A very good overview of what Brexit will mean for the Spanish (as well as other EU countries’) shipping industry is found in the latest Garrigues’ Transport and Shipping Newsletter

“Once the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union has been implemented and brought into effect legally (which could take longer than 2 years), the main effects of that decision on the Spanish shipping industry, which will ultimately depend on the terms that are negotiated (over which nothing is definite as yet), could, in principle, be the following:

• UK-flagged vessels would cease to be EU vessels, and therefore would:
  • not be able to make voyages within Spain’s internal waters or engage in cabotage in Spain, without a waiver where there is no EU vessel fit to be used and available for the voyage in question (EU Regulation 3577/1992 and ar ticle 257 of the revised State Ports and Merchant Shipping Law (TRLPEMM));
  • be able to continue making international voyages, including intra-Community voyages, although intra-Community voyages would not benefit from any of the customs, tax and other EU benefits; and
  • not qualify as an EU vessel for Spanish tonnage tax purposes.
• UK national seafarers would qualify as nonCommunity foreigners, and therefore:
  • would be counted as such to determine the legally permitted crew of Spanish ships for registration on both the Traditional Register (RT) or the Special Canary Island Register (REC) on registration;
  • could not be masters of Spanish flaggedships either on the RT or on the REC (article 162 of Maritime Shipping Law 14/2014 and ar ticle 253 and additional provision 16.6 of the revised State Ports and Merchant Shipping Law); and
  • would not be entitled to the tax and social security incentives applicable to seafarers enrolled on ships entered on the REC and working on scheduled passenger services between EU ports (articles 75 and 78 of Law 19/1994 on the Canary Island Economic and Tax Regime).”