Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the signature of the agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Moldova amending the Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Moldova on the facilitation of the issuance of visas
Date: 2012-06-04
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU visa policy, Moldova, agreement (EU), revision of an agreement, signature of an agreement

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 4.6.2012  
COM(2012) 267 final 

2012/0139 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the signature of the agreement between the European Union and the Republic of 
Moldova amending the Agreement between the European Community and the Republic 
of Moldova on the facilitation of the issuance of visas 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

I. 

POLITICAL AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK 

The  Visa  Facilitation  Agreement  between  the  European  Community  and  the  Republic  of 
Moldova1 has been in force since 1 January 2008. 

Article 12 of the Visa Facilitation Agreement establishes a Joint Committee tasked inter alia 
with  monitoring  the  implementation  of  the  Agreement  and  suggesting  amendments  and 
additions thereto. At its 5th meeting on 27 May 2010, the Joint Committee made a number of 
suggestions for amendments and additions to the Agreement. 

On  that  basis  the  Commission  presented  on  29  October  2010  a  recommendation  to  the 
Council  in  order  to  authorise  the  Commission  to  open  negotiations  with  the  Republic  of 
Moldova on an Agreement amending the Visa Facilitation Agreement. 

Following the authorisation given by the Council on 11 April 2011, the negotiations with the 
Republic  of  Moldova  on  an  Agreement  amending  the  Visa  Facilitation  Agreement  were 
opened  on  13  May  2011  in  Brussels.  Three  further  negotiation  rounds  took  place  on  29 
August 2011 in Chisinau and on 16 November 2011 and 14 December 2011 in Brussels.  

The  draft  amending  Agreement  foresees  inter  alia  a  visa  waiver  for  Moldovan  citizens  who 
are  holders  of  biometric  service  passports.  The  negotiators  expressed  their  common 
understanding that this visa waiver will be used in good faith. Given the importance of this for 
the European Union, a letter has been sent on behalf of the European Union to the Republic of 
Moldova  on  28  February  2012  confirming  that  the  European  Union  may  invoke  a  partial 
suspension  of  the  amended  Agreement  and  in  particular  the  provision  providing  the  visa 
waiver for holders of biometric service passports, in accordance with the suspension clause of 
the amended Agreement, if this visa waiver would be misused by the Republic of Moldova or 
would  lead  to  a  threat  to  public  security.  The  letter  (without  annex)  is  attached  to  this 
explanatory  memorandum.  This  approach  was  endorsed  by  Member  States  at  the  Visa 
Working  Party  on  10  January  2012.  The  Republic  of  Moldova  agreed  to  this  approach  by 
email of 13 February 2012. 

The final text of the amending Agreement was initialled on 22 March 2012 in Brussels by the 
chief negotiators. 

Member States have been regularly informed and consulted in the relevant Council Working 
Groups at all stages of the negotiations. 

On the part of the Union, the legal basis for the amending Agreement is Article 77(2)(a), in 
conjunction with Article 218 of the TFEU. 

The  attached  proposal  constitutes  the  legal  instrument  for  the  signature  of  the  amending 
Agreement. The Council will decide by qualified majority. 

1 

Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Moldova on the facilitation of the 
issuance of visas, OJ L 334/169, 19.12.2007. 

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II. 

OUTCOME OF THE NEGOTIATIONS 

The Commission considers that the objectives set by the Council in its negotiating directives 
were attained and that the draft amending Agreement is acceptable to the Union. 

The final content of it can be summarised as follows: 

simplified  requirements  for  documents  to  be  presented  regarding  the  purpose  of  the 

- 
journey for the following categories of applicants: 

drivers  conducting  international  cargo  and  passenger  transportation  services  and 

(a) 
journalists: have been reviewed. 

(b) 
members  of  the  technical  crew  accompanying  journalists,  close  relatives  of  EU 
citizens  residing  in  the  territory  of  the  Member  State  of  which  they  are  nationals,  and 
participants in official EU cross-border cooperation programmes: have been introduced; 

clarification of the provisions on the period of validity of multiple-entry visas for the 

- 
following categories of applicants: 

the  categories  listed  in  Article  5(1)  of  the  Visa  Facilitation  Agreement  as  well  as 
(a) 
spouses, children and parents visiting citizens of the European Union residing in the territory 
of  the  Member  State  of  which  they  are  nationals,  and  the  technical  crew  accompanying 
journalists in a professional capacity: 

in principle, multiple-entry visas valid for five years shall be issued. Multiple-entry visas with 
a shorter period of validity shall only be issued where the expiry date of the travel document 
requires this or where the need or the intention to travel frequently or regularly is manifestly 
limited to a shorter period; 

the categories listed in Article 5(2) of the Visa Facilitation Agreement and participants 

(b) 
in official EU cross-border cooperation programmes: 

in principle, multiple-entry visas valid for one year shall be issued. Multiple-entry visas with a 
shorter  period  of  validity  shall  only  be  issued  where  the  expiry  date  of  the  travel  document 
requires this or where the need or the intention to travel frequently or regularly is manifestly 
limited to a shorter period; 

a  full  waiving  of  the  visa  fee  for  the  following  additional  categories  of  applicants: 
- 
close relatives of citizens of the European Union residing in the territory of the Member State 
of  which  they  are  nationals,  the  technical  crew  accompanying  journalists  in  a  professional 
capacity,  participants  aged  25  years  or  less  in  seminars,  conferences,  sports,  cultural  or 
educational  events,  organised  by  non-profit  organisations,  representatives  of  civil  society 
organisations  undertaking 
training,  seminars, 
conferences, participants in official EU cross-border cooperation programmes; 

the  purposes  of  educational 

trips  for 

the possibility for an external service provider, with whom a Member State cooperates 
- 
in  view  of  issuing  a  visa,  to  charge  a  service  fee  of  up  to  EUR  30,  while  maintaining  the 
possibility of all applicants to lodge their applications directly at a consulate; on the specific 
request  of  the  Republic  of  Moldova,  a  European  Union  Declaration  is  attached  to  the 
amending Agreement on the European Union's commitment to outsource the reception of visa 
applications only as a last resort; 

