# EUR-Lex - 52014PC0164 - EN

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# 52014PC0164

**Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the Union Code on Visas (Visa Code) (recast) /* COM/2014/0164 final - 2014/0094 (COD) */**

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.           CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL

Grounds for and objectives of the
proposal

This proposal recasts and amends Regulation
(EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009
establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code).

This proposal takes into account the
increased political emphasis given to the economic impact of visa policy on the
wider European Union economy, and in particular on tourism, to ensure greater
consistency with the growth objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy, in line
with the Commission's communication Implementation and development of the
common visa policy to spur growth in the European Union.[1]

The proposal also builds on the conclusions
drawn in the Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the
Council on the evaluation of the implementation of the Visa Code[2]. The report is accompanied by a Commission staff working paper[3] containing the detailed evaluation.

This proposal also contains two measures to
facilitate family contacts: It introduces certain
procedural facilitations for close relatives coming to visit Union citizens
residing in the territory of the Member State of which the latter are nationals
and for close relatives of Union citizens living in a third country and wishing
to visit together with the Union citizen the Member State of which the latter
is a national.

Furthermore, it clarifies
that the same procedural facilitations should as a minimum be granted to family
members of EU citizens who benefit from article 5(2), second subparagraph of Directive
2004/38/EC on the rights of Union citizens and their family members to move and
reside freely within the territory of the Member States.

General context

Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community Code on
Visa (Visa Code) became applicable on 5 April 2010. The provisions regarding
notification and the requirements on providing the grounds of refusal,
revocation and annulment of visas and the right to appeal against such
decisions, became applicable on 5 April 2011.

Article 57(1) of the Visa Code requires the
Commission to send the European Parliament and the Council an evaluation of its
application two years after all the provisions of the Visa Code have become
applicable (i.e. 5 April 2013). The evaluation and accompanying staff working
document have been submitted. Article 57(2) provides that the evaluation may
be accompanied by a proposal for an amendment of the Regulation.

In the light of the evaluation report's
conclusions, the Commission decided to submit this proposal for amendments to
the legislation together with the report.

The proposed amendments while maintaining
security at the external borders and ensuring the good functioning of the Schengen
area, make travel easier for legitimate travellers and simplify the legal
framework in the interest of Member States, e.g. by allowing more flexible
rules on consular cooperation. The common visa policy should contribute to
generating growth and be coherent with other EU policies on external relations,
trade, education, culture and tourism.

Existing provisions

Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community Code on
Visas (Visa Code).

2.         RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS
WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND IMPACT ASSESSMENT

Consultation of interested parties

The consultation of interested parties is
covered in the impact assessment[4] accompanying this proposal.

Impact assessment (IA)

Based on the evaluation report referred to
in section 1, two principal problem areas were identified:

(1)        The overall length and costs
(direct and indirect) and the cumbersome nature of the procedures;

The complex nature of this problem area is
explained in detail in the IA. As far as regulatory options are concerned, the issuing of multiple-entry visas (MEVs) with a long
validity accompanied by certain procedural facilitations was considered the only win-win solution for both sides. It
has the potential to lessen the administrative burden on consulates and, at the
same time, it is considered a very important facilitation for certain groups of
travellers. In practice it would be equivalent to a visa waiver for the period
of validity of the MEV, resulting in significant savings and efficiency
gains both for visa applicants (in terms of time and cost) and consulates
(time). The policy options envisaged in response to this problem area are
therefore fairly similar. Only the beneficiaries to be covered and the length
of validity of the MEVs to be issued differ, as follows:

Minimum regulatory option: introduction of
mandatory procedural facilitations and mandatory issuing of MEVs valid for at
least one year and subsequently for three years for frequent travellers
(defined as applicants who have previously lawfully used at least three visas
(within the previous 12 months prior to the date of the application) that
are registered in the Visa Information System (VIS).

Intermediate option: introduction of mandatory procedural facilitations and mandatory
issuing of MEVs valid for at least three years and subsequently for five years
for regular travellers (defined as applicants who have previously lawfully used
at least two visas that are registered in the VIS).

The maximum option identified would
extend mandatory procedural facilitations and mandatory issuing of MEVs
immediately for five years to the majority of applicants ('VIS registered
applicants') by requiring only one lawfully used visa (within the previous
twelve months prior to the date of the application) that is registered in the VIS.

The IA showed that these options would all
further harmonise the current legal framework and would lead towards a
genuinely common visa policy. The potential economic impacts on the Member States
of these options occur because the travellers in possession of long(er)
validity MEVs with are likely to make more trips to the Schengen area than they
otherwise would. The IA estimates that some 500 000 additional trips to the
Schengen area with the minimum policy option, some 2 million with the
intermediate and some 3 million with the maximum policy option. The additional
trips to the Schengen area obviously generate additional income: some. EUR 300
million (some 7 600 supported full time equivalent /FTE/ jobs) in case
of the minimum option; more than EUR 1 billion (ca. 30 000 supported FTE job)
with the intermediate option and some EUR 2 billion (50 000 supported FTE jobs)
with the maximum option. The IA also showed that the very high potential economic
impact of the maximum option is associated with a higher security risk.

None of these options would involve
considerable additional costs. In fact, one of the driving forces behind the
policy options is to produce savings for both the Member States/consulates and
visa applicants. These options progressively lead to cost savings on the
applicants' side, mainly resulting from the increasing number of long-validity
MEVs issued. From the applicants' point of view, the maximum option is
obviously the most efficient, and the minimum option is the least efficient.
The declining number of visa applications under the MEV-system, is expected to
reduce Member States' visa revenues. However, the issuing of MEVs also reduces
costs, as fewer visa applications need to be processed: the economic benefits
considerably exceed the estimated costs in all options.

While it was clear that the maximum option
had a very high potential economic impact, it is associated with a potentially
higher security risk, too. To mitigate this risk, the approach proposed is to
issue longer-validity MEVs gradually to 'VIS registered regular travellers'
(first for three years, then on the basis of lawful use of that visa, for five
years). The impacts of this approach fall between the intermediate and the
maximum option identified in the IA, probably closer to the impacts of the
maximum option as far as the economic impacts are concerned.

(2)        insufficient geographical
coverage in visa processing.

The minimum policy option assessed for this
problem area was to repeal Article 41 of the Visa Code (co-location, Common
Application Centres (CAC)) and to introduce a general notion/concept of
'Schengen Visa Centre' which would provide a more realistic, more
flexible definition with regard to certain forms of consular cooperation. The
intermediate option in addition to the 'Schengen Visa Centres' was introducing
the concept of 'mandatory representation' according to which, if the Member
State competent to process the visa application is neither present nor
represented (under such an arrangement) in a given third country any other
Member State present in that country would be obliged to process visa
applications on their behalf. Finally, as a maximum option, in order to ensure
adequate visa collecting/processing coverage, Commission implementing decisions
could  lay down what the Schengen visa collecting network in third countries
should look like in terms of representation arrangements, cooperation with
external service providers and pooling of resources by other means.

The
IA noted that the maximum policy option could have the most positive impacts in
terms of rationalising the visa collecting/processing presence and could offer
important advantages for visa applicants and significant efficiency gains for consulates.
However its feasibility appears low. Based on the impact assessment, the
intermediate option was preferred. The IA points out that 'mandatory
representation' would secure consular coverage in any third country where there
is at least one consulate present to process visa applications. This could have
a positive impact on some 100 000 applicants who would be able to lodge the
application in their country of residence instead of travelling to a country
where the competent Member State is present or represented.

The
economic impacts of all the policy options were considered fairly modest. In
fact due to the very nature of the problem, the policy options were not aimed
at generating economic growth in the first place, but providing a better
service for visa applicants and providing a good legal framework for Member
States to rationalise their resources. The financial impacts of 'mandatory
representation' were considered not to be significant because, in principle, if
a high number of visa applications is addressed to a Member State in a given
third country that state will, in principle, already have ensured consular
presence by being present or represented. Moreover the visa fee, in principle,
covers the average cost of processing.

The non-regulatory policy options were
considered to have very little positive impact on addressing the problems or
achieving the policy objectives, so they were not considered very effective.

The evaluation report suggests, and this
proposal deals with a number of other (mostly quite technical) issues. The IA
did not cover those issues because the changes envisaged were not considered to
have substantial and/or measurable budgetary, social, or economic implications;
most of the proposed changes are intended to clarify or adjust/complement
certain provisions of the Visa Code without altering their substance.

3.           LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE
PROPOSAL

Summary

The proposed amendments concern the
following issues:

The provisions on individual Member States'
introduction of airport transit visa requirement for nationals of specific
third countries have been revised to ensure transparency and proportionality
(Article 3).

To distinguish clearly between different
categories of visa applicants while taking into account the full roll out of the
VIS, definitions of 'VIS registered applicants' and 'VIS registered regular
travellers' have been added (Article 2). This distinction is reflected in all
steps of the procedure (Articles 5, 10, 12, 13, 18 and 21). An overview of the
various procedural facilitations is set out below:

|| Lodging in person || Collection of fingerprints || Supporting documents || Visa to be issued

First time applicant – not VIS registered || YES || YES || Full list corresponding to all entry conditions || Single entry corresponding to travel purpose. However, a MEV may be issued, if the consulate considers the applicant reliable.

VIS registered applicant (but not a regular traveller) || NO || NO, unless the fingerprints have not been collected within the last 59 months || Full list corresponding to all entry conditions || Single entry or MEV

VIS registered regular traveller || NO || NO || Only proof of travel purpose Presumption (because of 'visa history' of fulfilment of entry conditions regarding migratory and security risk and sufficient means of subsistence. || First application: three year MEV Following applications: five-year MEV

The provisions regarding "competent
Member State" (Article 5) have been simplified to make it easier for
applicants to know where to lodge the application and to ensure that they can,
in principle, always lodge the application in their country of residence. This
implies that in case the competent Member State is neither present nor
represented in a given location, the applicant is entitled to apply at one of
the consulates present according to criteria set out in the article.

The provisions provide certain procedural
facilitations for close relatives of Union citizens so as to contribute to
improving their mobility, in particular by facilitating family visits (Articles
8, 13, 14 and 20).

First, the provisions provide for
facilitations for family members intending to visit Union citizens residing in
the territory of the Member State of which they are nationals and for family
members of Union citizens living in a third country and wishing to visit together
the Member State of which the EU citizens are nationals. Both categories of
situations are outside the scope of Directive 2004/38/EC. The Visa Facilitation
Agreements concluded and implemented by the EU with a number of third countries
demonstrate the importance of facilitating such visits: the amended Visa
Facilitation Agreements with Ukraine and Moldova, as well as the recent Visa
Facilitation Agreements with Armenia and Azerbaijan, provide facilitations
(e.g. visa fee waiver and the issuing of multiple entry visas (MEVs) with a
long validity) for the citizens of the third country concerned visiting close
relatives who have the nationality of the Member State of residence. This practice of the Union should be made
general in the Visa Code.

Secondly, according to the provisions the
same facilitations are granted as a minimum in situations covered by Directive
2004/38/EC. As provided in Article 5(2) of the Directive, Member States may,
where the EU citizen exercises the right to move and reside freely in their
territory, require the family member  who is a non-EU national to have an entry
visa. As confirmed by the Court of Justice[5],
such family members have not only the right to enter the territory of the Member State but also the right to obtain an entry visa for that purpose. According
to Article 5(2), second subparagraph of the Directive, Member States must grant
such persons every facility[6]
to obtain the necessary visas, which must be issued free of charge as soon as
possible and on the basis of an accelerated procedure.

It should be noted that Article 5(2) cited
above essentially contains the same provision as Article 3(2) of Directive
68/360/EEC[7]
which was repealed by Directive 2004/38/EC. Article 3(2) of Directive
68/360/EEC was adopted at a time when the then Community had no competence to
legislate on visas. Since the entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty on 1 May
1999, the Community has had a competence to legislate on visas. This
competence, currently enshrined in Article 77 of the TFEU, was used for the
adoption of the Visa Code. It is desirable to render more precise the
facilitations which Directive 2004/38/EC refers to, and the appropriate place
to do so is the Visa Code, where detailed rules on conditions and procedures for
the issuing of visas are established. While respecting the freedom of Member
States to grant further facilitations, the facilitations proposed for certain
close relatives of Union citizens who have not made use of their right to move
and reside freely within the Union should apply, as a minimum, in situations
which fall within the scope of Directive 2004/38/EC. Those facilitations are
then a common implementation in the Visa Code and for the Member States bound
by it, of the obligation contained in Article 5(2), second subparagraph of
Directive 2004/38/EC.

The provisions on visa fee waivers have
become mandatory rather than optional to ensure equal treatment of applicants
(Article 14). Certain categories eligible to visa fee waivers have been
enlarged, e.g. minors up to 18 years, or added (close relatives of Union
citizens not exercising their right to free movement).

General procedural facilitations:

– 
The principle of all applicants having to lodge
the application in person has been abolished (cf. Commission staff working
paper, point 2.1.1.1 (paragraph (7)).Generally, applicants will only be
required to appear in person at the consulate or the external service provider
for the collection of fingerprints to be stored in the Visa Information System
(Article 9).

– 
The maximum deadline for lodging an application
has been increased to allow travellers to plan ahead and avoid peak seasons;
likewise a minimum deadline for lodging an application has been set to allow
Member States time to proper assessment of applications and organisation of
work (Article 8).

– 
The general visa application form (Annex I) has
been simplified and a reference has been made to the use of electronic filling
in of the application form (Article 10).

– 
The list of supporting documents in Annex II is no
longer a "non-exhaustive list" and a distinction has been made
between unknown applicants and VIS registered regular travellers as regards the
supporting documents to be submitted (Article 13). The provisions regarding the
preparatory work on drawing up lists adapted to local circumstances in local
Schengen cooperation have been reinforced in Article 13.

– 
The unknown visa applicant (i.e. someone who has
not applied for a visa before) should prove that he fulfils the visa issuing
conditions.

– 
In this context, attention is drawn to the
recent 'Koushkaki judgement'[8] according to which Articles 23(4), 32(1) and 35(6) (Articles 20(4),
29(1) and 32(5) of the recast Visa Code) "must be interpreted as meaning
that the competent authorities of a Member State cannot refuse, following the
examination of an application for a uniform visa, to issue such a visa to an
applicant unless one of the grounds for refusal of a visa listed in those
provisions can be applied to that applicant. Those authorities have a wide discretion
in the examination of that application so far as concerns the conditions for
the application of those provisions and the assessment of the relevant facts,
with a view to ascertaining whether one of those grounds for refusal can be
applied to the applicant."

– 
The European Court of Justice also ruled that the
provisions of Article 32(1) (now Article 29(1)) of the Visa Code, read in
conjunction with Article 21(1) (now Article 18(1)), "must be interpreted
as meaning that the obligation on the competent authorities of a Member State
to issue a uniform visa is subject to the condition that there is no reasonable
doubt that the applicant intends to leave the territory of the Member States
before the expiry of the visa applied for, in the light of the general
situation in the applicant's country of residence and his individual characteristics,
determined in the light of information provided by the applicant."

– 
It should be presumed that 'VIS registered
regular travellers' fulfil the entry conditions regarding the risk of irregular
immigration and need to possess sufficient means of subsistence. However, this
presumption should be reversible in individual cases.

– 
The proposal establishes that the authorities of
the Member States can rebut the presumption of fulfilment of entry conditions
in an individual case and it establishes on which basis this can occur (Article
18(9)).

– 
General reduction of the deadlines for taking a
decision on a visa application (Article 20) in the light of the shortening of
the response time in the prior consultation procedure (Article 19). Short
deadlines are introduced for the examination of applications from family
members of Union citizens exercising their right to free movement and from
close relatives of Union citizens not exercising their right to free movement.

– 
A MEV may be issued with a validity going beyond
the validity of the travel document (Article 11(a)).

– 
The provisions on travel medical insurance (TMI)
should be deleted because the actual added value of the TMI measure has never
been established (cf. Commission staff working paper, point 2.1.1.2 (14)).

– 
The standard form for notifying and motivating
refusal, annulment or revocation of a visa has been be revised to include a
specific ground for refusal of an airport transit visa and to ensure that the
person concerned is properly informed about appeal procedures.

– 
Provisions derogating from the general
provisions on the exceptional issuing of visas at the external border have been
introduced: Member States will in view of promoting short term tourism be
allowed to issue visas at the external borders under a temporary scheme and
upon notification and publication of the organisational modalities of the
scheme (Article 33).

– 
Flexible rules allowing Member States to
optimise use of resources, increase consular coverage and develop cooperation
among Member States have been added (Article 38).

– 
Member States' use of external service provider
is no longer to be the last resort solution.

– 
Member States are not obliged to maintain the
possibility of "direct access" for lodging applications at the
consulate in places where an external service provider has been mandated to
collect visa applications (deletion of previous Article 17(5)). However, family
members of Union citizens exercising their right to free movement and close
relatives of Union citizens not exercising their right to free movement as well
as applicants who can justify a case of emergency should be given an immediate appointment.

– 
Member States should annually report to the
Commission on the cooperation with external service providers, including the
monitoring of the service providers.

– 
Streamlining of the provisions regarding
representation arrangements (Article 39) (cf. Commission staff working paper,
points 2.1.1.5 (paragraph (20)) and 2.1.4 (paragraph 41)).

– 
As explained in the evaluation report (point 3.2)
the lack of sufficiently detailed statistical data hinders the assessment of
the implementation of certain provisions. Therefore, Annex VII is amended to
provide for the collection of all relevant data in a sufficiently disaggregated
form allow for proper assessment. All data concerned can be retrieved (by
Member States) from the VIS, except for information on the number of visas
issued free of charge, but given that that is linked to the general treasury of
the Member State, such data should be easily accessible.

– 
Strengthening of the legal framework regarding
information to the public (Article 45):

-         A common Schengen visa internet
website is to be created by the Commission

-        A template for the information to be given to visa
applicants is to be developed by the Commission

Technical amendments:

– 
Deletion of the reference to the specific travel
purpose "transit" (Article 1(1) mainly) given that short stay visas
are not purpose bound. The reference has only been maintained where it referred
to as a specific travel purpose, e.g. in Annex II to the Visa Code, listing the
supporting documents to be submitted according to purpose of travel

– 
Establishing harmonised rules on the handling of
situations of loss of identity document and valid visa (Article 7).

– 
Precise deadlines for Member States' various
notifications (15 days): on representation arrangements, introduction of prior
consultation and ex-post information.

– 
In accordance with Article 290 of the TFEU, the
power to amend non-essential elements of Regulation is delegated to the Commission
in respect of the list of third countries whose nationals are required to hold
an airport transit visa when passing through the international transit areas of
airports situated on the territory of the Member States (Annex III) and the
list of residence permits entitling the holder to transit through the airports
of Member States without being required to hold an airport transit visa (Annex
IV).

– 
In accordance with Article 291 of the TFEU, the
Commission should be empowered to adopt implementing acts establishing the list
of supporting documents to be to be used in each location to take account of
local circumstances, details for filling in and affixing of the visa stickers
and the rules for issuing visas to seafarers at the external borders.
Therefore, the previous annexes VII, VIII and IX should be deleted.

Legal basis

Article 77(2)(a) of the Treaty of the
Functioning of the European Union.

This proposal recasts Regulation (EC) No
810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009
establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code) which was based on the
equivalent provisions of the Treaty establishing the European Community, i.e.
Article 62(2)(a) and (b)(ii).

Subsidiarity principle

Article 77(2)(a) of the
TFEU empowers the Union to develop measures concerning 'the common policy on
visas and other short stay residence permits'.

The current proposal is within the limits
set by this provision. The objective of this proposal is to further develop and
improve the measures of the Visa Code concerning the conditions and procedures
for issuing visas for intended stays in the territory of Member States not
exceeding 90 days in any 180 days period. It cannot be sufficiently achieved by
the Member States acting alone, because an amendment to an existing Union Act
(the Visa Code) can only be achieved by the Union.

Proportionality principle

Article 5(4) of the TEU states that the content and form of Union
action must not exceed what is necessary to achieve the objectives of the
Treaties. The form chosen for this action must enable the proposal to achieve
its objective and be implemented as effectively as possible.

The establishment of the Visa Code in 2009
took the form of a Regulation in order to ensure that it would be applied in
the same way in all the Member States that apply the Schengen acquis.
The proposed initiative constitutes an amendment to an existing regulation and
must therefore take the form of a regulation. As to the content, this
initiative is limited to improvements of the existing regulation and based on
the policy objectives to which one new objective was added: economic growth.
The proposal therefore complies with the proportionality principle.

Choice of instrument

This proposal recasts Regulation No
810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009
establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code). Therefore only a Regulation
can be chosen as a legal instrument.

4.         BUDGETARY
IMPLICATIONS

The proposed amendment has no implications
for the EU budget.

5.           ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS

Consequences of the various protocols
annexed to the Treaties and of the association agreements concluded with third
countries

The legal basis for this proposal is to be
found in Title V of Part Three of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European
Union, with the result that the system of ‘variable geometry’, provided for in
the protocols on the position of the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark and
the Schengen protocol applies. The proposal builds on the Schengen acquis.
The consequences for the various protocols therefore have to be considered with
regard to Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom; Iceland and Norway; and
Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Likewise, the consequences for the various Acts
of Accessions must be considered. The detailed situation of each of these
states concerned is described in recitals 49-57 of this proposal. The system of
'variable geometry' of this proposal is identical to the one that applies to
the original Visa Code, with the addition of a reference to the 2011 Act of
Accession regarding Croatia.

Link with the simultaneous proposal for
a Regulation establishing a touring visa[9]

Possible amendments to this proposal during
the legislative process will have an impact on the proposal for a Regulation
establishing a touring visa, so particular attention should be paid to ensuring
the necessary synergies between these two proposals during the negotiation
process. If in the course of these negotiations an adoption within a similar
timeframe appears within reach, the Commission intends to  merge the two
proposals into one single recast proposal. In case the legislators reach
agreement on the present proposal before there is prospect of imminent
agreement on the proposal for a Regulation establishing the touring visa, the
provisions in this proposal relating to the envisaged touring visa (Articles
3(7), 12(3), 18(6)) should not be maintained for adoption but be inserted later
by an amendment to the Visa Code when agreement on the touring visa proposal has
eventually been reached.

Succinct
overview of the proposed amendments

Article 1 – Amendments to the Visa Code

Article 1 – Subject matter and
scope

– 
Horizontal change: throughout the text the
reference to "transit" as a travel purpose has been deleted.

Article 2 - Definitions

– 
Paragraph 6 is added to refer to the definition
of 'touring visa' in the relevant Regulation.

– 
Paragraph 7 is added to provide a definition of
'close relatives' (of citizens of the Union).

– 
Paragraph 8 is added to provide a definition of
'VIS registered applicant' to ensure that full benefit is drawn of the Visa
Information System.

– 
Paragraph 9 is added to provide a definition of
'VIS registered regular traveller' to ensure that full benefit is drawn of the
Visa Information System and account is taken of the applicant's 'visa history'.

– 
Paragraph 12 is added to provide a definition of
'valid' in the sense of not expired as opposed to false, counterfeit or forged.

– 
Paragraph 16: a definition of 'seafarer' is
added to ensure that all staff working on ships benefit from the various
procedural facilitations.

Article 3 – Third country nationals
required to hold an airport transit visa

– 
Paragraph 4: the provisions on the introduction
by individual Member States of an airport transit visa requirement for
nationals of specific third countries have been revised to be covered by the
appropriate institutional legal framework.

Article 5 – Member State competent
for examining and deciding on an application

– 
Paragraph 1 (b) is amended to maintain only one
objective criterion, i.e. length of stay, for determining the Member State
competent for examining an application when the envisaged trip covers more than
one destination. Additionally, provisions have been added to cover situations
where the traveller is to carry out several trips to different Member States
within a short timeframe, i.e. two months.

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended to overcome situations
where the "competent" Member State is neither present nor represented
in the third country where the applicant legally resides. The provisions cover
all possible situations and offer solutions expressing the spirit of
cooperation and confidence on which the Schengen cooperation is based.

Article 7 - Competence to issue
visas to third-country nationals legally present within the territory of a
Member State

– 
Paragraph 1 is amended as a consequence of the
amendment of Article 5.

– 
Paragraphs 2 and 3 are inserted to create a
harmonised legal framework for situations where a third country national loses
his/her travel document, or this document is stolen, while staying in the
territory of the Member States.

Article 8 – Practical modalities
for lodging an application

– 
Paragraph 1 establishes general maximum and
minimum deadlines for lodging an application.

– 
Paragraph 3 is added to provide facilitation in certain
situations involving relatives of Union citizens where an immediate appointment
should be given.

– 
Paragraph 4 is amended to become mandatory ('shall')
rather than optional ('may'), meaning that urgency cases shall always be
treated immediately.

– 
Paragraph 5 is amended to clarify the rules on
who may lodge the application on behalf of the applicant and a reference has
been made to professional, cultural,sports or education association or
institution as distinct from commercial intermediaries.

– 
Paragraph 6 has been moved from the previous Article
40(4) and amended to cover only the provision on applicants having only to
appear in person at one location to lodge an application.

Article 9 - General rules for lodging
an application

– 
Paragraph 1 has been replaced by a new text to
take account of the abolition of the general principle of all applicants having
to lodge the application in person (cf. Commission staff working paper, point
2.1.1.1 (paragraph (7)).

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended as a consequence of the
amendment of paragraph 1.

Article 10 – Application form

– 
Paragraph 1 is amended to add a reference to the
possibility of filling in the application form electronically.

– 
Paragraph 2 is inserted to ensure that the
electronic version of the application form corresponds precisely to the
application form set out in Annex I

– 
Paragraph 4 has been simplified to ensure that
the application form is always, as a minimum, available in the official
language of the Member State, for which the visa is requested, and the host
state.

Article 11 – Travel document

– 
Point (a) is amended with a cross reference to
the new provision in Article 21 (2), see below.

– 
Point (b) is amended to ensure that one blank
double page be available in the applicant's travel document so that the visa
sticker and subsequent entry-exit stamps are placed next to each other. This
will facilitate border checks; cf. Commission staff working paper, point
2.1.1.2 (paragraph (11)).

Article 12 – Biometric identifiers

– 
Paragraphs 2 and 4 are amended as a consequence
of the amendment of Article 9 (1)).

– 
Paragraph 3 is amended to take account of the
proposal on the 'touring visa'.

