CEFTA

Technical requirements are specific conditions that a product or service must meet, such as its size, shape, design, functions and performance, or the way it is labelled or packaged before it is put on the market. These requirements may pursue several legitimate objectives, such as:

• The protection of human/animal safety or health;
  
• The protection of the environment;
  
• The provision of information to consumers; or
  
• The prevention of deceptive practices.
  

Such measures almost invariably create obstacles to trade, and as such are referred to as Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). TBT measures can be justified and necessary to regulate markets, but can also be considered as non-tariff barriers if they are disproportionate to the objective being pursued, discriminatory and/or not scientifically justified.