A guide on preparing for Brexit in case of a no deal

Is your business preparing for Brexit? A no-deal Brexit is one of the outcomes that the UK government and the European Union (EU) are drawing up plans for, as the date that UK leaves the EU edges ever closer.

But what does a no-deal Brexit mean for businesses and how can your company prepare?

To help you, Preparing for Brexit is a white paper that covers the implications of a no deal and it highlights a series of areas including customs and finance. It also offers sector-specific advice for six key areas, including professional services and food and drink.

In this white paper, you will find information on the following topics:

What a no-deal Brexit means for the following and actions to take:

• Supply chain
• Customs and indirect tax
• People
• Regulatory requirements
• Finance
• Legal
• Systems and data

What a no-deal Brexit means for the following sectors:

• Food and drink
• Agriculture
• Pharmaceuticals
• Chemicals
• Retail
• Professional services

Here’s an excerpt from the white paper:

Preparing for Brexit

The journey towards Brexit has not been smooth, and all the signs are that this will continue for the foreseeable future until such time as either a withdrawal agreement is in place, or the UK leaves the European Union (EU) without an agreement in place.

It’s the latter of these two scenarios—often referred to as a no-deal Brexit – that this report concerns itself with when it comes to business preparations. No-deal Brexit is also the outcome for which both the UK and EU governments have invested the most resources in terms of education and infrastructure for businesses.

Sage is focusing its efforts on delivering support to our customers in preparation for Brexit. This report flags the immediate steps that will be required if a no-deal Brexit becomes likely, as this is the outcome that could demand the most rapid and wide-ranging business preparation.

Many of these actions will likely still have to be undertaken to prepare at the end of any transition period – albeit with more time to do so.

The information we have right now

Here’s the basics of what we know for sure.

The intention of the UK and EU is that a withdrawal agreement will be ratified before the Brexit date. There will then be a transition period – the earlier withdrawal agreement rejected by the UK Parliament mentioned until 31 December 2020, with the possibility of extending this further.

During this transition period, little will change – the UK would be bound by EU rules and effectively remain part of the Single Market and Customs Union. Businesses would then only have to adjust when the UK moves to a future yet-to-be negotiated UK-EU relationship, once the transition period has ended.

In the event of the UK government being unable to ratify a withdrawal agreement in time for the Brexit deadline, an extension may be requested in order to continue to seek a withdrawal agreement.

Any Brexit extension requires the consent of the EU. However, there remains a very real risk that when the Brexit deadline arrives, the UK will leave the EU abruptly. At that point, EU legislation, regulation and institutions will no longer have oversight in the UK.

Because it represents the most significant requirement for change, it is this no-deal scenario that has seen most of the preparation by the UK government and the EU, even though both continue to state that this is not an outcome they desire.

For more useful advice, download your free white paper – Preparing for Brexit.

Note: This article was first published in February 2019 and has been updated for relevance.