Commission staff working document - Annex to the Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the development of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II) - Progress Report July – December 2007 [COM(2008)239 final]
Date: 2008-05-07
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Schengen Information System, impact study, report, systems interconnection, transmission network

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 7.5.2008 
SEC(2008) 552  

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 

Annex to the Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament 
on the development of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II) 
Progress Report July – December 2007 

[COM(2008)239 final] 

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1. 

2. 

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 3 

Project Status................................................................................................................ 3 

2.1. 

Progress during the period under review ..................................................................... 3 

2.1.1.  Network Installation and Testing:................................................................................ 3 

2.1.2.  Central SIS II................................................................................................................ 3 

2.1.3.  Preparations for Migration and Integration.................................................................. 4 

2.1.4.  Operational management ............................................................................................. 4 

3. 

Management................................................................................................................. 5 

3.1. 

Project Management..................................................................................................... 5 

3.1.1.  Scheduling (Release Phase) ......................................................................................... 5 

3.1.2.  Risks............................................................................................................................. 5 

3.1.3.  Project management board........................................................................................... 6 

3.1.4.  Financial Management ................................................................................................. 6 

3.2. 

Meetings....................................................................................................................... 6 

3.2.1.  SIS II Committee meetings .......................................................................................... 6 

3.2.2.  National Planning and Coordination............................................................................ 7 

3.2.3.  Council meetings.......................................................................................................... 7 

4. 

Implementing Measures ............................................................................................... 7 

4.1. 

Legal Instruments......................................................................................................... 7 

4.1.1.  Test Decision................................................................................................................ 7 

4.1.2.  SIRENE Manual And Other Implementing Measures................................................. 7 

5. 

Priorities for the next reporting period......................................................................... 8 

5.1. 

Testing.......................................................................................................................... 8 

5.1.1.  Operations System Tests (OST)................................................................................... 8 

5.1.2.  Global Testing:............................................................................................................. 8 

5.1.3.  Migration:..................................................................................................................... 8 

5.2. 

Operational Management:............................................................................................ 8 

6. 

Conclusions .................................................................................................................. 8 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

This progress report describes the work carried out by the Commission in the second semester 
of 2007 on the development of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II). 
It  is  presented  to  the  Council  and  the  European  Parliament  in  accordance  with  Article  6  of 
Regulation  (EC)  No  2424/2001  of  6  December  20011  on  the  development  of  the  second 
generation  Schengen  Information  System  (SIS  II).  The  Council  has  mandated  responsibility 
for  developing  SIS  II  to  the  Commission,  assisted  by  the  SIS  II  Committee2  composed  of 
representatives of the Member States. 

The SIS II Project is divided into three phases. Phase 1 was concerned with system design and 
was  formally  completed  prior  to  this  reporting  period.  Phase  2  deals  with  development  and 
testing  of  the  Central  System  which  is  a  significant  part  of  the  current  work  load.  Phase  3 
addresses the issue of migration of data from the currently used SIS+1 to the SIS II system. 
The  preparatory  work  for  successful  migration  is  already  underway.  In  order  to  provide  a 
complete picture of the range of activities associated with this ambitious SIS II project, this 
report also addresses potential risks, financial, operational and project management as well as 
implementing measures. 

2. 

PROJECT STATUS 

2.1. 

Progress during the period under review 

2.1.1.  Network Installation and Testing: 

The SIS II project includes the provision of a wide area communications network, meeting the 
requirements  of  availability,  security,  geographical  coverage  and  level  of  service,  to  all  the 
national and central systems to communicate.3 The Central Unit (CU) and the Backup Central 
Unit  (BCU)  have  been  accessible  since  early  July  2007.  All  Member  States  have  had  their 
main  sites  and  the  vast  majority  of  back-up  sites  connected  to  the  s-Testa  network  since 
November 2007. 

2.1.2.  Central SIS II 

The System Solution Tests (SST) are designed to verify that the central SIS II on the central 
sites  is  compliant  with  the  technical  specification.  The  tests,  conducted  without  national 
systems, commenced in July 2007, and were carried out by the main development contractor 
under Commission supervision. The test phase ('SST') was formally completed and accepted 
by the Commission on 14 December 2007. A number of remaining bugs will be resolved prior 
to  the  start  of  the  next  test  phase,  Operational  System  Testing.  All  Member  States  will  be 
required to test the compliance of their national systems with the central system by June 2008. 

