General provisions

For the purposes of the Protocol, any reference to the United Kingdom in the applicable provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement shall be understood as referring to the United Kingdom in respect of the Sovereign Base Areas.

The provisions of this Protocol referring to EU law or concepts or provisions thereof shall in their implementation and application be interpreted in conformity with the relevant case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

In addition to any provisions of EU law on the protection of personal data applicable to and in the Sovereign Base Areas under this Protocol, the GDPR Regulation  shall apply in respect of personal data processed in the Sovereign Base Areas on the basis of this Protocol.

Where the European Union considers, that full or partial access by the United Kingdom, or by the United Kingdom in respect of the Sovereign Base Areas, as the case may be, is strictly necessary to enable the United Kingdom to comply with its obligations under this Protocol, including where such access is necessary because access to the relevant information cannot be facilitated by other practical means, references to Member States and competent authorities of Member States in provisions of EU law made applicable by this Protocol shall be understood as including the United Kingdom or the United Kingdom in respect of the Sovereign Base Areas, as the case may be in relation to access to any network, information system or database established on the basis of EU law.

Customs territory of the European Union

The Sovereign Base Areas, taking into account the Treaty of Establishment, shall be part of the customs territory of the European Union. For this purpose, the provisions of EU law on customs and the common commercial policy, including provisions of EU law providing for customs controls of specific goods or for specific purposes, shall apply to and in the Sovereign Base Areas.

Goods produced by producers in the Sovereign Base Areas and placed on the market in the customs territory of the European Union shall be considered to be goods in free circulation.

All goods intended for use in the Sovereign Base Areas shall enter the island of Cyprus through the civilian airports and seaports of the Republic of Cyprus, and all customs formalities, customs controls and collection of import duties related to them shall be carried out by the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus.

All goods intended for export shall exit the island of Cyprus through the civilian airports and seaports of the Republic of Cyprus and all customs export formalities and customs controls related to them shall be carried out by the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus.

Customs controls on documents and equipment referred to in Annex C to the Treaty of Establishment shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of that section.

With the sole purpose of supporting the operation of the Sovereign Base Areas as military bases, having regard to the Treaty of Establishment, the following provisions shall apply:

  • the following goods may enter or leave the island of Cyprus through a seaport or airport in the Sovereign Base Areas, subject to all customs formalities, customs controls and collection of duties related to those goods being carried out by the authorities of the Sovereign Base Areas:
    • goods imported or exported for official or military purposes;
    • goods imported or exported in personal baggage, exclusively for their personal use, by or on behalf of United Kingdom personnel, as well as by other persons travelling on defence or official business;
    • parcels which are sent or received by United Kingdom personnel or their dependants and transported by the British Forces Post Office may enter or leave the island of Cyprus through a port or airport in the Sovereign Base Areas under the following conditions:
  • incoming parcels addressed to United Kingdom personnel or their dependants shall be transported in a sealed container and conveyed following their arrival to a customs post in the Republic of Cyprus so that the completion of customs formalities, controls and the collection of import duties related to those products can be carried out by the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus;
  • outgoing parcels sent by United Kingdom personnel or their dependants shall be subject to customs control by the authorities of the Sovereign Base Areas.

The United Kingdom shall share relevant information with the Republic of Cyprus with a view to cooperating closely to prevent the evasion of duties and taxes, including smuggling.

The Treaty and other free movement of goods and other provisions of EU law on goods, in particular measures adopted pursuant to the Treaty shall apply to and in the Sovereign Base Areas.

Goods arriving from the areas of the Republic of Cyprus in which the Government of the Republic of Cyprus does not exercise effective control shall cross the line between those areas and the Eastern Sovereign Base Area in accordance with EU Regulation relation to Cyprus border matters.

The United Kingdom shall be responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the EU Regulation in relation to the Cyprus border in relation to the Sovereign Base Areas in accordance with the provisions of that Regulation. The United Kingdom shall invite the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus to conduct any necessary veterinary, phytosanitary and food safety checks required under that Regulation.

The United Kingdom shall be responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of EU law referred to above in relation to goods arriving in or leaving the Sovereign Base Areas.

