The United Kingdom’s Post-Brexit Trade Regime with the European Union and the Rest of the World: Perspectives and Constraints

Brexit has an impact on the international trade relations of the UK since the UK thereby has ceased to be a member of the EU and its customs union. The UK becomes a "third country" in respect of the EU customs union and the internal market's regime. As to the WTO, since the UK was and remains an original member of the WTO, it undertakes its obligations as an independent member and has to renegotiate its customs tariffs with the other WTO members. The UK has also to negotiate any free trade agreement with WTO members since by Brexit it has ceased to be a member of free trade agreements of the EU, except that it has been able to agree with their non-EU-parties a provisional rollover of the existing preferential agreements. A special regime is that of Northern Ireland which remains part of the EU custom union under the special arrangement envisaged in the Brexit agreement with the EU.