Article 13 – Supporting documents

– 
Paragraph 2 is inserted to take account of the
procedural facilitations to be granted to VIS registered regular travellers,
meaning that this category of applicants only have to present proof of travel
purpose.

– 
Paragraph 3 is inserted to grant or clarify
facilitations for relatives of Union citizens in certain situations.

– 
Paragraph 4 is amended to establish that the
harmonised list of supporting documents in Annex II is exhaustive.

– 
Paragraph 6 is inserted to ensure that
applicants can submit facsimile or copies of original supporting documents. Applicants
should subsequently submit the original documents, except for specific cases where
the original document can only be requested in the case of doubt about the
authenticity of the documents.

– 
In paragraph 7(a), a reference to 'private'
accommodation has been added.

– 
Paragraph 10 has been added to take account of
the provisions on implementing measures.

Article 14 – Visa fee

– 
Point (a) of paragraph 3 enlarges the visa fee
waiver to cover minors up to the age of 18 years (previously the age of six),
thus doing away with the visa fee reduction for 6-12 year olds and the optional
fee waiver for the same age group.

– 
Point (c) of paragraph 3 is amended to make a
clear reference to the category of persons to be covered.

– 
Point (d) of paragraph 3 renders the fee waiver
for holders of diplomatic and service passports mandatory

– 
Point (e) of paragraph 3 renders the fee waiver
for participants aged 25 years or less in seminars, conferences, sports,
cultural or educational events, organised by non-profit organisations
mandatory, thus doing away with optional fee waiver for this group and the
mandatory fee waiver for representatives aged 25 years or less in seminars,
conferences, sports, cultural or educational events, organised by non-profit
organisations.

– 
Points (f) and (g) are inserted to grant or
clarify visa fee waivers in certain situations involving relatives of Union citizens.

See also Commission staff
working document, point 2.1.1.3 (paragraph (15)).

Article 15 – Service fee

– 
In paragraph 1, the reference to an
"additional" service fee has been deleted

– 
Paragraph 3 is amended as a consequence of the
amendment of Article 14.

Article
18 – Verification of entry conditions and risk assessment

– 
Paragraph 2 is inserted to take account of the
insertion of Article 2(9) and the insertion of Article 13(1)(e).

– 
Paragraph 3 is inserted to clarify that the
competent authorities of the Member State are responsible for justifying the
reversion of the presumption of fulfilment of entry conditions in individual
cases and on which grounds such a reversion can be based.

– 
Paragraph 6 is amended to take account of the
proposal on a touring visa and the reference to "issued by another Member
State" is deleted which was misleading.

– 
Paragraph 10 is amended and to allow for Member
States to use modern means of communication to carry out an interview with the
applicant, rather than requiring him to come to the consulate in person.

Article 19 – Prior consultation

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended to provide that Member
States reply to the consultation requests within five calendar days rather than
seven.

– 
Paragraph 3 provides that Member States notify
requests for prior consultation at the latest 15 calendar days before the
introduction of the measure to allow for timely information of applicants and
for other Member States to prepare at technical level.

– 
Paragraph 5 is deleted because it has become
obsolete

Article 20 – Decision on the
application

– 
Paragraph 1 provides that the decision making
time be reduced to maximum 10 calendar days. This is both a consequence of the
amendment of Article 19 (2) and of the findings in the evaluation of the
implementation of the Visa Code, cf. Commission staff working document, point
2.1.1.6 (paragraph (22)).

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended to shorten the maximum
period for the decision making time to 20 days and the last sentence is deleted
as a consequence of the abolition of the provision allowing a represented
Member State to require to be consulted on cases handled in representation.

– 
Paragraph 3 is inserted to grant and clarify the
facilitations to be given in certain situations to close relatives of Union citizens.

– 
The previous paragraph 3 is deleted because an
examination of an application for a short stay visa should not be allowed to
take 60 calendar days.

– 
Paragraph 4, point (d) is deleted as a
consequence of the abolition of the provision allowing a represented Member
State to be consulted; this abolishes the requirement that certain cases be
transmitted for handling by that represented Member State rather than the
representing Member State.

Article 21 – Issuing of a uniform
visa

– 
Paragraph 2 replaces the previous Article 24 (1)
4th and 5th subparagraphs.

– 
Paragraph 2, first paragraph, is amended to
remove the reference to "two-entry" visas which seems superfluous and
reference is made to the possibility of issuing a multiple entry visa going
beyond the validity of the travel document.

– 
Paragraphs 3 and 4 are added to take account of
the amendment of Article 2(10) and to introduce objectively defined criteria
for granting specific facilitations.

– 
Paragraph 5 is amended to cover other cases of
visa applicants eligible for the issuing of a multiple entry visa.

Article 24 – Filling in of the visa sticker

– 
Paragraph 2 is inserted to take account of
Article 51(2).

– 
Paragraph 3 is amended to strengthen the
provisions on the national comments on the visa sticker, cf. Commission staff
working document, point 2.1.1.6 (paragraph (27)).

– 
Paragraph 5 is amended to ensure that only
single entry visas may be issued manually.

Article 25 – Invalidation of a
completed visa sticker

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended to take into account the
need to create a proper legal basis for a best practice recommended in the Visa
Code Handbook.

Article 26 – Affixing a visa sticker

– 
Paragraph 2 is inserted to take account of the
provisions in Article 51(2).

Article 28 – Informing central
authorities of other Member States

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended to ensure timely
information of other Member States, cf. comments made regarding Article 19.

Article 29 – Refusal of a visa

– 
Point 1 (a) (vii) is deleted as a consequence of
the abolition of the requirements on travel medical insurance.

– 
Paragraph 3 is replaced to add a reference to
the need for Member States to provide detailed information on appeal
procedures.

– 
Paragraph 4 is deleted as a consequence of
deleting of the provision requiring that certain cases be transmitted for
handling by that represented Member State rather than the representing Member
State.

Article 31 – Annulment and
revocation

– 
Paragraph 4 is amended to take account of the
amendment of Article 13.

Article 32 – Visas exceptionally
applied for at the external border

– 
The title is amended as a consequence of the
insertion of Article 33.

– 
Paragraph 2 is deleted as a consequence of the
abolition of the requirements on travel medical insurance.

Article 33 – Visas applied for at
the external border under a temporary scheme

– 
These provisions have been inserted to allow
Member States to promote short term tourism, they should be authorised to issue
visas at the external border not only on a case-by-case basis depending on the
third-country nationals' individual situation, but also on the basis of a
temporary scheme. The Article sets out rules on notification and publication of
the organisational modalities of a temporary scheme and establishes that the
validity the visa issued should be limited to the territory of the issuing
Member State.

– 
Paragraph 6 specifies the requirements on
reporting by the Member State concerned.

Article 34 – Visas issued to seafarers at the external borders

– 
Paragraph 3 is inserted to take account of the provisions
in Article 51(2).

Article 38 – Consular organisation
and cooperation

– 
In paragraph 1 the second sentence has become
obsolete.

– 
Point (b) of paragraph 2 is reworded as a
consequence of the repeal of the previous Article 41 and of the abolition of
the ranking of outsourcing as 'last resort'.

– 
Paragraph 4 is replaced by the insertion of
Article 8 (6).

Article 39 – Representation
arrangements

– 
Paragraph 1 corresponds to the previous Article
8(1).

– 
Paragraph 2 describes the collection and
transmission of files and data among Member States in situations where a Member
State represents another solely for the collection of applications and
biometric identifiers.

– 
Paragraph 3 is amended to take account of the
deletion of the possibility of a represented Member State to require being
involved in cases handled under representation.

– 
Paragraphs 4 and 5 correspond to the previous
Article 8(5) and (6), respectively.

– 
Paragraph 6 sets a minimum deadline for the
represented Member States to notify to the Commission the conclusion or
termination of representation arrangements.

– 
Paragraph 7 provides that the representing
Member States shall at the same time notify to other Member States and the
European Union Delegation in the jurisdiction concerned the conclusion or
termination of representation arrangements.

– 
Paragraph 8 corresponds to the previous Article
8(9).

Article 40 – Recourse to honorary
consuls

– 
In paragraph 1 "also" is deleted.

Article 41 – Cooperation with
external service providers

– 
The previous paragraph 3 is deleted because such
harmonisation is not possible in reality as Member States generally draw up
global contracts with external service providers.

– 
Point (e) of paragraph 5 is amended as a
consequence of the amendment of Article 9.

– 
Paragraph 12 is amended to require Member States
to report annually on their cooperation and monitoring of external service
providers, as provided for in Annex IX.

Article 42 – Encryption and secure
transfer of data

– 
Paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 are amended to take
account of the repeal of the previous Article 8.

Article
43 - Member States' cooperation with commercial intermediaries

– 
Paragraph 1 is amended as a consequence of the deletion
of the previous Article 2(11), i.e. the definition of commercial intermediary.

– 
Paragraph 5, second sub-paragraph, is amended to
ensure information to the public about the accredited commercial
intermediaries.

Article 45 – Information to be
provided to the public

– 
Point (c) of paragraph 1 is amended to take
account of the repeal of the previous Article 41.

– 
The previous point (e) of paragraph 1 is deleted
to take account of the repeal of the previous Article 20.

– 
Paragraph 3 is inserted to provide that the
Commission establishes a harmonised template for the information to be provided
under Article 45(1).

– 
Paragraph 4 is inserted to provide that the
Commission establishes a Schengen internet website containing all relevant
information relating to the application for a visa.

Article 46 – Local Schengen
cooperation

– 
In paragraph 1, first sentence, and point (a)
are amended to provide that within local Schengen cooperation (LSC), harmonised
lists of supporting documents are prepared.

– 
In paragraph 1, point (b) and the last
subparagraph are amended as a consequence of the amended Article 14.

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended as a consequence of the
insertion of Article 45(3).

– 
Point (a) of paragraph 3 is amended to provide
for quarterly compilations of statistics on visas at local level and a
reference to the touring visa has been added.

– 
Point (b) of paragraph 3 is amended as a
consequence of the reformulation of the first sentence.

– 
Paragraph 7 is amended to provide that on the
basis of the annual reports drawn up in the various LSC, the Commission draws
up one annual report to be transmitted to the European Parliament and the
Council.

Articles 48 –49 Exercise of delegation

– 
These Articles are inserted to take account of
the provisions of Article 290 of TFEU on delegated acts.

Article 50 – Instructions on the
practical application of the Visa Code

– 
The Article is amended to take account of the
provisions set out in Article 51(2).

Article 51 – Committee procedure

– 
This Article is amended to take account of the
provisions governing the exercise of the Commission's implementing powers in
accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

Article 52 – Notification

– 
Point (g) of paragraph 1 is amended as a
consequence of the amendment of Article 38.

– 
Paragraph 2 is amended as a consequence of the
insertion of Article 45(4).

Article
54 – Monitoring and evaluation

– 
These are the standard provisions regarding
monitoring and evaluation of legal instruments.

Article
55 – Entry into force

– 
This is the standard clause on entry into force
and direct applicability. The application of the Regulation is deferred for six
months following entry into force except for Article 51(2), which shall apply
three months following the entry into force to allow for the adoption of
implementing acts regarding as provided for in Articles 24, 26, 32 and 50.

Annexes

– 
Annex I is replaced

– 
Annex V:

-
the previous point 7, regarding travel medical insurance is deleted;

-
a new point 10 is added to cover cases where an application for an ATV is
refused.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

2014/0094 (COD)

Proposal for a

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
AND OF THE COUNCIL

establishing a
Community Ö on the
Union Õ Code on Visas
(Visa Code)

(recast)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN  UNION ,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community Ö on the
Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) Õ , and in
particular Article 62 Ö 77 Õ (2)(a) and (b)(ii)
thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European
Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative
act to the national Parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the
European Economic and Social Committee[10],

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative
procedure,

Whereas:

ò new

(1)       Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the
European Parliament and of the Council[11] has been substantially amended several times.
Since further amendments are to be made, that Regulation should be recast in the
interests of clarity.

ê 810/2009
recital 1 (adapted)

In accordance with
Article 61 of the Treaty, the creation of an area in which persons may move
freely should be accompanied by measures with respect to external border
controls, asylum and immigration.

ê 810/2009
recital 2 (adapted)

Pursuant to Article
62(2) of the Treaty, measures on the crossing of the external borders of the
Member States shall establish rules on visas for intended stays of no more than
three months, including the procedures and conditions for issuing visas by
Member States.

ò new

(2)       Union policy in the field of visas
allowing for stays of up to 90 days in any 180 days is a fundamental component
of the creation of a common area without internal borders. The common rules on
the conditions and procedures for issuing visas should be governed by the
principle of solidarity and mutual confidence between Member States.

ê 810/2009
recital 3 (adapted)

(3)       As regards visa policy, the establishment of a
‘common corpus’ of legislation, particularly via the consolidation and
development of the acquis (the relevant provisions of the Convention
implementing the Schengen Agreement of 14 June 1985[12] and the Common Consular Instructions[13], is one of the fundamental components of Ö Regulation
(EC) No 810/2009 aims, inter alia, to Õ ‘further
development of the common visa policy as part of a multi-layer system aimed at facilitating Ö in order
to facilitate Õ legitimate
travel and tackling illegal Ö tackle
irregular Õ immigration
through further harmonisation of national legislation and handling practices at local
consular missions’, as defined in the Hague Programme: strengthening freedom,
security and justice in the European Union[14].

ê 810/2009
recital 8 (adapted)

(4)       Provided that Ö It should
also ensure that under Õ certain
conditions are fulfilled, multiple-entry visas should
be Ö are Õ issued in
order to lessen the administrative burden of Member States’ consulates and to
facilitate smooth travel for frequent or regular travellers. Applicants known
to the consulate for their integrity and reliability should as far as possible
benefit from a simplified procedure.

ò new

(5)       Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 clarified and
simplified the legal framework and greatly modernised and standardised visa
procedures. However, specific provisions that were intended to facilitate
procedures in individual cases on the basis of subjective criteria are not
sufficiently applied.

(6)       A smart visa policy should entail
continued security at the external borders whilst ensuring the effective
functioning of the Schengen area and facilitating travel opportunities for
legitimate travel. The common visa policy should contribute to generating
growth and be coherent with other Union policies, such as external relations,
trade, education, culture and tourism.

(7)       To ease mobility and to facilitate family
visits for third-country nationals who are visiting close relatives who are
Union citizens residing in the territory of the Member State of which they are
nationals and for close relatives of Union citizens residing in a third country
and wishing to visit together the Member State of which the Union citizen has
the nationality, certain procedural facilitations should be provided by this
Regulation.

(8)       The same facilitations should as a minimum
be granted to family members in situations covered by Directive 2004/38/[15] in accordance with Article 5(2) of that Directive.

(9)       A distinction should be made between new
first time applicants and persons who have been previously granted visas and who are registered in the Visa Information System
(VIS), in order to simplify the procedure for registered travellers while
addressing the risk of irregular immigration and the security concern posed by
some travellers. This distinction should be reflected in all steps of the
procedure.

(10)     It should be presumed that applicants who
are registered in VIS and have obtained and lawfully used two visas within the
12 months prior to the application fulfil the entry conditions regarding the
risk of irregular immigration and the need to possess sufficient means of
subsistence. However, this presumption should be rebuttable where the competent
authorities establish that one or more of these conditions are not fulfilled in
individual cases.

(11)     The assessment of whether an issued visa
has been used lawfully should be based on elements, such as respect of the
period of authorised stay, of the territorial validity of the visa, and of the
rules on access to the labour market and the exercise of an economic activity.

ê 810/2009
recital 5 (adapted)

ð new

(12)     It
is necessary to set out rules on the transit through international areas of
airports in order to combat illegal Ö irregular Õ immigration. Ö To this end Õ Thus nationals from a common list of third countries ð the nationals of which ï should be required to hold airport transit
visas ðshould be established ï . Nevertheless, in urgent cases of mass ð when a Member State experiences a sudden and
substantial ï influx of illegal Ö irregular Õ immigrants, Member States Ö it Õ should be allowed to impose such a Ö be able
to introduce temporarily the airport transit visa Õ requirement on Ö for Õ nationals of Ö a given Õ third countries Ö country Õ other than those listed in the common list. Member States’ individual decisions should be
reviewed on an annual basis. ð The conditions and procedures for
doing so should be laid down, in order to ensure that the application of this
measure is limited in time and that in accordance with the principle of
proportionality, it does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve
the objective. The scope of the airport transit visa requirement should be
limited to responding to the specific situation that prompted the introduction
of the measure. ï

ò new

(13)     The
airport transit visa requirement should be waived for holders of visas and
residence permits issued by certain countries.

(14)     It
should be clear which is the Member State competent for examining an
application for a visa, in particular where the intended visit covers several
Member States.

(15)     Visa
applicants should be able to lodge an application in their country of residence
even where the Member State competent under the general rules is neither
present nor represented in that country.

(16)     Harmonised
treatment of visa holders whose travel document is lost or stolen during a stay
in the territory of the Member States should be ensured.

ê 810/2009
recital 9

(17)     Because
of the registration of biometric identifiers in the Visa Information System
(VIS) as established by Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 of the European Parliament
and of the Council of
9 July 2008 concerning Visa Information System (VIS) and the exchange of data
between Member States on short-stay visas (VIS Regulation)[16], the appearance of the applicant in person — at least for the first
application — should be one of the basic requirements for the application for a
visa.

ê 810/2009
recital 10

(18)     In
order to facilitate the visa application procedure of any subsequent
application, it should be possible to copy fingerprints from the first entry
into the VIS within a period of 59 months. Once this period of time has
elapsed, the fingerprints should be collected again.

ê 810/2009
recital 11 (adapted)

(19)     Any
document, data or biometric identifier received by a Member State in the course
of the visa application process shall Ö should Õ be considered a consular document under the Vienna Convention on
Consular Relations of 24 April 1963 and shall Ö should Õ be treated in an
appropriate manner Ö accordingly Õ.

ê 810/2009
recital 12

(20)     Directive
95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the
protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on
the free movement of such data[17] applies to the Member States with regard to the processing of
personal data pursuant to this Regulation.

ò new

(21)     Deadlines for the different steps of the
procedure should be established, in particular to allow travellers to plan
ahead and avoid peak seasons in consulates.

(22)     Member States' consulates should charge
the same visa fee for processesing visa applications. The categories of persons
for which visa fee waivers are granted should be uniform and clearly defined.
Member States should be allowed to waive the visa fee in individual cases.

(23)     Applicants
should not be required to present travel medical insurance when lodging an
application for a short stay visa because it is an disproprtionate burden for
visa applicants and there is no evidence that holders of short stay visas
present a bigger risk in terms of public medical expenditure in Member States
than the visa exempted third country nationals.

(24)     Professional,
cultural and sports associations, as well as accredited commercial
intermediaries should be allowed to lodge applications on behalf of visa
applicants.

(25)     Provisions
regarding inter alia the 'period of grace', the filling in of the visa
sticker and the invalidation of completed visa stickers should be clarified.

(26)     Multiple entry visas with a long validity
should be issued according to objectively determined criteria. The validity of
a multiple entry visa could go beyond the validity of the travel document in
which it is affixed.

(27)     The
application form should take account of the roll out of the VIS. Member States
should to the extent possible allow for visa application forms to be completed
and submitted electronically and should accept facsimile or copies of
supporting documents. Original documents should only be required in specific
cases.

(28)     The standard form for notifying grounds
for the refusal, annulment or revocation of a visa should  include a specific
ground for refusal of an airport transit visa and ensure that the person
concerned is properly informed about appeal procedures.

(29)     The rules regarding the exchange of
information between the competent authorities of the Member States in view of
issuing visas to seafarers at the external borders and the form to be filled in
to this effect should be as simple and clear as possible.

(30)     The issuing of visas at the external
border should, in principle, remain exceptional. However, to allow Member
States to promote short term tourism, they should be authorised to issue visas
at the external border based on a temporary scheme and upon notification and
publication of the organisational modalities of the scheme. Such schemes should
be temporary in nature and the validity of the visa issued should be limited to
the territory of the issuing Member State.

ê 810/2009
recital 6 (adapted)

ð new

(31)     The reception aArrangements
for Ö the reception of Õ applicants should be made with due respect for human dignity.
Processing of visa applications should be conducted in a professional and
respectful manner and be
proportionate ð should not go beyond what is necessary in order ï to Ö achieve Õ the objectives pursued.

ê 810/2009
recital 7 (adapted)

ð new

(32)     Member
States should ensure that the quality of the service offered to the public is
of a high standard and follows good administrative practices. They should
allocate appropriate numbers of trained staff as well as sufficient resources
in order to facilitate as much as possible the visa application process. Member
States should ensure that a
‘one-stop’ principle is applied to all Ö visa Õ applicants Ö should only appear in one location for the purpose of lodging the
application Õ. ð This should be without prejudice to the possibility
of carrying out  a personal interview with the applicant. ï

ê 810/2009
recital 13 (adapted)

ð new

(33)     In order to facilitate the procedure, Ö Regulation
(EC) No 810/2009  provides for Õ several forms
of cooperation should be
envisaged, such as limited representation, co-location, common application
centres, recourse to honorary consuls and cooperation with external service providers,
taking into account in particular data protection requirements set out in
Directive 95/46/EC Ö among
Member States aimed at, on the one hand, allowing Member States to pool
resources and on the other, at enhancing the consular coverage for the benefit
of applicants Õ . Member States
should, in accordance with the conditions laid down in this Regulation,
determine the type of organisational structure which they will use in each
third country. ð Flexible rules should be established
to allow Member States to optimise the sharing of resources and to increase
consular coverage. Cooperation among Member States ("Schengen Visa
Centres"), could take any form adapted to local circumstances aiming at
increasing geographical consular coverage, reducing Member States' costs,
increasing the visibility of the European Union and improving the service
offered to visa applicants. ï

ê 810/2009
recital 4 (adapted)

ð new

(34)     Member
States should be present or represented for visa purposes in all third
countries whose nationals are subject to visa requirements. ð Member States should aim at enlarging the consular
coverage. ï Member States lacking their own consulate
in a given third country or in a certain part of a given third country should Ö therefore Õ endeavour to conclude representation arrangements in order to avoid
a disproportionate effort on the part of visa applicants to have access to
consulates.

ò new

(35)     Representation
arrangements should be streamlined and obstacles for the conclusion of such
arrangements among Member States should be avoided and the representing Member
State should be responsible for carrying out the entire processing of visa
applications without involvement of the represented Member State.

ê 810/2009
recital 14

ð new

(36)     It
is necessary to make provision for situations in which a Member State decides
to cooperate with an external service provider for the collection of
applications. Such a decision may be taken if, in particular
circumstances or for reasons relating to the local situation, cooperation with
other Member States in the form of representation, limited representation,
co-location or a Common Application Centre proves not to be appropriate for the
Member State concerned. Such arrangements should
be established in compliance with the general principles for issuing visas and
with the data protection requirements set out in Directive 95/46/EC. In addition,
the need to avoid visa shopping should be taken into consideration when
establishing and implementing such arrangements.

ê 810/2009
recital 15

Where a Member State has decided to cooperate with an
external service provider, it should maintain the possibility for all
applicants to lodge applications directly at its diplomatic missions or
consular posts.

ê 810/2009
recital 16 (adapted)

ð new

(37)     A
Member State should cooperate with an external service provider on the basis of
a legal instrument which should contain provisions on its Ö the Õ exact responsibilities Ö of the latter Õ , on Ö the Member State's Õ direct and total access to its Ö the Õ premises Ö of the external service provider Õ , information for applicants, confidentiality and on the
circumstances, conditions and procedures for suspending or terminating the
cooperation. ð Member States should report to the
Commission annually on the cooperation with external service providers,
including the monitoring of the service providers. ï

ê 810/2009
recital 17

This Regulation, by allowing Member States to
cooperate with external service providers for the collection of applications
while establishing the ‘one-stop’ principle for the lodging of applications,
creates a derogation from the general rule that an applicant must appear in
person at a diplomatic mission or consular post. This is without prejudice to
the possibility of calling the applicant for a personal interview.

ê 810/2009
recital 19

ð new

(38)     Statistical
data are an important means of monitoring migratory movements and can serve as
an efficient management tool. Therefore, such data should be compiled regularly
in a common format. ð Detailed data on visas should be
collected in view of compiling comparative statistics to allow for
evidence-based evaluation of the implementation of this Regulation. ï

ê 810/2009
recital 23 (adapted)

ð new

(39)     Ö The
general public should be given all relevant information in relation to the
application for a visa and the visibility and  uniform image of the common visa
policy should be improved. To this end Õ A a
common Schengen visa Internet site is to Ö should Õ  be
established to improve the
visibility and a uniform image of the common visa policy ð and a common template for Member
States' information to the public should be drawn up ï. Such a site will serve as a means to provide the
general public with all relevant information in relation to the application for
a visa.

ê 810/2009
recital 18 (adapted)

(40)     Local
Schengen cooperation is crucial for the harmonised application of the common
visa policy and for proper assessment of migratory and/or security risks. Given
the differences in local circumstances, the operational application of particular Ö specific Õ legislative provisions should be assessed
among Member States’ diplomatic missions and consular
posts in individual locations in order to ensure a harmonised application of
the legislative provisions to prevent visa shopping and different treatment of
visa applicants.

ò new

(41)     If there is no harmonised list of supporting
documents in a given location, Member States are free to define the exact
supporting documents to be submitted by visa applicants in order to prove the
fulfilment of the entry conditions required by this Regulation. Where such a
harmonised list of supporting documents exists, in order to provide
facilitations for visa applicants, Member States should be allowed to provide
certain exemptions from that list when major international events are organised
in their territory.  These events should be large scale and of particular
importance due to their tourism and/or cultural impact, such as international
or universal exhibitions and sports championships.

ê 810/2009
recital 27 (adapted)

(42)     When
a Member State hosts the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games, a particular Ö specific Õ scheme facilitating the issuing of visas to members of the Olympic
family should apply.

ê 810/2009
recital 20

The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of
28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers
conferred on the Commission[18].

ê 810/2009
recital 21

In particular, the Commission should be empowered to
adopt amendments to the Annexes to this Regulation. Since those measures are of
general scope and are designed to amend non-essential elements of this
Regulation, inter alia, by supplementing it with new non-essential elements,
they must be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny
provided for in Article 5a of Decision 1999/468/EC.

