A proposal for a Council decision on the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the European Union and Indonesia, published on 29 June 2026, sets out tariff elimination schedules for a wide range of chemical and pharmaceutical products. Under the agreement, all listed products in HS chapters 2921–2939—including nitrogen-function compounds, organo-inorganic compounds, heterocyclic compounds, nucleic acids, sulphonamides, provitamins, vitamins, hormones, glycosides, and alkaloids—will receive immediate duty-free access (staging category "A") upon entry into force. The base rates, ranging from 0% to 6.5%, are eliminated entirely on the agreement's start date, benefiting EU exporters to Indonesia.
The document, part of the broader EU-Indonesia trade deal proposed by the European Commission (COM(2026) 340), covers over 200 tariff lines. Products with a 0% base rate include many pharmaceuticals such as methylamine variants, certain phenylenediamine, INN-listed drugs (e.g., amfetamine, methadone, insulin, morphine), vitamins A, B1, B2, B5, B6, B12, C, E, and all hormones (2937). Most other chemical compounds, such as "other" amine-function compounds, oxygen-function amino-compounds, quaternary ammonium salts, carboxyamide-function compounds, nitrile-function compounds, organo-sulphur compounds, and heterocyclic compounds, have a 6.5% base rate that is eliminated. Specific exceptions with intermediate base rates include pyridine and its salts (5.3%), ethylenediamine (6%), hexamethylenediamine (6.5%), cyclohexylamine (6.3%), lysine (6.3%), glutamic acid (6.5%), isophthalonitrile (6%), digitalis glycosides (6%), glycyrrhizic acid (5.7%), and fluroxypyr methyl ester (4%).
The agreement is expected to boost trade between the EU and Indonesia by eliminating tariffs on key industrial inputs. For EU chemical and pharmaceutical producers, the immediate duty-free access reduces export costs and improves competitiveness in the Indonesian market. Indonesian importers will benefit from lower prices for these products, potentially lowering production costs for downstream industries. However, domestic Indonesian chemical manufacturers may face increased competition from EU imports. The proposal now awaits Council adoption before the agreement can be ratified and enter into force.