What is the Gibraltar deal or agreement?
Short answer
The Gibraltar deal is the UK/EU Treaty setting out Gibraltar's post-Brexit relationship with the European Union. EU Member States agreed its text, signature and provisional application on Wednesday 1 April 2026, and it has applied provisionally since Wednesday 15 July 2026.
Detailed answer
When the UK left the EU, the UK negotiated its own Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the EU, but that agreement did not apply to Gibraltar. In October 2021, negotiations began between the UK, the EU, Gibraltar and Spain on what Gibraltar's future relationship with the EU would look like. The resulting treaty, formally the Agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom in respect of Gibraltar, is designed to secure continued fluidity of movement across the land border for people on both sides. Since provisional application began on Wednesday 15 July 2026, there have been no immigration controls at the land border between Gibraltar and Spain. Schengen entry checks are instead carried out at Gibraltar's airport and port by Spanish officers, alongside Gibraltar's own immigration controls. Holders of Gibraltar identity cards and Gibraltar civilian registration cards benefit from special arrangements under the treaty, including exemption from the EU Entry/Exit System (EES). Implementation continues to be refined in practice. On Tuesday 13 October 2026 the Government of Gibraltar published guidance for residents who had been wrongly registered in the EES, after the European Commission issued further instructions to Schengen border authorities confirming that Gibraltar residents should not be registered.