New Zealand’s Parliament has passed the domestic legislation needed to bring the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement into force, moving the pact closer to implementation later this year.

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• New Zealand’s Parliament passed legislation implementing the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement on 16 September 2026 by a vote of 93 to 29.
• The bill secured cross-party support from the ruling National Party, its coalition partner ACT, and the main opposition Labour Party.
• NZ First, the Green Party, Te Pati Maori and two independent MPs voted against the legislation.
• The FTA was originally signed in New Delhi on 27 April 2026, following negotiations that concluded in under a year.
• Momentum for early implementation followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to New Zealand in July 2026, the first by an Indian prime minister to the country in four decades.
• Under the agreement, 100 percent of Indian exports will get duty-free access to the New Zealand market from the date the pact enters into force.
• Sectors expected to benefit on the Indian side include textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, engineering goods, pharmaceuticals, and processed food products.
• In return, New Zealand gains enhanced preferential access to the Indian market for exports such as wood, wool, sheep meat and raw hides.
• New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay said 57 percent of New Zealand’s exports to India will become duty-free immediately, rising to 95 percent once fully implemented.
• The agreement also commits to facilitating up to USD 20 billion of New Zealand investment into India over the next 15 years and sets a target of doubling bilateral trade to USD 5 billion within five years.
• India and New Zealand are now completing their respective domestic processes, with the agreement potentially becoming operational as early as October 2026.
• Under India’s constitutional scheme, treaty-making including FTAs falls within the executive’s power under Article 253 read with Entry 14 of the Union List, and does not require parliamentary ratification in India.