Tema

Brexit

UK’s udtræden af EU blev endelig, da den forhandlede overgangsperiode udløb den 31. december 2020. Siden da har EU’s regler ikke længere været gældende for UK, og forsikringsselskaber med hovedsæde i UK har derfor som udgangspunkt ikke længere lovligt kunnet drive virksomhed i Danmark.

Finanstilsynet udstedte i 2020 en bekendtgørelse, der gav allerede notificerede selskaber en midlertidig tilladelse til at servicere eksisterende kontrakter frem til udgangen af 2021. Med virkning fra den 1. januar 2022 har Finanstilsynet udstedt en ny, justeret bekendtgørelse, der viderefører den tidligere ordning, men uden tidsbegrænsning.

UK forlod formelt EU den 31. januar 2020 og overgik dermed til at være et tredjeland i forhold til EU. Som følge af udtrædelsesaftalen med EU blev UK dog omfattet af en overgangsperiode, hvor alle EU’s regler fortsat var gældende, mens parterne forhandlede om, hvordan det fremtidige forhold mellem EU og UK skulle være. 

Overgangsperioden udløb den 31. december 2020, og efter denne dato har UK ikke længere været omfattet af EU-regler. 

En af konsekvenserne er, at UK står udenfor det indre marked. Hermed bortfalder blandt andet retten til at etablere sig og udbyde tjenesteydelser i andre EU-lande efter de regler, vi i dag kender som passporting i Solvens II-direktivet. EU og UK fik forhandlet en handelsaftale, som gælder efter UK’s udtræden, men den omfatter ikke retten til at udbyde finansielle ydelser.

For forsikringssektoren har det betydet, at forsikringsselskaber med hovedsæde i UK, der har tegnet forsikringer for danske risici, ikke længere i medfør af danske regler lovligt kan drive forsikringsvirksomhed i Danmark, herunder udbetale erstatninger eller ydelser. 

Da overgangsperioden udløb den 31. december 2020 var der fortsat en del danske forsikringskunder, det havde gyldige policer hos forsikringsselskaber med hovedsæde i UK. For at sikre, at disse kunder ikke pludselig kom til at stå uden lovlig dækning, udstedte Finanstilsynet en bekendtgørelse, der gav mulighed for, at danske kunders eksisterende policer i britiske forsikringsselskaber kunne fortsætte frem til policens udløb, dog kun frem til udgangen af 2021. 

Mange af UK-forsikringsselskaberne har siden overdraget porteføljer eller flyttet hovedsæde til et land inden for EU, men Finanstilsynet har konstateret, at der fortsat er selskaber med hovedsæde i UK, som dækker risici i Danmark. Derfor har Finanstilsynet med virkning fra den 1. januar 2022 udstedt en ny bekendtgørelse, der fortsætter den tidligere ordning, dog nu uden tidsbegrænsning. 

Bekendtgørelsen medfører, at selskaber, der pr. 31. december 2020 var notificeret til at udbyde forsikringer som tjenesteydelser i Danmark, bevarer retten til at servicere eksisterende kontrakter, under forudsætning af at de opfylder betingelserne i bekendtgørelsen.

De omfattede forsikringsselskaber kan dermed fortsat servicere policer indgået før den 31. december 2020, men må ikke forlænge eller forny policerne – hverken aktivt eller automatisk – eller tegne nye policer. 

Finanstilsynet forventer, at de pågældende selskaber har orienteret deres kunder om konsekvenserne af, at de ikke længere kan udbyde forsikringer i Danmark, men alene kan servicere frem til udløb. 

Med bekendtgørelsen vil de danske regler om redelig forretningsskik og god praksis inden for virksomhedsområdet finde anvendelse på de britiske selskaber, der omfattes af bekendtgørelsen. Policerne er pr. 1. januar 2021 ikke længere omfattet af Garantifond for skadesforsikringsselskaber. 

Bekendtgørelsen blev sendt i offentlig høring den 2. oktober 2021, og høringsbrev og høringssvar kan findes på høringsportalen.dk. Bekendtgørelsen kan  findes på Retsinformation.dk.

