Withdrawal Agreement

The Withdrawal Agreement is the binding international treaty concluded between the United Kingdom and the European Union to give legal effect to Brexit. It was negotiated under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, which provides the procedure for a member state to leave the bloc. An initial version negotiated by Theresa May's government was rejected three times by the House of Commons in early 2019. A revised text, agreed by Boris Johnson's government in October 2019, was ratified and entered into force on 1 February 2020, the date the UK formally ceased to be an EU member state.

The agreement covers several core areas:

• Citizens' rights: protecting the residence, work, and social security rights of EU citizens in the UK and UK nationals in the EU who had exercised free movement before the end of the transition period.
• Financial settlement: the so-called "divorce bill" covering outstanding UK obligations to the EU budget.
• Transition period: a standstill arrangement running until 31 December 2020, during which the UK remained bound by EU law and the single market and customs union but lost voting rights in EU institutions.
• Governance: a Joint Committee structure and dispute-settlement mechanisms.
• Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland: provisions to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland by keeping Northern Ireland aligned with certain EU single market rules for goods.

The Northern Ireland Protocol proved the most contentious element, generating sustained UK–EU disputes and prompting the 2023 Windsor Framework, which amended its operation. The Withdrawal Agreement is legally distinct from the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) signed on 30 December 2020, which governs the post-transition UK–EU economic and security relationship.