Non-Tariff Trade Barriers (NTTB’s)

Broadly speaking, technical, or Non-Tariff Trade Barriers (NTTB’s) can be identified as national technical requirements which occur in laws, regulations and standards, together with conformity certification schemes, which affect the design, manufacture, marking and use of products in the country concerned. Many of these NTTB’s have not been erected consciously to keep exports out, but are either an inherent part of the structure of the importing country, or the outcome of a historical situation. The results, from differing legal systems, arise from a different approach to the provision of goods and services in the country concerned. In the majority of cases, these barriers are not in any sense new and have existed for decades or even centuries. They have become more apparent in the last few decades with the massive increase in trade between the industrialised nations and the associated increase in competition for the markets involved.

We can make exporters aware of the relevant NTTB’s. Failure to take these requirements into consideration can result in time-consuming delays and lost sales, loss of profits and sometimes even bankruptcy, to say nothing of the damage to the reputation of the company. We can provide a versatile service identifying and supplying the latest information on standards, regulations, inspection companies, packaging and labelling requirements, language and more.