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The planned Gibraltar Transaction Tax did not take effect on April 10, 2026, despite earlier preparations pointing to that date.
Official updates issued on April 1, 2026 by the Government of Gibraltar and the Council of the European Union now point to July 15, 2026 as the expected date for provisional application of the EU-UK agreement in respect of Gibraltar.
Once in force, the Gibraltar Transaction Tax is expected to replace Gibraltar’s traditional import duty framework for relevant goods. The new regime is set to begin at 15%, rise to 16% in year two, and then to 17% in year three. Gibraltar has also made clear that it will remain VAT-free, and that the Gibraltar Transaction Tax is not charged at the point of sale.
The reform is part of the wider EU-UK Gibraltar arrangement aimed at reducing friction in the movement of goods between Gibraltar and Spain while protecting the EU single market and customs union. For businesses, the key takeaway is that the Gibraltar Transaction Tax is still coming, but it is not yet in force today.