The United Kingdom shall also be responsible for issuing any licences, authorisations or certificates which may be required in respect of goods covered by paragraph 1 of section 5 of Annex F to the Treaty of Establishment.

The Republic of Cyprus shall be responsible for the implementation and enforcement in the Sovereign Base Areas of the provisions of EU law referred to.

Taxation

The provisions of EU law on turnover taxes, excise duties and other forms of indirect taxation shall apply to and in the Sovereign Base Areas.

Transactions originating in or intended for the Sovereign Base Areas shall be treated as transactions originating in or intended for the Republic of Cyprus for the purposes of value added tax (VAT), excise duties and other forms of indirect taxation.

The Republic of Cyprus shall be responsible for the implementation and the enforcement of the provisions of EU law referred to in this Article in the Sovereign Base Areas, including for the collection of duties and taxes payable by civil natural or legal persons residing or established in the Sovereign Base Areas.

Duty relief

Goods or services received, acquired or imported for use by the armed forces of the United Kingdom or the civilian staff accompanying them, or for supplying their messes or canteens, shall be exempted from customs duties, VAT and excise duties, provided that the persons concerned are eligible for such exemptions in accordance with the Treaty of Establishment. For this purpose, the United Kingdom shall issue exemption certificates upon approval by the Republic of Cyprus in relation to the goods covered above

Any duties that may be collected by the United Kingdom authorities in the Sovereign Base Areas as a result of sale of the goods referred to above shall be remitted to the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus.

Social security

With a view to the continued protection of the rights of persons resident or employed in the territory of the Sovereign Base Areas, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Cyprus shall make further arrangements, where necessary, to ensure the proper implementation of Article 4 of Protocol No 3 after the end of the transition period.

Agriculture, fisheries and veterinary and phytosanitary rules

The provisions of EU law on agriculture and fisheries in Title III of Part Three of the EU Treaties and acts adopted pursuant to those provisions, as well as the veterinary and phytosanitary rules adopted, shall apply to and in the Sovereign Base Areas.

The Republic of Cyprus shall be responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of EU law referred to in the first paragraph in the Sovereign Base Areas.

Checks on persons crossing the borders of the Sovereign Base Areas I

For the purposes of this Article, “external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas” means the sea boundaries and the airports and seaports of the Sovereign Base Areas, but not their land and sea boundaries with the Republic of Cyprus. “Crossing points” means any crossing point authorised by the authorities of the United Kingdom for the crossing of the external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas.

The United Kingdom shall carry out checks on persons crossing the external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas. Those checks shall include the verification of travel documents. All persons shall undergo at least one such check in order to establish their identity. The United Kingdom shall only allow the external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas to be crossed at crossing points.

Nationals of third countries and nationals of the United Kingdom shall only be permitted to cross the external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas if they fulfil the following conditions:

  • they possess a valid travel document;
  • they are in possession of a valid visa for the Republic of Cyprus, if required;
  • they are engaged in a defence-related activity or are family members of a person who is engaged in such activity; and
  • they are not a threat to national security.

The condition specified in point 3 above shall not apply to United Kingdom nationals crossing the boundary.

The United Kingdom may only derogate from the conditions referred to in the first subparagraph on humanitarian grounds, on grounds of national interest or in order to comply with its international obligations.

Members of a force, civilian component and dependants, as defined in Annex C to the Treaty of Establishment, shall be treated as not requiring a visa for the Republic of Cyprus.

Any applicant for asylum who first entered the island of Cyprus from outside the European Union by one of the Sovereign Base Areas shall be taken back or readmitted to the Sovereign Base Areas at the request of the Member State in whose territory the applicant is present.

The Republic of Cyprus shall continue to cooperate with the United Kingdom with a view to devising practical ways and means of respecting the rights and satisfying the needs of asylum seekers and illegal migrants in the Sovereign Base Areas, bearing in mind humanitarian considerations and in compliance with the relevant Sovereign Base Area Administration legislation.

Checks on persons crossing the borders of the Sovereign Base Areas II

Without prejudice to the next paragraph, there shall be no checks on persons at the land and sea boundaries between the Sovereign Base Areas and the Republic of Cyprus.