ê 810/2009
recital 22

In order to ensure the harmonised application of this
Regulation at operational level, instructions should be drawn up on the
practice and procedures to be followed by Member States when processing visa
applications.

ò new

(43)     In
order to adapt to changing circumstances the common list of third countries
whose nationals are required to be in possession of an airport transit visa
when passing through the international transit area of airports situated on the
territory of the Member States and the list of residence permits entitling
their holder to transit through the airports of Member States without being
required to hold an airport transit visa, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the
 Treaty should be delegated to the Commission. It is of particular importance
that the Commission carry out appropriate consultatoins during its preparatory
work, including at expert level.

(44)     In order to ensure uniform conditions for
the implementation of this Regulation, as regards the establishment of
operational instructions on the practices and procedures to be followed by Member
States when processing visa applications, lists of supporting documents to be
applied in each jurisdiction, mandatory entries on the visa sticker, rules on
affixing the visa sticker, and rules for issuing visas at the border to
seafarers , implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in
accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of
the Council[19].The examination procedure should be used
for the adoption of such implementing acts.

ê 810/2009
recital 26 (adapted)

(45)     Bilateral
agreements concluded between the Community Ö Union Õ and third
countries aiming at facilitating the processing of applications for visas may
derogate from the provisions of this Regulation.

ê 810/2009
recital 30

(46)     The
conditions governing entry into the territory of the Member States or the issue
of visas do not affect the rules currently governing recognition of the
validity of travel documents.

ê 810/2009
recital 28 (adapted)

ð new

(47)     Since
the objective of this
Regulation, namely the establishment of the procedures and ð common ï conditions Ö and procedures Õ for issuing visas for transit through or intended stays in the territory of the Member States not exceeding three months Ö 90 days Õ in any six-month Ö 180 days Õ period, cannot be
sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can  therefore ð only
 ï be better achieved at Community Ö Union Õ level, the Community Ö Union Õ may adopt
measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in
Article 5 of the Treaty Ö on the
European Union (TEU) Õ. In accordance
with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this
Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve that objective Ö this
objective Õ .

ê 810/2009
recital 29 (adapted)

ð new

(48)     This
Regulation respects fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised
in particular by the Council of
Europe’s Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
and by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the
European Union. ð In particular this Regulation seeks to ensure full
respect for private and family life referred to in Article 7, protection of
personal data referred to in Article 8 and the rights of the child referred to
in Article 24 of the Charter of Fundamental Righs of the European Unionï .

ê 810/2009
recital 31 (adapted)

ð new

(49)     In
accordance with Articles 1 and 2 of the Protocol Ö No
22 Õ on the
Position of Denmark annexed to the Treaty on European Union Ö TEU Õ and to the Treaty establishing the European Community Ö on the
Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) Õ, Denmark does Ö is Õ not take Ö taking Õ part in the
adoption of this Regulation and is not bound by it, or subject to its
application. Given that this Regulation builds on Ö upon Õ the Schengen acquis
under the provisions of Title IV
of Part Three of the Treaty establishing the European Community, Denmark shall, in
accordance with Article 4 of that Protocol, decide within a period of six
months after the date of adoption of ð Council has decided on ï this Regulation whether it will implement it in its national law.

ê 810/2009 recital
32 (adapted)

(50)     As
regards Iceland and Norway, this Regulation constitutes a development of
provisions of the Schengen acquis within the meaning of the Agreement
concluded between the Council of the European Union and the Republic of Iceland
and the Kingdom of Norway concerning the Ö latters' Õ association of those two States with the implementation, application and development of the
Schengen acquis[20] which fall within the area referred to in Article 1, point B of Council Decision
1999/437/EC[21] on certain
arrangements for the application of that Agreement.

ê 810/2009
recital 33 (adapted)

An arrangement should
be made to allow representatives of Iceland and Norway to be associated with
the work of committees assisting the Commission in the exercise of its
implementing powers under this Regulation. Such an arrangement has been
contemplated in the Exchange of Letters between the Council of the European
Union and Iceland and Norway concerning committees which assist the European
Commission in the exercise of its executive powers[22], annexed to the abovementioned Agreement. The
Commission has submitted to the Council a draft recommendation with a view to
negotiating this arrangement.

ê 810/2009
recital 34

(51)     As
regards Switzerland, this Regulation constitutes a development of the
provisions of the Schengen acquis within the meaning of the Agreement
between the European Union, the European Community and the Swiss Confederation
on the Swiss Confederation’s association with the implementation, application
and development of the Schengen acquis[23], which fall within the area referred to in Article 1, point B, of Decision 1999/437/EC read in
conjunction with Article 3 of Council Decision 2008/146/EC[24] on the
conclusion of that Agreement.

ê 810/2009
recital 35 (adapted)

ð new

(52)     As
regards Liechtenstein, this Regulation constitutes a development of Ö the Õ provisions of
the Schengen acquis within the meaning of the Protocol signed between
the European Union, the European Community, the Swiss Confederation and the
Principality of Liechtenstein on the accession of the Principality of
Liechtenstein to the Agreement concluded between the European Union, the European
Community and the Swiss Confederation on the Swiss Confederation’s association
with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis,
which fall within the area referred to in Article 1, point B, of Decision 1999/437/EC read in conjunction
with Article 3 of Council Decision 2008/261/EC 2011/350/EU[25] on the signing ð conclusion ï of that Protocol.

ê 154/2012
recital 11

(53)     As
regards Cyprus, this Regulation constitutes an act building upon or otherwise
related to the Schengen acquis, within the meaning of Article 3(12) of
the 2003 Act of Accession.

ê 154/2012 recital 12

(54)     As
regards Bulgaria and Romania, this Regulation constitutes an act building upon
or otherwise related to the Schengen acquis within the meaning of Article 4(12) of
the 2005 Act of Accession.

ò new

(55)     As regards Croatia, this Regulation
constitutes an act building upon, or otherwise related to, the Schengen acquis
within the meaning of Article 4(2) of the 2011 Act of Accession.

ê 810/2009
recital 36

(56)     This
Regulation constitutes a development of the provisions of the Schengen acquis
in which the United Kingdom does not take part, in accordance with Council
Decision 2000/365/EC of
29 May 2000 concerning the request of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland to take part in some of the provisions of the Schengen acquis[26]. The United Kingdom is therefore not taking
part in its adoption and is not bound by it or subject to its application.

ê 810/2009
recital 37 (adapted)

(57)     This
Regulation constitutes a development of the provisions of the Schengen acquis
in which Ireland does not take part, in accordance with Council Decision
2002/192/EC of 28 February 2002 concerning Ireland’s request to take part in some
of the provisions of the Schengen acquis [27]. Ireland is  therefore not taking part in
the adoption of the Regulation and is  not bound by it or subject to its
application,

ê 810/2009
recital 38 (adapted)

This Regulation, with
the exception of Article 3, constitutes provisions building on the Schengen acquis
or otherwise relating to it within the meaning of Article 3(2) of the 2003 Act
of Accession and within the meaning of Article 4(2) of the 2005 Act of
Accession,

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

Objective Ö Subject matter Õ and scope

ê 610/2013
Art. 6.1 (adapted)

1. This Regulation establishes the procedures and conditions Öconditions and procedures Õ for issuing visas for transit through or intended stays on the territory of the Member States not exceeding
90 days in any 180-day Ö days Õ period.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

2. The provisions
of this Regulation shall apply to any third-country national who must be in
possession of a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States
pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 listing the third
countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the
external borders and those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement[28], without prejudice to:

(a) the rights of free movement
enjoyed by third-country nationals who are family members of citizens of the
Union;

(b) the equivalent rights
enjoyed by third-country nationals and their family members, who, under
agreements between the Union and its Member States, on the one hand, and these
third countries, on the other, enjoy rights of free movement equivalent to
those of Union citizens and members of their families.

3. This Regulation also lists the
third countries whose nationals are required to hold an airport transit visa by
way of exception from the principle of free transit laid down in Annex 9 to the
Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation, and establishes the procedures
and conditions Öconditions and procedures Õ for issuing visas for the purpose of transit through the
international transit areas of Member States’ airports.

Article 2

Definitions

For the purpose of this Regulation the
following definitions shall apply:

1.‘third-country national’ means
any person who is not a citizen of the Union within the meaning of Article 17 Ö 20 Õ (1) of the Treaty Ö TFEU Õ ;

2.‘visa’ means an authorisation
issued by a Member State with a view to:

ê 610/2013
Art. 6.2 (adapted)

(a) transit
through or an intended stay on the territory of
the Member States of a duration of no more than 90 days in any 180-day Ö days Õ period; Ö or Õ

ê 810/2009

(b) transit through the international
transit areas of airports of the Member States;

3.‘uniform visa’ means a visa
valid for the entire territory of the Member States;

4.‘visa with limited territorial
validity’ means a visa valid for the territory of one or more Member States but
not all Member States;

5.‘airport transit visa’ means a
visa valid for transit through the international transit areas of one or more
airports of the Member States;

ò new

6. 'touring
visa' means a visa as defined in Article 3(2) of [Regulation No.../...];

7. 'close relatives'
means the spouse, children, parents,
persons exercising parental authority, grandparents and grandchildren;

8.'VIS registered applicant' means an applicant whose data are
registered in the Visa Information System;

9.'VIS registered regular traveller' means a visa applicant who is
registered in the Visa Information System and who has obtained two visas within
the 12 months prior to the application;

ê 810/2009

ð new

610.‘visa
sticker’ means the uniform format for visas as defined by Council Regulation
(EC) No 1683/95 of 29
May 1995 laying down a uniform format for visas[29];

711. ‘recognised
travel document’ means a travel document recognised by one or more Member
States for the purpose of ð crossing the external borders
and ï affixing visas ð , under Decision No 1105/2011/EU of
the European Parliament and of the Council[30] ï;

ò new

12.'valid
travel document' means a travel document that is not false, counterfeit or
forged and the period of validity of which as defined by the issuing authority
has not expired;

ê 810/2009

ð new

813.‘separate
sheet for affixing a visa’ means the uniform format for forms for affixing the
visa issued by Member States to persons holding travel documents not recognised
by the Member State drawing up the form as defined by Council Regulation (EC)
No 333/2002 of 18
February 2002 on a uniform format for forms for affixing the visa issued by
Member States to persons holding travel documents not recognised by the Member
State drawing up the form[31];

914.‘consulate’
means a Member State’s diplomatic mission or a Member State’s consular post
authorised to issue visas and headed by a career consular officer as defined by
the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 24 April 1963;

1015.‘application’
means an application for a visa;

11.‘commercial
intermediary’ means a private administrative agency, transport company or
travel agency (tour operator or retailer).

ò new

16.'seafarer'
means any person who is employed or engaged or works in any capacity on board a
ship to which the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 applies.

ê 810/2009

ð new

TITLE II

AIRPORT TRANSIT VISA

Article 3

Third-country nationals required to
hold an airport transit visa

1. Nationals of the third countries listed
in Annex IV III shall be required to hold an airport transit visa when passing
through the international transit areas of airports situated on the territory
of the Member States.

ò new

2. The Commission
shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 48
concerning amendments to the list of the third countries set out in Annex III.

Where in the case
of emerging risks, imperative grounds of urgency so require, the procedure
provided for in Article 49 shall apply to delegated acts adopted pursuant to
this paragraph.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

3. In urgent cases of mass Ö Where
there is a  sudden and substantialÕ influx of illegal Ö irregular Õ immigrants, individual Ö a Õ Member States may require
nationals of third countries other than those referred to in paragraph 1 to
hold an airport transit visa when passing through the international transit
areas of airports situated on their Ö its Õ territory. Member States
shall notify the Commission of such decisions before their entry into force and
of withdrawals of such an airport transit visa requirement. ð The duration of such a measure shall
not exceed 12 months. The scope and duration of the airport transit visa requirement
shall not exceed what is strictly necessary to respond to the sudden and
substantial influx of irregular immigrants. ï

ò new

4. Where a Member
State plans to introduce the airport transit visa requirement in accordance
with paragraph 3, it shall as soon as possible notify  the Commission, and
shall provide the following information:

(a) 
the reason for the
planned airport transit visa requirement, substantiating the  sudden and
substantial influx of irregular immigrants;

(b) 
the scope and duration
of the planned introduction of the airport transit visa requirement.

5. Following the
notification by the Member State concerned in accordance with paragraph 4, the
Commission may issue an opinion.

6. The Member
State may prolong the application of the airport transit visa requirement only
once where the lifting of the requirement would lead to a substantial influx of
irregular migrants. Paragraph 3 shall apply to such prolongation.

7. The Commission
shall, on an annual basis, inform the European Parliament and the Council about
the implementation of this Article.

ê 810/2009

3. Within the framework of the Committee referred to
in Article 52(1), those notifications shall be reviewed on an annual basis for
the purpose of transferring the third country concerned to the list set out in
Annex IV.

4. If the third country is not transferred to the
list set out in Annex IV, the Member State concerned may maintain, provided
that the conditions in paragraph 2 are met, or withdraw the airport transit
visa requirement.

ê 810/2009

ð new

58. The
following categories of persons shall be exempt from the requirement to hold an
airport transit visa provided for in paragraphs 1 and 3:

(a) holders of a valid uniform
visa, ð touring visa, ï national long-stay visa or residence permit
issued by a Member State;

ê 154/2012
Art. 1 (adapted)

ð new

(b) third-country nationals
holding a valid residence permit issued by a Member State which does not take
part in the adoption of this Regulation or by a Member State which does not yet
apply the provisions of the Schengen acquis in full, or third-country
nationals holding one of the valid residence permits listed in Annex V IV issued
by Andorra, Canada, Japan, San Marino or the United States of America
guaranteeing the holder’s unconditional readmission ð , or holding a residence permit for
the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Aruba, Curaçao, Sint
Maarten, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba) ï;

(c) third-country nationals
holding a valid visa for a Member State which does not take part in the
adoption of this Regulation, Ö or Õ for a Member
State which does not yet apply the provisions of the Schengen acquis in
full, ð or for a country party to the
Agreement on the European Economic Area, ï or for Canada, Japan or the United States of America, ð or holders of a valid visa for ï the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom of ð the Netherlands (Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten,
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba), ï when travelling to the issuing country or to any other third
country, or when, having used the visa, returning from the issuing country;

ê 810/2009

ð new

(d) family members of citizens
of the Union as referred to in Article 1(2)(a)ð 3 of Directive 2004/38/EC ï;

(e) holders of diplomatic ð , service, official or special ï passports;

(f) flight crew members who are
nationals of a contracting Party to the Chicago Convention on International
Civil Aviation.

ò new

9.           The Commission
shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 48
concering the amendmens to the list of valid residence permits entitling the
holder to transit through the airports of Member States without being required
to hold an airport transit visa, set out in Annex IV.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

TITLE III

PROCEDURES AND CONDITIONS Ö AND PROCEDURES Õ FOR ISSUING VISAS

CHAPTER I

Authorities taking part in the
procedures relating to applications

Article 4

Authorities competent for taking
part in the procedures relating to applications

1. Applications shall be examined and
decided on by consulates.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1,
applications may be examined and decided on at the external borders of the
Member States by the authorities responsible for checks on persons, in
accordance with Articles 3532 ð , 33 ï and 3634.

3. In the non-European overseas territories
of Member States, applications may be examined and decided on by the
authorities designated by the Member State concerned.

4. A Member State may require the
involvement of authorities other than the ones designated Ö referred to Õ in paragraphs 1 and 2 in the examination of and decision on
applications.

5. A Member State may require to be
consulted or informed by another Member State in accordance with Articles 2219 and
3128.

Article 5

Member State competent for
examining and deciding on an application

1. The Member State competent for examining
and deciding on an application for a uniform visa shall be:

(a) the Member State whose
territory constitutes the sole destination of the visit(s);

(b) if the visit includes more
than one destination, ð or if several separate visits are to
be carried out within a period of two months, ï the Member State whose territory constitutes the main destination
of the visit(s) in terms of the length or purpose
of stay ð , counted in days ï ; or

(c) if no main destination can
be determined, the Member State whose external border the applicant intends to
cross in order to enter the territory of the Member States.

42. Member States
shall cooperate to prevent a situation in which an application cannot be
examined and decided on because Ö If Õ the Member
State that is competent in accordance with paragraphs 1 to 3 ð , point (a) or  (b), ï is neither present nor represented in the third country where the
applicant lodges the application in accordance with Article 6, ð the applicant is entitled to lodge
the application: ï

ò new

a) at the consulate
of one of the Member States of destination of the envisaged visit,

b) at the consulate
of the Member State of first entry, if point a) is not applicable,

c) in all other cases
at the consulate of any of the Member States that are present in the country  concerned.

ê 810/2009

3. The Member State
competent for examining and deciding on an application for an airport transit
visa shall be:

(a) in the case of a single
airport transit, the Member State on whose territory the transit airport is
situated; or

(b) in the case of double or
multiple airport transit, the Member State on whose territory the first transit
airport is situated.

Article 6

Consular territorial competence

1. An application shall be examined and
decided on by the consulate of the competent Member State in whose jurisdiction the applicant legally resides.

2. A consulate of the competent Member
State shall examine and decide on an application lodged by a third-country
national legally present but not residing in its jurisdiction, if the applicant
has provided justification for lodging the application at that consulate.

Article 7

Competence to issue visas to
third-country nationals legally present within the territory of a Member State

1. Third-country nationals who are legally present in the territory of
a Member State and who are required to hold a visa to enter the territory of
one or more other Member States shall apply for a visa at the consulate of the
Member State that is competent in accordance with Article 5(1) or (2).

ò new

2. Third-country
nationals who have lost their travel document, or from whom this document has
been stolen, while staying in the territory of a Member State, may leave that
territory on the basis of a valid travel document entitling them to cross the
border issued by a consulate of their country of nationality without any visa
or other authorisation

3. Where the
third-country national, referred to in paragraph 2, intends to continue
travelling in the Schengen area, the authorities in the Member State where he
declares the loss or theft of his travel document, shall issue a visa with a
duration of validity and period of allowed stay identical to the original visa
on the basis of the data registered in the VIS.

ê 810/2009

ð new

CHAPTER II

Application

Article 98

Practical modalities for lodging an
application

1. Applications shall ð may ï be lodged no more than
three ð six ï months before ð and no later than 15 calendar days
before ï the start of the intended visit. Holders of a
multiple-entry visa may lodge the application before the expiry of the visa valid for a period of at least six months.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

2. Applicants Ö Consulates Õ may be required Ö applicants Õ to obtain an appointment for the lodging of an application. The
appointment shall, as a rule, take place within a period of two weeks from the
date when the appointment was requested.

ò new

3. The consulate
shall allow to lodge the application either without prior appointment or with an immediate appointment to close
relatives of Union citizens who:

(a) intend
to visit their Union citizen close relatives residing in the Member State of
their nationality;

(b) intend to travel, together with their Union citizen close relatives
residing in a third country, to the Member State of which the Union citizen has
the nationality.

4. The consulate
shall allow to lodge the application either without prior appointment or with
an immediate appointment to family members of Union citizens as referred to in
Article 3 of Directive 2004/38/EC.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

5. In justified cases of urgency, the consulate may ð shall ï allow applicants to lodge their applications either without
appointment, or an Ö immediate Õ appointment shall be given immediately.

6. Applications may ð , without prejudice to Article 12, ï  be lodged: at the consulate

(a) by the applicant or

(b) by Ö an Õ accredited commercial Ö intermediary referred to in Article 43 Õ intermediaries,
as provided for in Article 45(1),
without prejudice to Article 13, or in accordance with Article 42 or 43.

Ö (c) a professional, cultural,sports or educational association or
institution. Õ

Ö 7. An
applicant shall not be required to appear in person at more than one location
in order to lodge an application Õ

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 109

General rules for lodging an
application

1. Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 13, 42, 43 and 45, aApplicants
shall appear in person when
lodging an application ð for the collection of fingerprints,
in accordance with Article 12 (2) and (3) ï .

ò new

2.  VIS
registered applicants shall
not be required to appear in person when lodging an application, where their
fingerprints have been entered into the VIS less than 59 months before.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

2. Consulates may waive the requirement referred to
in paragraph 1 when the applicant is known to them for his integrity and
reliability.

3. When lodging the application, the
applicant shall:

(a) present an application form
in accordance with Article 1110;

(b) present a travel document in
accordance with Article 1211;

(c) present a photograph in
accordance with the standards set out in Regulation (EC) No 1683/95 or, where
the VIS is operational pursuant to Article 48 of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ , in
accordance with the standards set out in Article 1312 of
this Regulation;

(d) allow the collection of his
fingerprints in accordance with Article 1312,
where applicable;

(e) pay the visa fee in
accordance with Article 1614;

(f) provide supporting documents
in accordance with Article 14 13 and
Annex II;.

(g) where
applicable, produce proof of possession of adequate and valid travel medical
insurance in accordance with Article 15.

Article 1110

Application form

1. Each applicant shall submit a Ö manually
or electronically Õ completed and
signed application form, as set out in Annex I. Persons included in the
applicant’s travel document shall submit a separate application form. Minors
shall submit an application form signed by a person exercising permanent or
temporary parental authority or legal guardianship.

ò new

2. The content of
the electronic version of the application form, if applicable, shall be as set
out  in Annex I.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

23.
Consulates shall make the application form widely available and easily
accessible to applicants free of charge.

34. The
form shall ð as a minimum ï be available in the following languages:

(a) the official language(s) of
the Member State for which a visa is requested; Ö and Õ

(b) the official language(s) of
the host country;.

(c) the
official language(s) of the host country and the official language(s) of the
Member State for which a visa is requested; or

(d) in case of representation, the official language(s)
of the representing Member State.

In addition to the language(s) referred to
in point (a), the form may be made available in another Ö any
other Õ official language Ö language(s) Õ of the
institutions of the European Union.

45. If
the application form is not available in the official language(s) of the host
country, a translation of it into that/those language(s) shall be made
available separately to applicants.

56. A Ö The Õ translation of
the application form into the official language(s) of the host country shall be
produced under local Schengen cooperation provided for Ö as  set
out Õ in Article 4846.

67. The
consulate shall inform applicants of the language(s) which may be used when
filling in the application form.

Article 1211

Travel document

The applicant shall present a valid travel
document satisfying the following criteria:

(a) its validity shall extend Ö without
prejudice to Article 21(2), it shall be valid for Õ at least three
months after the intended date of departure from the territory of the Member
States or, in the case of several visits, after the last intended date of
departure from the territory of the Member States. However, in a justified case
of emergency, this obligation may be waived;

(b) it shall contain at least two ð one ï blank ð double ï pages ð , and if several applicants are
covered by the same travel document it shall contain one blank double page per
applicant ï ;

(c) it shall have been issued
within the previous 10 years.

Article 1312

Biometric identifiers

1. Member States shall collect biometric
identifiers of the applicant comprising a photograph of him and his 10
fingerprints in accordance with the safeguards laid down in the Council of
Europe’s Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms,
in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and in the United
Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

2. At the time of submission of the first
application, the applicant shall
be required to appear in person. At that time,
the following biometric identifiers of the applicant shall be collected:

– 
a photograph, scanned or taken at the time of
application, and

– 
his 10 fingerprints taken flat and collected
digitally.

3. Where fingerprints collected from the
applicant as part of an earlier application ð for a short stay visa or a touring visa ï were entered in the VIS for the first time
less than 59 months before the date of the new application, they shall be
copied to the subsequent application.

However, where there is reasonable doubt
regarding the identity of the applicant, the consulate shall collect
fingerprints within the period specified in the first subparagraph.

Furthermore, if at the time when the
application is lodged, it cannot be immediately confirmed that the fingerprints
were collected within the period specified in the first subparagraph, the
applicant may request that they be collected.

4. In accordance with Article 9(5) of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ , the
photograph attached to each application shall be entered in the VIS. The applicant
shall not be required to appear in person for this purpose.

The technical requirements for the
photograph shall be in accordance with the international standards as set out
in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) document 9303 Part 1,
6th edition.

5. Fingerprints shall be taken in
accordance with ICAO standards and Commission Decision 2006/648/EC[32].

6. The biometric identifiers shall be
collected by qualified and duly authorised staff of the authorities competent
in accordance with Article 4(1), (2) and (3). Under the supervision of the
consulates, the biometric identifiers may also be collected by qualified and
duly authorised staff of an honorary consul as referred to in Article 42 40 or
of an external service provider as referred to in Article 4341.
The Member State(s) concerned shall, where there is any doubt, provide for the
possibility of verifying at the consulate fingerprints which have been taken by
the external service provider.

7. The following applicants shall be exempt
from the requirement to give fingerprints:

(a) children under the age of
12;

(b) persons for whom
fingerprinting is physically impossible. If the fingerprinting of fewer than 10
fingers is possible, the maximum number of fingerprints shall be taken.
However, should the impossibility be temporary, the applicant shall be required
to give the fingerprints at the following application. The authorities
competent in accordance with Article 4(1), (2) and (3) shall be entitled to ask
for further clarification of the grounds for the temporary impossibility.
Member States shall ensure that appropriate procedures guaranteeing the dignity
of the applicant are in place in the event of there being difficulties in
enrolling;

(c) heads of State or government
and members of a national government with accompanying spouses, and the members
of their official delegation when they are invited by Member States’
governments or by international organisations for an official purpose;

(d) sovereigns and other senior
members of a royal family, when they are invited by Member States’ governments
or by international organisations for an official purpose.

8. In the cases referred to in paragraph 7,
the entry ‘not applicable’ shall be introduced in the VIS in accordance with
Article 8(5) of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

Article 1413

Supporting documents

1. When applying for a uniform visa, the
applicant shall present:

(a) documents indicating the
purpose of the journey;

(b) documents in relation to
accommodation, or proof of sufficient means to cover his accommodation;

(c) documents indicating that
the applicant possesses sufficient means of subsistence both for the duration
of the intended stay and for the return to his country of origin or residence,
or for the transit to a third country into which he is certain to be admitted,
or that he is in a position to acquire such means lawfully, in accordance with
Article 5(1)(c) and (3) of the
Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council[33] Õ ;

(d) information enabling an
assessment of the applicant’s intention to leave the territory of the Member
States before the expiry of the visa applied for.

ò new

2. Points (b), (c) and (d) of paragraph 1 do not
apply to applicants who are VIS registered regular travellers and who have
lawfully used the two previously obtained visas.