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OJ  L  328,  13  December  2001,  modified  by  Council  Regulation  N°  1988/2006,  OJ  L  411/1  of 
30.12.2006 (the modifications in the 2006 regulation do not concern Article 6). 
Article  2  of  Council  Decision  2001/886/JHA  of  6  December  2001  on  the  development  of  the  second 
generation  Schengen  Information  System  (SIS  II),  OJ  L  328,  13.12.2001,  p.  1-3  and  Article  2  of 
Council Regulation (EC) N° 2424/2001 
The necessary arrangements for the use of the encryption box for SIS II have to be completed. 

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As  of  17  December  2007,  the  levels  of  participation  of  Member  States  in  informal  testing 
towards this goal were as follows: Nineteen Member States / users have completed the basic 
tests  for  connection  to  the  SIS  II  network,  of  which  fourteen  have  moved  on  to  informally 
testing their national systems against the central system (PT, IT, DE, EL, IS, FI, AT, NL, HU, 
DK,  SE,  SL,  LU  and  CY).  Five  of  these  Member  States  (IT,  PT,  SE,  NL,  HU)  have 
volunteered  to  assist  the  Commission  with  further  testing  of  the  central  system,  and  are 
therefore the most advanced to date in testing the compliance of their national systems with 
the central system. Four MS (UK, EE, BE, FR) and Europol are in the process of doing the 
basic tests. Four MS (LV, IE, MT, PL) and Eurojust have not yet started the basic tests.  

2.1.3.  Preparations for Migration and Integration 

In 2006 a migration plan was prepared in co operation with Member States' experts, for the 
move from SIS1+ to SIS II. This migration plan involved the existing 15 Schengen Member 
States. Following months of preparation the move in this 'overnight migration' scenario would 
take  place  within  eight  hours.  It  was  chosen  in  order  to  accelerate  the  migration  of  new 
Member States and remove border controls as quickly as possible. 

With  the  completion  of  the  SISone4All  project  this  integration  pressure  was  removed. 
However,  the  number  of  Member  States  increased,  as  did  the  complexity  of  managing  the 
migration. Accordingly, in the SIS II Committee, the need for a reassessment of the migration 
strategy  was  identified.  On  13  September  2007  an  advisory  working  group  (the  Migration 
Working Group) of the SIS II Committee was created to examine specific issues regarding the 
SIS  II  migration  and  to  advise  the  SIS  II  Committee  on  the  decisions  to  be  taken  in  the 
preparation thereof. The Migration Working Group is mandated to make concrete proposals 
for a global and coherent strategy and high-level plan for the timely preparation and execution 
of migration from SIS 1+ to SIS II, including risk analysis and a contingency plan.  

On  17  of  October  the  first  meeting  of  the  Migration  Working  Group  was  held  with 
participation  of  Member  State  representatives,  C.SIS  including  representatives  of  those 
Member States that will host the SIS II, contractors and the Commission services. The high 
risk  nature  of  the  'overnight  migration'  strategy  prompted  the  discussion  of  an  alternative 
approach for migration whereby a longer period could be provided for those Member States 
failing to complete the process within the eight hour timeframe. 

In December 2007, Member States' experts agreed on a lower risk approach. It is anticipated 
that  on  the  date  of  start  of  operations,  SIS  1+  is  not  switched  off,  but  SIS  1+  and  SIS  II 
operate  in  parallel  for  a  limited  period.  This  fall-back  plan  is  needed  in  case  any  Member 
State experiences a problem during the planned eight hour switchover. A gradual migration, 
during a very short time period (1-2 months) can provide this fall back. There is still a need to 
work on the detail. 

Switzerland  has  indicated  that  it  wishes  to  join  SIS  1+  using  the  SISone4All  solution.  It  is 
envisaged  that  Switzerland  could  be  "technically  ready"  in  May  2008.  All  SIS  1+  users, 
including Switzerland if it participates in SISone4All, will have to migrate on time to SIS II.  

