An updated ‘Essential Guide for Business’ ahead of the end of the UK’s transition period for leaving the EU has been produced by Guernsey’s Committee for Economic Development.
It is being circulated to business groups and is available here. The States are urging businesses to review the guide and consider the ways in which they may be impacted by the end of the transition period on the 31st December 2020.
The guide is a short, easy-to-read document that covers areas such as employing EU citizens, importing and exporting goods, data sharing and data protection.
It is not yet known if the UK and the EU will agree a deal before the end of the transition period, or if the UK will leave with no further negotiated outcome, and that means there is still a lot of uncertainty as to what it will mean for Guernsey and local businesses. But businesses are nonetheless strongly encouraged to consider what impact the different outcomes may have and what steps they should take in preparation.
Chris Morris, Lead for International Trade Relations and Engagement said “The States, through our team, the Guernsey Border Agency and sea fisheries, have been contacting businesses directly where we know there are measures they need to put in place ahead of the 31st December. But we want all businesses to be as prepared as possible and so we’d encourage them to read the guide, follow the links where appropriate to our website where there is further guidance, and where they’ve got particular concerns, get in touch with us via trade@gov.gg.”
When the UK voted to leave the EU following the referendum, Guernsey introduced guidance on a range of topics on its website. These have been reviewed and updated several times as the transition date changed, and recently, where possible, further updates have been made.
There are areas where it remains unclear what impact there will be but this online guidance continues to be updated as and when any new information emerges.
