Around 15 million British people voted in favor of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union. What does the verdict of the British voters mean for China’s outbound tourism?

UK is not a member or associated member of the Schengen agreement, neither is it part of the EU currency union, so a Brexit does not result in a higher level of complexity as far as vias and currency are concerned. 

Depending on future arrangements, Chinese travelers will probably not be able anymore to purchase goods in the UK and then bring them into the EU and vice versa above the normal levels of personal usage if they want to avoid paying taxes and VAT. 

Financially more important are the consequences for property investment in the UK, which is much less interesting in a non-EU United Kingdom, both in terms of residence permits and eventual citizenship as in terms of the risk involved in the investment – and lower risk is the main reason for investing in property outside of China in the first place. The same is true for the question of the location of headquarters of Chinese-owned companies, of banks etc.

Chinese outbound travelers and investors, as all surveys show, regard safety as the most important criterion for their choice of a destination or a location. Therefore the conclusion seems clear: Next to the practical questions of customs fees and border controls, a Dis-Uniting Kingdom will be regarded with Chinese eyes as a destination less safe than before and a place for investment less attractive than before.

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