Overview
- The free‑movement agreement took effect at midnight and pedestrians and vehicles began crossing the land border without routine customs checks.
- Gibraltar leaders and officials removed sections of the metal frontier in a symbolic act that preceded morning commuter flows from La Línea de la Concepción into the Rock.
- The treaty aligns Gibraltar with Schengen rules but keeps identity checks for travellers arriving from outside Schengen at Gibraltar’s port and airport.
- Gibraltar will replace physical barriers with expanded cameras, facial‑recognition systems, automatic number‑plate readers and increased patrols even as some residents voice security concerns.
- Thousands of Spanish workers who make roughly 15,000 daily crossings should face shorter commutes and more predictable hours, while the deal also frames fiscal and regulatory convergence to limit cross‑border distortions.