3. Close relatives of Union citizens referred
to in Article 8(3) shall  provide only documentary evidence proving the family
relationship with the Union citizen, and that they visit or travel together
with the Union citizen.

Family members of
Union citizens as referred to in Article 3 of Directive 2004/38/EC shall
provide only documentary evidence proving  that they travel to accompany or
join the Union citizen and the family relationship with the Union citizen as
referred to in Article 2(2) or
the other circumstances referred to in Article 3(2) of that Directive.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

34. A Ö The Õ non-exhaustive list of supporting documents which the consulate may request Ö be
requested Õ from the
applicant in order to verify the fulfilment of the conditions listed in paragraphs
1 and 2 is set out in Annex II.

65.
Consulates may waive one or more of the requirements to provide one
or more of the documents  referred to in paragraph 1(a) to (d) in the case of an applicant known to them for his integrity and
reliability, in particular the lawful use of previous visas, if there is no
doubt that he will fulfil the requirements of Article 5(1) of Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ Schengen
Borders Code at the time of the crossing of the external borders of the
Member States.

ò new

6. The consulate
shall start processing the visa application on the basis of facsimile or copies
of the supporting documents. Applicants who are not yet registered in the VIS
shall provide the original. The consulate may ask for original documents from
applicants who are VIS registered applicants or VIS registered regular
travellers, only where there is doubt about the authenticity of a specific document.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

47.
Member States may require applicants to present a proof of sponsorship and/or
private accommodation by completing a form drawn up by each Member State. That
form shall indicate in particular:

(a) whether its purpose is proof
of sponsorship and/or of Ö private Õ accommodation;

(b) whether the host Ö sponsor/inviting person Õ is an individual, a company or an organisation;

(c) the  host's identity
and contact details Ö of the sponsor/inviting person Õ;

(d) the invited
applicant(s);

(e) the address of the
accommodation;

(f) the length and purpose of
the stay;

(g) possible family ties with
the host.Ö sponsor/inviting person Õ.

(h) the information required
pursuant to Article 37(1) of Regulation (EC) No 767/2008;

In
addition to the Member State’s official language(s), the form shall be drawn up
in at least one other official language of the institutions of the European Union.
The form shall provide the person signing it with the information required
pursuant to Article 37(1) of the VIS Regulation. A specimen of the form shall be notified to
the Commission.

28.
When applying for an airport transit visa, the applicant shall present:

(a) documents in relation to the
onward journey to the final destination after the intended airport transit;

(b) information enabling an
assessment of the applicant’s intention not to enter the territory of the
Member States.

59.
Within local Schengen cooperation the need to complete and harmonise the lists of supporting documents shall be assessed Ö prepared Õ in each
jurisdiction in order to take account of local circumstances.

ò new

10. Without
prejudice to paragraph 1, Member States may provide exemptions from the list of
supporting documents referred to in paragraphs 4 and 9 in the case of
applicants attending major international events organised in their territory
that are considered particularly important due to their tourism and/or cultural
impact

11. The
Commission shall by means of implementing acts adopt the lists of supporting
documents to be used in each jurisdiction in order to take account of local
circumstances. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the
examination procedure referred to in Article 51(2).

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 15

Travel medical insurance

1. Applicants for a uniform visa for one or two entries
shall prove that they are in possession of adequate and valid travel medical
insurance to cover any expenses which might arise in connection with
repatriation for medical reasons, urgent medical attention and/or emergency
hospital treatment or death, during their stay(s) on the territory of the
Member States.

2. Applicants for a uniform visa for more than two
entries (multiple entries) shall prove that they are in possession of adequate
and valid travel medical insurance covering the period of their first intended
visit.

In addition, such applicants shall sign the
statement, set out in the application form, declaring that they are aware of
the need to be in possession of travel medical insurance for subsequent stays.

3. The insurance shall be valid throughout the
territory of the Member States and cover the entire period of the person’s
intended stay or transit. The minimum coverage shall be EUR 30000.

When a visa with limited territorial validity
covering the territory of more than one Member State is issued, the insurance
cover shall be valid at least in the Member States concerned.

4. Applicants shall, in principle, take out insurance
in their country of residence. Where this is not possible, they shall seek to
obtain insurance in any other country.

When another person takes out insurance in the name
of the applicant, the conditions set out in paragraph 3 shall apply.

5. When assessing whether the insurance cover is
adequate, consulates shall ascertain whether claims against the insurance
company would be recoverable in a Member State.

6. The insurance requirement may be considered to
have been met where it is established that an adequate level of insurance may
be presumed in the light of the applicant’s professional situation. The
exemption from presenting proof of travel medical insurance may concern
particular professional groups, such as seafarers, who are already covered by
travel medical insurance as a result of their professional activities.

7. Holders of diplomatic passports shall be exempt
from the requirement to hold travel medical insurance.

Article 1614

Visa fee

1. Applicants shall pay a visa fee of
EUR 60.

2. Children from the age of six years and below the
age of 12 years shall pay a visa fee of EUR 35.

32. The
visa fee shall be revised regularly in order to reflect the administrative
costs.

43. The
visa fee shall be waived for
applicants belonging to one of the following
categories Ö shall pay no visa fee Õ :

(a) children
under six years ð minors under the age of eighteen
years ï ;

(b) school pupils, students,
postgraduate students and accompanying teachers who undertake stays for the
purpose of study or educational training;

(c) researchers from third
countries ð, as defined in Council Directive
2005/71/EC[34], ï travelling for the purpose of carrying out scientific research f 28 September 2005 to facilitate
the issue by the Member States of uniform short-stay visas for researchers from
third countries travelling within the Community for the purpose of carrying out
scientific research ð or participating in a scientific
seminar or conference ï ;

ò new

(d) holders of diplomatic and service passports;

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

(de) representatives of non-profit organisations Ö participants Õ aged 25 years
or less participating in seminars, conferences, sports, cultural or educational events
organised by non-profit organisations.;

ò new

(f) close relatives of the Union citizens referred to in Article 8(3).

(g) family members of Union citizens as referred
to in Article 3 of Directive 2004/38/EC in accordance with Article 5(2) of that
Directive.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

5. The visa fee may be waived for:

(a) children from the age of six years and below the age
of 12 years;

(b) holders of diplomatic and service passports;

(c) participants aged 25 years or less in seminars,
conferences, sports, cultural or educational events, organised by non-profit
organisations.

Within local Schengen cooperation, Members States
shall aim to harmonise the application of these exemptions.

64. Ö Member States may, Õ Iin
individual cases, Ö waive or reduce Õ the amount of the visa fee to be charged may be waived or reduced when to do so Ö this Õ serves to promote cultural or sporting interests as well as
interests in the field of foreign policy, development policy and other areas of
vital public interest or for humanitarian reasons.

75. The
visa fee shall be charged in euro, in the national currency of the third
country or in the currency usually used in the third country where the application
is lodged, and shall not be refundable except in the cases referred to in
Articles 1816(2)
and 1917(3).

When charged in a currency other than euro,
the amount of the visa fee charged in that currency shall be determined and
regularly reviewed in application of the euro foreign exchange reference rate
set by the European Central Bank. The amount charged may be rounded up and
consulates shall ensure under local Schengen cooperation that they charge equivalent
fees.

86. The
applicant shall be given a receipt for the visa fee paid.

Article 1715

Service fee

1. An additional service fee may be charged
by an external service provider referred to in Article 4341.
The service fee shall be proportionate to the costs incurred by the external
service provider while performing one or more of the tasks referred to in
Article 4341(6).

2. The service fee shall be specified in
the legal instrument referred to in Article 4341(2).

3. Within the framework of local Schengen
cooperation, Member States shall ensure that the service fee charged to an
applicant duly reflects the services offered by the external service provider
and is adapted to local circumstances. Furthermore, they shall aim to harmonise
the service fee applied.

43. The
service fee shall not exceed half of the amount of the visa fee set out in
Article 1614(1),
irrespective of the possible reductions in or exemptions from the visa fee as
provided for in Article 1614(2), (4), (5)
and (6) ð (3) and (4) ï .

5. The Member State(s) concerned shall maintain the
possibility for all applicants to lodge their applications directly at
its/their consulates.

CHAPTER III

Examination of and decision on an
application

Article 1816

Verification of consular competence

1. When an application has been lodged, the
consulate shall verify whether it is competent to examine and decide on it in
accordance with the provisions of Articles 5 and 6.

2. If the consulate is not competent, it
shall, without delay, return the application form and any documents submitted
by the applicant, reimburse the visa fee, and indicate which consulate is
competent.

Article 1917

Admissibility

1. The competent consulate shall verify
whether:

(a)          the application has been lodged within the period referred
to in Article 98(1),

(b)          the application contains the items referred to in Article 109(3)(a)
to (c),

(c)          the biometric data of the applicant have been collected,
and

(d)          the visa fee has been collected.

2. Where the competent consulate finds that
the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 have been fulfilled, the application
shall be admissible and the consulate shall:

(a)          follow the procedures described in Article 8 of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ , and

(b)          further examine the application.

Data shall be entered in the VIS only by
duly authorised consular staff in accordance with Articles 6(1), 7, 9(5) and
9(6) of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/ Õ 2008 .

3. Where the competent consulate finds that
the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 have not been fulfilled, the
application shall be inadmissible and the consulate Ö without delay Õ shall without delay:

(a)          return the application form and any documents submitted by
the applicant,

(b)          destroy the collected biometric data,

(c)          reimburse the visa fee, and

(d)          not examine the application.

4. By way of derogation, an application
that does not meet the requirements set out in paragraph 1 may be considered
admissible on humanitarian grounds or for reasons of national interest.

Article 20

Stamp indicating that an application is admissible

1. When an application is admissible, the competent
consulate shall stamp the applicant’s travel document. The stamp shall be as
set out in the model in Annex III and shall be affixed in accordance with the
provisions of that Annex.

2. Diplomatic, service/official and special passports
shall not be stamped.

3. The provisions of this Article shall apply to the
consulates of the Member States until the date when the VIS becomes fully
operational in all regions, in accordance with Article 48 of the VIS
Regulation.

Article 2118

Verification of entry conditions
and risk assessment

1. In the examination of an application for
a uniform visa, it shall be ascertained whether the applicant fulfils the entry
conditions set out in Article 5(1)(a), (c), (d) and (e) of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ , and
particular consideration shall be given to assessing whether the applicant
presents a risk of illegal Ö irregular
Õ immigration or
a risk to the security of the Member States and whether the applicant intends
to leave the territory of the Member States before the expiry of the visa
applied for.

ò new

2. In the
examination of an application for a uniform visa lodged by a VIS registered
regular traveller who has lawfully used the two previously obtained visas, it
shall be presumed that the applicant fulfils the entry conditions regarding the
risk of irregular immigration, a risk to the security of the Member States, and
the possession of sufficient means of subsistence.

3. The
presumption referred to in paragraph 2 shall not apply where the consulate has
reasonable doubts about the fulfilment of these entry conditions based on
information stored in the VIS, such as decisions annulling a previous visa, or
in the passport, such as entry and exit stamps. In such cases, the consulates
may carry out an interview and request additional documents.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

24. In
respect of each application, the VIS shall be consulted in accordance with
Articles 8(2) and 15 of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ . Member
States shall ensure that full use is made of all search criteria pursuant to
Article 15 of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ in order to
avoid false rejections and identifications.

35. Ö Without
prejudice to paragraph 2, Õ Wwhile
checking whether the applicant fulfils the entry conditions, the consulate
shall verify:

(a) that the travel document
presented is not false, counterfeit or forged;

(b) the applicant’s
justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay, and that he
has sufficient means of subsistence, both for the duration of the intended stay
and for the return to his country of origin or residence, or for the transit to
a third country into which he is certain to be admitted, or is in a position to
acquire such means lawfully;

(c) whether the applicant is a
person for whom an alert has been issued in the Schengen Information System
(SIS) for the purpose of refusing entry;

(d) that the applicant is not
considered to be a threat to public policy, internal security or public health
as defined in Article 2(19) of the
Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ or to the
international relations of any of the Member States, in particular where no alert
has been issued in Member States’ national databases for the purpose of
refusing entry on the same grounds;.

(e) that the
applicant is in possession of adequate and valid travel medical insurance,
where applicable.

46. The
consulate shall, where applicable, verify the length of previous and intended
stays in order to verify that the applicant has not exceeded the maximum
duration of authorised stay in the territory of the Member States, irrespective
of possible stays authorised under ð a touring visa, ï a national long-stay visa or a residence
permit issued by another Member State.

57. The
means of subsistence for the intended stay shall be assessed in accordance with
the duration and the purpose of the stay and by reference to average prices in
the Member State(s) concerned for board and lodging in budget accommodation,
multiplied by the number of days stayed, on the basis of the reference amounts
set by the Member States in accordance with Article 34(1)(c) of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ. Proof of
sponsorship and/or private accommodation may also constitute evidence of
sufficient means of subsistence.

68. In
the examination of an application for an airport transit visa, the consulate
shall in particular verify:

(a) that the travel document
presented is not false, counterfeit or forged;

(b) the points of departure and
destination of the third-country national concerned and the coherence of the
intended itinerary and airport transit;

(c) proof of the onward journey
to the final destination.

79. The
examination of an application shall be based notably on the authenticity and
reliability of the documents submitted and on the veracity and reliability of
the statements made by the applicant.

810.
During the examination of an application, consulates may in justified cases call the
applicant for ð carry out ï an interview and request additional documents.

911. A
previous visa refusal shall not lead to an automatic refusal of a new
application. A new application shall be assessed on the basis of all available
information.

Article 2219

Prior consultation of central
authorities of other Member States

1. A Member State may require the central
authorities of other Member States to consult its central authorities during
the examination of applications lodged by nationals of specific third countries
or specific categories of such nationals. Such consultation shall not apply to
applications for airport transit visas.

2. The central authorities consulted shall
reply definitively within seven ð five ï calendar days after being consulted. The absence of a reply within
this deadline shall mean that they have no grounds for objecting to the issuing
of the visa.

3. Member States shall notify the
Commission of the introduction or withdrawal of the requirement of prior
consultation ð at the latest 15 calendar days ï before it becomes applicable. This information shall also be given
within local Schengen cooperation in the jurisdiction concerned.

4. The Commission shall inform Member
States of such notifications.

5. From the date of the replacement of the Schengen
Consultation Network, as referred to in Article 46 of the VIS Regulation, prior
consultation shall be carried out in accordance with Article 16(2) of that
Regulation.

Article 2320

Decision on the application

1. Applications shall be decided on within 15 ð 10 ï calendar days of the date of the lodging of an application which is
admissible in accordance with Article 1917.

2. That period may be extended up to a
maximum of 20 calendar days in individual cases, notably when further scrutiny
of the application is needed or in cases of representation where the
authorities of the represented Member State are consulted.

3. Exceptionally, when additional documentation is
needed in specific cases, the period may be extended up to a maximum of 60
calendar days.

ò new

3. Applications
of close relatives of the Union citizens referred to in Article 8(3) and of family
members of Union citizens as referred to in Article 3(1) of Directive
2004/38/EC shall be decided on within 5 calendar days of the date of the
lodging of an application. That period may be extended up to a maximum of 10
calendar days in individual cases, notably when further scrutiny of the
application is needed.

ò new

4. The deadlines
provided for in paragraph 3 shall apply as a maximum to family
members of Union citizens as referred to in Article 3 of Directive 2004/38/EC,
in accordance with Article 5(2) of that Directive.

ê 810/2009

5. Unless the application has been
withdrawn, a decision shall be taken to:

(a) issue a uniform visa in accordance
with Article 2421;

(b) issue a visa with limited
territorial validity in accordance with Article 2522;

ò new

(c)
issue an airport transit visa in accordance with Article 23; or

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

(d) refuse a visa
in accordance with Article 3229;. or

(d)
discontinue the examination of the application and transfer it to the relevant
authorities of the represented Member State in accordance with Article 8(2).

The fact that fingerprinting is physically
impossible, in accordance with Article 1312(7)(b), shall not influence the issuing or refusal of a visa.

CHAPTER IV

Issuing of the visa

Article 2421

Issuing of a uniform visa

1. The period of validity of a visa and the
length of the authorised stay shall be based on the examination conducted in
accordance with Article 2118.

2. A visa may be issued for one, two or multiple entries. The period
of validity ð of a multiple entry visa ï shall not exceed five years. ð The period of validity of a multiple
entry visa may extend beyond the period of validity of the passport to which
the visa is affixed. ï

In the case of transit, the length of the authorised
stay shall correspond to the time necessary for the purpose of the transit.

Without prejudice to Article 1211(a),
the period of validity of the ð a single entry ï visa shall include an additional ‘period of grace’ of 15 days. Member States may decide not to grant
such a period of grace for reasons of public policy or because of the
international relations of any of the Member States.

ò new

3. VIS registered
regular travellers who have lawfully used the two previously obtained visas
shall be issued a multiple entry visa valid for at least three years.

4. Applicants
referred to in paragraph 3 who have lawfully used the multiple entry visa valid
for three years shall be issued  a multiple entry visa valid for five years
provided that the application is lodged no later than one year from the expiry
date of the multiple entry visa valid for three years.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

25. Without prejudice to Article 12(a), Ö A Õ multiple-entry
visas ð valid for up to 5 years may ï shall be issued with a period of validity between six months and five
years, where the following conditions are met:

(a) the Ö to an Õ applicant Ö who Õ proves the
need or justifies the intention to travel frequently and/or regularly, in
particular due to his occupational or family status, such as business persons,
civil servants engaged in regular official contacts with Member States and EU
institutions, representatives of civil society organisations travelling for the
purpose of educational training, seminars and conferences, family members of
citizens of the Union, family members of third-country nationals legally
residing in Member States and seafarers; and

(b) ð provided that ï the applicant proves his integrity and reliability, in particular
the lawful use of previous uniform visas or visas with limited territorial
validity, his economic situation in the country of origin and his genuine
intention to leave the territory of the Member States before the expiry of the
visa Ö for which
he has Õ applied for.

36. The
data set out in Article 10(1) of the
VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ shall be
entered into the VIS when a decision on issuing such a visa has been taken.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 2522

Issuing of a visa with limited
territorial validity

1. A visa with limited territorial validity
shall be issued exceptionally, in the following cases:

(a) when the Member State
concerned considers it necessary on humanitarian grounds, for reasons of
national interest or because of international obligations,

(i) to derogate from the principle
that the entry conditions laid down in Article 5(1)(a), (c), (d) and (e) of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ must be
fulfilled;

(ii) to issue a visa despite an
objection by the Member State consulted in accordance with Article 22 19 to
the issuing of a uniform visa; or

(iii) to issue a visa for reasons of
urgency, although the prior consultation in accordance with Article 22 19 has
not been carried out;

or

ê 610/2013
Art. 6.3

(b) when for reasons deemed justified
by the consulate, a new visa is issued for a stay during the same 180-day
period to an applicant who, over this 180-day period, has already used a
uniform visa or a visa with limited territorial validity allowing for a stay of
90 days.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

2. A visa with limited territorial validity
shall be valid for the territory of the issuing Member State. It may
exceptionally be valid for the territory of more than one Member State, subject
to the consent of each such Member State.

3. If the applicant holds a travel document
that is not recognised by one or more, but not all Member States, a visa valid
for the territory of the Member States recognising the travel document shall be
issued. If the issuing Member State does not recognise the applicant’s travel
document, the visa issued shall only be valid for that Member State.

4. When a visa with limited territorial
validity has been issued in the cases described in paragraph 1(a), the central
authorities of the issuing Member State shall circulate the relevant
information to the central authorities of the other Member States without
delay, by means of the procedure referred to in Article 16(3) of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

5. The data set out in Article 10(1) of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ shall be
entered into the VIS when a decision on issuing such a visa has been taken.

Article 2623

Issuing of an airport transit visa

1. An airport transit visa shall be valid
for transiting through the international transit areas of the airports situated
on the territory of Member States.

2. Without prejudice to Article 1211(a),
the period of validity of the visa shall include an additional ‘period
of grace’ of 15 days.

Member States may decide not to grant such
a period of grace for reasons of public policy or because of the international
relations of any of the Member States.

3. Without prejudice to Article 1211(a),
multiple airport transit visas may be issued with a period of validity of a
maximum six months.

4. The following criteria in particular are
relevant for taking the decision to issue multiple airport transit visas:

(a) the applicant’s need to
transit frequently and/or regularly; and

(b) the integrity and reliability
of the applicant, in particular the lawful use of previous uniform visas, visas
with limited territorial validity or airport transit visas, his economic
situation in his country of origin and his genuine intention to pursue his
onward journey.

5. If the applicant is required to hold an
airport transit visa in accordance with the provisions of Article 3(2), the
airport transit visa shall be valid only for transiting through the
international transit areas of the airports situated on the territory of the
Member State(s) concerned.

6. The data set out in Article 10(1) of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ shall be
entered into the VIS when a decision on issuing such a visa has been taken.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 2724

Filling in the visa sticker

1. When the visa sticker is filled in, the mandatory
entries set out in Annex VII shall be inserted and the machine-readable zone shall be filled in, as provided for in
ICAO document 9303, Part 2.

ò new

2. The Commission
shall by means of implementing acts adopt the details for filling in the visa
sticker. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the
examination procedure referred to in Article 51(2).

ê 810/2009 (adapted)

ð new

23. Member States may add national entries in the ‘comments’ section
of the visa sticker, which shall not Ö neither Õ duplicate the mandatory
entries in Annex VII ð established in accordance with the
procedure referred to in paragraph 2 nor indicate a specific travel
purpose ï .

34. All entries on the visa sticker shall be printed, and no manual
changes shall be made to a printed visa sticker.

45. Ö A Õ Vvisa
stickers ð for a single entry visa ï may be filled in manually only in case of technical force majeure.
No changes shall be made to a manually filled in visa sticker.

56. When a visa sticker is filled in manually in accordance with
paragraph 4 of this Article, this information shall be entered into the VIS in
accordance with Article 10(1)(k) of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 2825

Invalidation of a completed visa
sticker

1. If an error is detected on a visa
sticker which has not yet been affixed to the travel document, the visa sticker
shall be invalidated.

2. If an error is detected after the visa
sticker has been affixed to the travel document, the visa sticker shall be
invalidated by drawing a cross with indelible ink on the visa sticker ð , the optically variable device
shall be destroyed ï and a new visa sticker shall be affixed to a different page.

3. If an error is detected after the
relevant data have been introduced into the VIS in accordance with Article
10(1) of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ , the error
shall be corrected in accordance with Article 24(1) of that Regulation.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 2926

Affixing a visa sticker

1. The printed visa sticker containing the
data provided for in Article 27 24 and
Annex VII shall be affixed to the travel document in accordance with the provisions set out in
Annex VIII.

ò new

2. The Commission
shall by means of implementing acts adopt the details for affixing the visa
sticker. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the
examination procedure referred to in Article 51(2).

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

3. Where the issuing Member State does not
recognise the applicant’s travel document, the separate sheet for affixing a
visa shall be used.

4. When a visa sticker has been affixed to
the separate sheet for affixing a visa, this information shall be entered into
the VIS in accordance with Article 10(1)(j) of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

5. Individual visas issued to persons who
are included in the travel document of the applicant shall be affixed to that
travel document.

6. Where the travel document in which such
persons are included is not recognised by the issuing Member State, the
individual stickers shall be affixed to the separate sheets for affixing a visa.

Article 3027

Rights derived from an issued visa

Mere possession of a uniform visa or a visa
with limited territorial validity shall not confer an automatic right of entry.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 3128

Information
of Ö Informing Õ central authorities of other Member States

1. A Member State may require that its
central authorities be informed of visas issued by consulates of other Member
States to nationals of specific third countries or to specific categories of
such nationals, except in the case of airport transit visas.

2. Member States shall notify the
Commission of the introduction or withdrawal of the requirement for such
information ð at the latest 15 calendar days ï before it becomes applicable. This information shall also be given
within local Schengen cooperation in the jurisdiction concerned.

3. The Commission shall inform Member
States of such notifications.

4. From the date referred to in Article 46 of the VIS
Regulation, information shall be transmitted in accordance with Article 16(3)
of that Regulation.

Article 3229

Refusal of a visa

1. Without prejudice to Article 2522(1),
a visa shall be refused:

(a) if the applicant:

(i) presents a travel document which
is false, counterfeit or forged;

(ii) does not provide justification
for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay;

(iii) does not provide proof of
sufficient means of subsistence, both for the duration of the intended stay and
for the return to his country of origin or residence, or for the transit to a
third country into which he is certain to be admitted, or is not in a position
to acquire such means lawfully;

ê 610/2013
Art. 6.4

(iv) has already stayed for 90 days
during the current 180-day period on the territory of the Member States on the
basis of a uniform visa or a visa with limited territorial validity;

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

(v) is a person for whom an alert has
been issued in the SIS for the purpose of refusing entry;

(vi) is considered to be a threat to
public policy, internal security or public health as defined in Article 2(19)
of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ or to the
international relations of any of the Member States, in particular where an
alert has been issued in Member States’ national databases for the purpose of
refusing entry on the same grounds; or

(vii) does not provide proof of holding
adequate and valid travel medical insurance, where applicable;

or

(b) if there are reasonable
doubts as to the authenticity of the supporting documents submitted by the
applicant or the veracity of their contents, the reliability of the statements
made by the applicant or his intention to leave the territory of the Member
States before the expiry of the visa applied for.

2. A decision on refusal and the reasons on
which it is based shall be notified to the applicant by means of the standard
form set out in Annex VI V.

3. Applicants who have been refused a visa
shall have the right to appeal. Appeals shall be conducted Ö instituted Õ against the
Member State that has taken the final decision on the application and in
accordance with the national law of that Member State. Member States shall
provide applicants with ð detailed ï information regarding the procedure to be followed in the event of
an appeal, as specified in Annex VI V.

4. In the cases referred to in Article 8(2), the
consulate of the representing Member State shall inform the applicant of the
decision taken by the represented Member State.

54.
Information on a refused visa shall be entered into the VIS in accordance with
Article 12 of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

CHAPTER V

Modification of an issued visa

Article 3330

Extension

1. The period of validity and/or the
duration of stay of an issued visa shall be extended where the competent
authority of a Member State considers that a visa holder has provided proof of
force majeure or humanitarian reasons preventing him from leaving the territory
of the Member States before the expiry of the period of validity of or the
duration of stay authorised by the visa. Such an extension shall be granted
free of charge.

