Inward passporting
A firm from another EEA state can passport into the UK on either a ‘services’ basis (if it does not have a physical presence in the UK) or a ‘branch’ basis (if it opens an office in the UK). Either way, in most circumstances it will still be regulated by its home-state regulator.
EEA banks and insurers that currently have passporting rights into the UK from the EEA and wish to apply for authorisation from the PRA should refer to the dedicated webpages for information on the authorisation of EEA banks and insurers and the temporary permissions regime.
Submitting inward passport notifications
The home state supervisor is responsible for informing the regulators of a firm’s intention to passport into the UK. Notices under the Capital Requirements Directive (CRD) (2013/36/EU) and the Solvency II Directive (2009/138/EC) should be directed to us. Notices under any other EEA directive should be directed to the FCA. The FCA is required to consult with us under certain circumstances, for example where there is a dual-regulated firm in the EEA firm’s immediate group.
Notifications should be submitted by email to PRA-Passporting@bankofengland.co.uk or by post to:
Authorisations Division
Prudential Regulation Authority
20 Moorgate
London, EC2R 6DA
We do not charge for passporting services.
How we assess inward passporting firms
When we receive an inward passporting notification from an EEA supervisory authority, the depth of our review will be proportionate to the firm's potential impact on our objectives, the relevant EU directive and technical standard.
Our assessment will be based on the information provided by home state regulators and any subsequent information requests. This assessment is intended to inform the dialogue with the home state regulator and to prepare for supervision of the firm.
In some cases, we may judge that an EEA firm notifying us of its intention to passport into the UK poses risks to our objectives, but does meet the requirements set out by the relevant EU directives, and therefore has the right to conduct business in the UK. In such cases we will carefully consider the tools available to us as a host regulator, acting in cooperation with the home regulator, to mitigate the resulting risks.
Our timelines for processing inward passporting notifications are set out below:
Directive |
Timeframe to process/respond |
Capital Requirements Directive |
Establishment: Two months
Services: One month |
Solvency II Directive for life and non-life insurance business |
Establishment: Two months
Services: One month |
Solvency II Directive for reinsurance business |
Establishment: Two month |