LATVIA'S ACCESSION TO THE SCHENGEN AREA AND CHANGES IN VISA ISSUANCE
I. EXPANSION OF THE SCHENGEN AREA
II. TRAVEL IN THE SCHENGEN AREA
I. EXPANSION OF THE SCHENGEN AREA Old member states of the Schengen area Before the expansion of the Schengen area on 21 December 2007, the common Schengen area was formed by Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Norway and Iceland. New member states of the Schengen area Together with Latvia, the following states acceded to the Schengen area on 21 December 2007: Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary – all the states that joined the European Union on 1 May 2004, with the exception of Cyprus.
The Council's decision on expansion of the Schengen area During the December 6 of 2007 session of the Council of Justice and Internal Affairs, a Council decision was made on the full application of the provisions of the Schengen acquis in the Czech Republic, and in the Republics of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia. This decision provided for the abolition of internal land and sea border controls as of 21 December 2007, and of air space border controls as of 30 March 2008. II. TRAVEL IN THE SCHENGEN AREA Travel in the Schengen area with a uniform or Schengen visa A foreigner in possession of a uniform or Schengen visa, and not in violation of the conditions of its validity – i.e. the term of its validity, the allowed number of entries and total residence time in the Schengen area, and having observed the purpose of the visit as stated at the time of issuance of the visa, may enter and reside throughout the territory of the member states of the Schengen Agreement. Travel in the Schengen area with a residence permit Foreigners holding a residence permit issued by a member state of the Schengen Agreement, including Latvia, is able to travel to the territory of other members states of the Schengen Agreement for no more than three months out of the half year, if they are in compliance with the requirements of Article 5 of the Schengen Borders Code, and if the Schengen member state shall have entered the specific residence permit in the List of residence permits, referred to in Article 2(15) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 establishing a Community Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code) and its updated versions (see the web page Access to European Union legal acts). Latvian visas issued prior to Latvia's accession to Schengen Latvian visas issued prior to Latvia's accession to the Schengen area, and which are still valid, have become visas with limited territorial validity, valid for entry into and residence in Latvia only. The decision of the Council of Justice and Internal Affairs of December 6 of 2007 regarding the abolition of internal borders contains a provision, inter alia, that short-term visas valid until 30 June 2008, which the new member states of the Schengen Agreement shall have issued prior to their accession to the Schengen area, shall be valid for necessary transit through the territories of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, in accordance with the provisions of the Decision No. 895/2006/EK of 14 June 2006 of the EU Council and Parliament.
It is possible to cross Latvia's borders with other member states of Schengen Agreement (internal borders) at any point without a border check of the person. Latvia's borders with non-member states of Schengen Agreement (external borders) continue to be available for crossing only at border control points and during specified working hours. The uniform visa is valid territorially throughout the territory of the member states of the Schengen Agreement. The Latvian representations have started issuing uniform or Schengen visas as of 21 December 2007.
Prerequisites for obtaining a uniform visa As provided for in Article 5 (1) of the Borders Code, the foreigner may receive a uniform visa if he fulfils the following requirements:
Uniform visa categories Uniform visas may fall into the following categories:
The long-term visa is a category "D" visa, issued for visits in excess of three months. This allows the foreigner to spend the entire time specified in the visa in the territory of the issuing member state of the Schengen Agreement. Member states issue long-term visas in conformity with their national normative acts. This type of visa allows the foreigner to cross the territory of another member state while in transit, in order to reach the territory of the member state issuing the visa, on the condition that the bearer of the long-term visa fulfils the entry requirements mentioned in Article 5 of the Schengen Borders Code. Visa with a limited territorial validity A visa with limited territorial validity may be either a category "B" (transit visa) or a "C" (short-term visa). A visa with limited territorial validity is issued in exceptional cases, when the representation is unable to issue a uniform visa which would be valid throughout the territory of the Schengen Agreement. A visa with limited territorial validity is issued in cases where one or more of the member states do not recognize the travel document submitted by the foreigner for the purpose of obtaining a visa. In that case the foreigner is issued a visa which territorially is valid only in those Schengen member states which have accepted his/her travel document. The foreigner in possession of a visa with limited territorial validity may cross in transit and stay only in those states where such a visa is valid. In other individual cases, provided for in normative legal acts, a visa with limited territorial validity may be issued to a citizen of a third state for humanitarian reasons, or because of national interest or international obligations. Determination of the responsible state A foreigner wishing to obtain a Schengen visa must apply at the representation of the responsible state. The "responsible state" is a state whose territory is the only or main object of the visit, and is the state responsible for making the decision on a visa application. If a foreigner intends to visit several states so that it will not be possible to determine which of the states is the main destination of travel, the responsible state will be considered to be the one where the traveller plans to spend the most time. But if the visit