British travellers will get a stamp in their passport every time they enter and leave the European Union in the event of a no-deal Brexit, the European commission has confirmed.

The announcement on border checks was revealed days after the British government secured a short extension that shifts the Brexit deadline to 12 April.

“The risk of a no-deal scenario is becoming increasingly likely,” an EU official said. The EU’s Brexit no-deal plans “cannot replicate the benefits of being an EU member” and were not “mini-deals or a negotiated no deal”, but unilateral measures to avoid disruption for the EU side, the official said.

In an information notice, the commission confirmed that in the event of a no-deal UK nationals would have the right to visa-free travel for short stays in the EU (90 days in any 180-day period), if the UK grants the same arrangement to citizens of all EU member states. “Your passport will be stamped both when you enter the EU and when you leave it, so that this period of 90 days, which is visa-free, can be calculated.”

British travellers would also lose access to the EU lane at border crossings, meaning longer queues.

In another return to the past, British travellers may be asked by border guards to provide information on the purpose of their visit and means of subsistence during their stay. Luggage would be subject to customs checks.

No deal would also mean the return of duty-free and the right of British travellers to claim a refund of VAT paid on goods during their stay in the EU, provided they have the right documents.

The commission also confirmed British travellers would lose their right to access healthcare through the European health insurance card, and phone companies would no longer be obliged to waive roaming charges for British travellers in the EU.

The EU increasingly believes that a no-deal exit on 12 April is likely, after handing Theresa May a three-week extension to find a way out of the Brexit impasse. The British government would get a longer extension only if it agreed by that date to take part in European elections on 23 May.

European commission officials have visited all 27 member states to check on no-deal plans. Countries that trade heavily with the UK are hiring hundreds of customs officers and are building border inspection posts to restart checks on animal, food and plant products. The Netherlands plans to recruit 900 customs officers at the port of Rotterdam, France is taking on 700 and Belgium 300-400. More than half of these officers are already working and the rest are expected to be in post by the end of 2019 or early 2020.

The plan for the Irish border remains uncertain. An official said the commission was in talks with the Irish government to ensure that EU law is upheld. “[Checks] will have to be done where they belong but that doesn’t mean we want to see visible infrastructure at the border,” the official said.

While preparations were being taken “extremely seriously”, delays could not be avoided: “Disruption will occur and nothing will be smooth … There will be frictions, it’s pretty clear.”

According to the EU official, national authorities and businesses wanted no-deal over quickly, if it has to happen. “They were very often comparing [no deal] to a plaster. You can take it off very very slowly or you can do it very very quickly and then it’s over and done. And so they were telling us we want certainly, and if it has to happen so be it.”

If the UK crashes out of the EU on 12 April, the government will have six days to decide whether to pay its dues into the 2019 EU budget, so enabling British farmers, researchers and other recipients to receive EU funds.

The latest information release underlines how leaving without a deal threatens cultural and educational ties. If the UK crashes out without a deal, it will no longer be part of the Erasmus+ programme that helps students, young people and teachers do exchange programmes. Organisations such as the British Film Institute, the British Council, and Creative Scotland would no longer be eligible for EU funding. The government could secure short-term participation in such programmes by agreeing to pay into the EU 2019 budget.



