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Today is the day. After years of negotiation, false starts and political complexity, the European Union and the United Kingdom are signing the Treaty on Gibraltar in Brussels this Tuesday July 14. The border fence that has separated Spanish and British territory for over a century will fall as a consequence, and the agreement enters into force tomorrow.

 

Physical dismantling of the border infrastructure had already begun last month, when work started on the Spanish side of the crossing ahead of today's signing.

 

Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo, British Secretary of State for Europe Stephen Doughty and EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič are among those present at the signing. For Albares, the significance is clear. This is, in his words, "the end of Brexit."

 

The story goes back a long way. Last September, Prime Ministers Sánchez and Starmer sealed a new UK-Spain pact that put a Gibraltar breakthrough firmly in sight, an agreement that was reached in June 2025 and made public in February 2026 after months of detailed work behind the scenes.

 

Under the terms of the treaty, all physical barriers to movement between Gibraltar and the Schengen Area are to be removed. Spain will take responsibility for border controls at Gibraltar's port and airport, acting as the entry point into the zone of free movement.

 

With around 15,000 people crossing daily between Gibraltar and Spain, Commissioner Šefčovič described the agreement as providing "legal certainty, the confidence of businesses and citizens, and a cooperative future that strengthens our mutual relationship."

 

Spain had already been signalling its intent on the diplomatic front. In May it formally removed Gibraltar from its tax haven list, ending a 35-year designation, and by January Gibraltar's own authorities were reassuring residents that they would not face new EU border checks as preparations continued.

 

The detail of the agreement goes well beyond the fence itself. On residence permits, Gibraltar retains the authority to issue them but must notify Spain in advance. Spain then has 28 days to object on security or public health grounds, and if it does, the UK cannot proceed. Spain can also request the withdrawal of permits already granted where security concerns arise.

 

On asylum, if someone applies for international protection in Gibraltar, Spain must be informed and has 14 days to raise an objection. If Spain does object, the UK must pause the process and fully consider Spain's position before proceeding.

 

Trade is another key plank of the agreement. A customs union covering the movement of goods by land will be established, with Spain overseeing compliance with EU standards through posts at Algeciras, La Línea de la Concepción and Sagunto. An independent body, in which Spain will actively participate, will assess whether Gibraltar's tax arrangements create economic distortions.

 

Tobacco has its own specific provisions under the new framework, with a minimum excise tax of €115 per 1,000 cigarettes, restrictions on price differences between Gibraltar and Spain to curb smuggling, and duty-free allowances for land travellers set at 200 cigarettes, reduced to 80 for border workers. Gibraltar has also committed to implementing a tobacco traceability system equivalent to that of the EU.

 

Police and judicial cooperation is written into the text alongside commitments on labour and environmental standards.

 

Six years after the UK's political departure from the EU, and ten years after the referendum that started it all, both parties are treating the chapter as closed. Whether it truly is will depend on how the new arrangements bed in over the years ahead.

 

Image: Spanish News Today