The future of UK-EU touring is back on the political agenda. More than 300 music, live performance and cultural organisations from both sides of the Channel have signed a joint letter to Prime Minister Andy Burnham, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The letter asks them to use the second UK-EU summit, due in Brussels on Friday 20 November, to break the long-running deadlock over cross-border touring.
Who is behind the UK-EU touring letter
The letter comes from the Cultural Exchange Coalition, an alliance formed in December 2025. Its members include the live sector trade body LIVE. The coalition’s main request is a structured EU-UK dialogue with a clear roadmap. It wants that dialogue to cover practical fixes for moving touring professionals and their equipment, and UK involvement in European programmes such as Creative Europe. Speaking for the coalition, UK Music chief executive Tom Kiehl called for urgent action from both the UK government and EU institutions to reverse the damage Brexit has done to the creative sector.
The cost of friction
The case for change rests on the numbers. Government research on the economic benefits of touring, based on PRS for Music data, estimated that the drop in touring by UK musicians across Europe has cost EU member state economies £1.04 billion and 17,010 full-time-equivalent jobs. A UK Music survey found that 95% of touring musicians have lost earnings since Brexit.
The underlying problem is structural. The Trade and Cooperation Agreement that took effect in 2021 left artistic activities off its list of short-term business visits. As a result, artists and crew must work through separate immigration systems in each member state, as well as the Schengen limit of 90 days in any 180. The industry’s main requests have not changed. It wants a bespoke visa waiver agreement for cultural touring, a longer-term touring visa, and cultural exemptions from cabotage rules and ATA carnets.
What it means for the business
For labels, management companies and agents, the effects add up. Each additional permit, haulage restriction or customs document raises the cost of a European run. The hardest hit are developing acts, whose tours often run at a loss even when there is no extra red tape. Shorter or cancelled EU routings weaken the live-to-streaming pipeline that drives catalogue value. The cost also runs the other way: promoters, venues and local economies in the EU lose business when fewer UK acts tour there.
There are signs of movement. In March, Culture Minister Ian Murray promised the government’s “full commitment” to removing the barriers. The European Commission’s visa strategy has also committed to exploring extended short stays for certain professionals, including touring artists. Investors and rights holders should watch whether the 20 November summit produces a formal dialogue with deadlines, or simply another round of general statements.
More news on BEATMAG TV.
