"The EU currently has a visa-free regime with 61 countries, plus Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Citizens from these countries can enter the Schengen area without a visa and stay for up to 90 days within a 180-day period. Among countries included in the scheme, there are Albania, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates."
"Since 2013, a suspension mechanism is in place allowing member states to temporarily suspend the visa exemption to address possible abuses. In 2023, the Commission proposed to update the rules to reflect new security threats. Following the European Parliament approval in October, the EU Council agreed new rules on Monday that will enable the EU to revoke the visa-free status to countries that "do not align with the EU's visa policy", in other words those that allow third country nationals to arrive legally on their territory and then enter EU countries irregularly."
"Europe remains the world's most visited continent by tourists and business travellers alike, and our visa policy is therefore one of our strongest foreign policy tools. With a modernised suspension mechanism, the EU will be able to suspend visa-free travel in the case of serious human rights violations, and can target suspensions at government officials or other groups."
The EU maintains a visa-free regime covering 61 countries plus Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, permitting stays up to 90 days within a 180-day period. Eligible nationals from a wide range of countries can enter the Schengen area without a visa. Since 2013 a suspension mechanism has allowed member states to temporarily suspend visa exemptions to address abuses. New rules agreed by the European Parliament and the EU Council expand grounds for revocation, including failure to align with EU visa policy, citizenship-by-investment schemes, serious human-rights violations and "hostile acts" such as cyber operations, economic espionage or sabotage of critical infrastructure. The mechanism permits targeted suspensions against government officials or specific groups.
#eu-visa-policy #schengen-area #migration-control #security-and-cyber-threats #citizenship-by-investment
Read at The Local Germany
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