2. The period of validity and/or the
duration of stay of an issued visa may be extended if the visa holder provides
proof of serious personal reasons justifying the extension of the period of
validity or the duration of stay. A fee of EUR 30 shall be charged for
such an extension.

3. Unless otherwise decided by the
authority extending the visa, the territorial validity of the extended visa
shall remain the same as that of the original visa.

4. The authority competent to extend the
visa shall be that of the Member State on whose territory the third-country
national is present at the moment of applying for an extension.

5. Member States shall notify to the
Commission the authorities competent for extending visas.

6. Extension of visas shall take the form
of a visa sticker.

7. Information on an extended visa shall be
entered into the VIS in accordance with Article 14 of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

Article 3431

Annulment and revocation

1. A visa shall be annulled where it
becomes evident that the conditions for issuing it were not met at the time
when it was issued, in particular if there are serious grounds for believing
that the visa was fraudulently obtained. A visa shall in principle be annulled
by the competent authorities of the Member State which issued it. A visa may be
annulled by the competent authorities of another Member State, in which case
the authorities of the Member State that issued the visa shall be informed of
such annulment.

2. A visa shall be revoked where it becomes
evident that the conditions for issuing it are no longer met. A visa shall in
principle be revoked by the competent authorities of the Member State which
issued it. A visa may be revoked by the competent authorities of another Member
State, in which case the authorities of the Member State that issued the visa
shall be informed of such revocation.

3. A visa may be revoked at the request of
the visa holder. The competent authorities of the Member States that issued the
visa shall be informed of such revocation.

4. Failure of the visa holder to produce,
at the border, one or more of the supporting documents referred to in Article 1413(4),
shall not automatically lead to a decision to annul or revoke the visa.

5. If a visa is annulled or revoked, a
stamp stating ‘ANNULLED’ or ‘REVOKED’ shall be affixed to it and the optically
variable feature of the visa sticker, the security feature ‘latent image
effect’ as well as the term ‘visa’ shall be invalidated by being crossed out.

6. A decision on annulment or revocation of
a visa and the reasons on which it is based shall be notified to the applicant
by means of the standard form set out in Annex VI V.

7. A visa holder whose visa has been
annulled or revoked shall have the right to appeal, unless the visa was revoked
at his request in accordance with paragraph 3. Appeals shall be conducted
against the Member State that has taken the decision on the annulment or
revocation and in accordance with the national law of that Member State. Member
States shall provide applicants with information regarding the procedure to be
followed in the event of an appeal, as specified in Annex VI V.

8. Information on an annulled or a revoked
visa shall be entered into the VIS in accordance with Article 13 of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

CHAPTER VI

Visas issued at the external borders

Article 3532

Visas applied for Ö exceptionally Õ at the
external border

1. In exceptional cases, visas may be
issued at border crossing points if the following conditions are satisfied:

(a) the applicant fulfils the
conditions laid down in Article 5(1)(a), (c), (d) and (e) of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ ;

(b) the applicant has not been
in a position to apply for a visa in advance and submits, if required,
supporting documents substantiating unforeseeable and imperative reasons for
entry; and

(c) the applicant’s return to
his country of origin or residence or transit through States other than Member
States fully implementing the Schengen acquis is assessed as certain.

2. Where a visa is
applied for at the external border, the requirement that the applicant be in
possession of travel medical insurance may be waived when such travel medical
insurance is not available at that border crossing point or for humanitarian
reasons.

32. A
visa issued at the external border shall be a uniform visa, entitling the
holder to stay for a maximum duration of 15 days, depending on the purpose and
conditions of the intended stay. In the case of transit, the length of the
authorised stay shall correspond to the time necessary for the purpose of the
transit.

43.
Where the conditions laid down in Article 5(1)(a), (c), (d) and (e) of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ are not
fulfilled, the authorities responsible for issuing the visa at the border may
issue a visa with limited territorial validity, in accordance with Article 2522(1)(a)
of this Regulation, for the territory of the issuing Member State only.

54. A
third-country national falling within a category of persons for whom prior
consultation is required in accordance with Article 22 19 shall,
in principle, not be issued a visa at the external border.

However, a visa with limited territorial
validity for the territory of the issuing Member State may be issued at the
external border for such persons in exceptional cases, in accordance with
Article 2522(1)(a).

65. In
addition to the reasons for refusing a visa as provided for in Article 3229(1)
a visa shall be refused at the border crossing point if the conditions referred
to in paragraph 1(b) of this Article are not met.

76. The
provisions on justification and notification of refusals and the right of
appeal set out in Article 3229(3) and Annex VI V shall
apply.

ò new

Article 33

Visas applied for at the external border under a
temporary scheme

1.
In view of promoting short term tourism, a Member State may decide to
temporarily issue visas at the external border to persons fulfilling the
conditions set out in Article 32 (1) (a) and (c).

2.
The duration of such a scheme shall be limited to 5 months in any calendar year
and the categories of beneficiaries shall be clearly defined.

3.
By way of derogation from Article 22(1), a visa issued under such a scheme
shall be valid only for the territory of the issuing Member State and shall
entitle the holder to stay for a maximum duration of 15 calendar days, depending
on the purpose and conditions of the intended stay.

4.
Where the visa is refused at the external border, the Member State cannot
impose the obligations set out in Article 26 of the Convention Implementing the
Schengen Agreement on the carrier concerned.

5.
Member States shall notify the envisaged schemes to the European Parliament,
the Council and the Commission at the latest three months before the start of
their implementation. The notification shall define the categories of
beneficiaries, the geographical scope, the organisational modalities of the
scheme and the measures envisaged to ensure the verification of the visa
issuing conditions.

The
Commission shall publish this notification in the Official Journal of the
European Union.

6.
Three months after the end of the scheme, the Member State concerned shall
submit a detailed implementation report to the Commission. The report shall
contain information on the number of visas issued and refused (including
citizenship of the persons concerned); duration of stay, return rate (including
citizenship of persons not returning).

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 3634

Visas issued to seafarers in transit at the external border

1. A seafarer who is required to be in
possession of a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States
may be issued with a visa for the
purpose of transit at the border where:

(a) he fulfils the conditions
set out in Article 3532(1);
and

(b) he is crossing the border in
question in order to embark on, re-embark on or disembark from a ship on which
he will work or has worked as a seafarer.

2. Before issuing a visa at the border to a
seafarer in transit, the competent national authorities shall comply
with the rules set out in Annex IX, Part 1, and make sure that the necessary information concerning the seafarer in
question has been exchanged by means of a duly completed form for seafarers
in transit, as set out in Annex IX, Part 2.

ò new

3. The Commission shall by means of implementing
acts adopt operational instructions for issuing visas at the border to
seafarers. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the
examination procedure referred to in Article 51(2).

ê 810/2009

34. This
Article shall apply without prejudice to Article 3532(32), (43) and
(54).

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

TITLE IV

ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT AND
ORGANISATION

Article 3735

Organisation of visa sections

1. Member States shall be responsible for
organising the visa sections of their consulates.

In order to prevent any decline in the
level of vigilance and to protect staff from being exposed to pressure at local
level, rotation schemes for staff dealing directly with applicants shall be set
up, where appropriate. Particular attention shall be paid to clear work
structures and a distinct allocation/division of responsibilities in relation
to the taking of final decisions on applications. Access to consultation of the
VIS and the SIS and other confidential information shall be restricted to a
limited number of duly authorised staff. Appropriate measures shall be taken to
prevent unauthorised access to such databases.

2. The storage and handling of visa
stickers shall be subject to adequate security measures to avoid fraud or loss.
Each consulate shall keep an account of its stock of visa stickers and register
how each visa sticker has been used.

3. Member States’ consulates shall keep
archives of applications. Each individual file shall contain the application
form, copies of relevant supporting documents, a record of checks made and the
reference number of the visa issued, in order for staff to be able to
reconstruct, if need be, the background for the decision taken on the
application.

Individual application files shall be kept
for a minimum of two years from the date of the decision on the application as
referred to in Article 2320(1).

Article 3836

Resources for examining
applications and monitoring of consulates

1. Member States shall deploy appropriate
staff in sufficient numbers to carry out the tasks relating to the examining of
applications, in such a way as to ensure reasonable and harmonised quality of
service to the public.

2. Premises shall meet appropriate
functional requirements of adequacy and allow for appropriate security
measures.

3. Member States’ central authorities shall
provide adequate training to both expatriate staff and locally employed staff
and shall be responsible for providing them with complete, precise and
up-to-date information on the relevant Community Ö Union Õ and national
law.

4. Member States’ central authorities shall
ensure frequent and adequate monitoring of the conduct of examination of
applications and take corrective measures when deviations from the provisions
of this Regulation are detected.

Article 3937

Conduct of staff

1. Member States’ consulates shall ensure
that applicants are received courteously.

2. Consular staff shall, in the performance
of their duties, fully respect human dignity. Any measures taken shall be
proportionate to the objectives pursued by such measures.

3. While performing their tasks, consular
staff shall not discriminate against persons on grounds of sex, racial or
ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.

Article 4038

Forms of Ö Consular
organisation and Õ cooperation

1. Each Member State shall be responsible
for organising the procedures relating to applications. In principle,
applications shall be lodged at a consulate of a Member State.

2. Member States shall:

(a) equip their consulates and
authorities responsible for issuing visas at the borders with the required
material for the collection of biometric identifiers, as well as the offices of
their honorary consuls, whenever they make use of them, to collect biometric
identifiers in accordance with Article 4240; and/or

(b) cooperate with one or more
other Member States, within the framework of local Schengen cooperation
or by other appropriate contacts, in the form of limited representation,
co-location, or a Common Application Centre in accordance with Article 41 ð under representation arrangements or
any other form of consular cooperation ï .

3. In particular circumstances or for reasons relating
to the local situation, such as where:

(a) the high number of applicants does not allow the
collection of applications and of data to be organised in a timely manner and
in decent conditions; or

(b) it is not possible to ensure a good territorial coverage
of the third country concerned in any other way;

and where the forms of cooperation referred to in
paragraph 2(b) prove not to be appropriate for the Member State concerned, a

Ö 3. A Õ Member State
may,
as a last resort, Ö also Õ cooperate with
an external service provider in accordance with Article 4341.

4. Without prejudice to the right to call the
applicant for a personal interview, as provided for in Article 21(8), the
selection of a form of organisation shall not lead to the applicant being
required to appear in person at more than one location in order to lodge an
application.

54. Member States shall notify to the Commission how they
intend to organise the procedures relating to applications ð their consular organisation and
cooperation ï in each consular location.

ò new

65. In the event of termination of cooperation with
other Member States, Member States shall assure the continuity of full service.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 839

Representation arrangements

1. A Member State may agree to represent
another Member State that is competent in accordance with Article 5 for the
purpose of examining applications and issuing visas on behalf of that Member
State. A Member State may also represent another Member State in a limited
manner solely Ö only Õ for the
collection of applications and the enrolment of biometric identifiers.

2. The consulate of the representing Member State
shall, when contemplating refusing a visa, submit the application to the
relevant authorities of the represented Member State in order for them to take
the final decision on the application within the time limits set out in Article
23(1), (2) or (3).

32. ð Where the representation is limited
to the collection of applications, ï Tthe
collection and transmission of files and data to the represented Member State
shall be carried out in compliance with the relevant data protection and
security rules.

3. A
bilateral arrangement shall be established between the representing Member
State and the represented Member State containing the following elements Ö . That
arrangement Õ :

(a) shall specify the duration
of such Ö the Õ representation,
if only temporary, and Ö the Õ procedures for
its termination;

(b) may, in particular when the
represented Member State has a consulate in the third country concerned,
provide for the provision of premises, staff and payments by the represented
Member State;.

(c) it may
stipulate that applications from certain categories of third-country nationals
are to be transmitted by the representing Member State to the central
authorities of the represented Member State for prior consultation as provided
for in Article 22;

(d) by way of derogation from paragraph 2, it may
authorise the consulate of the representing Member State to refuse to issue a
visa after examination of the application.

54.
Member States lacking their own consulate in a third country shall endeavour to
conclude representation arrangements with Member States that have consulates in
that country.

65.
With a view to ensuring that a poor transport infrastructure or long distances
in a specific region or geographical area do not require a disproportionate
effort on the part of applicants to have access to a consulate, Member States
lacking their own consulate in that region or area shall endeavour to conclude
representation arrangements with Member States that have consulates in that
region or area.

76. The
represented Member State shall notify the representation arrangements or the
termination of such Ö those Õ arrangements
to the Commission ð at least two months ï before they enter into force or are terminated.

87. Simultaneously,
tThe
consulate of the representing Member State shall Ö , at the
same time that the notification referred to in paragraph 6 takes place, Õ inform both
the consulates of other Member States and the delegation of the Commission Ö European
Union Õ in the
jurisdiction concerned about representation arrangements or the termination of
such arrangements before they
enter into force or are terminated.

98. If
the consulate of the representing Member State decides to cooperate with an
external service provider in accordance with Article 4341, or
with accredited commercial intermediaries as provided for in Article 4543, such Ö that Õ cooperation
shall include applications covered by representation arrangements. The central
authorities of the represented Member State shall be informed in advance of the
terms of such cooperation.

Article 41

Cooperation between Member States

1. Where ‘co-location’ is chosen, staff of the
consulates of one or more Member States shall carry out the procedures relating
to applications (including the collection of biometric identifiers) addressed
to them at the consulate of another Member State and share the equipment of
that Member State. The Member States concerned shall agree on the duration of
and conditions for the termination of the co-location as well as the proportion
of the visa fee to be received by the Member State whose consulate is being
used.

2. Where ‘Common Application Centres’ are
established, staff of the consulates of two or more Member States shall be
pooled in one building in order for applicants to lodge applications (including
biometric identifiers). Applicants shall be directed to the Member State
competent for examining and deciding on the application. Member States shall
agree on the duration of and conditions for the termination of such cooperation
as well as the cost-sharing among the participating Member States. One Member
State shall be responsible for contracts in relation to logistics and
diplomatic relations with the host country.

3. In the event of termination of cooperation with
other Member States, Member States shall assure the continuity of full service.

Article 4240

Recourse to honorary consuls

1. Honorary consuls may also be
authorised to perform some or all of the tasks referred to in Article 43(6) 41(5). Adequate measures shall be taken to ensure security and data
protection.

2. Where the honorary consul is not a civil
servant of a Member State, the performance of those tasks shall comply with the
requirements set out in Annex X VI,
except for the provisions in point D(c) of that Annex.

3. Where the honorary consul is a civil
servant of a Member State, the Member State concerned shall ensure that
requirements comparable to those which would apply if the tasks were performed
by its consulate are applied.

Article 4341

Cooperation with external service
providers

1. Member States shall endeavour to
cooperate with an external service provider together with one or more Member
States, without prejudice to public procurement and competition rules.

2. Cooperation with an external service
provider shall be based on a legal instrument that shall comply with the
requirements set out in Annex X VI.

3. Member States shall, within the framework of local
Schengen cooperation, exchange information about the selection of external
service providers and the establishment of the terms and conditions of their
respective legal instruments.

43. The
examination of applications, interviews (where appropriate), the decision on
applications and the printing and affixing of visa stickers shall be carried out
only by the consulate.

54.
External service providers shall not have access to the VIS under any
circumstances. Access to the VIS shall be reserved exclusively to duly
authorised staff of consulates.

65. An
external service provider may be entrusted with the performance of one or more
of the following tasks:

(a) providing general
information on visa requirements and application forms;

(b) informing the applicant of
the required supporting documents, on the basis of a checklist;

(c) collecting data and
applications (including collection of biometric identifiers) and transmitting
the application to the consulate;

(d) collecting the visa fee;

(e) managing the
appointments for appearance in person ð the applicant, where
applicable, ï at the consulate or at the external service provider;

(f) collecting the travel
documents, including a refusal notification if applicable, from the consulate
and returning them to the applicant.

76.
When selecting an external service provider, the Member State(s) concerned
shall scrutinise the solvency and reliability of the company, including the
necessary licences, commercial registration, company statutes, bank contracts,
and ensure that there is no conflict of interests.

87. The
Member State(s) concerned shall ensure that the external service provider
selected complies with the terms and conditions assigned to it in the legal
instrument referred to in paragraph 2.

98. The
Member State(s) concerned shall remain responsible for compliance with data
protection rules for the processing of data and shall be supervised in
accordance with Article 28 of Directive 95/46/EC.

Cooperation with an external service
provider shall not limit or exclude any liability arising under the national
law of the Member State(s) concerned for breaches of obligations with regard to
the personal data of applicants or the performance of one or more of the tasks
referred to in paragraph 65. This provision is without prejudice to any action which may be
taken directly against the external service provider under the national law of
the third country concerned.

109. The
Member State(s) concerned shall provide training to the external service
provider, corresponding to the knowledge needed to offer an appropriate service
and sufficient information to applicants.

1110.
The Member State(s) concerned shall closely monitor the implementation of the
legal instrument referred to in paragraph 2, including:

(a) the general information on
visa requirements and application forms provided by the external service
provider to applicants;

(b) all the technical and
organisational security measures required to protect personal data against
accidental or unlawful destruction or accidental loss, alteration, unauthorised
disclosure or access, in particular where the cooperation involves the
transmission of files and data to the consulate of the Member State(s)
concerned, and all other unlawful forms of processing personal data;

(c) the collection and
transmission of biometric identifiers;

(d) the measures taken to ensure
compliance with data protection provisions.

To this end, the consulate(s) of the Member
State(s) concerned shall, on a regular basis, carry out spot checks on the
premises of the external service provider.

1211. In
the event of termination of cooperation with an external service provider,
Member States shall ensure the continuity of full service.

1312.
Member States shall provide the Commission with a copy of the legal instrument
referred to in paragraph 2. ð By 1st January each year, Member
States shall report to the Commission on their cooperation with and monitoring
(as referred to in Annex VI, point C) of external service providers
worldwide. ï

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 4442

Encryption and secure transfer of
data

1. In the case of representation
arrangements between ð cooperation among ï Member States and cooperation of Member States with an external
service provider and recourse to honorary consuls, the
represented Member State(s) or the Member
State(s) concerned shall ensure that the data are fully encrypted, whether
electronically transferred or physically transferred on an electronic storage
medium from the authorities of the representing Member State to the
authorities of the represented Member State(s) or from the external service
provider or from the honorary consul to the authorities of the Member State(s) concerned.

2. In third countries which prohibit
encryption of data to be electronically transferred from the
authorities of the representing Member State to the authorities of the
represented Member State(s) or from the external service provider or from the
honorary consul to the authorities of the Member State(s) concerned, the represented
Members State(s) or the Member State(s)
concerned shall not allow the representing Member State or the external service
provider or the honorary consul to transfer data
electronically.

In such a case, the
represented Member State(s) or the Member
State(s) concerned shall ensure that the electronic data are transferred
physically in fully encrypted form on an electronic storage medium from the
authorities of the representing Member State to the authorities of the
represented Member State(s) or from the external service provider or from the
honorary consul to the authorities of the Member State(s) concerned by a consular officer of a Member State or, where such a transfer
would require disproportionate or unreasonable measures to be taken, in another
safe and secure way, for example by using established operators experienced in
transporting sensitive documents and data in the third country concerned.

3. In all cases the level of security for
the transfer shall be adapted to the sensitive nature of the data.

4. The Member States or the Community Ö Union Õ shall endeavour to reach agreement with the third countries
concerned with the aim of lifting the prohibition against encryption of data to
be electronically transferred from the authorities of the representing
Member State to the authorities of the represented Member State(s) or from the
external service provider or from the honorary consul to the authorities of the
Member State(s) concerned.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 4543

Member States’ cooperation with commercial intermediaries

1. Member States may cooperate with Ö accept the lodging of applications by a private administrative
agency, a transport company or a travel agency, such as a tour operator or a
retailer (commercial intermediaries) Õ for the lodging of applications, except for the collection of biometric identifiers.

2. Such cCooperation
Ö with
commercial intermediaries Õ shall be based
on the granting of an accreditation by Member States’ relevant authorities. The
accreditation shall, in particular, be based on the verification of the
following aspects:

(a) the current status of the
commercial intermediary: current licence, the commercial register, contracts
with banks;

(b) existing contracts with
commercial partners based in the Member States offering accommodation and other
package tour services;

(c) contracts with transport
companies, which must include an outward journey, as well as a guaranteed and
fixed return journey.

3. Accredited commercial intermediaries
shall be monitored regularly by spot checks involving personal or telephone
interviews with applicants, verification of trips and accommodation, verification that the travel medical insurance
provided is adequate and covers individual travellers, and wherever deemed necessary, verification of the documents
relating to group return.

4. Within local Schengen cooperation,
information shall be exchanged on the performance of the accredited commercial
intermediaries concerning irregularities detected and refusal of applications
submitted by commercial intermediaries, and on detected forms of travel
document fraud and failure to carry out scheduled trips.

5. Within local Schengen cooperation, lists
shall be exchanged of commercial intermediaries to which accreditation has been
given by each consulate and from which accreditation has been withdrawn,
together with the reasons for any such withdrawal.

Each consulate shall make sure that
inform the public is informed
about the list of accredited commercial intermediaries with which it
cooperates.

Article 4644

Compilation of statistics

Member States shall compile annual
statistics on visas, in accordance with the table set out in Annex XII VIII.
These statistics shall be submitted by 1 March for the preceding calendar year.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 4745

Information Ö to be provided Õ to the public

1. Member States’ central authorities and
consulates shall provide the public with all relevant information in relation
to the application for a visa, in particular:

(a) the criteria, conditions and
procedures for applying for a visa;

(b) the means of obtaining an
appointment, if applicable;

(c) where the application may be
submitted (competent consulate,
Common Application Centre or external service provider);

(d) accredited commercial
intermediaries;

(e) the fact
that the stamp as provided for in Article 20 has no legal implications;

(fe) the
time limits for examining applications provided for in Article 2320(1),
(2) and (3);

(gf) the
third countries whose nationals or specific categories of whose nationals are
subject to prior consultation or information;

(hg)
that negative decisions on applications must be notified to the applicant, that
such decisions must state the reasons on which they are based and that
applicants whose applications are refused have a right to appeal, with
information regarding the procedure to be followed in the event of an appeal,
including the competent authority, as well as the time limit for lodging an
appeal;

(ih)
that mere possession of a visa does not confer an automatic right of entry and
that the holders of visa are requested to present proof that they fulfil the
entry conditions at the external border, as provided for in Article 5 of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ .

2. The representing and represented Member
State shall inform the general public about representation arrangements as
referred to in Article 8 39 before
such arrangements enter into force.

ò new

3.         The
Commission shall establish a standard information template for the
implementation of the provisions of paragraph 1.

4.         The
Commission shall establish a Schengen visa Internet website containing all
relevant information relating to the application for a visa.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

TITLE V

LOCAL SCHENGEN COOPERATION

Article 4846

Local Schengen cooperation between
Member States’ consulates

1. In order to ensure a harmonised
application of the common visa policy taking into account, where appropriate,
local circumstances, Member States’ consulates and the Commission shall
cooperate within each jurisdiction, and assess
the need to establish in particular Ö to Õ :

(a) Ö prepare Õ a harmonised
list of supporting documents to be submitted by applicants, taking into account
Article 14 13 and Annex II;

(b) Ö ensure
a Õ common criteria for
examining applications in relation to exemptions from paying the visa fee in
accordance with Article 16(5) and matters relating to the translation of the application form in accordance with Article 11(5) 10(6);

(c) an Ö establish Õ exhaustive Ö the Õ list of travel
documents issued by the host country, which shall be updated Ö and
update it regularly Õ .

If in relation to one or more of the points (a) to
(c), the assessment within local Schengen cooperation confirms the need for a 
local harmonised approach measures on such an approach shall be adopted
pursuant to the procedure referred to in Article 52(2).

2. Within local Schengen cooperation a
common information sheet shall be established ð on the basis of the standard
information template drawn up by the Commission under Article 45(3) ï on uniform visas and visas with limited territorial
validity and airport transit visas, namely, the rights that the visa implies
and the conditions for applying for it, including, where applicable, the list
of supporting documents as referred to in paragraph 1(a).

3. The following information shall be exchanged tasks shall be carried out Member States within local Schengen
cooperation ð shall exchange the following ï :

(a) monthly ð quarterly ï statistics on uniform visas, visas with
limited territorial validity, and airport transit visas ð and touring visas ï ð applied for, ï issued, as well as the number of visas Ö and Õ refused Ö shall be compiled Õ ;

(b) Ö exchange of information Õ with regard to the assessment of migratory and/or security risks,, information Ö in particular Õ on:

(i) the socioeconomic structure of
the host country;

(ii) sources of information at local
level, including social security, health insurance, fiscal registers and
entry-exit registrations;

(iii) the use of false, counterfeit
or forged documents;

(iv) illegal Ö irregular Õ immigration routes;

(v) refusals;

(c)
information on cooperation with transport companies;.

(d)
information on insurance companies providing adequate travel medical insurance,
including verification of the type of coverage and possible excess amount.

4. Local Schengen cooperation meetings to
deal specifically with operational issues in relation to the application of the
common visa policy shall be organised regularly among Member States and the
Commission. These meetings shall be convened within the jurisdiction by the
Commission, unless otherwise agreed at the request of the Commission.

Single-topic meetings may be organised and
sub-groups set up to study specific issues within local Schengen cooperation.

65.
Representatives of the consulates of Member States not applying the Union acquis
in relation to visas, or of third countries, may on an ad hoc basis be invited
to participate in meetings for the exchange of information on issues relating
to visas.

56.
Summary reports of local Schengen cooperation meetings shall be drawn up
systematically and circulated locally. The Commission may delegate the drawing
up of the reports to a Member State. The consulates of each Member State shall
forward the reports to their central authorities.

ð 7. An annual report shall be drawn
up within each jurisdiction by 31 December each year. ï On the basis of these reports, the Commission shall draw up an annual report within each
jurisdiction ð on the state of affairs of local
Schengen cooperation ï to be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council.

TITLE VI

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 4947

Arrangements in relation to the
Olympic Games and Paralympic Games

Member States hosting the Olympic Games and
Paralympic Games shall apply the specific procedures and conditions
facilitating the issuing of visas set out in Annex XI VII.

Article 50

Amendments to the Annexes

Measures designed to amend non-essential elements of
this Regulation and amending Annexes I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII and XII shall be adopted
in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in
Article 52(3).

