The European Union and the United Kingdom on Tuesday signed a landmark post-Brexit treaty on Gibraltar, paving the way for the removal of routine immigration checks and physical barriers at the territory’s land border with Spain after years of negotiations.
The agreement is expected to enter into provisional application on Wednesday, 15 July, pending formal ratification by the UK and European Parliaments.
Signed in Brussels by European Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, UK Minister for Europe Stephen Doughty, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares and Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo, the treaty establishes a new framework governing the British Overseas Territory’s relationship with the European Union following Brexit.
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Under the agreement, routine passport and immigration checks at the Gibraltar–Spain land frontier will be removed, allowing residents of Gibraltar to cross into Spain using residence cards without passport stamps, while Spanish nationals will be able to enter Gibraltar using their national identity cards.
The move is expected to significantly ease daily travel for around 15,000 cross-border workers who commute between Spain and Gibraltar.
Immigration and security checks for travellers arriving in Gibraltar from outside the Schengen area, including from the United Kingdom, will instead take place at Gibraltar Airport and the seaport.
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These checks will be carried out jointly by Gibraltarian authorities and Spanish officers under a new operational arrangement designed to safeguard the Schengen area’s external border while maintaining Gibraltar’s internal administration.
The treaty also provides for closer cooperation on customs, the movement of goods, social security coordination for frontier workers, transport, law enforcement and other cross-border matters.
Gibraltar will align with aspects of the EU customs framework while remaining outside the European Union, with both sides seeking to preserve the territory’s economic links with neighbouring Spain.
Speaking after the signing ceremony, Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo described the agreement as a transformative moment for the territory, saying restrictions at the frontier had shaped generations of Gibraltarians and that removing routine border controls would fundamentally improve daily life.
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The agreement does not alter Gibraltar’s sovereignty, which remains with the United Kingdom, nor does it affect the operation of the British military base on the Rock.
Instead, it establishes practical arrangements aimed at facilitating the movement of people and goods while resolving one of the most contentious outstanding issues left by Brexit.
Although the treaty will begin provisional implementation from 15 July, it must still complete the formal ratification process in both the United Kingdom and the European Union before entering into full legal force.