Gibraltar Business Licence for Cross-Frontier Businesses

Gibraltar Business Licence Requirements for Cross-Frontier Businesses:

Guide to Gibraltar business-licence requirements for cross-frontier businesses, including exemptions, premises, waivers, supporting documents and renewals.

Gibraltar Business Licence Requirements for Cross-Frontier Businesses

Source review: 31 July 2026

A business established in Spain or another overseas jurisdiction is not exempt from Gibraltar's registration and licensing requirements merely because it operates from outside Gibraltar or crosses the frontier temporarily.

There is no separate cross-frontier business licence. The proposed Gibraltar activity is assessed under the same licensing framework that applies to businesses operating in or from Gibraltar, subject to the special detached-worker and narrowly defined one-off delivery routes.

Newly published process: The Department of Business guidance and combined Business Application were published on 30 July 2026. This guide was prepared on 31 July 2026. Forms, supporting evidence and administrative procedures may be clarified or adjusted as applications are tested in practice.

Business registration and licensing

The Business Application combines business-registration and business-licensing questions in one application. Licensing information is requested where the proposed activity requires it.

The Business Application remains separate from incorporation, foreign-company or branch registration, business-name registration, Employment Service registration, tax and social-insurance registration, work permits and approvals required under other Gibraltar legislation.

Who generally needs a licence

A person carrying on business in Gibraltar by trading in goods or providing services generally requires a valid business licence for the specified activity and premises, subject to exemptions and activities regulated under separate legislation.

Do not assume: A company or business-name certificate is not a business licence. Submission of an application should not be represented as approval or as an unconditional right to trade.

Activities that may not require a Fair Trading Act licence

The Fair Trading Act identifies categories that may not require a general business licence. The application facts must still be checked carefully. The categories include:

an employee of a business;
a director or shareholder of a company carrying on business;
a company providing services within the same corporate group;
a company providing services to a single family office;
certain direct domestic services to one private household where no business introduces the worker or receives payment;
a journalist or the printing and distribution of a newspaper as defined in the relevant legislation;
a qualifying cottage industry, artisan or service provider with annual turnover not exceeding £20,000, subject to registration and the Specified Business exclusion;
a person appointed to conduct a court-ordered sale;
goods or services supplied solely as a necessary incident to professional or personal services;
qualifying philanthropic, charitable, cultural, sporting or educational fundraising activity, subject to prior notification; and
receipt of rental income from real property in Gibraltar.

Where no licence is sought, the applicant should be ready to provide proof of another licence, evidence that another type of licence has been applied for or an explanation of the legal basis for the claimed exemption.

Registration-only businesses and the £20,000 threshold

A cottage industry, artisan or service provider whose annual turnover does not exceed £20,000 may fall within the registration-only regime. The business must register and renew that registration annually.

The turnover provision does not apply to a Specified Business. The statutory definition covers activities involving injections or introduction of substances into the body, tattooing, prescription-only medicines, therapy, skin-breaking procedures, certain mental-health or counselling services and specified healthcare services.

Threshold warning: The £20,000 provision is not a general exemption from all Gibraltar requirements. The activity must fall within the qualifying categories, must not be a Specified Business, and remains subject to registration and any other applicable law.

Activities regulated under separate legislation

A Fair Trading Act licence may not be required where the activity cannot lawfully operate without and is regulated or supervised under another Gibraltar enactment. Examples identified in the official material include:

financial services;
medical and health services;
legal services;
gambling;
the sale of petroleum products;
the sale of firearms; and
bars, restaurants, cafeterias, similar leisure-area establishments and discotheques covered by the relevant legislation.

A business regulated under the Tobacco Act still requires a separate business licence. Applicants should therefore confirm whether sector-specific approval replaces or operates alongside the general licence.

Trading in goods

A goods licence must identify the relevant wholesale, retail or export activity and specify the goods to be traded. The current goods categories and restrictions can be obtained from the Office of Fair Trading.

Commercial importation can also require an HM Customs code. The official licensing material states that a business licence is needed to obtain the code used to import goods commercially in the business's own name.

Selling goods online does not normally convert the activity into an online service. A business that sells goods remains a trader even if orders are taken online and goods are delivered directly to customers.

A business that only takes orders and arranges for a manufacturer or retailer to deliver directly to the consumer may instead be treated as providing a drop-shipping service. Such a service licence does not authorise the business to import the goods in its own name.

Providing services

The application must identify and describe the proposed services clearly. The current service categories can be obtained from the Office of Fair Trading. If a service is not obvious from the listed categories, the applicant should provide sufficient detail for the activity to be assessed.

Some service activities require evidence of professional qualifications, experience, insurance, operational policies or approval from another authority.

Business premises

General requirement

A licence authorises the specified business from the premises identified in the licence. Unless a waiver applies, the applicant must demonstrate that the premises permit and are appropriate for the proposed commercial activity.

Evidence of occupation will normally include a lease or tenancy agreement covering at least 12 months. A registered office supplied solely by a trust and corporate service provider, or a virtual office that only receives mail, is not generally accepted as the operational premises.

Traders

Traders must generally have appropriate commercial premises such as a retail unit or store. A home is not ordinarily suitable and an office is not generally treated as appropriate for trading goods. This applies even where the business sells online or delivers directly to customers.

A trader in goods is not eligible for a premises waiver.

Working from home

The official licensing material limits home-based trading to qualifying cottage-industry or artisan activity within the £20,000 turnover provision, using the registration-only route. A premises waiver does not itself authorise commercial operations from government housing or from property subject to contractual or title restrictions.

