Nearly a decade after the Brexit referendum, one of its thorniest unresolved issues reached a major breakthrough in June 2025: the future relationship between Gibraltar, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
After years of uncertainty following Brexit, the UK, Spain, the EU and Gibraltar reached a political agreement on 11 June 2025 covering the core elements of a future treaty. The agreement was a major milestone, designed to preserve a fluid border with Spain while leaving sovereignty positions unchanged.
Update – July 2026: The political agreement described in this article has since resulted in a final UK–EU treaty. The Agreement in respect of Gibraltar was signed in Brussels on 14 July 2026 and entered into provisional application on 15 July 2026. Routine immigration and customs checks at the Gibraltar–Spain land frontier were removed when the new arrangements began operating.
When the UK voted to leave the European Union in 2016, Gibraltar voted overwhelmingly to remain. 95.9% of votes cast in Gibraltar supported remaining in the EU. Despite this result, Gibraltar’s position within the European Union depended on the United Kingdom, and it therefore left the EU when the UK formally withdrew on 31 January 2020.
Unlike most of the United Kingdom, Gibraltar shares a land frontier with an EU country. Around 15,000 frontier workers regularly cross between Spain and Gibraltar, representing a substantial part of Gibraltar’s workforce.
Without a tailored post-Brexit arrangement, the introduction of new European border systems risked creating much greater friction at the frontier. For years, this became one of the most difficult outstanding issues following Brexit.
Against this background, the 11 June 2025 political agreement represented a decisive breakthrough.
Here’s what was agreed in June 2025, and what has happened since.
What the June 2025 Deal Included
The political agreement announced in Brussels on 11 June 2025 focused on maintaining fluid movement between Gibraltar and Spain while protecting both Gibraltar’s constitutional position and the integrity of the Schengen Area and EU Single Market.
Its main principles included:
- No routine checks at the land frontier: the future treaty was designed to remove physical immigration and customs controls on people and goods moving between Gibraltar and Spain.
- Dual controls at Gibraltar Airport: Gibraltar authorities would continue to conduct their own immigration checks, while Spanish authorities would carry out the relevant Schengen checks on behalf of the EU. Similar arrangements could apply at the port when necessary.
- Gibraltar would remain outside Schengen: the removal of land-border controls would not make Gibraltar part of the Schengen Area or the European Union.
- Sovereignty positions would remain unchanged: the agreement was without prejudice to the respective positions of the United Kingdom and Spain regarding sovereignty and jurisdiction.
- Goods and customs: the parties agreed on the principles of a new customs union between Gibraltar and the EU, alongside reforms to indirect taxation and measures intended to reduce distortions and smuggling.
- Frontier workers: the agreement included provisions concerning workers’ rights and social security coordination.
- Other areas: cooperation would also cover transport, environmental rules, state aid, taxation, anti-money laundering, policing and judicial matters.
Why the Agreement Mattered
For Gibraltar, the central issue was practical: how to maintain an open and workable frontier with neighbouring Spain after leaving the European Union.
Thousands of people cross the frontier for work, while Gibraltar businesses also depend heavily on employees, customers and services from the surrounding Spanish region.
The agreement therefore offered the prospect of a far more fluid frontier without changing Gibraltar’s status as a British Overseas Territory.
For Spain and the European Union, the arrangements also had to preserve the integrity of the Schengen Area, the EU Single Market and customs rules.
The result was a highly unusual framework designed specifically around Gibraltar’s geographical and political circumstances.
The Entry/Exit System Was a Major Concern
One of the issues hanging over the negotiations was the European Union’s new Entry/Exit System (EES).
The EES began its phased introduction in October 2025 and became fully operational across participating European external borders in April 2026.
Without a Gibraltar-specific solution, systematic application of the system at the land frontier could have required additional electronic and biometric procedures for many non-EU travellers, creating delays for daily commuters.
The Gibraltar treaty instead establishes special arrangements so that routine immigration checks are not carried out at the land frontier. Gibraltar residents also benefit from specific exemptions from the EES under the treaty framework.
What Happened After the June 2025 Agreement?
The June 2025 announcement was a political agreement rather than the final legal treaty.
Negotiations continued during the second half of 2025, with agreement on the treaty text subsequently reached and detailed technical preparations taking place during 2026.
The final UK–EU Agreement in respect of Gibraltar was formally signed in Brussels on 14 July 2026.
It entered into provisional application the following day, 15 July 2026.
That date marked the practical implementation of one of the agreement’s most important objectives: routine immigration and customs checks were removed from the Gibraltar–Spain land frontier.
Pedestrians and vehicles can now cross without the systematic passport booths that previously operated there, although travellers must still meet the relevant immigration requirements for Gibraltar and, where applicable, the Schengen Area.
A New Customs Framework
The treaty also established a customs union between Gibraltar and the European Union.
This does not mean that Gibraltar has joined the EU Customs Territory. Instead, the treaty creates a bespoke system governing the movement of goods between Gibraltar and the EU.
The new arrangements are intended to allow goods to cross the land frontier without routine customs controls, while maintaining rules covering customs duties, excise, transaction tax, product standards and traveller allowances.
The disappearance of customs booths at the frontier therefore does not mean that customs or tax obligations have disappeared.
What About Gibraltar Airport?
The airport plays a central role in the new arrangements.
Because routine Schengen controls are no longer carried out at the Gibraltar–Spain land frontier, the relevant external-border checks take place when travellers arrive in Gibraltar from outside the Schengen Area.
Gibraltar authorities conduct Gibraltar immigration controls first, followed by the relevant Schengen control operated by Spanish authorities under the treaty framework.
Gibraltar nevertheless remains outside both the European Union and the Schengen Area.
Sovereignty Remains Unchanged
The treaty does not transfer sovereignty over Gibraltar or change its constitutional status.
The June 2025 political agreement was explicitly without prejudice to the respective sovereignty positions of Spain and the United Kingdom, and the final treaty preserves the autonomous operation of UK military facilities in Gibraltar.
The United Kingdom and Gibraltar also signed a separate UK–Gibraltar Concordat on 14 July 2026, setting out how the two governments will cooperate in implementing the treaty.
Why the 2025 Agreement Remains Historically Important
Although the practical situation has moved on considerably since this article was first published, the 11 June 2025 agreement remains an important moment in Gibraltar’s post-Brexit history.
It was the political breakthrough that resolved the core issues after more than four years of negotiations and paved the way for the treaty eventually signed in July 2026.
What was still a proposed framework in June 2025 is now operating in practice: the land frontier is substantially more fluid, new immigration and customs arrangements are in place, and Gibraltar has a dedicated treaty governing its relationship with the European Union.
The agreement remains under provisional application while the formal ratification procedures are completed.
For the latest details, see our updated guides to Brexit and Gibraltar and the Gibraltar–Spain border.
Last Updated on July 29, 2026 by Sebastien Frisco
