Paris and Rome have joined forces to delay this week’s scheduled European Union vote on ratifying the long-delayed trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay). According to Reuters, the two countries are rallying Austria, Poland, Hungary and Ireland to form a “blocking minority” that would force the Danish EU presidency to take the item off the agenda.
Although the deal focuses on goods, mobility experts are watching closely: the draft text contains mutual-recognition clauses for professional qualifications and a framework for temporary assignments of service suppliers—provisions that could have simplified short-term postings for French construction, engineering and IT firms into Latin America. A postponement prolongs uncertainty for HR teams planning 2026 projects tied to South-American expansion.
For employers and assignees trying to navigate that uncertainty, a practical shortcut is to lean on services such as VisaHQ, which maintains up-to-date visa matrices for both Schengen countries and the Mercosur bloc. Through its France portal (https://www.visahq.com/france/), the platform offers step-by-step application guides, document pre-checks and expedited filing options, helping companies mitigate delays and compliance risks whenever political wrangling clouds the rules.
![France and Italy push to postpone EU vote on Mercosur pact amid farmer unrest]()
French resistance is driven by domestic farmer protests and by the government’s demand for “mirror clauses” imposing EU-level environmental and labour standards on imports. Business lobbies, especially aerospace and luxury-goods exporters, warn that failure to ratify would leave EU companies at a competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis U.S. rivals already benefitting from bilateral agreements in the region.
For corporate mobility managers, the immediate takeaway is to temper expectations of streamlined visa or work-permit waivers that might have accompanied the pact. Companies should continue to budget for full work-permit procedures and labour-market tests when sending staff to Mercosur countries in 2026. Conversely, Latin-American firms eyeing French acquisitions will still face standard Schengen visa caps and Posted-Worker declarations.
EU diplomats now suggest the vote could slip to Q1 2026 at the earliest. Organisations with supply-chain or workforce strategies tied to the agreement should prepare alternative scenarios and monitor forthcoming Farm Council meetings, where safeguard mechanisms may be redrafted.
Although the deal focuses on goods, mobility experts are watching closely: the draft text contains mutual-recognition clauses for professional qualifications and a framework for temporary assignments of service suppliers—provisions that could have simplified short-term postings for French construction, engineering and IT firms into Latin America. A postponement prolongs uncertainty for HR teams planning 2026 projects tied to South-American expansion.
For employers and assignees trying to navigate that uncertainty, a practical shortcut is to lean on services such as VisaHQ, which maintains up-to-date visa matrices for both Schengen countries and the Mercosur bloc. Through its France portal (https://www.visahq.com/france/), the platform offers step-by-step application guides, document pre-checks and expedited filing options, helping companies mitigate delays and compliance risks whenever political wrangling clouds the rules.
French resistance is driven by domestic farmer protests and by the government’s demand for “mirror clauses” imposing EU-level environmental and labour standards on imports. Business lobbies, especially aerospace and luxury-goods exporters, warn that failure to ratify would leave EU companies at a competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis U.S. rivals already benefitting from bilateral agreements in the region.
For corporate mobility managers, the immediate takeaway is to temper expectations of streamlined visa or work-permit waivers that might have accompanied the pact. Companies should continue to budget for full work-permit procedures and labour-market tests when sending staff to Mercosur countries in 2026. Conversely, Latin-American firms eyeing French acquisitions will still face standard Schengen visa caps and Posted-Worker declarations.
EU diplomats now suggest the vote could slip to Q1 2026 at the earliest. Organisations with supply-chain or workforce strategies tied to the agreement should prepare alternative scenarios and monitor forthcoming Farm Council meetings, where safeguard mechanisms may be redrafted.
