The World Trade Organization was formally established in 1995.
The WTO began operations on 1 January 1995, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade as the main institution governing multilateral trade rules. Its legal foundation was the Marrakesh Agreement, signed on 15 April 1994 after the Uruguay Round of negotiations.
The WTO is broader than a tariff-cutting organization. It administers agreements covering goods, services and intellectual property, provides a forum for negotiations, and operates procedures for settling disputes between member governments. GATT rules did not disappear: the updated General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 became part of the WTO framework.
A common mix-up is confusing the WTO’s creation with the start of the Uruguay Round, which began in 1986, or with the 1947 signing of the original GATT. The WTO is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and its membership has expanded substantially since 1995.