Implementing legislation for the CAFTA-DR passed the U.S. Senate in June and the House of Representatives in July, 2005, and was signed by the President in August.
The CAFTA-DR partners agreed to a target date of January 1, 2006, for entry into force. All countries recognized, however, that this was an ambitious goal, and that all countries might not have completed their implementation process by that time. Other U.S. free trade agreements have had a longer preparation period to get ready (typically 6-7 months with only one country), so the need for additional time is not unusual.
With the exception of Costa Rica, all of the countries are working to complete the implementation process as soon as possible. Under the "rolling admissions" process, entry into force would occur on the first day of the month with a country that the USTR determines is ready by the middle of the preceding month. The intervening time will allow for a Presidential proclamation to be prepared. Implementation as early as February 1 is possible in some cases.
CAFTA-DR is the second largest U.S. export market in Latin America, behind only Mexico, buying more than $16 billion in U.S. exports. Successful CAFTA-DR implementation is critical to the broader U.S. policy goals for the Americas of strengthening democratic governance, expanding economic opportunity, and investing in people.
United States Trade Representatives Office
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