the treaties establishing the European Communities and the Single European Act aim to establish a Common Market, an area without internal frontiers: this entails removing the physical barriers (customs controls of goods and persons, national quota restrictions for non-member countries), technical barriers (different national specifications, standards and regulations; compartmentalization of public contracts; barriers to the freedom of movement of persons, to the freedom to provide services, to the freedom of movement of capital, to competition; legal and fiscal barriers to cooperation between businesses and regarding patent rights) and fiscal barriers (VAT, excise duties, taxes on savings)
The Member States declare their readiness to contribute to the development of international trade and the lowering of barriers to trade by entering into agreements designed, on a basis of reciprocity and mutual advantage, to reduce customs duties below the general level of which they could avail themselves as a result of the establishment of a customs union between them.
