SPCs and Brexit: SPC applications pending in the UK at the end of the “transition period” will still be granted

EU and UK Brexit negotiators have agreed that applications for Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) for plant products and medicinal products submitted in the UK before the end of the Brexit “transition period” (currently 31 December 2020) will:

1. Still be granted after the end of that period; and
2. Provide for the same level of protection as that provided for SPCs under the existing EU Regulations (EC No. 1610/96 and EC No. 469/2009).

In other words, the EU/UK negotiators have confirmed their agreement to the wording of Article 56 of the draft Withdrawal Agreement, thus providing some additional clarity on what is likely to happen to SPC applications that have been filed, but are pending, in the UK on 31 December 2020. However, as “nothing is agreed until it is agreed”, the negotiations on this issue will require continued monitoring.

(The above agreement was published in the “Joint Statement from the negotiators of the European Union and the United Kingdom Government” issued on 19 June 2018 (see p4). The joint statement is designed to provide updates on areas of agreement following the publication of the draft Withdrawal Agreement for Brexit on 19 March 2018.)

This post was originally co-authored by Steven Baldwin.