On Wednesday, the government discussed measures to be taken in case of a no-deal Brexit. These should include the right of residence, social security, economy, transport, and judicial co-operation. Slovakia is ready to take steps that would preserve the current rights of British citizens living in the Slovak Republic, including the right of entry and residence, and health insurance for employed persons. The British government has promised that in such a scenario it would also secure the current rights of Slovak citizens living in the United Kingdom.
The Slovak Central Bank has published its updated 4Q18 Mid-term Prediction, stating that a hard Brexit could cause a cumulative drop in Slovakia's GDP of 0.7-1.1 percent through 2023, mainly due to the impact on foreign trade, which might see a downtick. It is the uncertainty over the future arrangement of economic ties between the United Kingdom and the EU that poses one of the most significant risks for economic growth, according to the central bank, which based its hard-Brexit calculations on figures supplied by the Bank of England. According to the British calculations, a hard Brexit would result in a cumulative drop in the United Kingdom's GDP by 4-7 percent through 2023, with slower economic growth and the introduction of trade barriers likely to result in the reduction of EU imports by 12 percent, which translates, among other things, into smaller exports by Slovak firms. "This negative effect on foreign demand for Slovak exports represents the main dynamics through which Brexit would influence the Slovak economy," explains the central bank in its report. There would also be a more indirect effect via other trade partners, due to the high level of Slovak economic involvement in global chains. "In terms of trade barriers, which would restrict mutual trade between the United Kingdom and the EU under the World Trade Organisation regime, Slovakia ranks in international comparisons as one of the most affected countries," claims the Slovak Central Bank.
