Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Barran on 19 January (HL Deb, col 1085), whether their proposals for enabling musicians to travel and perform in the EU without work permits included musicians being considered Short-Term Business Visitors; and, if so, what assessment they have made of whether this would remove the requirement for work permits.

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement includes a list of 11 activities that can be carried out by short-term business visitors without a work permit, on a reciprocal basis in most Member States, subject to any reservations taken.

During negotiations with the EU, the UK proposed expanding this list of activities for Short Term Business Visitors to cover musicians and their accompanying staff. This would have enabled musicians and other creative professionals to travel and perform in the UK and the EU without needing work-permits. Regrettably, these proposals were rejected by the EU.

Due to the UK’s inclusion on the EU Schengen visa-waiver list, certain activities should be permitted, visa-free, across the whole Schengen Area for up to 90 days in a 180-day period. Member States may require a visa and/or a work permit for what they regard as “paid activity”. Some Member States do allow additional permitted activities, without the need for a visa or work permit, as part of their domestic immigration regimes. Therefore, UK cultural professionals, including musicians, seeking to perform within the EU will be required to check domestic immigration and visitor rules for each Member State in which they intend to perform.

We have published guidance on GOV.UK, signposting to official information provided by EU countries about their business travel routes, which is regularly updated. We are also undertaking an extensive programme of engagement with the sectors to help them understand these new requirements.