The UK and Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein have signed an agreement to protect the rights of citizens in each other’s countries in the event that a withdrawal agreement is not reached with the EU.
Minister Robin Walker signed the agreement in London today (Tuesday 2 April) alongside representatives from the Governments of Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
The agreement protects the rights of 17,000 UK nationals living in the EEA EFTA states and 15,000 EEA EFTA nationals living in the UK in the event that a withdrawal agreement is not reached with the EU.
Minister at the Department for Exiting the European Union Robin Walker said:
This agreement provides citizens of the UK and the EEA EFTA states with certainty about their rights going forward, ensuring that they can continue living their lives broadly as they do now.
And it reaffirms our commitment to putting citizens’ rights at the heart of this process.
This agreement was first announced and published in draft on 8 February 2019 and today marks the formal signing.
In the event that a Withdrawal Agreement is approved, this agreement will not enter into force and we would proceed with the EEA EFTA separation agreement published in December instead. The arrangements for citizens are broadly similar in both scenarios.