Formal Brexit talks should be conducted in rigorous four-week cycles, in Brussels, with progress published once a month, according to proposals from EU officials.

The EU also maintains that the U.K. must pick up the tab for the negotiations, including all technical expenses, such as travel costs -- essentially sparing the EU budget from Britain’s decision to leave the bloc.

It is no secret that the two sides are still miles apart on key substantive issues — not least the U.K.'s financial obligations — but so far even basic details about how the talks will be conducted have yet to be agreed. No decision even has been taken on the first topic for discussion.

U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May's decision to call a snap general election for June 8 effectively hit the pause button on preparations for the formal Brexit talks, and officials in Brussels stressed that nothing would be certain until after the vote, when May and her team emerge from the so-called purdah period. Given the recent rise in acrimony between EU leaders and May, London's agreement is far from assured.

But despite the uncertainty, a proposed framework from the EU27 for how they want the talks to proceed logistically is well underway, people familiar with the planning in Brussels said. The EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier and his task force at the the European Commission envisage that the negotiations be conducted in a rigorous four-week cycle, with one week each dedicated to: internal preparation and consultations; exchange of views between the two sides; negotiation; and reporting back to principles as well as publishing information emerging from the talks, according to senior EU diplomats.

'Feedback and preparations'

The proposed scheme underscores just how complex and painstaking it will be to broker the first-ever withdrawal of an EU country from the bloc. The plan also reflects a demand by leaders of the 27 remaining EU countries for constant oversight of the process, which is expected to take at least 18 months.

"The original idea was to have one week for negotiations [at] political level, one week for technical work, and two for feedback and preparations," a senior EU diplomat said.

EU diplomats have said they expect the U.K. to demand that some negotiating sessions be held in London, if only to illustrate its new outsider status, but that they still envision the lion's share of discussions taking place in Brussels, where expert staff are available to consult on any detail.

A Commission official insisted the talks would take place in Brussels. “Definitely it will be Brussels. They are not going to be in Switzerland, not going to be in London. The U.K. is still a member state, that goes without saying, and the capital of the European Union is still Brussels.”

The official said the talks might be held at the Albert Borschette Congress Center, which has ample meeting space, served as the site of past negotiations, including on trade agreements, and is located just a short walk from the Commission.

Another possibility is the talks are held at the Berlaymont, the Commission’s headquarters. The official said the venue would largely depend on the size of the negotiating delegations, which has yet to be determined.

The venue could even change at different stages in the talks.

In phases

The four-week cycles would be punctuated as necessary by formal meetings with EU ministers and even by extraordinary summits of the 27 leaders in the European Council.

At the same time, some EU diplomats stressed that any framework for the talks must be flexible so that officials could adjust the schedule as needed.

“With such little time ahead of us, negotiation is going to be intense, sometimes also six days a week, with many stops-and-goes that force us to spend long nights to sort out issues,” a senior diplomat said, adding that crucial details such as the first topic of discussion have yet to be decided. The diplomat compared the expected intense rhythm to the emergency talks over the Greek debt crisis three years ago.

EU officials said that if London agrees to the Commission's plan, decisions on the negotiating agenda would likely be made within the first two weeks.

Already the EU’s negotiating team is being divided into “Phase 1 people and Phase 2 people” an official said. Experts from the Commission’s various directorate generals will also be called in as needed, along with members of the Council’s working group, the Commission official said.

Overall, though, the commission official cautioned that many details have yet to be worked out. “I would love to tell you that somebody is working somewhere, carpenters are building negotiating tables as we speak,” the official said. “But they are not.”

'Brexitize' this

At a POLITICO event Wednesday evening, Martin Selmayr, chief of staff to Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, tried to play down the burden the Brexit talks would place on the Commission, saying that his boss would not spend more than 30 minutes a week on the topic. And the Commission's chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas on Thursday came up with a neologism, saying Brussels "will not Brexitize our work” and is "rather busy" with other files.

But it is already clear that the Brexit workload across the EU institutions will be significant.

"The original idea was to have one week for negotiations [at] political level, one week for technical work, and two for feedback and preparations" — senior EU diplomat

Officials said they expected Barnier or a member of this team to report outcomes of the negotiations to a special working group in the European Council. EU ambassadors who now regularly meet weekly in Brussels would likely add a second meeting each week throughout the Brexit talks, officials said, while EU ministers would meet to discuss Brexit once a month.

So far, May's office has not expressed any particular demands regarding the logistics of the talks, other than to state a desire for things to get underway "as quickly as possible" after the June 8 vote.

Charlie Cooper in London contributed reporting.