Premises waiver for service businesses

A service business, including an eligible cross-frontier service provider, may request a waiver where the activity genuinely does not require dedicated premises. The waiver is discretionary and is not granted simply because the applicant is established in Spain or another country.

The applicant should explain:

how the business will operate without dedicated premises;
where and how the services will be delivered;
how clients and suppliers will contact the business;
whether any goods, equipment, records or client money will be held;
the number of workers involved; and
why the waiver would not create an unfair advantage over similar Gibraltar businesses to the detriment of consumers or the economy.

Waivers are not available to traders and may be unavailable to some service providers handling client money. Approval of a waiver does not remove lease, title, government-housing, headlessor or freeholder restrictions.

Sharing or using multiple premises

More than one licensed business may be permitted to share premises where their activities are compatible. A licence can also address multiple locations in circumstances where goods or services are provided remotely by automated, mechanical or electronic means without human intervention at those locations. Each arrangement remains subject to assessment.

Documents for the Business Application

Applicants should prepare the following documents and information where applicable:

Gibraltar resident identity cards for applicants or directors providing a residential address in Gibraltar;
an identity card, passport or other proof of identification for applicants or directors providing a residential address outside Gibraltar;
a Spanish Residency Card (Tarjeta de Residencia) for non-Spanish nationals providing a residential address in nearby Spain;
personal details of the self-employed applicant or each partner, including name, residential address, date of birth, nationality, job title and contact number;
the business name and business-name registration number, where applicable;
the company name and company incorporation number, where applicable;
a lease or licence agreement for each business premises and interior and exterior photographs or a site plan, where applicable;
a detailed premises-waiver explanation, where requested;
if no business licence is required, proof of another licence, evidence of an application for a different licence or an explanation of the claimed exemption;
if the business will handle client money, evidence of a client account or confirmation that this will be provided within the following three months; and
qualifications, insurance and policies applicable to the proposed service categories.

Activity-specific supporting material

Depending on the activity, the application can request additional evidence. Examples appearing in the current application process include:

a curriculum vitae and evidence of qualifications or professional competence;
professional indemnity, public-liability or other insurance in the correct name and territory;
medical-service information and insurance;
safeguarding certificates and policies for services involving children or vulnerable adults;
technical approvals for regulated trades;
layout or occupancy information for shared or co-working premises;
waste-management permits; and
anti-money-laundering, counter-terrorist-financing and counter-proliferation-financing risk assessments, policies and ownership or control information where applicable.

Not universal: These documents are activity-specific. They should not be described as required from every applicant. The live application should be checked for the proposed service category.

Working directors and work permits

If a director will work in the business, Terms of Engagement must be completed and submitted to the Department of Employment if the application is approved.
A non-EU director may also require a Work Permit Application.
Employees, partners and self-employed workers must be registered where applicable.

Detached workers

An overseas company subcontracted by a registered Gibraltar contracting-in employer may be able to use the Detached Worker regime rather than establish its own Gibraltar business. The newly published guidance identifies non-chargeable visits of less than 48 hours, expedited applications for up to 10 working days and the general route for work exceeding 10 working days.

This is not a general exemption for an overseas business dealing directly with Gibraltar customers. The full conditions are explained in Cross-Frontier Trading Requirements.

One-off delivery exception

The Department of Business guide describes a narrow exception for a business from the Campo de Gibraltar delivering goods to one Gibraltar client through a single transport operation ending at that point, with no installation, no on-site service and no subsequent collection for another delivery.

This exception concerns business registration and licensing for that one-off delivery. It should not be extended to regular deliveries or treated as removing customs, product, vehicle or road-transport obligations.

Renewal and continuing compliance

A business licence is valid for one year and must be renewed annually. Operating after expiry can amount to unlicensed business activity. Businesses must also keep their registered particulars, activity descriptions, premises and contact information current.

Professional assistance

Licensing, exemptions, premises, employment and sector-specific approvals can overlap. Depending on the activity, readers may require Business Advisers, Accountants, Lawyers or Company Management and Formation Specialists.

These contextual service references are provided for information and ease of reference. They do not constitute recommendations and do not replace individual professional advice.

Pre-application checklist

Define every proposed good or service clearly.
Confirm the legal or trading structure before starting the Business Application.
Check whether another Gibraltar enactment regulates the activity.
Do not rely on an exemption without identifying its legal basis.
Confirm whether the £20,000 registration-only provision can apply.
Secure suitable premises or prepare a complete waiver explanation.
Confirm that the proposed address can legally be used.
Prepare identity, company, business-name and premises documents.
Identify all activity-specific qualifications, insurance and policies.
Plan Employment Service, tax, PAYE and social-insurance registrations.
Check the live application immediately before submission.

Official contacts

General business support: business.support@gibraltar.gov.gi
Business licensing: business.licensing@gibraltar.gov.gi
Business registration: business.registration@gibraltar.gov.gi

Related Gibraltar.com guidance

Authoritative sources and official documents

Official materials are listed here as the evidence base for this Gibraltar.com guide. They do not replace the practical explanation above.

Important: This page provides general information based on official material available on 31 July 2026. It is not legal, tax, accounting, employment or regulatory advice. Requirements may change as the newly published procedures are implemented and refined. Applicants should verify current requirements with the relevant Gibraltar authority and obtain appropriate professional advice before commencing business or making contractual commitments.

Published by the Gibraltar.com Editorial Team

First published and last reviewed: 1 August 2026. Source material reviewed: 31 July 2026.

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