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Exit day
Practical Law UK Glossary w-015-8342 (Approx. 6 pages)
Glossary
Exit day
Exit day is defined in section 20(1) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (EUWA) as "31 January 2020 at 11.00 p.m."
This definition mirrors the day and time when the UK left the EU under Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union (see Practice notes, Brexit: extension and exit day and Brexit: Article 50 and the withdrawal process).
The EUWA definition of exit day is employed by a range of UK legislation. If any Act of Parliament uses the term exit day, this has the same meaning as in the EUWA unless the contrary intention appears (section 5 and paragraph 1, Schedule 1, Interpretation Act 1978).
Events that took place on exit day under the EUWA included the following:
- Repeal of the European Communities Act 1972 (ECA 1972) (section 1, EUWA).
- Savings and modifications to the ECA 1972 and to EU-derived domestic legislation (sections 1A and 1B, EUWA). These gave effect to the UK-EU withdrawal agreement terms on transition, and enabled UK law to operate properly during the transition period (see Practice note, UK law during the post-Brexit transition period: overview).
For more Practical Law content on Brexit-related matters, such as the operation of UK law following the end of the transition period, and the UK-EU agreements, see UK legal change post-transition and UK-EU agreements toolkit, Retained EU law toolkit and Practical Law's Brexit page.