EU Parliament confirms stricter ‘Visa emergency brake’
Strasbourg (dpa) – In cases of human rights violations or security risks posed by third countries without EU visa requirements, the European Union can more easily reintroduce these in the future. The European Parliament gave the green light in Strasbourg for a corresponding reform of the mechanism, with more possible reasons for the withdrawal of visa-free travel.
These include, for example, violations of the UN Charter, disregard for decisions of international courts, lack of alignment with EU visa policy, or programs for so-called golden passports. “Golden passports” is a term for granting citizenship of a country in exchange for money, in order to enjoy greater freedom of travel in Europe.
The tightening is also intended to have a “deterrent effect,” the Parliament stated in a communication. Visa-free travel for government representatives can also be specifically suspended if they are held responsible for human rights violations or other offenses.
New rules offer more flexibility
The basic mechanism has been in place for a long time. Until now, visa requirements could be reintroduced for countries if the number of asylum applications from there significantly increased. The new rules make this “emergency brake” more flexible. It is also conceivable that the EU could increasingly use these tightening measures in visa policy as leverage if countries do not cooperate on migration issues.
According to the Parliament, the rules affect 61 countries. These include Israel, Georgia, Venezuela, Ukraine, and Serbia. Their citizens are currently allowed to enter the Schengen Area without a visa for short stays of up to 90 days within a period of 180 days.
The legal act still needs to be formally approved by the Council of the European Union. It will come into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. (October 7)
