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The EUWA will repeal the European Communities Act 1972 on exit day and converts into Gibraltar domestic law the existing body of directly applicable EU law (including EU Regulations). It also preserves Gibraltar laws relating to EU membership – such as legislation implementing EU Directives.
“The UK has unequivocally confirmed that the current access arrangements for Gibraltar financial services firms to access the UK market will continue post-Brexit and Gibraltar has equally confirmed access for UK firms into Gibraltar. Similarly, in the event of no deal, the government will be introducing draft regulations to retain reciprocal market access arrangements between Gibraltar and the UK,” said the Gibraltar Government.
The draft Financial Services (Passport Rights and Transitional Provisions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, made under the EUWA, will:
Retain reciprocal passporting rights for Gibraltar and UK firms in respect of financial services that are subject to regulation under the single-market directives;
Include the introduction of transitional arrangements enabling European Economic Area (EEA) firms that currently passport into Gibraltar to continue to do so under a temporary permission for a limited period of time, while they consider if they want to apply for full authorisation in Gibraltar or cease activities;
Include the introduction of a restricted temporary permission for pre-existing contractual obligations, enabling EEA firms to continue carrying out regulated activities in Gibraltar where doing so is necessary to perform ongoing contracts to which they were a party before exit day.
The government will be supplementing the regulations with an additional set of regulations. These will include detailed changes to existing legislation in order to retain existing market access between Gibraltar and the UK, and retain the main elements of single-market directives to apply between Gibraltar and the UK (such as Solvency II).
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