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Since leaving the EU on 31 January 2020, the UK has been able to negotiate, sign and ratify new trade agreements. These agreements can only come into force after 31 December 2020. Until then, EU FTAs continue to apply to the UK.
In addition to the EU, the UK Government is prioritising the formation of trade agreements with the US, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. It is also working to roll over existing EU trade agreements that the UK was party to. It has also signalled its intention to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The CPTPP is a trade agreement between 11 countries that span the Asia Pacific region and represents the third-largest free-trade area in the world after NAFTA and the European Single Market.
The UK has already negotiated several roll-over agreements with countries and trading blocs including South Korea, the Southern African Customs Union and Mozambique (SACUM), Israel, and Switzerland. You can see the full list here. Further negotiations are underway with numerous other countries such as Canada, Egypt and Mexico (see more here) but if agreements are not completed by 31 December 2020, the UK will lose the benefits of the EU FTAs and trade with other WTO members will default to WTO terms.
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