Article 50 negotiations with the United Kingdom (¹)

KEY POINTS

Following the letter of 29 March 2017 from the United Kingdom (¹) announcing its decision to withdraw from the EU (‘Brexit’), the European Council (Article 50), made up of the leaders of all EU Member State except the United Kingdom (¹), set out its guidelines for the negotiations, with the EU’s positions and principles.

On 22 May 2017, the Council (Article 50) adopted a decision authorising the opening of negotiations with the United Kingdom (¹) and formally nominating the Commission as EU negotiator. It also adopted the first set of negotiating directives. These provided for a clear structure and a united EU approach to the negotiations.

The European Parliament also set out its key principles and conditions (‘red lines’) for approval of the Withdrawal Agreement.

Core principles

The guidelines set out the EU’s core principles. They applied equally to the negotiations on an orderly withdrawal, to any preliminary and preparatory discussions on the framework for a future relationship, and to transitional arrangements. The principles included:

• retaining the United Kingdom (¹) as a close partner once it has left the EU;
• any agreement with the United Kingdom (¹) will have to be based on a balance of rights and obligations, and ensure a level playing field;
• preserving the integrity of the single market: not on a sector-by-sector approach;
• preserving EU autonomy in its decision-making and in the role of the Court of Justice of the European Union;
• nothing is agreed until everything is agreed: individual items cannot be settled separately;
• negotiating under a unified EU position;
• no separate negotiations between individual EU Member States and the United Kingdom (¹) on matters relating to the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (¹) from the EU.

A two-phase approach

The first phase of negotiations began on 19 June 2017, shortly after the United Kingdom (¹) general election. After six negotiating rounds, on 8 December 2017, the EU and United Kingdom (¹) negotiators reached an important milestone by achieving sufficient progress on this phase of the negotiations. The Joint Report, which was endorsed by United Kingdom’s (¹) Prime Minister Theresa May and the Commission’s President Jean-Claude Juncker, contained firm commitments to:

• safeguard the rights of EU citizens in the United Kingdom (¹) and United Kingdom (¹) nationals in the EU;
• settle all existing financial obligations undertaken during the period of United Kingdom (¹) membership;
• address the unique circumstances in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Also on 8 December, the European Commission adopted recommendations to the European Council (Article 50) to conclude that sufficient progress had been made in the first phase of the negotiations.

Following this, on 15 December 2017, the European Council (Article 50) confirmed that sufficient progress had been achieved, and EU leaders adopted guidelines to move to the second phase of negotiations on possible transitional arrangements and the future relationship.

On 29 January 2018, the Council (Article 50) adopted a decision authorising negotiations on transitional arrangements and negotiating directives. On 6 February 2018, the Commission published its proposal on transitional arrangements.

On 19 March 2018, the negotiators of the EU and the United Kingdom (¹) took another decisive step by reaching an agreement on the draft Withdrawal Agreement, which set out the progress achieved during the first phase of negotiations in legal terms and included a legal text on the transition period.

On 23 March 2018, the European Council adopted guidelines on the framework for a future EU-United Kingdom (¹) relationship.

On 19 June 2018, the negotiators of the EU and the United Kingdom (¹) published a joint statement, outlining further progress in the negotiations on the draft Withdrawal Agreement.

On 29 June and 17 October 2018, the European Council (Article 50) reviewed the state of the negotiations and confirmed the unity of the 27 EU countries and the single negotiation structure that was in place.

After 17 months of negotiations, on 25 November 2018, the European Council marked a decisive step in the Brexit negotiations by endorsing the Withdrawal Agreement on the terms of the United Kingdom’s (¹) orderly withdrawal from the EU and by approving the Political Declaration setting out the framework for the future EU-United Kingdom (¹) relationship.

However, the United Kingdom (¹) government did not obtain the necessary support from its parliament to proceed with the signature and ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement, and requested the European Council (Article 50) to extend the period set out in Article 50(3) TEU. The European Council (Article 50) granted an extension initially until 12 April 2019, and following this, a further extension until 31 October 2019.

Following the resignation of Theresa May as Prime Minister, the new United Kingdom (¹) government proposed to amend the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland attached to the Withdrawal Agreement and endorsed on 25 November 2018 by the European Council. The United Kingdom (¹) government also proposed to amend the Political Declaration approved on 25 November 2018 to reflect the different view of the new government of the future relationship with the EU.

Discussions between the negotiators of the EU and the United Kingdom (¹) resumed in September 2019. On 17 October 2019, the negotiators reached an agreement on an amended text of the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland and on an amended text of the Political Declaration. Also on 17 October 2019, the European Council (Article 50) endorsed the amended Withdrawal Agreement and the amended text of the Political Declaration.

On 19 October 2019, the United Kingdom (¹) requested an extension of the 31 October 2019 deadline. To allow more time to finalise the ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement, the European Council (Article 50) adopted a decision, in agreement with the United Kingdom (¹), to extend the period under Article 50 until 31 January 2020.

The Withdrawal Agreement and Political Declaration on the framework of the future relationship

The Withdrawal Agreement fully respects the fundamental principles defined by the European Council (Article 50) guidelines, which aim to create legal certainty and preserve EU interests on issues where Brexit creates uncertainty. This concerns most notably citizens’ rights, the financial settlement, the avoidance of a hard border on the island of Ireland, and a strong governance system preserving the role of the European Court of Justice for the interpretation of EU law.

For details on the Withdrawal Agreement and Political Declaration, see:

• Q&A on the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the EU on 31 January 2020 (European Commission)

Ratification process

On 24 January 2020, the European Union and the United Kingdom (¹) signed the Withdrawal Agreement. Following the European Parliament’s vote of consent on 29 January 2020 and the Council’s decision on the conclusion of the Withdrawal Agreement on 30 January 2020, the Withdrawal Agreement entered into force on 1 February 2020.

Transition period

The Withdrawal Agreement provides for a transition period until 31 December 2020. This period can be extended once, by up to one or two years, but it must be decided on by mutual EU-United Kingdom (¹) agreement before 1 July 2020. During the transition period, EU law will continue to apply to and in the United Kingdom (¹). The EU will treat the United Kingdom (¹) as if it were a Member State, with the exception of participation in the EU institutions and governance structures.

Negotiations on the future partnership

The transition period gives the United Kingdom (¹) time to negotiate the future relationship with the European Union.

For further information about negotiations on the future partnership, see:

• The European Union and the United Kingdom – forging a new partnership (European Commission)