On 29 March 2019 the United Kingdom is expected to leave the European Union, precisely two years after the UK officially notified the EU of its intention to leave. In March 2018, the European Commission and the United Kingdom agreed on a transitional period that will run from the day on which the UK ceases to be a member of the European Union until 31 December 2020. This transitional period will only come into force if a withdrawal agreement is reached.

Legal clarity for the transitional period

In the bill adopted today, the German government regulates this transitional period for Germany. The bill embraces two principal elements.

• Under German law, for the duration of the transitional period, the United Kingdom will be treated as a member state of the European Union.
• The legal position on citizenship will also remain unchanged until the end of 2020: British and German nationals applying for naturalisation in Germany and in the UK respectively during the transitional period will be able to retain their original citizenship alongside the new citizenship – even if the decision on naturalisation is not taken until after the end of the transitional period.

Time for adjustments

The transitional period of 21 months is designed to give private companies and public authorities time to adjust to Brexit. During this period, EU law will continue to apply to the United Kingdom. Should the withdrawal negotiations fail to produce an agreement, the result will be an unregulated “cliff-edge” withdrawal, with no transitional period.