Article 50: What will Brexit mean for me?

Brexit formally begins today, nine months after the UK voted in a national referendum to leave the EU.

Theresa May's government now has two years to thrash out the terms of the departure, including how much the "divorce bill" will be, and establish new trade deals with the 27 other member nations.

Here are some ways Brexit could affect the daily lives of Britons.

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Holidays in the sun to Costa Lot?

Voting for Brexit has already had an impact on the millions of Britons who travel elsewhere in Europe for their summer holidays as the decreased value of the pound has reduced the amount of foreign currency in their pockets and put up expenses abroad.

According to Sky News, "depending on deals struck with EU", flights could become more expensive as we leave the bloc.

Another extra cost could be a visa waiver charge. UK travellers could be required to pay a £10 charge in order to enter EU countries on holiday, the broadcaster says.

Bills, bills, bills

Roaming charges are banned for EU citizens sending text messages and searching on the internet in all countries, but Brexit might mean Brits have to pay up when abroad from 2019 onwards.

A new, blue passport

As the existing UK passport is embossed with "European Union", it will need replacing. However, the roll-out of new ones will only happen once travellers' current passports expire.

There is much chatter of the UK version being blue, almost 30 years after the decision was taken to move to the EU burgundy.

No more Pret a Manger sandwiches?

Sandwich shop Pret a Manger, which has almost 300 branches in the UK, more than half of them in London, warned earlier this month that it will struggle to staff its outlets if free movement is ended by Brexit because only one in 50 applicants for its jobs is British. Some 65 per cent of staff are from other EU countries.

HR director Andrea Wareham told a House of Lords committee she was "absolutely concerned" by the government's insistence it will focus on allowing skilled workers into the country and said recruiting British workers would only happen "over a long period of time", the BBC reported.

Jobs at risk?

Some sectors doing trade with the EU, particularly financial services, car manufacturing, oil and gas, might be at risk, says Sky News.

However trade negotiations pan out between the EU and the UK will determine whether jobs are affected. But other industries will probably flourish - particularly tourism, as foreign visitors take advantage of the fall in the pound.

The end of pet passports?

At the moment, dogs, cats and ferrets can be taken anywhere in the EU if they have a pet passport, a scheme which originated in the UK, where rabies has long been eradicated, and then taken up by the EU.

This will "likely" continue, says Sky, but again, "it depends on the negotiations". Because rabies does not exist in the UK, there is a good chance our animal friends will be welcomed overseas, however the talks pan out.

A hard border for Ireland?

Once the UK has left the EU, it will share only one land border with the bloc: the line that divides Northern Ireland from the Republic of Ireland.

According to The Times, business owners in counties on both sides are fearful that a hard border with customs checks may have to be put in place after Brexit. As the two parts of the island do more trade with each other than anywhere else, tariffs and red tape could be disastrous.