Guide to Business Registration in Gibraltar
Guía para el Registro de Negocios en Gibraltar

HM Government of Gibraltar has today issued new guidance in Spanish explaining how businesses established in Spain, or elsewhere, can register to provide services legally in Gibraltar.

The UK-EU Treaty on Gibraltar does not provide for the free movement of services. This was never an option available to Gibraltar during the Treaty negotiations as a result of the position of the EU and Spain. Businesses established in Spain or elsewhere in the European Union therefore have no automatic right under the Treaty to enter Gibraltar and provide services but are able to but if they register and pay relevant corporation tax, PAYE and Social Insurance as appropriate. 

The legal requirement for anyone conducting a commercial, industrial or professional activity in or from Gibraltar to register with the relevant authorities is not new. The provision of services has also generally required a business licence since 2015. 

Some overseas businesses nevertheless operated in Gibraltar in recent years without the necessary registration or licence, during a period in which enforcement was less extensive as a result of transition from EU membership to the new arrangements that secure fluidity of people and goods but not of services. Those businesses were operating unlawfully.

The removal of routine immigration controls at the frontier does not remove Gibraltar’s laws governing the provision of services. On the contrary, the absence of frontier checks means that the distinction between fluidity of movement for people and the absence of freedom to provide services must be properly enforced.

To support this work, the Government has established a new Business Compliance and Enforcement Team, bringing together officers from the Department of Business, the Department of Employment and HM Customs. This team has approached a number of Spanish businesses found to be providing services in Gibraltar without the required authorisation. They have been instructed to cease operating until they register and cautioned that future breaches may result in fines or other enforcement action. The Team brings together officers from the Department of Business, the Department of Employment and HM Customs to ensure a coordinated approach to compliance. 

Gibraltar remains open for business. Individuals and companies from Spain, Europe and elsewhere who wish to take advantage of the new commercial opportunities created by the Treaty are encouraged to do so through registration in the proper way via the proper official channels.

Depending on the nature of the business, the available routes include:

• Incorporating a company in Gibraltar or registering an overseas company or branch;
• Registering a business name or partnership;
• Registering as self-employed;
• Submitting a Business Application to the Office of Fair Trading for the relevant registration or licence; or
• Working through a registered Gibraltar business using the Detached Worker regime.

In most cases, the business must first establish or register its legal or trading structure and then submit a Business Application to the Office of Fair Trading. Employees, directors and self-employed workers must also be registered with the Department of Employment. Where a Spanish or other overseas company is subcontracted by a Gibraltar business, its workers may instead be registered temporarily under the Detached Worker regime, subject to the applicable requirements. 

The accompanying English and Spanish-language guides, prepared by the Department of Business, explain these options and provides the relevant application routes and contact details.

The Minister for Health, Care and Business, the Hon Gemma Arias-Vasquez, said: “The Treaty will create important opportunities for businesses on both sides of the frontier, and Gibraltar is open and ready to welcome legitimate new business. However, greater fluidity at the frontier cannot mean that businesses are free to operate in Gibraltar outside Gibraltar’s laws.

“We have an obligation to enforce the terms of the Treaty, to protect local businesses from unfair competition and to ensure that everyone operates on a level playing field as we are required to do in respect of those parts of the Treaty that give us access to the EU Single Market. At the same time, we want to make registration as clear and accessible as possible for businesses that genuinely wish to establish themselves here or work with Gibraltar companies.

“The guidance published today explains the available routes in English and in Spanish and will help businesses regularise their position and take advantage of the commercial synergies and opportunities that the Treaty will bring.”

Guide to Business Registration in Gibraltar
Guía para el Registro de Negocios en Gibraltar