Brexit: What recruiters need now from a deal

The end of 2020 is fast approaching. Although many of us may welcome that fact, it also means  the end of the Brexit transition period in a little over 20 days. For those less familiar, this means the end of the grace period where nothing changed to allow time for a deal to be negotiated and ratified in time for 1 January 2021. Yes, we have very, very little time left.

We have engaged with the government in numerous ways on this over the past months. Most recently, REC Chief Exective Neil Carberry attended a Brexit Business Taskforce on Professional and Business Services by invitation of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Rt. Hon Michael Gove MP. It was a very productive meeting where we noticed that other businesses share similar concerns with the end of the transition period preparations, which hopefully can strengthen the voice of reason in favour of a deal. However, now is the time for you to prepare your busniess.  

What we know

Freedom of movement will come to an end on 31 December. This means the way you recruit from overseas (including EEA citizens) will change. These are the most significant changes to the UK’s immigration system in 40 years with the introduction of the new points-based system.

In a nutshell, skilled workers (RQF 3 or above) with a job offer from a licenced sponsor can apply for a visa. To be eligible they must also obtain a minimum number of points - by fulfilling requirements such as salary threshold and English proficiency.  There are other visa categories, but, as it stands, there is no route for low skilled, self-employed and temporary workers. The REC is  calling for flexibility in the immigration system and will continue making this case beyond 1 January.

Follow this link to download a guide on immigration written by Fragomen LLP.

What's yet to be decided

Trade

A trade deal between the UK and the EU is yet to be agreed. Without it  the UK will default to third-country status for EEA countries on 1 January, and will trade with the relevant countries under WTO rules. This might affect how you travel, hire, establish a business, work on a regulated profession, transfer data, amongst other things, which might be different for each country.

The conversation around the trade deal has mostly focused on how goods will be exported and imported. However, UK trade in services make up for 80% of the UK’s trade with the EU, and there are key questions to be answered on that, such as:

Data

If you do a data mapping exercise you might realise you are sending and receiving personal data to and from the EU. From 1 January , the UK will no longer be part of the EU’s data protection regime and, as a result, there will be no entitlement to transfer  data  between the UK and the EU. In the absence of a deal covering this, a data adequacy decision can be granted. However, as that hasn’t happened yet, some precautionary measures can be taken, such the introduction of Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC).

Qualifications

The mutual recognition of professional qualifications is another hugely important issue as yet undecided. The REC is calling for this to be agreed to safeguard  your ability to recruit European qualified professionals or place a British qualified professional in jobs overseas.

Mobility

A no deal could mean restrictions to  business travel, with a  visa system possibly limiting the number of days per year you can travel in the EU for business. From the REC's perspective, we want to maximise  the activities that can be undertaken under the visa-free visitor regime.

Regulations

Regulatory cooperation, which might affect your ability to trade overseas or even establish a subsidiary.. In our view, it's essential to reduce unecessary trade barriers and keep market access restrictions to a minimum, enabling UK firms to retain access to the European market.  In the absence of a deal, each country might have different rules and the amount of bureaucracy to operate can increase significantly.

Make sure you read REC's checklist covering all the above to prompt you to ask relevant questions and help you prepare. We also recommend a series of on-demand webinars from BEIS on different sectors and topics. The ones on Services and Investments; Providing Services in the EU and Professional Qualifications; Using Personal Data; and Business Travelare are particularly relevant.

Deal or no-deal, change will happen.Time is precious, so make sure you prepare, now. As always, we are here to support you. If you have any questions please get in touch on policy@rec.uk.com

In addition to the resources above, we also recommend these the UK government tools to help guide you and your business through Brexit including personalised action list:

 Brexit checker tool   EU trading webinars   Business support helpline