The Declaration on the Future Relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom, also known as the Political Declaration, is a non-binding declaration negotiated and signed in conjunction with the binding and broader Withdrawal Agreement in the context of the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (EU), colloquially known as Brexit, and the planned end of the transition period. In the absence of an agreement, trade between the UK and the EU will revert to World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules and ongoing cooperation agreements in several areas will be suspended. But some things will change, whether or not a new deal between the UK and the EU is in place by December 31. Customs duties are a type of tax usually paid on imported goods. If goods are subject to quotas, it means that there are limits to the quantity of goods that can be traded in a given period. So while the UK will no longer have the right to vote, it will continue to comply with EU rules during the transition. For example, the European Court of Justice will have the final say on all legal disputes. The Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, officially an agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community[3][4], is a treaty between the European Union (EU), Euratom and the United Kingdom (UK), signed on 24 January 2020[5], which sets out the conditions for the United Kingdom`s withdrawal from the EU and Euratom. The text of the treaty was published on 17 October 2019[6] and is a renegotiated version of an agreement published six months earlier. The previous version of the Withdrawal Agreement was rejected three times by the House of Commons, leading Queen Elizabeth II to accept Theresa May`s resignation as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and to appoint Boris Johnson as the new Prime Minister on 24 July 2019. The European Commission published a communication on „readiness at the end of the transition period“ in July 2020, stressing that „changes are occurring in all scenarios“.

These include trade in goods and services, financial services, transport, recognition of professional qualifications, data protection, intellectual property and EU international agreements (which would no longer apply to the UK). The Commission has published more than 80 „notifications of preparation“ for stakeholders. The Northern Ireland Protocol, known as the „Irish backstop“, was an annex to the November 2018 draft agreement that outlined provisions to prevent a hard border in Ireland after the United Kingdom`s withdrawal from the European Union. The Protocol contains a provision on a safety net to deal with circumstances in which other satisfactory arrangements have yet to enter into force at the end of the transition period. This project has been replaced by a new protocol which will be described below. The agreement supports the arrangements for the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union and Euratom (Article 1), provides a clear definition of the territorial scope of the United Kingdom (Article 3) and guarantees the legal responsibility of the agreement (Article 4). In addition, it states that the United Kingdom will be refused access to `networks, information systems and databases established on the basis of Union law` until the end of the transition period (Article 8). In addition to negotiating a trade deal between the UK and the EU, the transition will also allow the UK to hold formal trade negotiations with other countries, such as the US and Australia. If these transactions are concluded and completed on time, they could also take effect at the end of the transition. On 17 October 2019, the UK and the EU reached an agreement on the terms of the UK`s withdrawal from the EU (Brexit) and on a transition period until 31 December 2020. Article 132 of the Withdrawal Agreement allows the EU-UK Joint Committee to adopt „a single decision extending the transition period“ for up to two years. However, such a decision must be taken before 1 July 2020.

United Kingdom nationals and Union citizens, their family members who are united Kingdom nationals or Union citizens and family members who are neither retain the right to reside in the host Member State (Article 13). The host Member State may not restrict or make dependent dependants with a view to obtaining, maintaining or losing rights of residence (Article 13). Persons with valid documents do not need entry and exit visas or equivalent formalities and are allowed to leave or enter the host country in a simple manner (art. 14). In the event that the host Member State requires that `family members who join the Union citizen or the United Kingdom national at the end of the transition period obtain an entry visa`, the host Member State is required to issue the necessary visas free of charge in the appropriate institutions under an accelerated procedure (Article 14). The agreement also deals with the issuance of permanent residence permits during and after the transition period and their restrictions. In addition, it clarifies the rights of employees and the self-employed and provides for the recognition and identification of professional qualifications. Presenting the Commission`s proposed guidelines for uk-EU negotiations in February 2020, the EU`s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, said that even with a „first-class“ free trade agreement, the UK and the EU now have two separate markets. The transitional period shall not be extended. The UK has said it does not want an extension. The option of an extension has been included in the Withdrawal Agreement.

The UK and the EU had until 1 July 2020 to agree on a possible extension. Section 39 of the 2020 Act does not allow the government to change the IP completion date as the transition will be extended. Therefore, Parliament would have to pass another piece of legislation to facilitate these changes if an extension were agreed. Section 15A of the EU Withdrawal Act 2018 prohibits UK ministers from agreeing to an extension of the transition period under the JC. This provision was added to this law by Article 33 of the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020. Article 132 VA provides that the Joint Committee (UNITED KINGDOM/EU) may, before 1 July 2020, adopt „a single decision extending the transitional period by a maximum of one or two years“. The United Kingdom should amend its national legislation. This should be easy given the current majority in government and the likely support of the Labour Party and the SNP for an extension. The UK government and the remaining 27 EU member states accept the draft agreement.

The House of Commons votes in favour of the Brexit bill. This means that the UK is on track to leave the EU on 31 January. However, the House of Lords and the European Parliament have not yet approved the agreement. The European Union and the United Kingdom have approved the Withdrawal Agreement. The British Parliament and the European Parliament have yet to approve the Withdrawal Agreement. The United Kingdom does not intend to extend the transition period. He has repeatedly said that he will not ask for an extension and that if the EU asks for an extension, the UK will refuse. A single extension of the transitional period is possible. Such an extension may not last more than two years. It should be approved by a decision of the UK-EU Joint Committee before 1 July 2020. The UK and the EU should agree on both the duration of an extension and other conditions, such as .B. the UK`s financial contribution to the EU budget for the extended period.

The deadline to extend the transition has now expired. The 2019 revisions also adapted elements of the Political Declaration by replacing the word „appropriate“ with „appropriate“ in relation to labour standards. According to Sam Lowe, Trade Fellow at the Centre for European Reform, the change excludes labour standards from dispute resolution mechanisms. [27] In addition, the level playing field mechanism has moved from the legally binding Withdrawal Agreement to the Political Declaration[24] and the line in the Political Declaration that „the UK will consider aligning itself with EU legislation in relevant areas“ has been deleted. [26] The idea behind the transition period is to give some respite in the new negotiations between the UK and the EU. The Withdrawal Agreement provides for a transition period until 31 December 2020, during which the UK will remain in the Single Market to ensure smooth trade until a long-term relationship is agreed. If no agreement is reached by that date, the UK will leave the single market on 1 January 2021 without a trade agreement. .