added.
“The visit underscores India’s commitment to engaging with global companies and investors, and is expected to contribute to the common goal of expanding economic cooperation between India and the UK and enhancing the goal of achieving bilateral trade worth US$120 billion by 2030,” she added.
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