With just days to go, Britain urges businesses to get ready for end of Brexit transition
28 December, 2020
Britain on Mon (Dec 28) urged businesses to get ready for Brexit, just days before a transition period designed to smooth the UK's departure from europe comes to an end.
Britain and the EU clinched a trade deal on Thursday - one which preserves zero-tariff and zero-quota access to the bloc's single market but that will still cause disruption.
The transition period, under which Britain stayed aligned to the EU's trading and regulatory rules, ends at 2300 GMT on Dec 31 (Jan 1, 7am, Singapore time).
"The deal is performed, but with big modification comes task and opportunity," cabinet business office minister Michael Gove said in a affirmation, adding that businesses need to adapt to Britain's departure from the EU Single Industry and Customs Union.
"There are practical and procedural improvements that businesses and residents need to get ready for, and period to make these final preparations is quite short."
The transition period was at first decided to keep existing trade ties unchanged for 21 weeks after the original planned Brexit date of March 29, 2019.
But the period had not been extended after Brexit was delayed until Jan 31, 2020, and, with over 1,000 webpages of trade agreement published completely on Saturday, businesses have less than a week to adjust to the brand new rules.
Britain had urged businesses to create preparations for the end of the changeover period prior to the end of trade negotiations, telling many of the improvements they needed to get would apply regardless of the final result of the talks.
The federal government said that businesses had a need to understand new rules on importing and exporting goods between your EU and Great Britain, and the several rules that connect with trade with Northern Ireland.
Businesses will also need to get customs declarations on EU trade, while hauliers desire a permit to visit ports found in the county of Kent or perhaps risk a fine.
Source: www.channelnewsasia.com