Warrants issued for the extradition of UK nationals from EU Member States
Changes to extradition after Brexit
The third UK-EU joint committee established under the Withdrawal Agreement agreed on 'transitional arrangements for requests for extradition between the UK and Member States'. This came into effect on 1 January 2021.
These transitional arrangements provide that requests for extradition made between the UK and Member States after 31 December 2020 that are not covered by the EAW regime continue to be governed by the provisions in Part 1 of the Extradition Act 2003 and section 2 of the Extradition Act 2003 (Amendment) Order 2014, with the following amendments:
European Investigation Orders (EIOs)
Once the transitional arrangements end, EIOs cannot be executed in the UK.
European Arrest Warrants (EAWs)
EAWs issued prior to 31 December 2020 will remain valid, and the UK will still be required to execute them.
However, Member States will no longer issue EAWs for extradition to the UK from 1 January 2021. Instead, Member States will issue a new equivalent judicial measure, known as a Temporary Conditional Arrest Warrant (T-CAW) or a Surrender Warrant (depending on whether the UK agrees not to invoke article 54), to secure a person’s custody pending the receipt of an extradition request under Part 1 of the Extradition Act 2003.
Extradition requests under Part 1 of the Extradition Act 2003
The UK will still be able to make extradition requests to Member States under Part 1 of the Extradition Act 2003. Member States will still be required to consider and respond to these requests.
Practical implications
The main practical implications of these changes for UK law enforcement officers are:
- UK law enforcement officers cannot execute EAWs issued after 31 December 2020.
- UK law enforcement officers will need to be aware of the new T-CAW/Surrender Warrant process and how to respond to such measures.
- UK law enforcement officers will still be able to make extradition requests under Part 1 of the Extradition Act 2003 to Member States.
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