Policy paper

UK-EEA EFTA Separation Agreement Joint Committee annual report 2023 (HTML)

Published 18 May 2026

Report from the Secretariat to the Joint Committee on the functioning of the Agreement on arrangements between Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein, the Kingdom of Norway and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, the EEA Agreement and other agreements applicable between the United Kingdom and the EEA EFTA States by virtue of the United Kingdom’s membership of the European Union (The Separation Agreement)

for the calendar year 2023

Intorduction

1. The Separation Agreement established a Joint Committee (Article 65) to supervise and facilitate the implementation and application of the Agreement. The Separation Agreement requires the Joint Committee to issue an annual report, drawn up by the Secretariat, each calendar year. This report is provided pursuant to Article 65(6).

2. The Secretariat to the Joint Committee operates under the authority of the rotating Joint Committee Chair to perform the tasks conferred on it, as outlined in the Rules of Procedure of the Joint Committee. The Secretariat is composed of officials from His Majesty’s Government of the United Kingdom and the EFTA Secretariat.

3. The Separation Agreement requires the Joint Committee to meet at least once a year after the end of the transition period as defined in Article 2(h). In 2023, the Joint Committee met once, on 27 September 2023. The meeting was chaired by an official from the Kingdom of Norway.

4. This report provides an overview of Separation Agreement activity from 1 January 2023 until 31 December 2023.

5. The report contains 3 annexes:

(A) The full text of the Joint Committee Decision adopted in 2023;

(B) The Joint Statement issued by the Parties following the meeting of the Joint Committee; and

(C) Reports by the Independent Monitoring Authority and the EFTA Surveillance Authority, respectively, issued pursuant to Article 64(3) of the Separation Agreement.

Separation agreement joint activity committee in 2023

6. The Joint Committee met on 27 September 2023. Norway chaired the meeting. The meeting was held in person at EFTA House in Brussels.

7. At the meeting, representatives from Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and the United Kingdom gave updates on their implementation and application of the Separation Agreement, with a particular emphasis on the provisions relating to citizens’ rights. Both the EEA EFTA States and the United Kingdom agreed that implementation of the Agreement was going well and that citizens’ rights remain a priority.

8. Representatives of the Independent Monitoring Authority and the EFTA Surveillance Authority also attended, presenting information on the monitoring of the implementation and application of the Separation Agreement.

9. The Joint Committee adopted one Decision (No 1/2023), amending Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement. The amendment was adopted pursuant to Article 34(3) of the Separation Agreement to reflect any new Decision or Recommendation which has been adopted by the Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems (“Administrative Commission”) and which has been incorporated into and is in force under the EEA Agreement.

10. The EEA EFTA States and the United Kingdom noted at the meeting that they shared the objective of ensuring the continued correct implementation and application of the Separation Agreement, to provide certainty to citizens. A Joint Statement to this effect was issued by the Parties following the meeting of the Joint Committee.

Conclusion

11. The Joint Committee’s actions and Decision during 2023 provide a solid foundation for ongoing cooperation between the EEA EFTA States and the United Kingdom and the continued proper implementation of the Separation Agreement.

Signed in London, 19 June 2024

For the Joint Committee The Chair

Giles Hall

Deputy Director, Security, Citizens and Withdrawal Agreement Department

Annex A - Decision No 1/2023 of the joint committee

Decision No 1/2023 of the Joint Committee established by the Separation Agreement of 27 September 2023

amending Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement

THE JOINT COMMITTEE,

Having regard to the Separation Agreement^{[footnote 1]}, and in particular Articles 34(3) and 66(1) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Pursuant to Article 34(3) of the Separation Agreement, the Joint Committee shall amend Part I of Annex I to reflect any new Decision or Recommendation which has been adopted by the Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems (“Administrative Commission”) and which has been incorporated into and is in force under the EEA Agreement.

(2)The Administrative Commission has adopted three Decisions which have been incorporated into and are in force under the EEA Agreement, and which are not listed in Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement.

