WTO GPA

The WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) is a plurilateral treaty under the World Trade Organization (WTO) that opens national public procurement markets among its member countries. Signatory states—including the EU (and its Member States), US, Canada, Japan, Australia, and others—commit to treating each other’s suppliers with non-discrimination and transparency in high-value public contracts covered by the Agreement. This means suppliers from the GPA countries can compete on equal footing in participating markets for contracts above certain thresholds.

Originally established as the “Tokyo Round Government Procurement Code” in 1979, the GPA was formalized as a WTO Agreement in 1996 and revised in 2012, entering into force in 2014 to modernize and broaden its scope—including updated electronic procedures and enhanced transparency rules. As of today, approximately 48 WTO members, including the EU and many advanced economies, are parties to the GPA. Parties agree to uphold GPA principles such as fair tendering processes, supplier qualifications, minimum timelines, and accessible challenge mechanisms—all detailed in each party’s Appendix of obligations.

In practice, the GPA fosters global competition and value for money by legally enabling cross-border participation in public tenders among member nations. For example, an EU tender over the relevant threshold is open not only to EU-based companies but also to competitors from other GPA countries like Canada and the US, provided it meets coverage conditions. The Agreement includes mechanisms to ensure transparency and allows suppliers to challenge award decisions through domestic or WTO-level dispute mechanisms.