The United States has 14 free trade agreements in force, and together they cover 20 partner countries.1International Trade Administration. Free Trade Agreements Those 20 countries represent roughly 6 percent of the world’s population outside the U.S., but they buy close to half of all U.S. exports.
The 14 Agreements and Their 20 Partner Countries
Twelve of the agreements are bilateral, meaning one country on each side. Two are multilateral and account for eight partners between them, which is why the country count is higher than the agreement count.
- USMCA — Canada, Mexico
- CAFTA-DR — Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua
- Australia FTA
- Bahrain FTA
- Chile FTA
- Colombia TPA
- Israel FTA
- Jordan FTA
- KORUS FTA — South Korea
- Morocco FTA
- Oman FTA
- Panama TPA
- Peru TPA
- Singapore FTA
Every agreement above is currently in force and offers preferential tariff treatment on qualifying goods.2United States Trade Representative. Free Trade Agreements The oldest of them is the U.S.-Israel Free Trade Agreement, which entered into force on August 19, 1985 and was the first FTA the United States ever signed.3Office of the United States Trade Representative. Agreement on the Establishment of a Free Trade Area between the Government of Israel and the Government of the United States of America
Bilateral vs. Multilateral
The bilateral agreements — with Australia, Bahrain, Chile, Colombia, Israel, Jordan, South Korea, Morocco, Oman, Panama, Peru, and Singapore — are each tailored to the trade relationship between the two countries. Tariff phase-in schedules, sensitive-product exceptions, and intellectual property rules vary from one to the next.
The two multilateral agreements do the heavier lifting on the country count. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement entered into force on July 1, 2020, replacing NAFTA and covering all trade across North America.4United States Trade Representative. United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement The Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) covers the U.S. plus six partners in Central America and the Caribbean, and was the first U.S. FTA with a group of smaller developing economies.5United States Trade Representative. Dominican Republic-Central America FTA (CAFTA-DR) CAFTA-DR entered into force on a rolling basis between 2006 and 2009 as each partner completed its domestic approval.6International Trade Administration. CAFTA
What “In Force” Means in 2026
The count of 14 is stable heading into 2026, but two developments affect what these agreements actually deliver.
The first is USMCA’s built-in review. The agreement terminates after 16 years unless all three countries confirm in writing, through their heads of government, that they want to extend it for another 16 years. The first joint review falls on the sixth anniversary, in July 2026. If any country declines to confirm, the agreement does not end right away. Instead, the three parties meet annually for the rest of the 16-year term to try to resolve whatever is blocking extension, and any country can still confirm at any point during those reviews. Reach the 16-year mark without unanimous confirmation and the agreement expires.7Office of the United States Trade Representative. USMCA Chapter 34 Final Provisions
The second is the interaction between FTA preferences and the tariff actions taken in 2025 and 2026. An FTA does not automatically shield goods from every new tariff. USMCA-qualifying goods from Canada and Mexico are carved out of the 2025 reciprocal tariffs, but goods from those countries that do not qualify under USMCA face substantial additional duties — 25 to 35 percent for most Canadian goods (with lower rates for energy and potash) and 25 percent for most Mexican goods.8Congress.gov. CRS Report R48549 Textiles and apparel entering duty-free under CAFTA-DR are similarly excluded from the reciprocal tariff.9The White House. Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Imposes a Temporary Import Duty to Address Fundamental International Payment Problems
What Isn’t Counted as an FTA
The U.S. maintains other trade arrangements, but none of them count toward the 14, and none deliver the same tariff elimination.
Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFAs) are dialogue frameworks. The U.S. has TIFAs with countries at a range of development levels, and they set up councils that meet regularly to discuss trade barriers, intellectual property, and labor issues. They don’t change tariff rates.10United States Trade Representative. Trade and Investment Framework Agreements
Bilateral Investment Treaties protect private investment — protections against expropriation, guarantees of fair treatment for foreign investors — and do not address tariffs on goods.
The Generalized System of Preferences is often confused with a trade agreement, but it wasn’t one. GSP was a unilateral U.S. program offering duty-free entry on thousands of products from developing countries without requiring anything in return.11United States Trade Representative. Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) The program expired on December 31, 2020, and Congress has not reauthorized it. As of 2026, it remains inactive.12U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)
Why the Count Hasn’t Grown
A free trade agreement requires Congressional approval to become U.S. law. The executive branch negotiates the terms, and Congress then decides whether to implement them by passing legislation that writes the agreement into domestic law.13United States Trade Representative. Trade Promotion Authority
Every FTA currently in force was negotiated under some version of Trade Promotion Authority, a legislative procedure where Congress defines negotiating objectives upfront and then gives the finished agreement a straight up-or-down vote with no amendments.13United States Trade Representative. Trade Promotion Authority The most recent TPA expired on July 1, 2021, and Congress has not renewed it. New agreements are not impossible without TPA, but they are harder: any deal Congress considers can be amended, filibustered, or delayed. No new comprehensive FTA negotiations have been launched since TPA lapsed, which is why the number of U.S. free trade agreements has held at 14.