In March 1998, the United States and the European Union signed the Veterinary Equivalency Agreement in Brussels, Belgium. Commission Decision 2003/833/EC amended the Annexes to the Agreement on sanitary measures to protect public and animal health. Commission Decision 2006/198/EC amended Annex V further in 2006.
The VEA allows veterinary inspection requirements to differ between the U.S. and the EU while safeguarding both parties’ right to establish its own level of public health protection.