2.1.4.  Operational management 

The  French  authorities  have  confirmed  their  commitment  to  participating  in  operational 
management during the transitional period. This period represents the time between SIS II go-
live  and  the  establishment  of  the  management  authority that will be entrusted with  the long 
term management of SIS II. The first of a series of four service contracts was signed in July 

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2007,  covering  the  provision  of  serviced  work  space  in  prefabricated  buildings  within  the 
Strasbourg complex as from November 2007. 

The  Commission  is  currently  in  the  final  stages  of  negotiating  the  second  contract  with 
France,  covering  the  provision  of  staff  at  the  central  site  that  will  be  trained  in  SIS  II 
operations as from 1st April 2008. France has now clarified its role during final SIS II tests.  

The Austrian authorities have committed to provision of space and 24/7 security monitoring. 
Discussions are on going on how the back-up central unit administrator tasks will be carried 
out. 

3. 

MANAGEMENT 

3.1. 

Project Management 

3.1.1. 

Scheduling (Release Phase) 

Between  July  2007  and  September  2007,  timeframes  for  testing  were  adapted  to  ensure 
sufficient  time  for  error  correction  between  test  phases.  This  accommodated  the  various 
national development time constraints while maintaining the overall schedule.  

3.1.2.  Risks 

In  accordance  with  best  practice,  monitoring  of  potential  risks  is  a  continuous  activity.  An 
overview is given here of the major risks identified at the end of this reporting period which 
have the potential to negatively affect the project schedule. 

Main risks under Commission responsibility: 

•  Insufficient number of Member States ready to commence the test phase requiring 
Member States' involvement (Operational System Tests - OST). See point 5.1.1 

•  Delays in setting up the practical arrangements regarding operational management 

of the Central SIS II. 

•  Uncertainties linked to the Test Decision. See Point 4.1.1 

Main risks under joint responsibility of the Commission and Member States: 

•  Risk of delay of the go-live date as margins built into the SIS II project have been 

reduced. 

•  Time for  correction of issues is limited,  especially after  the  major central SIS II 

tests and national compliance tests have been completed 

•  Unpredictable duration of SIS II final tests (global tests) 

•  Uncertainty on how migration impacts on project schedule  

•  New SIS users close to the migration process 

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3.1.3.  Project management board 

In  addition  to  Commission  services  and  the  project  contractors,  representatives  of  the 
German,  Portuguese,  Slovenian  and  French  Presidencies  as  well  as  a  representative  of  the 
C.SIS are invited to participate in the Project Management Board. This board met four times 
during the period covered by this report. 

3.1.4.  Financial Management 

The total appropriations for SIS II activities provided for in the 2007 General Budget amount 
to  €20,000,000  (of  which  €5,000,000  were  entered  in to  the  reserve).  A  financing  decision 
with a total budget of €19,000,000 was adopted by  the Commission on 22 February 2007. The 
main  components  of  expenditure  during  2007  are  site  preparation,  the  network,  preparation 
for  operations,  external  assistance  for  developing  monitoring  and  quality  control,  security 
audit, studies, preparatory work for the SIS II information campaign and changes to SIS II due 
to the impact of SISone4All. 

70.09% of the total SIS II appropriations have been committed and payments corresponding 
to 35.73% of payment appropriations have been made.  

3.2.  Meetings 

The  SIS  II  project  involves  both  the  Commission  and  the  Member  States  and  can  only  be 
achieved  if  the  SIS  II  national  systems  are  developed  and  connected  on  time.  Regular 
meetings  and  reporting  mechanisms  are  fundamental  constituents  for  effective  project 
management. 

3.2.1. 

SIS II Committee meetings 

The  Commission  is  assisted  in  the  development  of  SIS  II  by  the  SIS  II  Committee,  in 
accordance  with  the  management  and  regulatory  procedures  prescribed  in  the  Council 
Decision  and  Council  Regulation  of  6  December  2001.  The  Committee  is  composed  of 
delegates  from  the  27  EU  Member  States,  Norway,  Iceland,  Eurojust  and  Europol. 
Switzerland  has  participated  in  the  SIS  II  Committee  meetings  since  17  November  2004. 
Since  October  2004,  the  SIS  II  Committee  has  also  been  competent  for  Visa  Information 
System  (VIS)  issues,  in  accordance  with  Council  Decision  2004/512.  There  were  five 
meetings of the SIS II Committee in the period July – December 2007. 