Forsikringsselskaber med hovedsæde i et tredjeland, herunder UK og Gibraltar, der ønsker at udbyde forsikringer i Danmark, skal ansøge Finanstilsynet om tilladelse i henhold til bekendtgørelse nr. 1168 af 31. oktober 2017 om filialer af tredjelandsforsikringsselskaber.

Senest opdateret 15-02-2022

Application form to use by credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom when applying for a license pursuant to section 33 of the Financial Business Act

The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority encourages applicants to submit the application before 15 October 2020 in order to be sure that the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority is able to assess the application before the end of the transitional period entered into between the EU and the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom left the EU on 31 January 2020. In this connection, the EU and United Kingdom entered into a transitional agreement, which includes credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom being able to continue to provide investment services and activities to customers in Denmark up to 31 December 2020. When the transition period expires, credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom will no longer have access to provide investment services and activities in Denmark, unless they have a separate license from the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority.       

Credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom that intend to provide cross-border investment services and activities in Denmark to Danish eligible counterparties and per se professional clients after the end of the transitional period can apply to the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority for a license in accordance with section 33 of the Financial Business Act.

Licenses granted under section 33 of the Financial Business Act to credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom up to the end of the transitional period will be conditional and temporary.

Credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom must use the application form pro-vided by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority:

Application form for credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom when applying for a license pursuant to section 33 of the Danish Financial Business Act

Please follow the instructions given in the application form and please fill out all relevant fields and boxes in order for the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority to be able to assess the application.

The application shall be sent to applicationsection33license@ftnet.dk.

Q&A

As minimum the names of the CEO, the chairman and deputy chairman of the board of directors and the person being responsible for the activities in Denmark or overseas in general.

Licenses to credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom pursuant to section 33 of the Financial Business Act will in light of the uncertainty surrounding Brexit be granted for a 18-month period from the end of expiration of the transitional agreement entered into between the EU and the United Kingdom. 

Licenses to credit institutions and investment firms from the United Kingdom pursuant to section 33 of the Financial Business Act can only be granted to investment services and activities as well as financial instruments that are covered by the applicant’s license with the Prudential Regulation Authority and/or the Financial Conduct Authority.

A license will be conditional on:

  • The United Kingdom becomes a third country as defined in MiFID II, Article 4(1), no. 57.(*) 
  • The EU has not entered into an agreement for the financial area with the United Kingdom and the Commission has not adopted an equivalence decision for United Kingdom in accordance with MiFIR, Article 47(1), or such a decision is no longer valid.(**) 
  • The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority and the relevant competent authority/authorities in the United Kingdom have signed agreements concerning consultation and cooperation and the exchange of information relevant for the supervision of undertakings performing investment services and activities. 
  • The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority is not and does not come into possession of any adverse information on the applicant of relevance to a license pursuant to section 33 of the Danish Financial Business Act and Executive Order No. 918 of 26 June 2017. 

Furthermore, the license is based on the supposition of an adequate regulation in the United Kingdom governing investment services and activities as well as an adequate supervision of financial undertakings conducting investment services and activities in the United Kingdom. 

A license will be revoked, should the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority assess that the above mentioned conditions are no longer fulfilled.

(*) Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instruments
(**) Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instruments

Holders of a temporary and conditional license pursuant to section 33 of the Financial Business Act are subject to both the Financial Business Act, cf. section 1(6), and the Capital Market Act, cf. section 2(1) no. 4. 

Section 1(6) in the Financial Business Act states that for services with securities trading carried out in Denmark by investment firms and credit institutions, which have been granted a license in a country outside the European Union with which the Union has not entered into an agreement for the financial area and where the Commission has not adopted an equivalence decision in accordance with MiFIR, Article 47, subsection 1, or such a decision is no longer valid, sections 6, 6a, 6b, 33, 43, 46a, 46b, 347, subsection 1, 348 and 373, subsection 3 and 5, shall apply. 

Please note in particular that section 43, subsection 1, of the Financial Business Act states that financial undertakings shall be operated in accordance with honest business principles and good practice within the field of activity.

Moreover, attention should be drawn to the fact that the above mentioned acts and executive orders may not be exhaustive and that the legislation continuously will be updated.

Senest opdateret 30-11-2020