Border checks on people and goods between Gibraltar and Spain are slated to disappear at the beginning of 2026, according to a new report of the British territory’s post-Brexit arrangements.
According to Spanish daily El País, the plan would see the Gibraltar crossing at La Verja dismantled from early 2026, ending decades of frequent queues at the fence dividing Gibraltar from the Spanish town of La Línea de la Concepción.
The change follows the June ratification of the Gibraltar Treaty by Brussels, Madrid, London and Gibraltar, with finalisation expected in October. ALSO READ: Spain, UK and EU agree ‘historic’ post-Brexit Gibraltar deal – full details.
If implemented as intended, there would be no controls on people or goods, effectively placing Gibraltar in a customs union with the European Union and bringing its tax system into alignment with EU standards.
Among the measures under discussion are new taxes on certain goods, including tobacco, and joint policing of the port and airport by Spanish and Gibraltarian authorities.
La Línea’s mayor, Juan Franco, welcomed the development in comments to Spanish radio station SER, while urging clarity on how it will work day to day and what it means for his city. ‘We welcome the fact that the border has an end date, but we need specific details to plan the impact on La Línea,’ he said.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is scheduled to travel to London next week to meet UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and hammer out remaining details of the treaty.
The move caps years of talks over Gibraltar’s post-Brexit status. In June 2025, the EU announced it had reached an accord with the UK, Spain and Gibraltar, though the specifics and border implications were not fully clear at the time. ALSO READ: EU and UK ‘reset’ post-Brexit relations with new agreements at mini-summit.
Removing the physical frontier is designed to smooth the daily movement of roughly 15,000 people who commute between Gibraltar and Spain. Many Andalusians work on ‘The Rock’, while Gibraltarians maintain business and family ties across the line in Spain.
Operationally, the agreement foresees ‘dual’ EuroStar-style checks by both Gibraltarian and Spanish officers at the port and airport, with most controls at the land crossing between Gibraltar and La Línea largely lifted.
At present, time spent in Gibraltar does not count toward the 90-days-in-180 limit that applies to British travellers in the Schengen area, but that could change once EuroStar-style passport controls and the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) come into force. ALSO READ: EU sets launch date for Entry/Exit System (EES) to ‘help identify overstayers’.
If delivered, next year’s removal of the border would mark a new phase in relations between Gibraltar and Spain— especially for neighbouring La Línea.
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El último muro de la Europa continental ―y el penúltimo de la UE: queda el de Chipre, vestigio de la Guerra Fría— caerá a principios del próximo año. España y Reino Unido planean derrumbar la verja con Gibraltar el próximo enero https://t.co/XtsSf5tBe1
— EL PAÍS (@el_pais) August 25, 2025
El alcalde de La Línea solicita ser informado sobre los planes de demolición de la Verja de Gibraltar. Juan Franco reclama una reunión con el Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores para tratar un asunto de afectación directa para el municipio.
ℹ️ https://t.co/4qxtZoSZNx pic.twitter.com/ECTXxz9LY4
— Ayuntamiento de La Línea de la Concepción (@Ayto_LaLinea) August 25, 2025
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