London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 08, 2025

Brexit: What are the key points of the deal?

Brexit: What are the key points of the deal?

The UK-EU trade agreement, which contains new rules for living, working and trading together, takes effect from 23:00 GMT on 31 December.

The full complicated agreement is more than 1,200 pages long, but here are some of the key points.


TRADE


What the deal says

* There will be no taxes on goods (tariffs) or limits on the amount that can be traded (quotas) between the UK and the EU from 1 January
* Some new checks will be introduced at borders, such as safety checks and customs declarations.
* There are some new restrictions on certain UK animal food products. For example, uncooked meats like sausages and burgers can't enter the EU unless they are frozen to -18C.

What does that mean?

* Having a deal in place means that the fear that some goods could become more expensive has been avoided.
* However, businesses will still need to prepare for new procedures at ports, and if new paperwork is incomplete, it could lead to disruption.

SERVICES AND QUALIFICATIONS


What the deal says:

* Businesses offering services, such as banking, architecture and accounting, will lose their automatic right of access to EU markets and will face some restrictions.
* There will no longer be automatic recognition of professional qualifications for people such as doctors, chefs and architects.

What does that mean?

* Rather than following one set of rules for the whole of the EU, UK businesses will need to comply with the regulations in each individual country.
* It will be harder for people with qualifications gained in the UK to sell their services in the EU. Individuals will need to check each country's rules to make sure their qualification is still recognised.
* However, the UK and EU have pledged to keep talking to try to improve access for the service sector in the future.

TRAVEL


What the deal says:


* UK nationals will need a visa for stays of longer than 90 days in the EU in a 180-day period.
* EU pet passports will no longer be valid.
* European Health Insurance Cards, (EHIC) cards will remain valid until they expire.
* The UK is no longer subject to the ban on additional roaming charges, although both sides will encourage operators to have "transparent and reasonable rates" for roaming.

What does that mean?

* The UK government says EHIC will be replaced with a new UK Global Health Insurance Card, but full details have not been released yet.
* Pets will still be allowed in the EU, but it will be a more complicated process as owners will need to obtain an animal health certificate for each trip they make.
* UK mobile operators will be able to charge for roaming, so people should check with their mobile phone company before travelling.

FISHING


What the deal says:

* Over the next five-and-a-half years, the UK will gradually gain a greater share of the fish from its own waters.
* The UK could choose to ban EU fishing boats from 2026, but the EU would be allowed to introduce taxes on British fish in response.

What does that mean?

* Fishing was the hardest and last issue to be resolved in the negotiation, and some UK fishermen are unhappy with the arrangement. The Scottish Fishermen's Federation, for example, says the deal does not give the UK enough control of its waters.
* Starting in 2026, the UK and the EU will hold regular talks on fishing access. So there could be more heated arguments ahead.

EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE AND OTHER DISPUTES


What the deal says:

* There will be no role in the UK for the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which is the highest court in the EU.
* Disputes that cannot be resolved between the UK and the EU will be referred to an independent tribunal instead.

What does that mean?

* Ending the role of the ECJ was a key UK demand as Brexit supporters said it would allow the UK to "take back control" of its laws.
* The ECJ could still have a role in Northern Ireland because it continues to follow some EU trade rules.
* If either side moves too far away from the current rules around product standards, tariffs (charges on imports) could be imposed on some goods in the future.

SECURITY AND DATA


What the deal says:

* The UK will no longer have automatic access to key security databases, but should be able to gain access upon request.
* The UK will not be a member of the EU's law enforcement agency, Europol, but it will have a presence at its headquarters.
* The UK is no longer obliged to comply with EU standards of data protection, but data will continue to be exchanged in the same way for at least four months as long as the UK doesn't change its data protection rules.

What does that mean?

* The UK's arrangement with Europol will be similar to the one the US currently has.
* Many of the rules about storing and processing data still need be decided.

EDUCATION


What the deal says:

* The UK will no longer participate in the Erasmus exchange programme, an EU scheme that helps students study in other countries.
* Students at universities in Northern Ireland will continue to participate in Erasmus, as part of an arrangement with the Irish government.

What does that mean?

* Students that have already started courses in the EU will continue to receive support for fees.
* A new scheme named after the mathematician Alan Turing will begin in September 2021. The government says it will be similar to Erasmus but will include countries across the world.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
×