Brexit - Travel and Work

(For travel to the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein after 1 January 2021. Exception is Ireland, where one can travel and work in the same way before 1 January 2021. Always check the latest travel advice, including for Covid19, and the immigration rules of each country prior to travel.)

Many things we had taken for granted when we travelled and worked in the UK or the EU have now changed. Keep on top of these changes and we will be fine. Here we go.

GENERAL TRAVEL

Passport

• have at least 6 months left.
• be less than 10 years old (even if it has 6 months or more left).
• These rules do not apply to travel to Ireland. You can continue to use your passport as long as it’s valid for the length of your stay.
• will be stamped by the immigration officer.
• For EEA nationals (EU plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein), they can continue to use their ID cards until 1 October 2021, on which day passports are mandatory.
• From late 2022, a UK national will need to pre-register under the ETIAS scheme, similar in nature to the US ESTA programme. EU national may also face similar registration for visit to the UK.

Border Control

At border control, you may need to:

• show a return or onward ticket.
• show you have enough money for your stay.
• use separate lanes from EU, EEA and Swiss citizens when queueing – use of e-gates is not automatically granted for UK nationals and can vary from an EU country to another, so be prepared to join the ‘Rest of the World’ queue (note: EEA nationals can continue to use the UK auto-gates). Be patient when in the queue and expect the waiting time to be longer than previously.
• answer questions and show evidence of the reason for your visit.

 Healthcare

• Your current European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) will be valid until its expiry date if you’re travelling to an EU country.
• Get insurance coverage, especially for pre-existing conditions, for travel to Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein.
• For UK-issued GHICs (Global Health Insurance Card) after 1 January 2021, there are new rules as to the people who can apply: UK students studying in the EU, certain British state pensioners who live in the EU and their families and EU nationals in the UK. If you do not belong to any of these groups, you will most likely have to buy travel insurance for travel to the EU. If you apply for a card now, you will get a new UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) instead of an EHIC. These pages and the application portal will still refer to EHIC until 4 January 2021. You do not need to apply for a GHIC if you already have an EHIC. Your EHIC remains valid in the EU until it expires. Beware of unofficial websites, which may charge if you apply through them. An EHIC or GHIC is free of charge.

Visas for Short Trips

If you are a tourist, you do not need a visa for short trips to most EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. You will be able to stay for up to 90 days in any 180-day rolling period. Different rules apply to Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Romania where visits to these countries do not count towards the 90-day total, Once the 90 days are up, the person would cease to be a tourist or "short stay" visitor, and would have to apply for a long-term immigration visa which can be costly and burdensome.

Taking food and drink into EU countries and vice versa

You are not able to take meat, milk or products containing them, with some exceptions usually for medical reasons, into EU countries and vice versa. Check the rules on the European Commission and UK websites.

Taking plant and plant products into EU countries and vice versa

You will need a certificate to take certain plants and plant products into EU countries and vice versa. Check the rules on the European Commission and UK websites.

Driving

Your UK driving licence will continue to be valid in Europe. If you’re taking your own vehicle, you will need a green card and a GB sticker. The EU may end the green card in the coming months, so do check the guidance of each country before you travel.

Pet travel

You cannot use the existing pet passport scheme. Instead you will need an animal health certificate (AHC) for your pet. The AHC will be valid for four months. Allow at least 1 month to arrange this and relevant vaccinations. The AHC confirms that your pet is microchipped and vaccinated against rabies. A new AHC is required each time you travel up to 10 days prior to travel 

Free mobile roaming

The guarantee of free mobile phone roaming throughout the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway has ended. Check with your UK phone operator to find out about any roaming charges you might get from 1 January 2021. A new law means that you’re protected from getting mobile data charges above ￡45 without you knowing. Once you reach ￡45, you need to opt in to spend more so that you can continue using the internet while you’re abroad. Treat the roaming charges as if you are going to a non-EU country to be on the safe side.

Compensation for travel

Check your travel insurance policies for disruption to your travel. The EU261 rules that require airlines to compensate passengers for seriously delayed or cancelled flights have been written into UK law and remain as before. Your consumer rights have not changed since 1 January 2021. This means that if your travel is cancelled or delayed you may be able to claim a refund or compensation. Check your booking’s terms and conditions to find out more.

You are protected if you buy a package holiday and the company goes out of business. EU travel firms supplying UK consumers will also still have to provide compensation if their company goes bust. Otherwise, you can claim compensation if you used your credit card to buy it - you’ll be able to claim for payments between ￡100 and ￡30,000.

Taking goods to sell in the EU

You have to make custom declarations.

Bringing Back Alcoholic Drinks from the EU

Travellers returning from the EU will be restricted to 18 litres of wine (24 bottles), 42 litres of beer and 4 litres of spirits or liqueurs over 22% in alcohol – plus up to 200 cigarettes.

