The CCI International Nouvelle Aquitaine held a presentation on the 7th February regarding BREXIT and the impact in France.

Caroline Moreau, from First Start in Bordeaux, attended the event and provided us with her own account of the meeting.

It was a meeting essentially for companies in the South West who import, export or have dealings with the UK and who subsequently need to prepare themselves for BREXIT and notably the possibility of a no-deal BREXIT.

A ‘no-deal’ Brexit means that the UK and the EU have been unable to reach a withdrawal agreement. It is now very unlikely given the short deadline of the 29th March for a deal to be met thus the CCI is advising all businesses to prepare for the scenario of a no-deal BREXIT. With a no-deal BREXIT there will be no 21 month transition period.

Consequently consumers, businesses and public bodies have to respond immediately to changes as result of the UK leaving the EU.

All companies in France need to prepare themselves by firstly evaluating how BREXIT will impact them and make changes as soon as possible if they haven’t already done so. All of the standards which aren’t controlled by World Trade Organisation rules may be modified, thus there is a lot to take into account. There is an enormous amount of uncertainty as numerous questions still haven’t been answered for example on how VAT and customs duty will be applied by the UK, which standards will the UK recognise?

For sure there will be additional costs for companies and customs procedures will be longer. Businesses need to be prepared but it’s extremely difficult given the context…

The French authorities have been preparing themselves as 700 new customs officers have been recruited in France to deal with all the new formalities and red tape !

For more information take a look at the government website.

About the author:
Caroline is a native Londoner who settled in Bordeaux more than 15 years ago. First Start in Bordeaux is a relocation agency that aims to assist people who face resettlement issues when moving to the South of France.