ò new

Article 48

Exercise of the delegation

1. The power to
adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions
laid down in this Article.

2. Powers to
adopt delegated acts referred to in Article  3(2) and (9), shall be conferred
on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time.

3. The delegation
of power referred to in Article 3(2) and (9) may be revoked at any time by the
European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to
the delegation of power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the
day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the
Europen Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the
validity of any delegated act already in force.

4. As soon as it
adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the
European Parliament and to the Council.

5. A delegated
act adopted pursuant to Article 3(2) and (9) shall enter into force only if no
objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or the Council
within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament
and the Council or if before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament
and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object.
That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European
Parliament or of the Council.

Article 49

Urgency procedure

1. Delegated acts
adopted under this Article shall enter into force without delay and shall apply
as long as no objection is expressed in accordance with paragraph 2. The
notification of a delegated act to the European Parliament and to the Council
shall state the reasons for the use of the urgency procedure.

2. Either the
European Parliament or the Council may object to a delegated act in accordance
with the procedure referred to in Article 48(5). In such cases, the Commission
shall repeal the act without delay following the notification of the decision
to object by the European Parliament or the Council.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

Article 51 50

Instructions on the practical
application of the Visa Code Ö this Regulation Õ

Operational instructions on the practical application
of the provisions of this Regulation shall be drawn up in accordance with the
procedure referred to in Article 52(2).

ò new

The Commission
shall by means of implementing acts adopt the operational instructions on the
practical application of the provisions of this Regulation shall be drawn up
in
accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 52(2). Those implementing acts shall be adopted
in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 51(2).

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ð new

Article 52 51

Committee procedure

1. The Commission shall be assisted by a
committee (the Visa Committee). ð That committee shall be a committee
within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. ï

2. Where reference is made to this
paragraph, Articles 5 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC ð Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 ï shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8
thereof and provided that the implementing measures adopted in accordance with
this procedure do not modify the essential provisions of this Regulation.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision
1999/468/EC shall be three months.

3. Where reference is made to this paragraph,
Articles 5a(1) to (4) and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard
to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

Article 53 52

Notification

1. Member States shall notify the
Commission of:

(a) representation arrangements
referred to in Article 839;

(b) third countries whose
nationals are required by individual Member States to hold an airport transit
visa when passing through the international transit areas of airports situated
on their territory, as referred to in Article 3;

(c) the national form for proof
of sponsorship and/or private accommodation referred to in Article 14(4) 13(7), if applicable;

(d) the list of third countries
for which prior consultation referred to in Article 2219(1)
is required;

(e) the list of third countries
for which information referred to in Article 3128(1)
is required;

(f) the additional national
entries in the ‘comments’ section of the visa sticker, as referred to in Article
2724(3);

(g) authorities competent for
extending visas, as referred to in Article 3330(5);

(h) the forms Ö choice Õ of ð consular organisation and ï cooperation chosen as referred to in Article 4038;

(i) statistics compiled in
accordance with Article 46 44 and
Annex XII VIII.

2. The Commission shall make the
information notified pursuant to paragraph 1 available to the Member States and
the public via a Ö the Õ constantly
updated electronic publication ð Schengen visa website, referred to
in Article 45(4) ï .

Article 54

Amendments to
Regulation (EC) No 767/2008

Regulation (EC) No
767/2008 is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 4(1) shall be amended as follows:

(a) point (a) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(a)“uniform visa” as defined in Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) No
810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009
establishing a Community code on Visas (Visa Code)[35];’»

(b) point (b) shall be deleted;

(c) point (c) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(c)“airport transit visa” as defined in Article 2(5) of Regulation
(EC) No 810/2009;’;»

(d) point (d) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(d)“visa with limited territorial validity” as defined in Article
2(4) of Regulation (EC) No 810/2009;’;»

(e) point (e) shall be deleted;

2. in Article 8(1), the words ‘On receipt of an application’, shall
be replaced by the following:

‘When the application is admissible according to Article 19 of
Regulation (EC) No 810/2009’;

3. Article 9 shall be amended as follows:

(a) the heading shall be replaced by the following:

‘Data to be
entered on application’;»

(b) paragraph 4 shall be amended as follows:

(i) point (a) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(a) surname (family name), surname at birth (former family
name(s)), first name(s) (given name(s)); date of birth, place of birth, country
of birth, sex;’;»

(ii) point (e) shall be deleted;

(iii) point (g) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(g) Member State(s) of destination and duration of the intended
stay or transit;’;»

(iv) point (h) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(h) main purpose(s) of the journey;’;»

(v) point (i) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(i) intended date of arrival in the Schengen area and intended date
of departure from the Schengen area;’;»

(vi) point (j) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(j) Member State of first entry;’;»

(vii) point (k) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(k) the applicant’s home address;’;»

(viii) in point (l), the word ‘school’ shall be replaced by:
‘educational establishment’;

(ix) in point (m), the words ‘father and mother’ shall be replaced
by ‘parental authority or legal guardian’;

4. the following point shall be added to Article 10(1):

‘(k) if applicable, the information indicating that the visa sticker
has been filled in manually.’;»

5. in Article 11, the introductory paragraph shall be replaced by
the following:

‘Where the visa authority representing another Member State
discontinues the examination of the application, it shall add the following
data to the application file:’;»

6. Article 12 shall be amended as follows:

(a) in paragraph 1, point (a) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(a) status information indicating that the visa has been refused
and whether that authority refused it on behalf of another Member State;’;»

(b) paragraph 2 shall be replaced by the following:

‘2. The application file shall also indicate the ground(s) for refusal
of the visa, which shall be one or more of the following:

(a) the applicant:

(i) presents a travel document which is false, counterfeit or
forged;

(ii) does not provide justification for the purpose and conditions
of the intended stay;

(iii) does not provide proof of sufficient means of subsistence,
both for the duration of the intended stay and for the return to his country of
origin or residence, or for the transit to a third country into which he is
certain to be admitted, or is not in a position to acquire such means lawfully;

(iv) has already stayed for three months during the current
six-month period on the territory of the Member States on a basis of a uniform
visa or a visa with limited territorial validity;

(v) is a person for whom an alert has been issued in the SIS for the
purpose of refusing entry;

(vi) is considered to be a threat to public policy, internal
security or public health as defined in Article 2(19) of the Schengen Borders
Code or to the international relations of any of the Member States, in
particular where an alert has been issued in Member States’ national databases
for the purpose of refusing entry on the same grounds;

(vii) does not provide proof of holding adequate and valid travel
medical insurance, where applicable;

(b) the information submitted regarding the justification for the
purpose and conditions of the intended stay was not reliable;

(c) the applicant’s intention to leave the territory of the Member
States before the expiry of the visa could not be ascertained;

(d) sufficient proof that the applicant has not been in a position
to apply for a visa in advance justifying application for a visa at the border
was not provided.’;»

7. Article 13 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 13

Data to be
added for a visa annulled or revoked

1. Where a decision has been taken to annul or to revoke a visa, the
visa authority that has taken the decision shall add the following data to the
application file:

(a) status information indicating that the visa has been annulled or
revoked;

(b) authority that annulled or revoked the visa, including its
location;

(c) place and date of the decision.

2. The application file shall also indicate the ground(s) for
annulment or revocation, which shall be:

(a) one or more of the ground(s) listed in Article 12(2);

(b) the request of the visa holder to revoke the visa.’;»

8. Article 14 shall be amended as follows:

(a) paragraph 1 shall be amended as follows:

(i) the introductory paragraph shall be replaced by the following:

‘1. Where a decision has been taken to extend the period of validity
and/or the duration of stay of an issued visa, the visa authority which
extended the visa shall add the following data to the application file:’;»

(ii) point (d) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(d) the number of the visa sticker of the extended visa;’;»

(iii) point (g) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(g) the territory in which the visa holder is entitled to travel,
if the territorial validity of the extended visa differs from that of the
original visa;’;»

(b) in paragraph 2, point (c) shall be deleted;

9. in Article 15(1), the words ‘extend or shorten the validity of
the visa’ shall be replaced by ‘or extend the visa’;

10. Article 17 shall be amended as follows:

(a) point 4 shall be replaced by the following:

‘4. Member State of first entry;’;»

(b) point 6 shall be replaced by the following:

‘6. the type of visa issued;’;»

(c) point 11 shall be replaced by the following:

‘11. main purpose(s) of the journey;’;»

11. in Article 18(4)(c), Article 19(2)(c), Article 20(2)(d), Article
22(2)(d), the words ‘or shortened’ shall be deleted;

12. in Article 23(1)(d), the word ‘shortened’ shall be deleted.

Article 55

Amendments to
Regulation (EC) No 562/2006

Annex V, Part A of
Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 is hereby amended as follows:

(a) point 1(c), shall be replaced by the following:

‘(c) annul or revoke the visas, as appropriate, in accordance with
the conditions laid down in Article 34 of Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community
code on visas (Visa Code)[36];’»

(b) point 2 shall be deleted.

Article 5653

Repeals

1. Articles 9 to 17
of the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement of 14 June 1985 shall be Ö Regulation
(EC) No 810/2009 is Õ repealed Ö and replaced
by this Regulation from 6 months after the day of entry into force Õ.

2. The following
shall be repealed:

(a) Decision of the Schengen Executive Committee of 28 April 1999 on
the definitive versions of the Common Manual and the Common Consular
Instructions (SCH/Com-ex (99) 13 (the Common Consular Instructions, including
the Annexes);

(b) Decisions of the Schengen Executive Committee of 14 December
1993 extending the uniform visa (SCH/Com-ex (93) 21) and on the common
principles for cancelling, rescinding or shortening the length of validity of
the uniform visa (SCH/Com-ex (93) 24), Decision of the Schengen Executive
Committee of 22 December 1994 on the exchange of statistical information on the
issuing of uniform visas (SCH/Com-ex (94) 25), Decision of the Schengen
Executive Committee of 21 April 1998 on the exchange of statistics on issued
visas (SCH/Com-ex (98) 12) and Decision of the Schengen Executive Committee of
16 December 1998 on the introduction of a harmonised form providing proof of
invitation, sponsorship and accommodation (SCH/Com-ex (98) 57);

(c) Joint Action 96/197/JHA of 4 March 1996 on airport transit
arrangements[37];

(d) Council Regulation (EC) No 789/2001 of 24 April 2001 reserving
to the Council implementing powers with regard to certain detailed provisions
and practical procedures for examining visa applications[38];

(e) Council Regulation (EC) No 1091/2001 of 28 May 2001 on freedom
of movement with a long-stay visa[39];

(f) Council Regulation (EC) No 415/2003 of 27 February 2003 on the
issue of visas at the border, including the issue of such visas to seamen in
transit[40];

(g) Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 390/2009 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 amending the Common Consular
Instructions on visas for diplomatic and consular posts in relation to the
introduction of biometrics including provisions on the organisation of the
reception and processing of visa applications[41].

3. References to Ö the Õ repealed instruments Ö Regulation Õ shall be construed as references to this Regulation and Ö shall be Õ read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex XIII.

Article 5754

Monitoring and evaluation

1. Two ð Three ï years after all the provisions of this Regulation have become
applicable ð the date set in Article 55(2) ï, the Commission shall produce an evaluation of its ð the ï application ð of this Regulation ï . This overall evaluation shall include an
examination of the results achieved against objectives and of the
implementation of the provisions of this Regulation, without prejudice to the
reports referred to in paragraph 3.

2. The Commission shall transmit the
evaluation referred to in paragraph 1 to the European Parliament and the
Council. On the basis of the evaluation, the Commission shall submit, if
necessary, appropriate proposals with a view to amending this Regulation.

3. The Commission shall present, three
years after the VIS is brought into operation and every four years thereafter,
a report to the European Parliament and to the Council on the implementation of
Articles 13 12, 17 15, 38, 40 to 44 42 of this Regulation, including the implementation of the collection
and use of biometric identifiers, the suitability of the ICAO standard chosen,
compliance with data protection rules, experience with external service
providers with specific reference to the collection of biometric data, the
implementation of the 59-month rule for the copying of fingerprints and the
organisation of the procedures relating to applications. The report shall also
include, on the basis of Article 17(12), (13) and (14) and of Article 50(4) of the VIS
Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ, the cases in
which fingerprints could factually not be provided or were not required to be
provided for legal reasons, compared with the number of cases in which
fingerprints were taken. The report shall include information on cases in which
a person who could factually not provide fingerprints was refused a visa. The
report shall be accompanied, where necessary, by appropriate proposals to amend
this Regulation.

4. The first of the reports referred to in
paragraph 3 shall also address the issue of the sufficient reliability for
identification and verification purposes of fingerprints of children under the
age of 12 and, in particular, how fingerprints evolve with age, on the basis of
the results of a study carried out under the responsibility of the Commission.

Article 5855

Entry into force

1. This Regulation shall enter into force
on the 20th day following Ö that
of Õ its
publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

2. It shall apply from 5 April 2010 Ö [6 months
after the day of entry into force] Õ .

3. Ö Article
51 shall apply from [3 months after the day of entry into force] Õ.

3. Article 52 and
Article 53(1)(a) to (h) and (2) shall apply from 5 October 2009.

4. As far as the
Schengen Consultation Network (Technical Specifications) is concerned, Article
56(2)(d) shall apply from the date referred to in Article 46 of the VIS
Regulation.

5. Article 32(2) and
(3), Article 34(6) and (7) and Article 35(7) shall apply from 5 April 2011.

This Regulation shall be binding
in its entirety and directly applicable in the Member States in accordance with
the Treaty establishing the
European Community Ö Treaties Õ .

Done at [...],

For the European Parliament                        For the Council

The President                                                 The
President

[1]               COM(2012) 649 final.

[2]               COM (2014) 165.

[3]               SWD (2014) 101 .

[4]               SWD (2014) 67 and SWD 68.

[5]               See, inter alia, judgment of the Court of 31 January
2006 in case C-503/03 Commission v Spain

[6]               The notion of facilitation has been interpreted by
the Court of Justice in relation to the entry and residence of family members
falling under Article 3(2) of the Directive as imposing an obligation on the
Member States to confer a certain advantage, compared with applications
for entry and residence of other nationals of third States, on applications
submitted by persons who have a relationship of particular dependence with a
Union citizen"; judgment of 5 September 2012 in case C-83/11, Rahman.

[7]               Council Directive of 15 October 1968 on the abolition
of restrictions on movement and residence within the Community for workers of
Member States and their families (68/360/EEC), OJ L 257, 19.10.1968, p. 13.

[8]               Judgment of 19 December 2013 in case C-84/12 Koushkaki
not yet published in the E.C.R.

[9]               COM(2014) 163 final.

[10]             OJ [...].

[11]             Regulation (EC)
No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July
2009 establishing a Community Code on Visa (OJ L 243, 15.9.2009, p. 1).

[12]             OJ L 239,
22.9.2000, p. 19.

[13]             OJ C 326,
22.12.2005, p. 1.

[14]             OJ C 53,
3.3.2005, p. 1.

[15]             Directive 2004/38/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the right of
citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within
the territory of the Member States amending Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68 and
repealing Directives 64/221/EEC, 68/360/EEC, 72/194/EEC, 73/148/EEC, 75/34/EEC,
75/35/EEC, 90/364/EEC, 90/365/EEC and 93/96/EEC (OJ L 158, 30.4.2004, page 77).

[16]             Regulation
(EC) No 767/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 July 2008
concerning Visa Information System (VIS) and the exchange of data between
Member States on short-stay visas (VIS Regulation) (OJ L 218, 13.8.2008, p. 60).

[17]             Directive
95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on
the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data
and on the free movement of such data (OJ L 281,
23.11.1995, p. 31).

[18]             OJ L 184,
17.7.1999, p. 23.

[19]             Regulation (EU) No 182/2011
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down
the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by the
Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55,
28.2.2011, p. 13).

[20]             OJ L 176, 10.7.1999, p. 36.

[21]             Council
Decision of 17 May 1999 on certain arrangements for the application of the
Agreement concluded by the Council of the European Union and the Republic of
Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway concerning the association of those two
States with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen
acquis (OJ L 176, 10.7.1999, p. 31).

[22]             OJ L 176,
10.7.1999, p. 53.

[23]             OJ L 53, 27.2.2008, p. 52.

[24]             Council
Decision 2008/146/EC of 28 January 2008 on the conclusion, on behalf of the
European Community, of the Agreement between the European Union, the European
Community and the Swiss Confederation on the Swiss Confederation's association
with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis (OJ L 53, 27.2.2008, p. 1).

[25]             OJ L 83, 26.3.2008, p. 3 Council Decision of 7 March 2011 on
the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of the Protocol between the
European Union, the European Community, the Swiss Confederation and the
Principality of Liechtenstein on the accession of the Principality of
Liechtenstein to the Agreement between the European Union, the European
Community and the Swiss Confederation on the Swiss Confederation’s association
with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis,
relating to the abolition of checks at internal borders and movement of persons
(OJ L 160, 18.6.2011, p. 19).

[26]             Council
Decision 2000/365/EC of 29 May 2000 concerning the request of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to take part in some of the
provisions of the Schengen acquis (OJ L
131, 1.6.2000, p. 43).

[27]             Council
Decision 2002/192/EC of 28 February 2002 concerning Ireland’s request to take
part in some of the provisions of the Schengen acquis (OJ L 64, 7.3.2002, p. 20).

[28]             Council
Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 listing the third countries whose
nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders and
those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement (OJ L 81, 21.3.2001, p. 1).

[29]             Council
Regulation (EC) No 1683/95 of 29 May 1995 laying down a uniform format for
visas (OJ L 164, 14.7.1995, p. 1).

[30]             Decision No 1105/2011/EU of
the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on the list of
travel documents which entitle the holder to cross the external borders and
which may be endorsed with a visa and on setting up a mechanism for
establishing this list (OJ L 287, 4.11.2011, p. 9).

[31]             Council
Regulation (EC) No 333/2002 of 18 February 2002 on a uniform format for forms
for affixing the visa issued by Member States to persons holding travel
documents not recognised by the Member State drawing up the form (OJ L 53, 23.2.2002, p. 4).

[32]             Commission Decision 2006/648/EC of 22 September 2006
laying down the technical specifications on the standards for biometric
features related to the development of the Visa Information System, OJ L 267,
27.9.2006, p. 41.

[33]             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) (OJ L
105, 13.4.2006, p. 1).

[34]             Council Directive 2005/71/EC
of 12 October 2005 on a specific procedure for admitting third-country
nationals for the purpose of scientific research (OJ L 289, 3.11.2005, p. 15).

[35]             OJ L 243,
15.9.2009, p. 1.;

[36]             OJ L 243,
15.9.2009, p. 1.;

[37]             OJ L 63,
13.3.1996, p. 8.

[38]             OJ L 116,
26.4.2001, p. 2.

[39]             OJ L 150,
6.6.2001, p. 4.

[40]             OJ L 64,
7.3.2003, p. 1.

[41]             OJ L 131,
28.5.2009, p. 1.

ANNEXES

to the

Proposal for a 
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council

on the Union Code on Visas (Visa
Code)
(recast)

ê 810/2009

ANNEX I

ò new

Harmonised application form

Application for Schengen Visa

This application form is free

[1]

Family members of EU citizens shall not
fill in fields no.19, 20, 31, 32.

Fields 1-3 shall be filled in in
accordance with the data in the travel document.

1. Surname (Family name) (x) || For official use only Date of application: Visa application number: Application lodged at □ Embassy/consulate □ Service provider □ Intermediary □ Border (Name): ............................... □ Other File handled by: Supporting documents: □ Travel document □ Means of subsistence □ Invitation □ Means of transport □ Other: Visa decision: □ Refused □ Issued: □ A □ C □ LTV □ Valid: From Until Number of entries: □ 1  □ Multiple

2. Surname at birth (Former family name(s)) (x)

3. First name(s) (Given name(s)) (x)

4. Date of birth (day-month-year) || 5. Place of birth 6. Country of birth || 7.Current nationality Nationality at birth, if different:

8. Sex □ Male □ Female || 9. Marital status □ Single □ Married □ Separated □ Divorced □ Widow(er) □ Other (please specify)

10. Parental authority/legal guardian (in the case of minors): Surname, first name, address (if different from applicant's) and nationality

11. National identity number, where applicable

12. Type of travel document □ Ordinary passport □ Diplomatic passport □ Service passport □ Official passport □ Special passport □ Other travel document (please specify)

13. Number of travel document || 14. Date of issue || 15. Valid until || 16. Issued by

17. Applicant's home address and e-mail address || Telephone number(s)

18. Residence in a country other than the country of current nationality □ No □ Yes. Residence permit or equivalent ..................... No. .......................... Valid until

- 19. Current occupation

- 20. Employer and employer's address and telephone number. For students, name and address of educational establishment

21. Main purpose(s) of the journey: □ Tourism.......□ Business.......□ Visiting family or friends ....□ Cultural ......□ Sports ........ □ Official visit □ Medical reasons □ Study □ Airport transit ......□ Other (please specify):

22. Member State(s) of destination || 23. Member State of first entry

24. Number of entries requested □ Single entry....□ Multiple entries || 25. Duration of the intended stay Indicate number of days

26.Fingerprints collected previously for the purpose of applying for a Schengen visa or a touring visa □ No □ Yes. Date, if known ..........................

27. Entry permit for the final country of destination, where applicable Issued by ......................................Valid from ..............................until .......................................................

28. Intended date of arrival in the Schengen area || 29. Intended date of departure from the Schengen area

- 30. Surname and first name of the inviting person(s) in the Member State(s). If not applicable, name of hotel(s) or temporary accommodation(s) in the Member State(s)

Address and e-mail address of inviting person(s)/hotel(s)/temporary accommodation(s) || Telephone and telefax

*31. Name and address of inviting company/organisation || Telephone and telefax of company/organisation

Surname, first name, address, telephone, telefax, and e-mail address of contact person in company/organisation

*32. Cost of travelling and living during the applicant's stay is covered

□ by the applicant himself/herself Means of support □ Cash □ Traveller's cheques □ Credit card □ Pre-paid accommodation □ Pre-paid transport □ Other (please specify) || □ by a sponsor (host, company, organisation), please specify .......□ referred to in field 31 or 32 .......□ other (please specify) Means of support □ Cash □ Accommodation provided □ All expenses covered during the stay □ Pre-paid transport □ Other (please specify)

33. Personal data of the family member who is an EU citizen

Surname || First name(s)

Date of birth || Nationality || Number of travel document or ID card

34. Family relationship with an EU, EEA or CH citizen □ spouse .................□ child ......□ grandchild ..................□ dependent ascendant

I am aware that the visa fee is not refunded if the visa is refused.

I am aware of and consent to the following: the collection of the data required by this application form and the taking of my photograph and, if applicable, the taking of fingerprints, are mandatory for the examination of the visa application; and any personal data concerning me which appear on the visa application form, as well as my fingerprints and my photograph will be supplied to the relevant authorities of the Member States and processed by those authorities, for the purposes of a decision on my visa application. Such data as well as data concerning the decision taken on my application or a decision whether to annul, revoke or extend a visa issued will be entered into, and stored in the Visa Information System (VIS) for a maximum period of five years, during which it will be accessible to the visa authorities and the authorities competent for carrying out checks on visas at external borders and within the Member States, immigration and asylum authorities in the Member States for the purposes of verifying whether the conditions for the legal entry into, stay and residence on the territory of the Member States are fulfilled, of identifying persons who do not or who no longer fulfil these conditions, of examining an asylum application and of determining responsibility for such examination. Under certain conditions the data will be also available to designated authorities of the Member States and to Europol for the purpose of the prevention, detection and investigation of terrorist offences and of other serious criminal offences. The authority of the Member State responsible for processing the data is: [(........................................................................................................................................................)]. I am aware that I have the right to obtain in any of the Member States notification of the data relating to me recorded in the VIS and of the Member State which transmitted the data, and to request that data relating to me which are inaccurate be corrected and that data relating to me processed unlawfully be deleted. At my express request, the authority examining my application will inform me of the manner in which I may exercise my right to check the personal data concerning me and have them corrected or deleted, including the related remedies according to the national law of the State concerned. The national supervisory authority of that Member State [contact details: ....................................................................................................................................................................] will hear claims concerning the protection of personal data. I declare that to the best of my knowledge all particulars supplied by me are correct and complete. I am aware that any false statements will lead to my application being rejected or to the annulment of a visa already granted and may also render me liable to prosecution under the law of the Member State which deals with the application. I undertake to leave the territory of the Member States before the expiry of the visa, if granted. I have been informed that possession of a visa is only one of the prerequisites for entry into the European territory of the Member States. The mere fact that a visa has been granted to me does not mean that I will be entitled to compensation if I fail to comply with the relevant provisions of Article 5(1) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 (Schengen Borders Code) and I am therefore refused entry. The prerequisites for entry will be checked again on entry into the European territory of the Member States.

Place and date || Signature (for minors, signature of parental authority/legal guardian):

ê 810/2009

ANNEX II

Non-exhaustive list of supporting documents

The supporting documents referred to in Article 14,
to be submitted by visa applicants may include the following:

ò new

The below generic list of supporting documents shall
be subject of assessment  in local Schengen cooperation, under Articles 13(9)
and 46(1)(a).

ê 810/2009

A. DOCUMENTATION RELATING TO THE
PURPOSE OF THE JOURNEY

1. for business trips:

(a) an invitation from a firm or an
authority to attend meetings, conferences or events connected with trade,
industry or work;

(b) other documents which show the
existence of trade relations or relations for work purposes;

(c) entry tickets for fairs and
congresses, if appropriate;

(d) documents proving the business
activities of the company;

(e) documents proving the
applicant’s employment status in the company;

2. for journeys undertaken for the
purposes of study or other types of training:

(a) a certificate of enrolment at an
educational establishment for the purposes of attending vocational or
theoretical courses within the framework of basic and further training;

(b) student cards or certificates of
the courses to be attended;

3. for journeys undertaken for the
purposes of tourism or for private reasons:

(a) documents relating to
accommodation:;

– 
an invitation from the host if staying with one,

– 
a document from the establishment providing
accommodation or any other appropriate document indicating the accommodation
envisaged;

(b) documents relating to the
itinerary: confirmation of the booking of an organised trip or any other
appropriate document indicating the envisaged travel plans,.