The boundary between the Eastern Sovereign Base Area and those areas of the Republic of Cyprus in which the Government of the Republic of Cyprus does not exercise effective control shall be treated as part of the external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas for the purposes of this Article for the duration of the suspension of the application of the acquis

That boundary may only be crossed at the crossing points of Strovilia and Pergamos. With the prior agreement of and in cooperation with the United Kingdom authorities, the Republic of Cyprus may take further measures to combat illegal migration with respect to persons who have crossed that boundary.

The United Kingdom authorities shall use mobile units to carry out external border surveillance between border crossing points and at crossing points outside of normal opening hours at the external borders of the Sovereign Base Areas and at the boundary between the Sovereign Base Area of Dhekelia and those areas of the Republic of Cyprus in which the Government of the Republic of Cyprus does not exercise effective control. That surveillance shall be carried out in such a way as to discourage persons from circumventing the checks at crossing points. The United Kingdom authorities shall deploy enough suitably qualified officers to carry out those checks and surveillance.

The United Kingdom authorities shall maintain constant close cooperation with the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus with a view to the effective implementation of the checks and surveillance referred to.

Cooperation

The Republic of Cyprus and the United Kingdom shall cooperate to ensure the effective implementation of this Protocol, in particular with a view to countering fraud and any other illegal activities that affect the financial interests of the European Union or of the United Kingdom. The Republic of Cyprus and the United Kingdom may make further arrangements concerning the implementation of any of the provisions of this Protocol. The Republic of Cyprus shall inform the European Commission of any such arrangements before their entry into force.

Specialised Committee

The Specialised Committee on issues related to the implementation of the Protocol related to the Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus established by the Withdrawal Agreement (“Specialised Committee”) shall:

  • facilitate the implementation and application of this Protocol;
  • discuss any point of relevance to this Protocol giving rise to a difficulty and raised by the European Union or the United Kingdom; and
  • make recommendations to the Joint Committee as regards the functioning of this Protocol, in particular proposals for amendments of the references to EU law in this Protocol.

The European Commission shall inform the Specialised Committee of any report submitted and shall consult the United Kingdom in relation to any Commission proposal to adopt an act amending or replacing that Regulation if the Sovereign Base Areas are affected.

Joint Committee

The Joint Committee shall amend any references to EU law in this Protocol on a recommendation from the Specialised Committee.

If it considers it is necessary in order to maintain the good functioning of this Protocol, the Joint Committee may, on a recommendation from the Specialised Committee, take any decision necessary to replace in relation to this Protocol the provisions referred to.

The Joint Committee may, on a recommendation from the Specialised Committee, amend the relevant provision in relation to the crossing points identified in that provision.

Any measures adopted during the transition period under Article 6 of Protocol No 3 shall not apply to or in the Sovereign Base Areas.

Supervision and enforcement

In respect of the Sovereign Base Areas and in relation to natural and legal persons residing or established in the territory of those Areas, the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the European Union shall have the powers conferred upon them by EU law in relation to this Protocol and provisions of EU law made applicable by it. In particular, the Court of Justice of the European Union shall have jurisdiction as provided for in the Treaties in this respect.

Acts of the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies adopted in accordance above shall produce the same legal effects with regard to and in the Sovereign Base Areas as those which they produce within the European Union and its Member States.

Responsibility for implementation

Unless otherwise provided in this Protocol, the United Kingdom shall be responsible for the implementation and enforcement of this Protocol in the Sovereign Base Areas. Notwithstanding the below, the competent authorities of the United Kingdom shall enact the domestic legislation necessary to give effect to this Protocol in the Sovereign Base Areas.

The United Kingdom shall retain the exclusive right to implement and enforce this Protocol in respect of its own authorities or on any immovable property owned or occupied by the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom, as well as any coercive enforcement power requiring the power to enter a dwelling house or a power of arrest. The United Kingdom shall retain other coercive enforcement powers unless otherwise provided in the legislation referred to above.

The Republic of Cyprus is entrusted with the responsibility for implementing and enforcing this Protocol in the Sovereign Base Areas in accordance with the relevant provisions.

Contact McMahon Legal 

    Share this article