UK Parliament Votes Against No-Deal Brexit

The situation

The UK parliament has voted against leaving the European Union without a deal.

A closer look

• Vote on postponing Brexit day. On March 14, the UK parliament will vote on whether to request Article 50 (the legal grounds for leaving the European Union) to be extended and the date of the United Kingdom’s exit to be pushed back.
• EU approval required. If the vote is passed, the remaining 27 EU countries must unanimously approve the extension, which is not certain to be granted. If approved, the extension will likely be limited to June 30 (before the first session of the new European Parliament), as otherwise the United Kingdom could be required to organize European Parliament elections (scheduled for May 23-26, 2019), where the United Kingdom currently has no plans to field candidates. However, the date could in theory be set for a later time, in which case there would be challenging issues for both the United Kingdom and European Union around European Parliamentary elections.
• No-deal Brexit remains default. Until an extension is requested by the United Kingdom and unanimously approved by the European Union, no-deal Brexit on March 29, 2019 remains the legal default.

Impact

• Employers. Employers are advised to set up contingency plans in case of a no-deal Brexit on March 29, 2019.
• EU nationals in the United Kingdom. Eligible EU nationals and their family members are advised to register under the public pilot of the EU Settlement Scheme.
• UK nationals in Europe. Political commitments have been made in the European Union, European Economic Area and Switzerland that UK nationals will be able to continue living and working in the country where they currently reside. Current residence permit and registration requirements should be met to maximise post-Brexit rights and UK nationals should look out for any additional processes that may be required after Brexit.

Looking ahead

Fragomen will be closely monitoring the results and providing commentary and analysis for our clients throughout the week.

Brexit has been an incredibly complex and uncertain political issue that carries risks to your business. Please contact a Fragomen immigration professional for assistance in planning contingency arrangements in a single project.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].