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HOME  /  BRIEFINGS  /  BREXIT: GETTING READY FOR CHANGES - 10 DAYS TO GO

BRIEFINGS

BREXIT: Getting ready for changes - 10 days to go

In 10 days the United Kingdom’s ‘transition period’ will come to an end. The UK will officially be exiting the EU - leaving the EU single market and customs union - and as it stands, there is no deal in place.

In order to aid businesses and UK citizens, ‘New Rules’ have been put in place which will come into effect as of 1 January 2021.

Some of these New Rules are the following:

  • Trading: New set of obligations will apply for importers and exporters according to the applicable European Union rules.
  • Import preparations and custom declarations will now be required. A special licence to import or export certain goods will also be required.
  • Value Added Tax (VAT) shall be charged in the EU country where goods from the UK are imported and different VAT rules for imports in the UK will apply.
  • The existing EU preferential schemes in relation to UK materials or processes will no longer apply. 
  • Provision of Services: Authorisations/Licenses granted by UK authorities under the EU Single Market framework will no longer be valid in the EU. This has particular importance for the areas of financial services, transport, audio-visual media and energy services. In order to access the European Union market, UK service providers and professionals established in the UK will need to show compliance with any rules, procedures and/or authorisations that cover the provision of services in the EU by foreign nationals and/or companies outside the EU. EU service providers and professionals established in the Union and operating in the United Kingdom will need to demonstrate compliance with all relevant UK rules.
  • Transport, travel and logistics will be affected by the formality changes required upon crossing the UK-EU border.
  • Company Law and Civil Law: UK incorporated companies will be considered third-country companies and will no longer be automatically recognised. Their recognition will become subject to national law for third country-incorporated companies. Branches in EU Member States of UK incorporated companies will be branches of third-country companies. Subsidiaries of UK companies in the European Union are, in principle, EU companies and will continue to be covered by all relevant EU and national legislation.
  • EU rules facilitating the cross-border recognition and enforcement of judgements in the EU and in the United Kingdom during the transition period will no longer apply. Judgments handed down by a UK court might no longer be swiftly enforceable in the European Union compared to today’s situation.
  • Intellectual Property: Existing EU unitary intellectual property rights will remain protected under the Withdrawal Agreement, however, any new EU unitary rights will have a reduced territorial scope as they will no longer have effect in the United Kingdom.

It is essential that both UK citizens and businesses prepare for these wide-ranging and extensive changes that will take place in due course and that they take all necessary steps to understand and abide to these New Rules.

For any assistance in relation to the above, please contact us at info@pirilides.com.