Scottish transfers: When does the summer transfer window close in Scotland? How late can deals be made?
Here's when the Scottish Premiership transfer window will close this summer.
The Scottish Premiership transfer window is now in the final stretch as clubs across the country look to make their final squad additions before next week’s deadline.
It has been an extremely active window for many clubs in the Scottish top flight, with Rangers manager Derek McInnes bringing in 11 new additions so far. Meanwhile, Celtic have broken their transfer record for Danish hotshot Kasper Hogh, alongside a raft of new arrivals, such as Camilo Duran and Haissem Hassan. Will there be more spending to come at Parkhead in the final days of the window?
Moving to the capital, Hearts have endured a summer of change. After losing key duo Lawrence Shankland and Cammy Devlin to Rangers, the Tynecastle club have brought in a raft of new faces, with Tom Renaud, Calvin Miller and Beau Reus the headline arrivals in the capital.
With just over a week to go, though, twists and turns are to be expected, with lots of activity likely in the Scottish Premiership before the deadline - but when does the summer transfer window officially slam shut?
Here’s everything you need to know about the Scottish Premiership transfer deadline, including how late clubs can conclude deals:
When does the Scottish transfer window close? When is transfer deadline day?
The Scottish Premiership transfer window officially opened in June this year and has seen a raft of activity throughout the top flight. However, we are now approaching the final few days of the window, with clubs facing a race against time to get those final deals over the line.
The Scottish Premiership transfer window will officially close on Thursday 3 September, at the earlier time of 5pm. This differs slightly from many of the top European leagues, with the English Premier League setting their deadline at the earlier date of Tuesday, 1 September. This means Scottish clubs get an extra two days to finalize their squads compared to their English counterparts.
What is a deal sheet?
Over the years, the famous ‘deal sheet’ has become more prevalent on transfer deadline day. This is because many deals can run right up until the final minutes of the transfer window.
In this instance a ‘deal sheet’ can be submitted to the league. In essence, a deal sheet is used if a deal is agreed between two clubs late in the day, but they are require additional time from the Scottish FA to complete and submit relevant documentation and paperwork. The deal sheet can be sent to authorities to indicate the transfer agreement has been reached, and the league can then opt to give clubs an additional two hours to complete the remaining paperwork that would conclude the transfer.
How late can deals be done?
Outside of the deal sheet, other examples of late deals include:
League agreements: Clubs are able to agree transfer with teams from other leagues that have closed transfer windows, and then complete the deals once their own window opens
Free agents: The first exception is that of free agents. If a player is without a club and available as a free agent, clubs in Scotland are able to sign and register the player without an exception.
Emergency deals: If a team requests to sign a player on an emergency basis, special dispensation could be granted to sign player outwith the transfer window. The most obvious example of this is if a team has multiple goalkeepers injured, a team may be allowed to make an emergency loan.
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