BUSINESS TRAVEL

Business travel includes activities such as travelling for meetings and conferences, providing services (even with a charity), and touring art or music. Always check the entry requirements and rules for each country prior to the business travel.

'Permitted Activities' and Staying Within the Allowable Period

If you’re travelling to the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein for less than 90 days in any 180-day period, you may be able to only ‘permitted activities’ so check the rules for each country to avoid non-compliance. EU nationals are allowed 6 months in the UK, but do check the rules for each country. Examples of ‘permitted activities’ include business meetings, but not ‘productive work’ or on-the-job training.

'Non-Permitted Activities' and Staying Exceeding the Allowable Period

You may need a visa, work permit or other documentation if you are planning to stay for longer than 90 days in a 180-day period, or if you will be doing non-permitted activities such as:

• transferring from the UK branch of a company to a branch in a different country (‘intra-corporate transfer’), even for a short period of time.
• carrying out contracts to provide a service to a client in another country in which your employer has no presence.
• providing services in another country as a self-employed person.

WORKING IN THE EU AND THE UK

EU Nationals in the UK

For EU nationals arriving in the UK after 1 January 2021, they must have a visa to work. If they arrive on or before 31 December 2020, they can secure their status and remain in the UK if they apply for EU Settlement Scheme by 30 June 2021.

Subject to certain criteria, EU citizens are now offered financial incentives to leave the UK. It is called the voluntary return scheme.

UK Nationals in the EU

For UK nationals in the EU, you are advised to check the immigration rules for each country as action and deadline varies. Some EU countries follow the conditions prescribed in the Withdrawal Agreement, so your residence status is granted automatically. Some EU countries have decided to set their own rules and your residence status is only granted upon application. 

Employer in the UK

As an employer in the UK, you have no obligation to check the EU settlement status for employees or perform retrospective check on existing employees, but my advice is to do the checks, and make a copy of the passport and visa of an employee or a consultant, and be wary of being caught under the ‘knowingly employing’ provision of knowing someone without valid immigration status.

Recognition of professional qualifications are still under review so it would be best to check with the respective professional bodies for the latest update.

As the UK has moved towards the point-based system route, employees who have been previously relied on lower-skilled workers will find difficulties in filling these roles. It appears that the requirements for the visa sponsorship has been reduced, including the local role advertising (which previously adds to hiring time), minimum salary threshold, record-keeping and skill level along with enhancement to number of positions allowed for sponsorship. This is good news for businesses in the UK looking for talents globally.     

The UK and Switzerland have signed a rollover trade deal allowing business and immigration continuity after 1 January 2021. Under the Services Mobility Agreement ("SMA"), effective for 2 years and can be mutually extended, UK and Swiss nationals are allowed to work up to 90 days without work permits. This rule applies to both companies and self-employed.

Practical considerations for businesses (if not already implemented)

• Establish the number of employees and/or consultants requiring UK-EU travel, their frequency of travel and that the type of activities they are doing are ‘permitted’ or not. Check visa requirements of each employee or consultant.
• Ensure future business hiring strategies include the impact of immigration rules and their potential changes in the future so that your company is flexible and agile in hiring needs and business continuity is maintained. Check professional qualifications.
• Consider the costs of visa or work permit applications, legal fees for immigration assistance and other hidden costs (e.g. roaming charges for business travel) in the company’s budget and business strategies. 
• Check for restrictions for employees wanting to work remotely from another country other than the UK (note: if you have a second home in the UK or the EU, check the rules too). There is impact coming from many legislations: immigration, employment, social security, pension, personal taxation (immigration residence is different from tax residence), corporate taxation, corporate liability and permanent establishment.
• Remind EU employees to register under the EU settlement scheme in the UK by 30 June 2021; the process can be completed entirely over the mobile phone. Support these employees administratively and financially.
• Train the HR or Talent Acquisition Departments on the new rules, including getting new immigration updates, record-keeping and migrant tracking (e.g. have fields on the HR system for visa number and expiry) or outsource the checks to a reputable company if you are a small company.
• Update the employment and consulting contracts and the company policies on business travel and onboarding.
• Check if sponsorship is available for certain roles requiring EU (or overseas) nationals. Check to the Standard Occupational Codes to find out skill levels.
• Comply with the covid19 quarantine rules in the UK and the destination country.

The immigration rules on people movement, similar to the trade rules on product movement, will change in the future, so be mindful of these changes as they carry legal, financial and reputational risks on non-compliance. The final frontier to the freedom of movement is capital, impacting the service industry such as banking, has yet to be finalised and future hard ongoing negotiations are expected. 

References:

UK Gov website

EC Europa website

The Guardian

The Telegraph

BBC