“Readiness is key”, the European Commission said in a communication published on Thursday 9 July. It underlines the urgency of speeding up the preparations of Europeans before the end of the transition period, which will see the United Kingdom leave the EU for good.
“Negotiations so far have shown little progress”, warns the institution in its preamble. As the bilateral negotiations slip, what barriers to trade and commerce, what red tape, what consequences must the EU prepare for on 1 January 2021?
Irrespective of the outcome of the ongoing negotiations on the future relationship between the European Union and London, the British withdrawal from the internal market and the customs union will mark an important change. European citizens, administrations and economic operators must therefore mobilise to cushion the impact of these “broad and far-reaching changes”.
“There is no room for complacency or postponing readiness and adaptation measures in anticipation that an agreement would ensure continuity, because a large number of changes will be inevitable”, the Commission recalls.
This is followed by a sector-by-sector listing of actions to be taken. Equivalences, certifications, authorisations, but also procedures for the recognition of qualifications, the protection of intellectual property rights, the transfer of personal data: European companies must prepare themselves immediately for these new constraints.
Thus, to exporters of goods, the Commission reminds them that customs formalities and controls will take place “in all cases”. From now on, it will also be necessary to be able to demonstrate the origin of exported products in order to be able to benefit from preferential treatment in the framework of a possible future trade agreement.
Finally, the contractual choices of operators must also be put into perspective: judgments handed down by a British court may no longer be rapidly enforceable in the EU.
Travellers will be subject to border controls and will have to comply with new requirements, in particular regarding visas, drivers’ licences and pet passports. Travel companies will therefore also have to familiarise themselves with these changes and adapt their procedures.
National authorities, for their part, must mobilise sufficient available staff at border crossing points, the text states.
Member States, consumer associations, professional, national and European business associations are all invited to continue their work to raise awareness of all these changes, the Commission urges.
In addition, more than 100 sector-specific preparation notices have also been published and have been updated by the Commission.
See Commission communication: https://bit.ly/3215PoE
See the list of sector notes: https://bit.ly/3efWOdR (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)