Commission proposes visa-free travel to citizens of 16 Island Nations

Brussels, 8-11-2012 — /europawire.eu/ — Citizens from 16 Island Nations will soon be able to travel to the Schengen area without needing a visa. This will open up to opportunities and advantages both for the EU and the nationals of these 16 nations.

“Travelling without a visa is not just a symbolic gesture – it will have a direct impact on citizens of these countries and on EU citizens, in the form of more people-to-people contacts and business opportunities”, said Cecilia Malmström, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs.

Today, the European Commission proposed to add 5 Caribbean Island Nations (Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago), 10 Pacific Island Nations (Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu) and Timor-Leste to the list of third countries and territories whose nationals are exempt from the visa obligation.

The objective is to simplify travel to the Schengen area, as well as to Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania. A national from one of these countries would no longer require a visa for short stays (up to 90 days) if he/she is in possession of a passport, be it for business, touristic or family visit purposes. This will make travel planning easier and reduce the travelling costs. Member States’ limited consular presence in many of these countries has resulted in visa applicants often having to travel abroad to apply for a Schengen visa.

The Commission’s proposal foresees that the visa exemption will be reciprocated through visa waiver agreements, ensuring a visa free regime for all EU citizens who wish to travel to these countries. (Moreover, specific categories of British citizens currently under the visa obligation (an estimated 300.000 people mostly residing in British Overseas Territories like Bermuda and the Turks and Caicos islands) will also be exempt.

It is now up to the European Parliament and to the Council of the European Union to take a final decision on the Commission proposal.

Report on the functioning of Local Schengen cooperation

Today the Commission also adopted a report on the functioning of the Local Schengen Cooperation’. The report evaluates the first two years of implementation of the EU Visa Code and makes concrete recommendations for how cooperation can be improved in the future, for instance by burden sharing of all involved actors. Improved local Schengen cooperation, particularly on the harmonisation of practices, will contribute to strengthening the credibility of the EU common visa policy and will ensure that all visa applicants receive equal, fair and transparent treatment.

Background

Today’s proposal to transfer these 16 countries to the visa-free list by amending Regulation 539/2001 is the result of the regular review process carried out by the European Commission. It is based on a case by case assessment of technical requirements and criteria relating, amongst others, to irregular migration, public policy and security, and to the European Union’s external relations with third countries.

Since its adoption, the Visa Regulation has been amended eight times. Most recently, in 2010 when Taiwan, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina were transferred to the visa-free list.

Currently, the Schengen area includes 22 EU Member States and four associated States (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland). Once nationals from these non-EU countries enter the Schengen area, they can move freely from one country to another. The visa waiver will also apply to Romania, Bulgaria and Cyprus which are not yet full members of the Schengen area.

The UK and Ireland do not participate in the Schengen cooperation and do not take part in the common visa policy. They therefore have separate visa arrangements with non-EU countries.

In 2011, EU Member States and the countries participating in the Schengen cooperation issued around 12 million visas.

The provisions of the Visa Code (Regulation (EC) 810/2009) are applied universally by Member States’ consulates. However, given the differences in local circumstances it is essential to have a coherent cooperation among Member States and the Commission so that there is a harmonised application of the general legal provisions at the same time as local circumstances are taken into account.

Within the Local Schengen Cooperation, work is carried out for instance to assess whether Member States need to harmonise lists of supporting documents to be submitted by visa applicants in a given country. In 2011, the Commission already took two Decisions on such harmonised lists covering around 20 locations in key third countries like China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. These lists contribute to ensuring that visa applicants receive equal treatment in line with the provisions of the Visa Code.

Useful Links

Link to the Local Schengen Cooperation Report

Cecilia Malmström’s website

Follow Commissioner Malmström on Twitter

DG Home Affairs website

Follow DG Home Affairs on Twitter