In addition to regular SIS II Committee meetings, meetings with Member States’ experts are 
organised  to  discuss  detailed  technical  issues.  These  meetings  generally  focus  on  issues 
arising from specific project deliverables. 

•  The SIS II Committee has created a working group known as the "Test Advisory Group" 
(TAG),  in  order  to  provide  it  with  an  opinion  on  issues  relating  to  the  organisation, 
implementation and interpretation of tests. This group (composed of representatives from 
AT,  DE,  NL,  PT,  SE,  the  Commission,  the  main  development  contractor  and  third  party 
experts) held seven meetings in this reporting period. 

•  The SIS II Committee has also created a "Change Management Board" (CMB), in order to 
provide it with advice on classification, qualification and the potential impact of correction 
of reported issues. It also advises the Committee on possible solutions, the implementation 

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of issues which have been reported, requested changes and the scheduling of the release of 
updated software. This working group, which reports to the SIS II Committee, met seven 
times during the reporting period.  

•  The first meeting of the Migration Working Group took place on 17th October 2007 and a 
full  description  of  its  mandate  is  described  in  section  2.1.2.  dealing  with  Project  Status. 
Four meetings have taken place in this reporting period. 

3.2.2.  National Planning and Coordination 

Each  month  a  Working  Group  meeting  for  the  Member  States’  national  project  managers 
(NPM)  is  organised  within  the  framework  of  the  SIS  II  Committee.  The  purpose  of  these 
NPM meetings is to deal with detailed planning issues, risks and activities both at the central 
and national project levels.  

Member  States  have  been  asked  to  submit  monthly  reports,  with  a  view  to  providing  a 
detailed  update  on  the  state  of  development.  There  was  an  increasing  trend  in  the  level  of 
Member  State  reporting  on  the  status  of  national  projects.  Unfortunately  this  has  tailed  off. 
There  are  still  some  Member  States  whose  state  of  development  of  national  system  is 
unknown which may impact on the completion of the SIS II tests. Of the existing SIS 1+ users 
five  Member  States  submitted  ten  out  of  the  ten  reports  expected.  Three  Member  States 
submitted two out of the ten reports expected. The January NPM meeting will take place in 
Strasbourg and Member States will visit the main site that will host the central SIS II. 

3.2.3.  Council meetings 

Commission services take part in the meetings of the Council Working Groups responsible for 
the Schengen Information System, presenting them with an oral report on the progress of the 
SIS  II  project  and  the  associated  risks  on  a  monthly  basis.  The  Commission  services  also 
provide a monthly written report on the SIS II project covering progress with the project and 
risks.  This  report  is  primarily  for  the  SIS  II  Committee  but  it  is  also  transmitted  to  the 
Committee on Article 36 for the sake of transparency. The SIS II project was discussed at the 
JHA Council during the period under report.  

4. 

IMPLEMENTING MEASURES 

4.1. 

Legal Instruments 

4.1.1.  Test Decision 

At  its  September  2007  meeting,  the  SIS  II  Committee  delivered  a  negative  opinion  on  the 
draft Commission Decision on SIS II tests, with the majority of Member States' delegations 
expressing  the  view  that  a  legal  instrument  was  not  needed.  The  proposed  test  decision  has 
been reviewed and transmitted to Council at the end of 2007.  

4.1.2. 

SIRENE Manual And Other Implementing Measures 

The new SIS/VIS regulatory committee, established on the basis of Regulation 1987/2006 and 
Decision  2007/533/JHA,  gave  a  positive  opinion  on  the  draft  Commission  Decision  for  the 
SIS II SIRENE manual and other SIS II implementing measures. 

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5. 

PRIORITIES FOR THE NEXT REPORTING PERIOD  

5.1. 