– 
in the case of transit: visa or other entry permit
for the third country of destination; tickets for onward journey;

ò new

– 
(4) For journeys
undertaken for the purpose of a visit to friends/family:

– 
(a) Documents
indicating the accommodation envisaged, or

– 
      (b)        an
invitation from the host, if staying with one.

– 
(5) For journeys for
the purpose of transit:

– 
      (a)        Visa
or other entry permit for the third country of destination; and

– 
      (b)        tickets
for onward journey.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

46. for
journeys undertaken for political, scientific, cultural, sports or religious
events or other reasons:

– 
invitation, entry tickets, enrolments or
programmes stating (wherever possible) the name of the host organisation and
the length of stay or any other appropriate document indicating the purpose of
the journey;

57. for
journeys of members of official delegations who, following an official
invitation addressed to the government of the third country concerned,
participate in meetings, consultations, negotiations or exchange programmes, as
well as in events held in the territory of a Member State by intergovernmental
organisations:

– 
a letter issued by an authority of the third
country concerned confirming that the applicant is a member of the official
delegation travelling to a Member State to participate in the abovementioned
events, accompanied by a copy of the official invitation;

68. for
journeys undertaken for medical reasons:

– 
an official document of the medical institution
confirming necessity for medical care in that institution and proof of
sufficient financial means to pay for the medical treatment.

B. DOCUMENTATION ALLOWING FOR
THE ASSESSMENT OF THE APPLICANT’S INTENTION TO LEAVE THE TERRITORY OF THE
MEMBER STATES

1. reservation of or return or round
ticket;

21.
proof of financial means in the country of residence; Ö bank statements; proof of real estate property; Õ

32.
proof of employment: bank
statements;

4. proof of real estate property;

53.
proof of integration into the country of residence: family ties; professional
status.

C.      DOCUMENTATION
ALLOWING FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF THE APPLICANT'S POSSESSION OF SUFFICIENT MEANS
FOR THE STAY AND THE RETURN TO HIS COUNTRY OF ORIGIN OR RESIDENCE

As
appropriate, bank statements, credit card and account statement, salary slips
or proof of sponsorship.

D. DOCUMENTATION IN RELATION TO THE
APPLICANT’S FAMILY SITUATION

1. consent of parental authority or
legal guardian (when a minor does not travel with them);

2. proof of family ties with the
host/inviting person.

ò new

In accordance with Article 13(2), VIS registered
regular travellers shall only submit documents referred to under (A) and (D).

ê 810/2009

ANNEX III

UNIFORM
FORMAT AND USE OF THE STAMP INDICATING THAT A VISA APPLICATION IS ADMISSIBLE

... visa ...[2] ||

xx/xx/xxxx[3] || ...[4]

Example: ||

C visa FR ||

22.4.2009 || Consulat de France

Djibouti ||

The stamp shall be placed on the first available page
that contains no entries or stamps in the travel document.

ê 810/2009

ANNEX IV III

Common list of third countries listed in Annex I to Regulation (EC)
No 539/2001 whose nationals are required to be in possession of an airport
transit visa when passing through the international transit area of airports
situated on the territory of the Member States

AFGHANISTAN

BANGLADESH

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

ERITREA

ETHIOPIA

GHANA

IRAN

IRAQ

NIGERIA

PAKISTAN

SOMALIA

SRI LANKA

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ANNEX V IV

LIST OF RESIDENCE PERMITS ENTITLING THEIR
HOLDERS TO TRANSIT THROUGH THE AIRPORTS OF MEMBER STATES WITHOUT BEING
REQUIRED TO HOLD AN AIRPORT TRANSIT VISA

ANDORRA:

– 
Tarjeta provisional de estancia y de trabajo
(provisional residence and work permit) (white). These are
issued to seasonal workers; the period of validity depends on the duration of
employment, but never exceeds six months. This permit is not renewable,

– 
Tarjeta de estancia y de trabajo (residence and work
permit) (white). This permit is issued for six months and may be
renewed for another year,

– 
Tarjeta de estancia (residence permit) (white). This permit
is issued for six months and may be renewed for another year,

– 
Tarjeta temporal de residencia (temporary residence
permit) (pink). This permit is issued for one year and may be renewed twice,
each time for another year,

– 
Tarjeta ordinaria de residencia (ordinary residence
permit) (yellow). This permit is issued for three years and may be renewed for
another three years,

– 
Tarjeta privilegiada de residencia (special residence
permit) (green). This permit is issued for five years and is renewable, each
time for another five years,

– 
Autorización de residencia (residence authorisation)
(green). This permit is issued for one year and is renewable,
each time for another three years,

– 
Autorización temporal de residencia y de trabajo
(temporary residence and work authorisation) (pink). This permit
is issued for two years and may be renewed for another two years,

– 
Autorización ordinaria de residencia y de trabajo
(ordinary residence and work authorisation) (yellow). This permit is issued for five years,

– 
Autorización privilegiada de residencia y de trabajo
(special residence and work authorisation) (green). This permit
is issued for 10 years and is renewable, each time for another 10 years.

CANADA:

– 
Permanent resident card (plastic card).

JAPAN:

– 
Re-entry permit to Japan.

SAN MARINO:

– 
Permesso di soggiorno ordinario (validità illimitata)
(ordinary residence permit (no expiry date)),

– 
Permesso di soggiorno continuativo speciale (validità
illimitata) (special permanent residence permit (no expiry date)),

– 
Carta d’identità de San Marino (validità illimitata)
(San Marino identity card (no expiry date)).

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:

– 
Form I-551 permanent resident card (valid for 2 to 10
years),

– 
Form I-551 Alien registration receipt card (valid for
2 to 10 years),

– 
Form I-551 Alien registration receipt card (no expiry
date),

– 
Form I-327 Re-entry document (valid for two years —
issued to holders of a I-551),

– 
Resident alien card (valid for 2 or 10 years or no
expiry date. This document guarantees the holder’s return only if his stay
outside the USA has not exceeded one year),

– 
Permit to re-enter (valid for two years. This
document guarantees the holder’s return only if his stay outside the USA has not exceeded two years),

– 
Valid temporary residence stamp in a valid passport
(valid for one year from the date of issue).

ò new

ANDORRA:

Autorització
temporal (temporary immigration permit – green).

Autorització
temporal per a treballadors d’empreses estrangeres (temporary immigration
permit for employees of foreign enterprises – green).

Autorització
residència i treball (residence and work permit – green).

Autorització
residència i treball del personal d’ensenyament (residence and work permit for
teaching staff – green).

Autorització
temporal per estudis o per recerca (temporary immigration permit for studies or
research – green).

Autorització
temporal en pràctiques formatives (temporary immigration permit for internships
and trainings – green).

Autorització
residència (residence permit – green).

CANADA:

Permanent
resident (PR) card.

Permanent
Resident Travel Document (PRTD).

JAPAN:

Residence
card.

SAN
  MARINO:

Permesso
di soggiorno ordinario (validity one year, renewable on expiry date).

Special
residence permits for the following reasons (validity one year, renewable on
expiry date): university attendance, sports, health care, religious reasons, persons
working as nurses in public hospitals, diplomatic functions, cohabitation,
permit for minors, humanitarian reasons, parental permit.

Seasonal
and temporary working permits (validity 11 months, renewable on expiry date).

Identity
card issued to people having an official residence "residenza" in San Marino (validity of 5 years).

UNITED
  STATES OF AMERICA:

Valid,
unexpired immigrant visa.

May
be endorsed at the port of entry for one year as temporary evidence of
residence, while the I-551 card is pending production.

Valid,
unexpired Form I-551 (Permanent Resident Card).

May
be valid for up to 2 or 10 years – depending on the class of admission.

If
there is no expiration date on the card, the card is valid for travel.

Valid,
unexpired Form I-327 (Re-entry Permit).

Valid,
unexpired Form I-571 (Refugee Travel Document endorsed as “Permanent Resident
Alien”).

ê 810/2009

è1 610/2013 Art. 6.5 and Annex II.1

ANNEX VI V

è1 ç

ò new

STANDARD
FORM FOR NOTIFYING GROUNDS FOR REFUSAL,
ANNULMENT OR REVOCATION OF A VISA

_____________________

_______________________________________________________________________________[5]

REFUSAL/ANNULMENT/REVOCATION
OF VISA

Ms/Mr _______________________________,

The ________________
Embassy/Consulate-General/Consulate/[other competent authority] in _________
______________;

[Other competent authority] of
____________________;

The
authorities responsible for checks on persons at ________________________

has/have

examined
your visa application;

examined your visa, number: __________, issued:_______________
[date/month/year].

The visa
has been refused  The visa has been annulled  The visa has been revoked

This decision is based on the following
reason(s):

1.                a false/counterfeit/forged travel
document was presented

2.                justification for the purpose and
conditions of the intended stay was not provided

3.                you have not provided proof of
sufficient means of subsistence, for the duration of the intended stay or for
the return to the country of origin or residence, or for the transit to a third
country into which you are certain to be admitted, or you are not in a position
to acquire such means lawfully

4.                you have already stayed for 90 days during the current 180 day period on
the territory of the Member States on the
basis of a uniform visa or a visa with limited territorial validity

5.                an alert
has been issued in the Schengen Information
System (SIS) for the purpose of refusing entry
by .................. (indication of Member State)

6.                one or more Member State(s) consider you to be a threat to public policy, internal security, public health as
defined in Article 2(19) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 (Schengen Borders Code)
or the international relations of one or more of the Member States)

7.                the information submitted regarding
the justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay was not
reliable

8.                your intention to leave the territory
of the Member States before the expiry of the visa could not be ascertained

9.                sufficient
proof that you have not been in a position to apply for a visa in advance,
justifying application for a visa at the
border, was not provided

10.              justification for the purpose and
conditions of the intended airport transit was not provided

11.              revocation of the visa was
requested by the visa holder.[6]

Additional remarks:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You may appeal against the decision to
refuse/annul/revoke a visa.

The rules on appeal against decisions on
refusal/annulment/revocation of a visa are set out in: (reference to
national law)

Competent authority with which an appeal
may be lodged: (contact details):
...................................................................................................................

Information on the procedure to follow
can be found at: (contact details):
...................................................................................................................

An appeal procedure must be lodged within:
(indication of time‐limit)....................................

Date and stamp of
embassy/consulate-general/consulate/of the authorities responsible for checks
on persons/of other competent authorities:
Signature of person concerned[7]

ê 810/2009

ANNEX VII

FILLING IN
THE VISA STICKER

1. Mandatory
entries section

1.1.‘VALID FOR’ heading:

This heading indicates the territory in which the
visa holder is entitled to travel.

This heading may be completed in one of the following
ways only:

(a) Schengen States;

(b) Schengen State or Schengen States to whose territory
the validity of the visa is limited (in this case the following abbreviations
are used):

BE || || BELGIUM

CZ || || CZECH REPUBLIC

DK || || DENMARK

DE || || GERMANY

EE || || ESTONIA

GR || || GREECE

ES || || SPAIN

FR || || FRANCE

IT || || ITALY

LV || || LATVIA

LT || || LITHUANIA

LU || || LUXEMBOURG

HU || || HUNGARY

MT || || MALTA

NL || || NETHERLANDS

AT || || AUSTRIA

PL || || POLAND

PT || || PORTUGAL

SI || || SLOVENIA

SK || || SLOVAKIA

FI || || FINLAND

SE || || SWEDEN

IS || || ICELAND

NO || || NORWAY

CH || || SWITZERLAND

1.2. When the sticker is used to issue a uniform visa
this heading is filled in using the words ‘Schengen States’, in the language of
the issuing Member State.

1.3. When the sticker is used to issue a visa with
limited territorial validity pursuant to Article 25(1) of this Regulation this
heading is filled in with the name(s) of the Member State(s) to which the visa
holder’s stay is limited, in the language of the issuing Member State.

1.4. When the sticker is used to issue a visa with
limited territorial validity pursuant to Article 25(3) of this Regulation, the
following options for the codes to be entered may be used:

(a) entry of the codes for the Member States concerned;

(b) entry of the words ‘Schengen States’, followed in
brackets by the minus sign and the codes of the Member States for whose
territory the visa is not valid;

(c) in case the ‘valid for’ field is not sufficient for
entering all codes for the Member States (not) recognising the travel document
concerned the font size of the letters used is reduced.

2.‘FROM ...
TO’ heading:

This heading indicates the period of the visa
holder’s stay as authorised by the visa.

The date from which the visa holder may enter the
territory for which the visa is valid is written as below, following the word
‘FROM’:

– 
the day is written using two digits, the first of
which is a zero if the day in question is a single digit,

– 
horizontal dash,

– 
the month is written using two digits, the first of
which is a zero if the month in question is a single digit,

– 
horizontal dash,

– 
the year is written using two digits, which
correspond with the last two digits of the year.

For example: 05-12-07 = 5 December 2007.

The date of the last day of the period of the visa
holder’s authorised stay is entered after the word ‘TO’ and is written in the
same way as the first date. The visa holder must have left the territory for
which the visa is valid by midnight on that date.

3.‘NUMBER OF
ENTRIES’ heading:

This heading shows the number of times the visa
holder may enter the territory for which the visa is valid, i.e. it refers to
the number of periods of stay which may be spread over the entire period of
validity, see 4.

The number of entries may be one, two or more. This
number is written to  the right-hand side of the pre-printed part, using ‘01’,
‘02’ or the abbreviation ‘MULT’, where the visa authorises more than two
entries.

When a multiple airport transit visa is issued
pursuant to Article 26(3) of this Regulation, the visa’s validity is calculated
as follows: first date of departure plus six months.

The visa is no longer valid when the total number of
exits made by the visa holder equals the number of authorised entries, even if
the visa holder has not used up the number of days authorised by the visa.

4.‘DURATION
OF VISIT ... DAYS’ heading:

This heading indicates the number of days during
which the visa holder may stay in the territory for which the visa is valid.
This stay may be continuous or, depending on the number of days authorised,
spread over several periods between the dates mentioned under 2, bearing in mind
the number of entries authorised under 3.

The number of days authorised is written in the blank
space between ‘DURATION OF VISIT’ and ‘DAYS’, in the form of two digits, the
first of which is a zero if the number of days is less than 10.

The maximum number of days that may be entered under
this heading is 90.

When a visa is valid for more than six months, the
duration of stays is 90 days in any 180-day period.

5.‘ISSUED IN
... ON ...’ heading:

This heading gives the name of the location where the
issuing authority is situated. The date of issue is indicated after ‘ON’.

The date of issue is written in the same way as the
date referred to in 2.

6.‘PASSPORT
NUMBER’ heading:

This heading indicates the number of the travel
document to which the visa sticker is affixed.

In case the person to whom the visa is issued is
included in the passport of the spouse, parental authority or legal guardian,
the number of the travel document of that person is indicated.

When the applicant’s travel document is not
recognised by the issuing Member State, the uniform format for the separate
sheet for affixing visas is used for affixing the visa.

The number to be entered under this heading, if the
visa sticker is affixed to the separate sheet, is not the passport number but
the same typographical number as appears on the form, made up of six digits.

7.‘TYPE OF
VISA’ heading:

In order to facilitate matters for the control
authorities, this heading specifies the type of visa using the letters A, C and
D as follows:

A || : || airport transit visa (as defined in Article 2(5) of this Regulation)

C || : || visa (as defined in Article 2(2) of this Regulation)

D || : || long-stay visa

8.‘SURNAME
AND FIRST NAME’ heading:

The first word in the ‘surname’ box followed by the
first word in the ‘first name’ box of the visa holder’s travel document is
written in that order. The issuing authority verifies that the name and first
name which appear in the travel document and which are to be entered under this
heading and in the section to be electronically scanned are the same as those
appearing in the visa application. If the number of characters of the surname
and first name exceeds the number of spaces available, the excess characters
are replaced by a dot (.).

9. (a) Mandatory entries to be added in the
‘COMMENTS’ section

– 
in the case of a visa issued on behalf of another Member State pursuant to Article 8, the following mention is added: ‘R/[Code of represented Member State]’,

– 
in the case of a visa issued for the purpose of
transit, the following mention is added: ‘TRANSIT’,

– 
"in the case where all data referred to in
Article 5(1) of the VIS Regulation is registered in the Visa Information
System, the following mention is added: "VIS"

– 
in the case where only the data referred to in
Article 5(1) point a) and b) is registered in the Visa Information System but
the data referred to in Article 5(1) point c) was not collected because the
collection of fingerprints was not mandatory in the region concerned: "VIS
0"

(b) National entries in ‘COMMENTS’ section

This section also contains the comments in the
language of the issuing Member State relating to national provisions. However,
such comments shall not duplicate the mandatory comments referred to in point
1;

(c) Section for the photograph

The visa holder’s photograph, in colour, shall be
integrated in the space reserved for that purpose.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to
the photograph to be integrated into the visa sticker.

The size of the head from chin to crown shall be
between 70 % and 80 % of the vertical dimension of the surface of the
photograph.

The minimum resolution requirements shall be:

– 
300 pixels per inch (ppi), uncompressed, for
scanning,

– 
720 dots per inch (dpi) for colour printing of
photos.

10.
Machine-readable zone

This section is made up of two lines of 36 characters
(OCR B-10 cpi).

First line: 36 characters (mandatory)

Positions || Number of characters || Heading contents || Specifications

1-2 || 2 || Type of document || First character: V Second character: code indicating type of visa (A, C or D

3-5 || 3 || Issuing State || ICAO alphabetic code 3-character: BEL, CHE, CZE, DNK, D<<, EST, GRC, ESP, FRA, ITA, LVA, LTU, LUX, HUN, MLT, NLD, AUT, POL, PRT, SVN, SVK, FIN, SWE, ISL, NOR

6-36 || 31 || Surname and first name || The surname should be separated from the first names by 2 symbols (<<); individual components of the name should be separated by one symbol (<); spaces which are not needed should be filled in with one symbol (<)

Second line: 36 characters (mandatory)

Positions || Number of characters || Heading contents || Specifications

1 || 9 || Visa number || This is the number printed in the top right-hand corner of the sticker

10 || 1 || Control character || This character is the result of a complex calculation, based on the previous area according to an algorithm defined by the ICAO

11 || 3 || Applicant’s nationality || Alphabetic coding according to ICAO 3-character codes

14 || 6 || Date of birth || The order followed is YYMMDD where:               YY    =          year (mandatory)               MM   =          month or << if unknown               DD    =          day or << if unknown

20 || 1 || Control character || This character is the result of a complex calculation, based on the previous area according to an algorithm defined by the ICAO

21 || 1 || Sex || ............. F................................................................................................................... =........................................................................................................... Female,               M      =          Male,               <        =          Not specified

22 || 6 || Date on which the visa’s validity ends || The order followed is YYMMDD without a filler

28 || 1 || Control character || This character is the result of a complex calculation, based on the previous area according to an algorithm defined by the ICAO

29 || 1 || Territorial validity || (a) For LTV visas, insert the letter T (b) For uniform visas insert the filler <

30 || 1 || Number of entries || 1, 2, or M

31 || 2 || Duration of stay || (a) Short stay: number of days should be inserted in the visual reading area (b) Long stay: <<

33 || 4 || Start of validity || The structure is MMDD without any filler.

ê 810/2009

ANNEX VIII

AFFIXING
THE VISA STICKER

1. The visa sticker shall be affixed to the first
page of the travel document that contains no entries or stamps — other than the
stamp indicating that an application is admissible.

2. The sticker shall be aligned with and affixed to
the edge of the page of the travel document. The machine-readable zone of the
sticker shall be aligned with the edge of the page.

3. The stamp of the issuing authorities shall be
placed in the ‘COMMENTS’ section in such a manner that it extends beyond the
sticker onto the page of the travel document.

4. Where it is necessary to dispense with the
completion of the section to be scanned electronically, the stamp may be placed
in this section to render it unusable. The size and content of the stamp to be
used shall be determined by the national rules of the Member State.

5. To prevent re-use of a visa sticker affixed to the
separate sheet for affixing a visa, the seal of the issuing authorities shall
be stamped to the right, straddling the sticker and the separate sheet, in such
a way as neither to impede reading of the headings and the comments nor to
enter the machine-readable zone.

6. The extension of a visa, pursuant to Article 33 of
this Regulation, shall take the form of a visa sticker. The seal of the issuing
authorities shall be affixed to the visa sticker.

ê 810/2009

ANNEX IX

PART 1

Rules for
issuing visas at the border to seafarers in transit subject to visa
requirements

These rules relate to the exchange of information
between the competent authorities of the Member States with respect to
seafarers in transit subject to visa requirements. Insofar as a visa is issued
at the border on the basis of the information that has been exchanged, the
responsibility lies with the Member State issuing the visa.

For the purposes of these rules:

‘Member State port’: means a port constituting an
external border of a Member State;

‘Member State airport’: means an airport constituting
an external border of a Member State.

I. Signing on
a vessel berthed or expected at a Member State port (entry into the territory
of the Member States)

– 
the shipping company or its agent shall inform the
competent authorities at the Member State port where the ship is berthed or
expected that seafarers subject to visa requirements are due to enter via a
Member State airport, land or sea border. The shipping company or its agent
shall sign a guarantee in respect of those seafarers that all expenses for the
stay and, if necessary, for the repatriation of the seafarers will be covered
by the shipping company,

– 
those competent authorities shall verify as soon as
possible whether the information provided by the shipping company or its agent
is correct and shall examine whether the other conditions for entry into the
territory of the Member States have been satisfied. The travel route within the
territory of the Member States shall also be verified e.g. by reference to the
(airline) tickets,

– 
when seafarers are due to enter via a Member State
airport, the competent authorities at the Member State port shall inform the
competent authorities at the Member State airport of entry, by means of a duly
completed form for seafarers in transit who are subject to visa requirements
(as set out in Part 2), sent by fax, electronic mail or other means, of the
results of the verification and shall indicate whether a visa may in principle
be issued at the border. When seafarers are due to enter via a land or a sea
border, the competent authorities at the border post via which the seafarer
concerned enters the territory of the Member States shall be informed by the
same procedure,

– 
where the verification of the available data is
positive and the outcome is clearly consistent with the seafarer’s declaration
or documents, the competent authorities at the Member State airport of entry or
exit may issue a visa at the border the authorised stay of which shall
correspond to what is necessary for the purpose of the transit. Furthermore, in
such cases the seafarer’s travel document shall be stamped with a Member State entry or exit stamp and given to the seafarer concerned.

II. Leaving
service from a vessel that has entered a Member State port (exit from the
territory of the Member States)

– 
the shipping company or its agent shall inform the
competent authorities at that Member State port of entry of seafarers subject
to visa requirements who are due to leave their service and exit from the
Member States territory via a Member State airport, land or sea border. The
shipping company or its agent shall sign a guarantee in respect of those
seafarers that all expenses for the stay and, if necessary, for the
repatriation costs of the seafarers will be covered by the shipping company,

– 
the competent authorities shall verify as soon as
possible whether the information provided by the shipping company or its agent
is correct and shall examine whether the other conditions for entry into the
territory of the Member States have been satisfied. The travel route within the
territory of the Member States shall also be verified e.g. by reference to the
(airline) tickets,

– 
where the verification of the available data is
positive, the competent authorities may issue a visa the authorised stay of
which shall correspond to what is necessary for the purpose of the transit.

III.
Transferring from a vessel that entered a Member State port to another vessel

– 
the shipping company or its agent shall inform the
competent authorities at that Member State port of entry of seafarers subject
to visa requirements who are due to leave their service and exit from the
territory of the Member States via another Member State port. The shipping
company or its agent shall sign a guarantee in respect of those seafarers that
all expenses for the stay and, if necessary, for the repatriation of the
seafarers will be covered by the shipping company,

– 
the competent authorities shall verify as soon as
possible whether the information provided by the shipping company or its agent
is correct and shall examine whether the other conditions for entry into the
territory of the Member States have been satisfied. The competent authorities
at the Member State port from which the seafarers will leave the territory of
the Member States by ship shall be contacted for the examination. A check shall
be carried out to establish whether the ship they are joining is berthed or
expected there. The travel route within the territory of the Member States
shall also be verified,

– 
where the verification of the available data is
positive, the competent authorities may issue a visa the authorised stay of
which shall correspond to what is necessary for the purpose of the transit.

PART 2

DETAILED
DESCRIPTION OF FORM

Points 1-4: the identity of the seafarer

(1) A. Surname(s)

B. Forename(s)

C. Nationality

D. Rank/Grade

(2) A. Place of birth

B. Date of birth

(3) A. Passport number

B. Date of issue

C. Period of validity

(4) A. Seaman’s book number

B. Date of issue

C. Period of validity

As to points 3 and 4: depending on the nationality of
the seafarer and the Member State being entered, a travel document or a
seaman’s book may be used for identification purposes.

Points 5-8: the shipping agent and the vessel
concerned

(5) Name of shipping agent (the individual or corporation that represents the ship owner on the spot in all matters relating to the ship owner’s duties in fitting out the vessel) under 5A and telephone number (and other contact details as fax number, electronic mail address) under 5B

(6) A. Name of vessel

B. IMO-number (this number consists of 7 numbers and is also known as ‘Lloyds-number’)

C. Flag (under which the merchant vessel is sailing)

(7) A. Date of arrival of vessel

B. Origin (port) of vessel

Letter ‘A’ refers to the vessel’s date of arrival in the port where the seafarer is to sign on

(8) A. Date of departure of vessel

B. Destination of vessel (next port)

As to points 7A and 8A: indications regarding the
length of time for which the seafarer may travel in order to sign on.

It should be remembered that the route followed is
very much subject to unexpected interferences and external factors such as
storms, breakdowns, etc.

Points 9-12: purpose of the seafarer’s journey and
his destination

(9) The ‘final destination’ is the end of the
seafarer’s journey. This may be either the port at which he is to sign on or
the country to which he is heading if he is leaving service.

(10) Reasons for application

(a) In the case of signing on, the final destination is
the port at which the seafarer is to sign on.

(b) In the case of transfer to another vessel within the
territory of the Member States, it is also the port at which the seafarer is to
sign on. Transfer to a vessel situated outside the territory of the Member
States must be regarded as leaving service.

(c) In the case of leaving service, this can occur for
various reasons, such as end of contract, accident at work, urgent family
reasons, etc.

(11) Means of transport

List of means used within the territory of the Member
States by the seafarer in transit who is subject to a visa requirement, in
order to reach his final destination. On the form, the following three
possibilities are envisaged:

(a) car (or coach);

(b) train;

(c) aeroplane.

