Irish border question and a 'hard Irish border'

The Irish border question is a controversy about the impact that the UK's withdrawal from the European Union will have on the Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border on the island of Ireland, in particular the impact it may have on the economy and people of the island were customs or immigration checks to be put in place at the border. It was prioritised as one of the three most important areas to resolve in order to reach a Withdrawal Agreement.

The UK voted to leave the European Union in a referendum on 23 June 2016 which would effectively make the Republic of Ireland–Northern Ireland border an external EU border. All parties have stated that they want to avoid a hard border in Ireland, due particularly to the historically sensitive nature of the border.

The Common Travel Area (CTA; Irish: Comhlimistéar Taistil) is an open borders area comprising the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands. The British Overseas Territories are not included. Based on agreements that are not legally binding, the internal borders of the Common Travel Area (CTA) are subject to minimal controls, if any, and can normally be crossed by British and Irish citizens with minimal identity documents with certain exceptions.[1] [2]  The maintenance of the CTA involves considerable co-operation on immigration matters between the British and Irish authorities.

In 2014, the British and Irish governments began a trial system of mutual recognition of each other's visas for onward travel within the Common Travel Area. As of June 2016 it applies to Chinese and Indian nationals and is limited to certain visa types. Other nationalities and those holding non-qualifying visas still require separate visas to visit both countries and may not avail of a transit visa exception if wishing to transit though the UK to Ireland.

Since 1997, the Irish government has imposed systematic identity checks on air passengers coming from the United Kingdom and selective checks on sea passengers, and occasional checks on land crossings.[3]

The Irish border question and a 'hard Irish border'

Also see

 * 1) Legal terminology
 * 2) Political terminology
 * 3) Economic terminology
 * 4) General terminology
 * 5) No-deal Brexit scenario
 * 6) The 'Meaningful Vote' of 2019 (Brexit)
 * 7) Operation Stack (Brexit, trucking) and Operation Broc (Brexit, trucking)