The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Visiting opticians: saving of old law for up to [F1 five years] U.K.

26.—(1) Where—

(a) a person had, immediately before [F2 IP completion day], the benefit of regulation 12 of the European Union (Recognition of Professional Qualifications) Regulations 2015 in respect of the provision by that person of services as an optometrist or dispensing optician (and section 8C(3) or 8D(3) of the 1989 Act accordingly applied to the person), and

(b) the person continues to have that benefit on or after [F3 IP completion day],

any provision made by an Act or instrument amended by Part 1 of this Schedule continues to apply in relation to the provision of those services by that person without the amendments that Part 1 of this Schedule makes to the provisions relating to visiting opticians from relevant European states [F4 (but subject, in the case of a relevant applicant, to the modifications to the 1989 Act specified in sub-paragraph (4))].

[F5 (1A) But a relevant applicant in relation to whom sub-paragraph (1) applies may not provide services as an optometrist or a dispensing optician (as the case may be) for a period exceeding 90 days in total in any calendar year.]

(2) Sub-paragraph (1) ceases to apply in relation to a visiting optometrist or dispensing optician—

(a) if the optometrist or optician is registered as required by section 8C(3) or 8D(3) of the 1989 Act, when his or her name is removed under section 8C(6) or 8D(6) of the Act;

(b) otherwise, when his or her entitlement ceases by reason of the operation of section 8C(5) or 8D(5) of the Act.

[F6 (2A) Sub-paragraph (2) does not apply in the case of a Swiss visiting optician.

(2B) But a Swiss visiting optician’s entitlement does not continue (or further continue) under sections 8C or 8D of the 1989 Act on or after the end of the visiting practitioner transitional period.

(2C) In this paragraph, “Swiss visiting optician” means a visiting optometrist or dispensing optician who—

(a) is a national of the United Kingdom or is a Swiss national, or

(b) is a third country national, who was, immediately before IP completion day, by virtue of an enforceable EU right entitled to be treated, for the purposes of access to and pursuit of the profession of optometrist or dispensing optician, no less favourably than a national of the United Kingdom or Switzerland.]

(3) The reference in sub-paragraph (1) to “the provisions relating to visiting opticians from relevant European states” is to the provisions listed in the following table.

Act or instrument	Provision relating to visiting opticians
The 1989 Act	sections 8B to 8D
	section 10(1)(c) and (1ZA)
	section 10A(11)
	section 11A(5) to (7)
	section 11B(1A) to (1C)
	section 29(2A)
	section 36(1)
	Schedule 1, paragraph 1A(1)(b)(ii)
National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978	section 108(1)
National Health Service (General Ophthalmic Services) Regulations 1986	regulation 2(1)
National Health Service (Service Committees and Tribunal) Regulations 1992	regulation 2(1)
Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004	regulation 2(1)
General Optical Council (Registration) Rules 2005	rules 2(1A), 21A and 21B
National Health Service (General Ophthalmic Services) (Scotland) Regulations 2006	regulation 2(1)
National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 2009	regulation 2(1)
Patient Rights (Treatment Time Guarantee) (Scotland) Regulations 2012	regulation 1(2)
Human Medicines Regulations 2012	regulation 8(1)

[F7 (4) The modifications to the 1989 Act mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) are—

(a) section 8C is to be read as if in subsection (1)—

(i) for “an exempt person” there were substituted “a relevant applicant (within the meaning given in regulation 1A of the European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019”;

(ii) for “a relevant European State other than the United Kingdom” there were substituted “Switzerland”;

(b) section 8D is to be read as if in subsection (1)—

(i) for “an exempt person” there were substituted “a relevant applicant (within the meaning given in regulation 1A of the European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019)”;

(ii) for “a relevant European State other than the United Kingdom” there were substituted “Switzerland”;

(c) section 11A is to be read as if in subsection (7), for the words from “the relevant” to the end there were substituted “Switzerland”;

(d) section 11B is to be read as if in subsection (1C), for the words from “the relevant” to the end there were substituted “Switzerland”.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in Sch. 5 para. 26 heading substituted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(a)

F2 Words in Sch. 5 para. 26(1)(a) substituted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(b)(i)

F3 Words in Sch. 5 para. 26(1)(b) substituted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(b)(i)

F4 Words in Sch. 5 para. 26(1) inserted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(b)(ii)

F5 Sch. 5 para. 26(1A) inserted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(c)

F6 Sch. 5 para. 26(2A)-(2C) inserted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(d)

F7 Sch. 5 para. 26(4) inserted (31.12.2020 immediately before IP completion day) by The European Qualifications (Health and Social Care Professions) (EFTA States) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1394), regs. 1(2), 13(4)(e)

Commencement Information

I1 Sch. 5 para. 26 in force at 31.12.2020 on IP completion day (in accordance with 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)), see reg. 1(2)