EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill Passed by UK Parliament

The situation

Following Boris Johnson’s victory in the UK election, the Withdrawal Agreement Bill for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union on January 31, 2020 has passed its second reading by 358 to 234 votes in Parliament.

A closer look

Now that the Withdrawal Agreement has passed in Parliament, there will be a ‘transition period’ and free movement will continue until December 31, 2020.  EU nationals residing in the United Kingdom by December 31, 2020 will have until June 21, 2021 to apply to remain in the United Kingdom under the EU Settlement Scheme.

Impact

• Protecting citizens’ rights. Ratifying the Withdrawal Agreement will make the EU-UK deal on citizens’ rights binding on both parties in international law.  In the short term, this means that the cut-off date for establishing residence in order to benefit from UK-EU freedom of movement will now be December 31, 2020, instead of January 31, 2020.
• New immigration scheme ahead. The UK government has promised that free movement will not be extended beyond the end of 2020, and EU nationals arriving in the United Kingdom from January 1, 2021 will be subject to the new UK immigration regime which will be applicable to all nationalities.
• Plan ahead. Fragomen recommends any moves planned for early 2021 are brought forward or in some circumstances that prospective employees visit the United Kingdom and make an application before the cut off. It will likely cost more and take longer to recruit EU nationals from 2021, and it is not clear whether overseas workers will be able to travel to fill lower skilled jobs in the United Kingdom and those who are allowed may be limited to 12 or 24 months’ stay.
• British citizens in EU countries after 2021. British citizens arriving in EU countries (other than Ireland) on or after January 1, 2021 will be subject to the standard immigration rules for non-EU foreign workers, which vary from country to country. Similarly, business travellers will have to comply with the specific restrictions in each country they visit.

These and other impacts are covered in Fragomen’s new guide on post-election updates here.

Looking ahead

The vote on the Withdrawal Agreement Bill means that Parliament have approved the general principles of the bill and it will now move to the ‘committee stage’. This means that the Bill will be subjected to further scrutiny in Parliament; however, the government is intent on the bill being put into law in time for the Brexit deadline of January 31, 2020.

Ultimately, the passing of the Bill will mean that there will be a ‘transition period’ and free movement will continue until December 31, 2020. EU nationals residing in the United Kingdom by December 31, 2020 will have until June 21, 2021 to apply to remain in the United Kingdom under the EU Settlement Scheme.

Brexit continues to be 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.

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].