Testing 

5.1.1.  Operational System Tests (OST) 

The Operational System Tests (OST) test the Central System with a set of connected national 
systems.  This  stage  of  testing  involves  the  Member  States,  leading  to  central  system 
acceptance, compliance of national systems developments with SIS II specifications and full 
alignment between the national systems and the central system. The Commission is relying on 
a number of volunteer Member States to be ready to take part in the first testing of the central 
system  against  their  national  systems.  Preparation  for  this  phase  commenced  in  mid 
December 2007 and the tests are scheduled to be completed by May 2008. 

5.1.2.  Global Testing: 

Discussions  are  ongoing  on  the  timing  for  global  testing  –  experience  with  SISone4All 
suggests that this test stage may take longer than originally agreed in SIS II Committee. 

5.1.3.  Migration Preparation: 

Preparation  for  migration  continues.  Technical  specifications  of  the  identified  migration 
approach will have to be worked out. 

5.2. 

Operational Management: 

Preparations for operational management for SIS II will continue, including negotiation on the 
service contracts with France and with Austria. Work with the main development contractor 
will  also  continue,  with  a  view  to  facilitating  a  smooth  competency  transfer  to  the  French 
(and, where applicable, the Austrian authorities), including the organisation of training.  

Conclusions  

The  Central  SIS  II  has  completed  the  first  phase  of  tests  which  is  testing  without  Member 
State  participation.  Member  States  have  commenced  testing  their  national  systems.  Despite 
initial difficulties, which have negatively impacted the planning margins built into the overall 
project  schedule,  there  is  now  a  stable  network  between  Member  States  and  the  two  sites 
hosting  the  Central  SIS  II.  The  first  contract  with  France  to  prepare  the  operational 
management tasks is signed and the contract with Austria is to be signed within this reporting 
period. 

However,  the  project  has  encountered  some  set-backs  in  the  past  six  months;  the  negative 
opinion  of  the  SIS  II  regulatory  Committee  on  the  draft  Commission  Decision:on  tests,  the 
concerns relating to migration and the duration of the global tests. It will depend on and the 
outcome of ongoing discussions on these issues to which extent the overall planning will be 
impacted. 

During  the  next  reporting  period  the  Commission  will  continue  to  work  closely  with  the 
Member States, including those  hosting the  central SIS II, on the foreseen phases of testing 
and the planning, resourcing, organisation and scheduling of the move from SIS 1+ to SIS II. 

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Annex I 

SIS II Committee and Working Group Meetings 

a) Meetings held during the reporting period 

JULY 2007 

3  Test Advisory Group 

4  Change Management Board 

10  Test Advisory Group 

17  Test Advisory Group 

25  Operational System Tests (OST) / Tests Advisory Group 

26  SIS II Committee / National Projects Managers  

31  Test Advisory Group 

AUGUST 2007 

7  Test Advisory Group 

21  Test Advisory Group 

29  Change Management Group 

SEPTEMBER 2007 

11  Test Advisory Group  

12  SIS II Working Group 'National Project Managers' Meeting 

13  SIS II Committee / Change Management Board 

14  Project Management Board / Operational Systems Tests (OST) Working Group 

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OCTOBER 2007 

2   Change Management Board  

10  Change Management Board  

11  Project Management Board 

17  Migration Working Group 

18 

'National Project Managers' Meeting 

19  SIS II Committee 

NOVEMBER 2007  

7  Change Management Board 

8  Project Management Board 

9  Migration Working Group 

21  SIS II Working Group 'National Project Managers' Meeting 

22  SIS II Committee / Migration Working Group 

DECEMBER 2008 

6  Migration Working Group 

12  Change Management Board 

13  Project Management Board 

18  National Projects Managers' Meeting 

19  SIS II Committee  

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b) Meetings already scheduled for the forthcoming reporting period 

JANUARY 2008 

10   Project Management Board 

15  Change Management Board 

23  SIS II National Project Managers (Strasbourg) 

24  SIS II Committee (Strasbourg) 

FEBRUARY 2008 

13  Change Management Board 

14  Project Management Board 

21  SIS II National Project Managers 

22  SIS II Committee 

12  Change Management Board 

13  Project Management Board 

MARCH 2008 

APRIL 2008 

9  SIS II National Projects Managers 

17  Project Management Board 

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