(3) Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

1. The following Decisions are added in Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement:

(a) Under Horizontal issues (H series):

• Decision No H12 of 19 October 2021 concerning the date to be taken into consideration for determining the rates of conversion referred to in Article 90 of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ C 93, 28.2.2022, p. 6)^{[footnote 2]}.
• Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems Decision No H13 of 30 March 2022 concerning the composition and working methods of the Audit Board of the Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems (OJ C 305, 10.8.2022, p. 4)^{[footnote 3]}.

(b) Under Sickness (S series):

• Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems Decision No S11 of 9 December 2020 concerning refund procedures for the implementation of Articles 35 and 41 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 (OJ C 236, 18.6.2021, p. 4)^{[footnote 4]}.

2. The following decisions are deleted from Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement:

(a) Under Horizontal issues (H series):

• Decision No H3 of 15 October 2009 concerning the date to be taken into consideration for determining the rates of conversion referred to in Article 90 of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ C 106, 24.4.2010, p. 56)^{[footnote 5]}.
• Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems Decision No H4 of 22 December 2009 concerning the composition and working methods of the Audit Board of the Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems (OJ C 107, 27.4.2010, p. 3)^{[footnote 6]}.

(b) Under Sickness (S series):

• Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems Decision S9 of 20 June 2013 concerning refund procedures for the implementation of Articles 35 and 41 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 (OJ C 279, 27.9.2013, p. 8)^{[footnote 7]}.

Article 2

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption. In relation to Liechtenstein, this Decision shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following its notification to the Depository that its domestic legal requirements have been fulfilled.

The text of this Decision shall be deposited with the Depositary.

Done at Brussels, 27 September 2023

Annex B - Joint statement of 27 September 2023

Separation Agreement Joint Committee Meeting, 27 September 2023 Joint Statement

The fourth meeting of the Separation Agreement Joint Committee was held in Brussels today, chaired by officials from the Kingdom of Norway, with representatives from Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein, and the United Kingdom (UK) in attendance. The Committee was established by the Separation Agreement to monitor its implementation and application. The Separation Agreement ensures that nationals of Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway (‘the EEA EFTA States’) already living in the UK, or UK nationals living in the EEA EFTA States at the end of the transition period, have largely the same rights as before the UK left the EU. In addition to the right of residence, these include entitlements to social security and the recognition of professional qualifications.

During the meeting, representatives from the EEA EFTA States and the UK updated each other about their implementation and application of the Separation Agreement, focusing on the provisions relating to citizens’ rights. Representatives of the EFTA Surveillance Authority and the Independent Monitoring Authority also attended, presenting information on the monitoring of the implementation and application of the Separation Agreement.

The EEA EFTA States and the UK adopted a Decision amending Part I of Annex I to the Separation Agreement, in order to include recent relevant Decisions of the Administrative Commission for the Coordination of Social Security Systems.

The EEA EFTA States and the UK continue to work together to ensure the correct implementation and application of the Separation Agreement, to provide certainty to citizens.

Annex C - Reports by the independent monitoring authority and the EFTA surveillance authority

The Independent Monitoring Authority (IMA) annual report for 2023 to the Specialised Committee and Joint Committee is available to download from the IMA publications page.

The EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) annual report for 2023 to the Separation Agreement Joint Committee is available to download from the ESA annual reports page.

1. Agreement on arrangements between Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein, the Kingdom of Norway and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, the EEA Agreement and other agreements applicable between the United Kingdom and the EEA EFTA States by virtue of the United Kingdom’s membership of the European Union of 28 January 2020. ↩

2. Incorporated into the EEA Agreement by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 97/2023 of 28 April 2023. ↩

3. Incorporated into the EEA Agreement by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 181/2023 of 5 July 2023. ↩

4. Incorporated into the EEA Agreement by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 180/2022 of 10 June 2022. ↩

5. Repealed under the EEA Agreement by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 97/2023 of 28 April 2023. ↩

6. Repealed under the EEA Agreement by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 181/2023 of 5 July 2023. ↩

7. Repealed under the EEA Agreement by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 180/2022 of 10 June 2022. ↩