(12) Date of arrival (on the territory of the Member
States)

Applies primarily to a seafarer at the first Member State airport or border crossing point (since it may not always be an airport) at
the external border via which he wishes to enter the territory of the Member
States.

Date of transit

This is the date on which the seafarer signs off at a
port in the territory of the Member States and heads towards another port also
situated in the territory of the Member States.

Date of departure

This is the date on which the seafarer signs off at a
port in the territory of the Member States to transfer to another vessel at a
port situated outside the territory of the Member States, or the date on which
the seafarer signs off at a port in the territory of the Member States to
return to his home (outside the territory of the Member States).

After determining the three means of travel,
available information should also be provided concerning those means:

(a) car, coach: registration number;

(b) train: name, number, etc.;

(c) flight data: date, time, number.

(13) Formal declaration signed by the shipping agent
or the ship owner confirming his responsibility for the expenses for the stay
and, if necessary, for the repatriation of the seafarer.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ANNEX X VI

LIST OF MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS TO BE INCLUDED IN THE LEGAL INSTRUMENT
IN THE CASE OF COOPERATION WITH EXTERNAL SERVICE PROVIDERS

A. In relation to the
performance of its activities, the external service provider shall, with regard
to data protection:

(a) prevent at all times any
unauthorised reading, copying, modification or deletion of data, in particular
during their transmission to the diplomatic mission or consular post of the Member State(s) competent for processing an application;

(b) in accordance with the
instructions given by the Member State(s) concerned, transmit the data,

– 
electronically, in encrypted form, or

– 
physically, in a secured way;

(c) transmit the data as soon as
possible:

– 
in the case of physically transferred data, at
least once a week,

– 
in the case of electronically transferred
encrypted data, at the latest at the end of the day of their collection;

(d) delete the data immediately after
their transmission and ensure that the only data that might be retained shall
be the name and contact details of the applicant for the purposes of the
appointment arrangements, as well as the passport number, until the return of
the passport to the applicant, where applicable;

(e) ensure all the technical and
organisational security measures required to protect personal data against
accidental or unlawful destruction or accidental loss, alteration, unauthorised
disclosure or access, in particular where the cooperation involves the
transmission of files and data to the diplomatic mission or consular post of
the Member State(s) concerned and all other unlawful forms of processing
personal data;

(f) process the data only for the
purposes of processing the personal data of applicants on behalf of the Member State(s) concerned;

(g) apply data protection standards
at least equivalent to those set out in Directive 95/46/EC;

(h) provide applicants with the
information required pursuant to Article 37 of the VIS Regulation Ö (EC) No
767/2008 Õ .

B. In relation to the
performance of its activities, the external service provider shall, with regard
to the conduct of staff:

(a) ensure that its staff are
appropriately trained;

(b) ensure that its staff in the
performance of their duties:

– 
receive applicants courteously,

– 
respect the human dignity and integrity of
applicants,

– 
do not discriminate against persons on grounds
of sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual
orientation, and

– 
respect the rules of confidentiality which shall
also apply once members of staff have left their job or after suspension or
termination of the legal instrument;

(c) provide identification of the
staff working for the external service provider at all times;

(d) prove that its staff do not have
criminal records and have the requisite expertise.

C. In relation to the
verification of the performance of its activities, the external service
provider shall:

(a) provide for access by staff
entitled by the Member State(s) concerned to its premises at all times without
prior notice, in particular for inspection purposes;

(b) ensure the possibility of remote
access to its appointment system for inspection purposes;

(c) ensure the use of relevant
monitoring methods (e.g. test applicants; webcam);

(d) ensure access to proof of data
protection compliance, including reporting obligations, external audits and
regular spot checks;

(e) report to the Member State(s) concerned without delay any security breaches or any complaints from applicants
on data misuse or unauthorised access, and coordinate with the Member State(s) concerned in order to find a solution and give explanatory responses
promptly to the complaining applicants.

D. In relation to general
requirements, the external service provider shall:

(a) act under the instructions of the
  Member State(s) competent for processing the application;

(b) adopt appropriate anti-corruption
measures (e.g. provisions on staff remuneration; cooperation in the selection
of staff members employed on the task; two-man-rule; rotation principle);

(c) respect fully the provisions of
the legal instrument, which shall contain a suspension or termination clause,
in particular in the event of breach of the rules established, as well as a
revision clause with a view to ensuring that the legal instrument reflects best
practice.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ANNEX XI VII

SPECIFIC PROCEDURES AND CONDITIONS FACILITATING THE ISSUING OF VISAS
TO MEMBERS OF THE OLYMPIC FAMILY PARTICIPATING IN THE OLYMPIC GAMES AND
PARALYMPIC GAMES

CHAPTER
I

I. Purpose and definitions

Article
1

1. Purpose

The following specific procedures and
conditions facilitate the application for and issuing of visas to members of
the Olympic family for the duration of the Olympic and Paralympic Games
organised by a Member State.

In addition, the relevant provisions of the
Community Ö Union Õ acquis concerning procedures for
applying for and issuing visas shall apply.

Article
2

2. Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation Ö Annex Õ :

(a) 1.‘Responsible
organisations’ relate to measures envisaged to facilitate the procedures for
applying for and issuing visas for members of the Olympic family taking part in
the Olympic and/or Paralympic Games, and they mean the official organisations,
in terms of the Olympic Charter, which are entitled to submit lists of members
of the Olympic family to the Organising Committee of the Member State hosting
the Olympic and Paralympic Games with a view to the issue of accreditation
cards for the Games;

(b) 2.‘Member
of the Olympic family’ means any person who is a member of the International
Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee, International
Federations, the National Olympic and Paralympic Committees, the Organising
Committees of the Olympic Games and the national associations, such as
athletes, judges/referees, coaches and other sports technicians, medical
personnel attached to teams or individual sportsmen/women and media-accredited
journalists, senior executives, donors, sponsors or other official invitees,
who agree to be guided by the Olympic Charter, act under the control and
supreme authority of the International Olympic Committee, are included on the
lists of the responsible organisations and are accredited by the Organising
Committee of the Member State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games as
participants in the [year] Olympic and/or Paralympic Games;

(c) 3.‘Olympic
accreditation cards’ which are issued by the Organising Committee of the Member
State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in accordance with its national
legislation means one of two secure documents, one for the Olympic Games and
one for the Paralympic Games, each bearing a photograph of its holder,
establishing the identity of the member of the Olympic family and authorising
access to the facilities at which competitions are held and to other events
scheduled throughout the duration of the Games;

(d) 4.‘Duration
of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games’ means the period during which the
Olympic Games and the period during which the Paralympic Games take place;

(e) 5.‘Organising
Committee of the Member State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games’ means
the Committee set up on by the hosting Member State in accordance with its
national legislation to organise the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which
decides on accreditation of members of the Olympic family taking part in those
Games;

(f) 6.‘Services
responsible for issuing visas’ means the services designated by the Member State hosting the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games to examine applications and
issue visas to members of the Olympic family.

CHAPTER
II

II. Issuing of visas

Article
3

3. Conditions

A visa may be issued pursuant to this
Regulation only where the person concerned:

(a)
has been designated by one of the responsible organisations and accredited by
the Organising Committee of the Member State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic
Games as a participant in the Olympic and/or Paralympic Games;

(b)
holds a valid travel document authorising the crossing of the external borders,
as referred to in Article 5 of the
Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ ;

(c) is
not a person for whom an alert has been issued for the purpose of refusing
entry;

(d) is
not considered to be a threat to public policy, national security or the
international relations of any of the Member States.

Article
4

4. Filing of the application

1. Where a responsible organisation draws
up a list of the persons selected to take part in the Olympic and/or Paralympic
Games, it may, together with the application for the issue of an Olympic
accreditation card for the persons selected, file a collective application for
visas for those persons selected who are required to be in possession of a visa
in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 539/2001, except where those persons hold
a residence permit issued by a Member State or a residence permit issued by the
United Kingdom or Ireland, in accordance with Directive 2004/38/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the right of
citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within
the territory of the Member States[8].

2. A collective application for visas for
the persons concerned shall be forwarded at the same time as applications for
the issue of an Olympic accreditation card to the Organising Committee of the Member State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in accordance with the procedure
established by it.

3. Individual visa applications shall be
submitted for each person taking part in the Olympic and/or Paralympic Games.

4. The Organising Committee of the Member
State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games shall forward to the services
responsible for issuing visas, a collective application for visas as quickly as
possible, together with copies of applications for the issue of an Olympic
accreditation card for the persons concerned, bearing their full name,
nationality, sex and date and place of birth and the number, type and expiry
date of their travel document.

Article
5

5. Examination of the collective application for visas and type of the
visa issued

1. The visa shall be issued by the services
responsible for issuing visas following an examination designed to ensure that
the conditions set out in Article 3 are met.

ê 610/2013
Art. 6.5 and Annex II.3

2. The visa issued shall be a uniform,
multiple-entry visa authorising a stay of not more than 90 days for the
duration of the Olympic and/or Paralympic Games.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

3. Where the member of the Olympic family
concerned does not meet the conditions set out in point (c) or (d) of Article
3, the services responsible for issuing visas may issue a visa with limited
territorial validity in accordance with Article 25 22 of
this Regulation.

Article
6

6. Form of the visa

1. The visa shall take the form of two
numbers entered on the Olympic accreditation card. The first number shall be
the visa number. In the case of a uniform visa, that number shall be made up of
seven (7) characters comprising six (6) digits preceded by the letter ‘C’. In
the case of a visa with limited territorial validity, that number shall be made
up of eight (8) characters comprising six (6) digits preceded by the letters
‘XX’[9]. The second number shall be the number of the travel document of
the person concerned.

2. The services responsible for issuing
visas shall forward the visa numbers to the Organising Committee of the Member State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games for the purpose of issuing Olympic
accreditation cards.

Article
7

7. Waiver of fees

The examination of visa applications and
the issue of visas shall not give rise to any fees being charged by the
services responsible for issuing visas.

CHAPTER
III

III. General and final provisions

Article
8

8. Cancellation of a visa

Where the list of persons put forward as
participants in the Olympic and/or Paralympic Games is amended before the Games
begin, the responsible organisations shall inform without any delay the
Organising Committee of the Member State hosting the Olympic and Paralympic
Games thereof so that the Olympic accreditation cards of the persons removed
from the list may be revoked. The Organising Committee shall notify the
services responsible for issuing visas thereof and shall inform them of the
numbers of the visas in question.

The services responsible for issuing visas
shall cancel the visas of the persons concerned. They shall immediately inform
the authorities responsible for border checks thereof, and the latter shall
without delay forward that information to the competent authorities of the
other Member States.

Article
9

9. External border checks

1. The entry checks carried out on members
of the Olympic family who have been issued visas in accordance with this
Regulation shall, when such members cross the external borders of the Member
States, be limited to checking compliance with the conditions set out in
Article 3.

2. For the duration of the Olympic and/or
Paralympic Games:

(a) entry and exit stamps shall
be affixed to the first free page of the travel document of those members of
the Olympic family for whom it is necessary to affix such stamps in accordance
with Article 10(1) of the
Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ . On first
entry, the visa number shall be indicated on that same page;

(b) the conditions for entry
provided for in Article 5(1)(c) of the Schengen Borders Code Ö Regulation
(EC) No 562/2006 Õ shall be
presumed to be fulfilled once a member of the Olympic family has been duly
accredited.

3. Paragraph 2 shall apply to members of
the Olympic family who are third-country nationals, whether or not they are
subject to the visa requirement under Regulation (EC) No 539/2001.

ê 810/2009

ANNEX XII VIII

ANNUAL
STATISTICS ON UNIFORM VISAS, VISAS WITH LIMITED TERRITORIAL VALIDITY AND
AIRPORT TRANSIT VISAS

Data to be submitted to the Commission within the
deadline set out in Article 46 for each location where individual Member States
issue visas:

– 
total of A visas applied for (including multiple A
visas),

– 
total of A visas issued (including multiple A visas),

– 
total of multiple A visas issued,

– 
total of A visas not issued (including multiple A
visas),

– 
total of C visas applied for (including
multiple-entry C visas),

– 
total of C visas issued (including multiple-entry C
visas),

– 
total of multiple-entry C visas issued,

– 
total of C visas not issued (including multiple-entry
C visas),

– 
total of LTV visas issued.

General rules for the submission of data:

– 
the data for the complete previous year shall be
compiled in one single file,

– 
the data shall be provided using the common template
provided by the Commission,

– 
data shall be available for the individual locations
where the Member State concerned issue visas and grouped by third country,

– 
‘Not issued’ covers data on refused visas and
applications where the examination has been discontinued as provided for in
Article 8(2).

In the event of data being neither available nor
relevant for one particular category and a third country, Member States shall
leave the cell empty (and not enter ‘0’ (zero), ‘N.A.’ (non-applicable) or any
other value).

ò new

Annual statistics on visas

1.         Data shall be submitted for
each location where individual Member States issue visas; this includes both consulates
and border crossing points (cf. Regulation (EC) No 562/2006,                                                                                                                                                                                          
                                 Article 5 (4)(b)).

2.         The
following data shall be submitted to the Commission within the deadline set out
in Article 44 using common templates provided by the Commission, and
disaggregated by citizenship of the applicant when relevant, as indicated in
the templates:

Number of A visas applied for (single and
multiple airport transit)

Number of A visas issued, disaggregated
by:

Number of A visas issued for single
airport transit,

Number of A visas issued for multiple
airport transits,

Number of A visas not issued,

Number of C visas applied for
(single-entry and multiple-entry C visas),

– 
Disaggregated by
purpose of travel (cf; field 21 of the application form set out in Annex I

Number of C visas issued, disaggregated
by:

Number of C visas issued for single entry,

Number of C visas issued for multiple
entry with a period of validity of less than 1 year,

Number of C visas
issued for multiple entry with a period of validity of at least 1 year but less
than 2 years,

Number of C visas
issued for multiple entry with a period of validity of at least 2 years but
less than 3 years,

Number of C visas
issued for multiple entry with a period of validity of at least 3 years but
less than 4 years,

Number of C visas
issued for multiple entry with a period of validity of more than 4 years.

Number of LTV
visas issued, disaggregated by the reason why they were issued (cf. Article 22(1)
and (3), and Article 33(3),

Number of C visas
not issued because the visa was refused, disaggregated by the reason why the
visa was refused,

–            Number of appeals introduced
against refused applications,

–            Number of decisions
maintained after an appeal,

–            Number of decisions
overturned,

–            Number of visas applied for
free of charge.

Number of visas issued under representation
agreements.

If data is
neither available nor relevant for one particular category and a
third country, the cell shall be left empty and no other value shall be
entered.

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ANNEX XIII

CORRELATION TABLE

Provision of this Regulation || Provision of the Schengen Convention (CSA), Common Consular Instructions (CCI) or of the Schengen Executive Committee (SCH/Com-ex) replaced

TITLE I ||

GENERAL PROVISIONS ||

Article 1 Objective and scope || CCI, Part I.1. Scope (CSA Articles 9 and 10)

Article 2 Definitions (1)-(4) || CCI: Part I. 2. Definitions and types of visas CCI: Part IV ‘Legal basis’ CSA: Articles 11(2), 14(1), 15, 16

TITLE II ||

AIRPORT TRANSIT VISA ||

Article 3 Third-country nationals required to hold an airport transit visa || Joint Action 96/197/JHA, CCI, Part I. 2.1.1

TITLE III ||

PROCEDURES AND CONDITIONS FOR ISSUING VISAS ||

CHAPTER I ||

Authorities taking part in the procedures relating to applications ||

Article 4 Authorities competent for taking part in the procedures relating to applications || CCI Part II. 4., CSA, Art. 12(1), Regulation (EC) No 415/2003

Article 5 Member State competent for examining and deciding on an application || CCI, Part II 1.1(a) (b), CSA Article 12(2)

Article 6 Consular territorial competence || CCI, Part II, 1.1 and 3

Article 7 Competence to issue visas to third-country nationals legally present within the territory of a Member State || —

Article 8 Representation agreements || CCI, Part II, 1.2

CHAPTER II ||

Application ||

Article 9 Practical modalities for lodging an application || CCI, Annex 13, note (Article 10(1))

Article 10 General rules for lodging an application || —

Article 11 Application form || CCI, Part III. 1.1.

Article 12 Travel document || CCI, Part III. 2. (a), CSA, Article 13(1) and (2)

Article 13 Biometric identifiers || CCI, Part III. 1.2 (a) and (b)

Article 14 Supporting documents || CCI, Part III.2(b) and Part V.1.4, Com-ex (98) 57

Article 15 Travel medical insurance || CCI, Part V, 1.4

Article 16 Visa fee || CCI Part VII. 4. and Annex 12

Article 17 Service fee || CCI, Part VII, 1.7

CHAPTER III ||

Examination of and decision on an application ||

Article 18 Verification of consular competence || —

Article 19 Admissibility || —

Article 20 Stamp indicating that an application is admissible || CCI, Part VIII, 2

Article 21 Verification of entry conditions and risk assessment || CCI, Part III.4 and Part V.1.

Article 22 Prior consultation of central authorities of other Member States || CCI, Part II, 2.3 and Part V, 2.3(a)-(d)

Article 23 Decision on the application || CCI, Part V. 2.1 (second indent), 2.2, CCI

CHAPTER IV ||

Issuing of the visa ||

Article 24 Issuing of a uniform visa || CCI, Part V, 2.1

Article 25 Issuing of a visa with limited territorial validity || CCI, Part V, 3, Annex 14, CSA 11(2), 14(1) and 16

Article 26 Issuing of an airport transit visa || CCI, Part I, 2.1.1 — Joint Action 96/197/JHA

Article 27 Filling in the visa sticker || CCI, Part VI.1-2-3-4

Article 28 Invalidation of a completed visa sticker || CCI, Part VI, 5.2

Article 29 Affixing a visa sticker || CCI, Part VI, 5.3

Article 30 Rights derived from an issued visa || CCI, Part I, 2.1, last sentence

Article 31 Information of central authorities of other Member States || —

Article 32 Refusal of a visa || —

CHAPTER V ||

Modification of an issued visa ||

Article 33 Extension || Com-ex (93) 21

Article 34 Annulment and revocation || Com-ex (93) 24 and Annex 14 to the CCI

CHAPTER VI ||

Visas issued at the external borders ||

Article 35 Visas applied for at the external border || Regulation (EC) No 415/2003

Article 36 Visas issued to seafarers in transit at the external border

TITLE IV ||

ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT AND ORGANISATION ||

Article 37 Organisation of visa sections || CCI, VII, 1-2-3

Article 38 Resources for examining applications and monitoring of consulates || —

|| CCI, Part VII, 1A

Article 39 Conduct of staff || CCI, Part III.5

Article 40 Forms of cooperation || CCI, Part VII, 1AA

Article 41 Cooperation between Member States

Article 42 Recourse to honorary consuls || CCI, Part VII, AB

Article 43 Cooperation with external service providers || CCI, Part VII, 1B

Article 44 Encryption and secure transfer of data || CCI, Part II, 1.2, PART VII, 1.6, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth subparagraphs

Article 45 Member States’ cooperation with commercial intermediaries || CCI, VIII, 5.2

Article 46 Compilation of statistics || SCH Com-ex (94) 25 and (98) 12

Article 47 Information to the general public || —

TITLE V ||

LOCAL SCHENGEN COOPERATION ||

Article 48 Local Schengen cooperation between Member States’ consulates || CCI, VIII, 1-3-4

TITLE VI ||

FINAL PROVISIONS ||

Article 49 Arrangements in relation to the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games || —

Articles 50 Amendments to the Annexes || —

Article 51 Instructions on the practical application of the Visa Code || —

Article 52 Committee procedure || —

Article 53 Notification || —

Article 54 Amendments to Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 || —

Article 55 Amendments to Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 || —

Article 56 Repeals || —

Article 57 Monitoring and evaluation || —

Article 58 Entry into force || —

ê 810/2009
(adapted)

ANNEXES

Annex I Harmonised application form || CCI, Annex 16

Annex II Non-exhaustive list of supporting documents || Partially CCI, V, 1.4.

Annex III Uniform format and use of the stamp indicating that a visa application is admissible || CCI, VIII, 2

Annex IV Common list of third countries, listed in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 539/2001whose nationals are required to be in possession of an airport transit visa when passing through the international transit area of airports situated on the territory of the Member States || CCI, Annex 3, Part I

Annex V List of residence permits entitling their holders to transit through the airports of Member States without being required to hold an airport transit visa || CCI, Annex 3, Part III

Annex VI Standard form for notifying and motivating refusal, annulment or revocation of a visa || —

Annex VII Filling in the visa sticker || CCI, Part VI, 1-4, Annex 10

Annex VIII Affixing the visa sticker || CCI, Part VI, 5.3

Annex IX Rules for issuing visas at the border to seafarers in transit subject to visa requirements || Regulation (EC) No 415/2003, Annexes I and II

Annex X List of minimum requirements to be included in the legal instrument in the case of cooperation with external service providers || CCI, Annex 19

Annex XI Specific procedures and conditions facilitating the issuing of visas to members of the Olympic Family participating in the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games || —

Annex XII Annual statistics on uniform visas, visas with limited territorial validity and airport transit visas || —

é

ANNEX IX

Repealed
Regulation and its successive amendments

Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council || (OJ L 243, 15.9.2009, p. 1)

Commission Regulation (EU) No 977/2011 || (OJ L 258, 4.10.2011, p. 9)

Regulation (EU) No 154/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council || (OJ L 058, 29.2.2012, p. 3)

Regulation (EU) No 610/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council || (OJ L 182, 29.6.2013, p. 1)

_____________

ANNEX X

Correlation
Table

Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 || This Regulation

Article 1(1) || Article 1(1)

Article 1(2) || Article 1(2)

Article 1(3) || Article 1(3)

Article 2, introductory wording || Article 2, introductory wording

Article 2(1) to (5) || Article 2(1) to (5)

- || Article 2(6)

|| Article 2(7) to (10)

Article 2(6) || Article 2(11)

Article 2(7) || Article 2(12)

- || Article 2(13)

Article 2(8) || Article 2(14)

Article 2(9) || Article 2(15)

Article 2(10) || Article 2(16)

- || Article 2(17)

Article 3(1) and (2) || Article 3(1) and (2)

- || Article 3(3) to (6)

Article 3(5) || Article 3(7)

- || Article 3(8)

Article 4 || Article 4

Article 5(1) || Article 5(1)

- || Article 5(2) an (3)

Article 5(3) || Article 5(4)

Article 6 || Article 6

Article 7 || Article 7(1)

- || Article 7(2) and (3)

Article 9(1) and (2) || Article 8 (1) and (2)

- || Article 8(3)

Article 9(3) || Article 8(4)

Article 9(4) || Article 8(5)

Article 40(4) || Article 8(6)

Article 10(1) || Article 9(1)

- || Article 9(2)

Article 10(3) || Article 9(3)

Article 11(1) || Article 10(1)

- || Article 10(2)

Article 11(2) || Article 11(3)

Article 11(3) || Article 11(4)

Article 11(4) || Article 11(5)

Article 11(5) || Article 11(6)

Article 11(6) || Article 11(7)

Article 12 || Article 11

Article 13 || Article 12

Article 14(1) || Article 13(1)

- || Article 13(2)

Article 14(3) || Article 13(3)

Article 14(6) || Article 13(4)

- || Article 13(5)

Article 14(4) || Article 13(6)

Article 14(2)    || Article 13(7)

Article 14(5)    || Article 13(8)

- || Article 13(9)

Article 15 || -

Article 16(1) || Article 14(1)

Article 16(3) || Article 14(2)

Article 16(4) and (5)(b) and (c) || Article 14(3)(a) to (d)

- || Article 14(3) (f) and (g)

Article 16(6) || Article 14(4)

Article 16(7) || Article 14(5)

Article 16(8) || Article 14(6)

Article 17 (1) and (2) || Article 15 (1) and (2)

Article 17 (4) || Article 15 (3)

Article 18 || Article 16

Article 19 || Article 17

Article 20 || -

Article 21(1) || Article 18(1)

- || Article 18(2) and (3)

Article 21(2) || Article 18(4)

Article 21(3) || Article 18(5)

Article 21(4) || Article 18(6)

Article 21(5) || Article 18(7)

Article 21(6) || Article 18(8)

Article 21(7) || Article 18(9)

Article 21(8) || Article 18(10)

Article 21(9) || Article 18(11)

Article 22 || Article 19

Article 23 || Article 20

Article 24(1) and (2) || Article 21(1) and (2)

- || Article 21(3) and (4)

Article 24(2) || Article 21(5)

Article 24(3) || Article 21(6)

Article 25 || Article 22

Article 26 || Article 23

Article 27 || Article 24

Article 28 || Article 25

Article 29 || Article 26

Article 30 || Article 27

Article 31 || Article 28

Article 32 || Article 29

Article 33 || Article 30

Article 34 || Article 31

Article 35 || Article 32

- || Article 33

Article 36 || Article 34

Article 37 || Article 35

Article 38 || Article 36

Article 39 || Article 37

Article 40 || Article 38

Article 8 || Article 39

Article 42 || Article 40

Article 43 || Article 41

Article 44 || Article 42

Article 45 || Article 43

Article 46 || Article 44

Article 47 || Article 45

Article 48 || Article 46

Article 49 || Article 47

Article 50 || -

- || Article 48

- || Article 49

Article 51 || Article 50

Article 52 || Article 51

Article 53 || Article 52

Article 54 || -

Article 55 || -

Article 56 || Article 53

Article 57 || Article 54

Article 58 || Article 55

Annex I || Annex I

Annex II || Annex II

Annex III || -

Annex IV || Annex III

Annex V || Annex IV

Annex VI || Annex V

Annex VII || -

Annex VIII || -

Annex IX || -

Annex X || Annex VI

Annex XI || Annex VII

Annex XII || Annex VIII

- || Annex IX

Annex XIII || Annex X

_____________

[1]               No logo is required for Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

[2]               Code of the Member State examining the application. The codes as set out in Annex VII point 1.1 are
used.

[3]               Date of
application (eight digits: xx day, xx month, xxxx year).

[4]               Authority
examining the visa application.

[5]               No logo is required for Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

[6]               Revocation of a visa based on this reason
is not subject to the right of appeal.

[7]               If required by national law.

[8]               OJ L 158, 30.4.2004, p. 77.

[9]               Reference to the ISO code of the organising Member State.