consists of equal amounts of time in different states, the essential criterion for determining the responsible state will be the initial visit. If the above criteria are not applicable for determining the state of final destination, the responsible state will be considered to be the traveller's first point of entry after inspection of documents on the external border prior to entry into the Schengen area. Since the beginning of 2007 the Foreign Ministry has been making arrangements to ensure that another Schengen member state issues uniform or Schengen visas on behalf of Latvia in those states where Latvia has neither diplomatic nor consular representation. At present Latvia has reached agreements under which Germany represents Latvia in 14 locations, Hungary represents Latvia in 6 locations, and France represents Latvia in one location. No significant changes are expected in the visa issuance procedure. In anticipation of its participation in the European Union and the application of the Schengen acquis, Latvia has over the past few years incorporated into its national legislation most of the principles and requirements regarding visa issuance, as provided for in the normative legal acts of the European Community. Accession to Schengen gives greater significance to the issue of local consular co-operation among consular officials of member states. The goal is to work toward uniform criteria for the review of visa applications, and to exchange information about visa applicants. The least amount of admissible insurance that a foreigner must carry when entering the Schengen area is 30,000 EUR. This sum has to cover all expenses which could arise with the medical repatriation of the traveller, or any emergency medical assistance and unforeseen hospitalisation. When applying for a uniform or Schengen visa, the applicant must have an insurance policy valid in all member states, and it must cover the entire period of the visit in the Schengen area. Visa applicants will be required to prove that they have appropriate and valid individual or collective travel insurance, when applying for a short-term or travel visa. Accession to the Schengen area will make binding for Latvia the Council Decision 2006/440/EC of 1 June 2006, which increases the fee for review of transit and short-term visas applications of third country citizens up to 60 EUR, for visa applications in categories "A", "B", and "C" unless the European Community agreement with the respective third country provides for a different amount. In accordance with the decision, the following do not have to pay visa application fees:
The Council Decision 2006/440/EC also provides for the possibility of cancelling or reducing the amount of the fee in individual cases, in conformity with existing national laws, if by doing so the state can promote its cultural interests, as well as its foreign policy and development policy interests, or its interests in an area of vital social interest, or because of humanitarian reasons. The role of intermediaries in the submission of visa applications Tourist agencies are able to continue submitting visa applications at foreign representations on behalf of their clients. Representation adopts a decision on the spot, as to the accreditation of a specific agency. Agreements between the European Community and third states regarding the facilitation of visa issuance Russian Federation Agreement between the European Community and the Russian Federation on facilitation of the issuance of visas to the citizens of the European Union and the Russian Federation. The purpose of the agreement is to ease visa issuance to citizens of the European Community and the Russian Federation, whose planned visit will not exceed 90 days during any 180 day period. In accord with the Agreement, the fee for a routine review of visa applications by Russian Federation citizens shall be 35 EUR. In urgent cases, if the application has been submitted three days or less prior to departure, the fee shall be 70 EUR. The Agreement provides for no-fee visa applications in the following categories:
Ukraine Agreement between the European Community and Ukraine on the facilitation of visa issuance. The purpose of the agreement is to facilitate the issuance of visas to Ukrainian citizens, whose planned visit does not exceed 90 days in any 180 day period. In accord with the Agreement, the fee for the routine review of a visa application shall be 35 EUR for Ukrainian citizens, but in urgent cases, if the application has been submitted three days or less prior to the planned departure - 70 EUR. The Agreement provides for, among others, for non-fee visa applications in the following categories:
An agreement between the governments of Latvia and Ukraine is currently being drafted, concerning the mutual exchange of visits of citizens, and the abolition of visa requirements for travellers with official passports.
Moldova Agreement between the European Community and Moldova regarding the facilitation of short-term visa issuance. As provided for in the Agreement, Moldovan citizens will pay 35 EUR for a visa application. The Agreement lists the following categories as being entitled to no-fee visa applications:
Western Balkans On 1 January 2008, agreements entered into force on the facilitation of short-term visa issuance between the European Community and the Republics of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Serbia, the Republic of Montenegro, and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The agreements provide for a fee of 35 EUR for visa applications for the citizens of the above-mentioned countries, and no-fee applications for persons in specified categories. Footnotes: (1) EP and Council Regulation (EC) No. 562/2006 (15 March 2006) which introduces the Schengen Community Code regarding the rules that regulate border-crossing by persons (Schengen Borders Code) (2) The third addendum to the Common Consular Instructions specifies that the persons requiring this type of visa are nationals of states and persons who may not be the nationals of those states, but whose travel documents have been issued by institutions of those states. Section III of the addendum lists the situations in which persons are not required to have an airport transit visa.
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