Mutual recognition occurs when two or more countries or other institutions recognize one another's decisions or policies, for example in the field of conformity assessment, professional qualifications or in relation to criminal matters. A mutual recognition agreement (MRA) is an international agreement by which two or more countries agree to recognize one another's conformity assessments, decisions or results (for example certifications or test results). A mutual recognition arrangement is an international arrangement based on such an agreement.
Countries involved in the agreement can designate for the scope of the agreement Conformity Assessment Bodies (CAB), laboratories and inspection bodies.
MRAs have become increasingly common since the formation of the World Trade Organization in 1995. They have been forged within and among various trade blocs, including APEC and the European Union.[1]
MRAs are most commonly applied to goods, such as various quality control MRAs. However, the term is also applied to agreements on the recognition of professional qualifications and decisions relating to criminal matters.[2]
Accreditation Bodies, under the International Accreditation Forum, use the term Multilateral Recognition Agreements in a similar sense.[3]
- ^ European Commission, Mutual recognition of goods, accessed 22 August 2021
- ^ European Commission, Programme of measures to implement the principle of mutual recognition of decisions in criminal matters, Official Journal C 012 , 15/01/2001 p. 0010 - 0022, accessed 4 November 2021
- ^ "MLA Purpose". IAF. Retrieved 7 October 2018.