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the  possibility  to  waive  the  requirement  to  appear  in  person  when  lodging  an 

- 
application; 

- 
the  exemption  from  the  visa  requirement  for  short  stays  for  the  citizens  of  the 
Republic  of  Moldova  who  are  holders  of  biometric  service  passports.  The  amending 
Agreement clarifies that this does not affect the applicability of provisions of existing bilateral 
Agreements or arrangements between individual Member States and the Republic of Moldova 
on the exemption of the holders of non-biometric service passports from the visa requirement 
for short stays; 

a  Joint  Declaration  is  attached  to  the  amending  Agreement  on  the  cooperation  on 

- 
travel documents and regular exchange of information on document security; 

- 
replying  to  a  specific  request  formulated  by  the  Republic  of  Moldova,  a  European 
Union  Declaration  is  attached  to  the  amending  Agreement  on  documents  to  be  submitted 
when applying for short-stay; 

- 
replying  to  a  specific  request  formulated  by  the  Republic  of  Moldova,  a  European 
Union Declaration is attached to the amending Agreement on facilitations for family members 
not covered by the legally binging provisions of the Agreement; 

the  specific  situations  of  Denmark,  Ireland  and  the  United  Kingdom  are  reflected  in 

- 
the preamble; 

- 
the  association  of  Switzerland  and  Liechtenstein  to  the  implementation,  application 
and development of the Schengen acquis is reflected in a Joint Declaration to the amending 
Agreement. 

III. 

CONCLUSIONS 

In light of the above-mentioned results, the Commission proposes that the Council 

decide  that  the  Agreement  be  signed  on  behalf  of  the  Union  and  authorise  the 

- 
Commission to appoint the person(s) duly empowered to sign on behalf of the Union. 

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2012/0139 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the signature of the agreement between the European Union and the Republic of 
Moldova amending the Agreement between the European Community and the Republic 
of Moldova on the facilitation of the issuance of visas 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 77(2a), in conjunction with Article 218 (5), thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

The  Agreement  between  the  European  Community  and  the  Republic  of  Moldova  on 
the facilitation of the issuance of visas entered into force on 1 January 2008. 

On  11  April  2011  the  Council  authorised  the  Commission  to  open  negotiations  with 
the  Republic  of  Moldova  on  amendments  to  the  Agreement  between  the  European 
Community and the Republic of Moldova on the facilitation of the issuance of visas. 
The negotiations were successfully concluded by  the initialling of the Agreement on 
22 March 2012. 

The Agreement should be signed by the negotiator on behalf of the European Union, 
subject to its conclusion at a later date. 

In accordance with the Protocol on the Schengen acquis integrated into the framework 
of  the  European  Union  and  the  Protocol  on  the  position  of  the  United  Kingdom  and 
Ireland in respect of the area of freedom, security and justice, annexed to the Treaty on 
European  Union  and  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and 
confirming that the provisions of this Agreement do not apply to the United Kingdom 
and Ireland,  

(5) 

In accordance with the Protocol on the position of Denmark annexed to the Treaty on 
European  Union  and  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union  and 
confirming that the provisions of this Agreement do not apply to Denmark, 

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HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Article 1 

The  Commission  is  authorised  to  sign,  on  behalf  of  the  European  Union,  the  Agreement 
between the European Union and the Republic of Moldova amending the Agreement between 
the European Community and the Republic of Moldova on the facilitation of the issuance of 
visas, and to designate the persons empowered to proceed to the signature. 

The text of the Agreement to be signed is attached to this Decision. 

Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX 

AGREEMENT 

between the European Union and the Republic of Moldova amending the Agreement between 
the European Community and the Republic of Moldova on the facilitation of the issuance of 
visas 

THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

of the one part, and  

THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA, 

of the other part,  

hereinafter referred to as ‘the Parties’, 

HAVING REGARD to the Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of 
Moldova  on  the  facilitation  of  the  issuance  of  visas,  which  entered  into  force  on  1  January 
2008, 

DESIRING to further facilitate people to people contacts, 

RECOGNISING  the  importance  of  the  introduction  of  a  visa  free  travel  regime  for  the 
citizens  of  the  Republic  of  Moldova  in  due  course,  provided  that  the  conditions  for  well-
managed and secure mobility are in place, 

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the Protocol on the position of the United Kingdom and Ireland 
in respect of the area of freedom, security and justice and the Protocol on the Schengen acquis 
integrated  into  the  framework  of  the  European  Union,  annexed  to  the  Treaty  on  European 
Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and confirming that the 
provisions of this Agreement do not apply to the United Kingdom and Ireland,  

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the Protocol on the position of Denmark annexed to the Treaty 
on  European  Union  and  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union  and 
confirming that the provisions of this Agreement do not apply to Denmark, 

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 

The  Agreement  between  the  European  Community  and  the  Republic  of  Moldova  on  the 
facilitation  of  the  issuance  of  visas,  hereinafter  referred  to  as  'the  Agreement',  shall  be 
amended in accordance with the provisions of this Article: 

[Title of the Agreement] 

(1) 

In  the  title,  the  word  "Community"  shall  be  replaced  by  the  words  "European 
Union". 

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[Article 3 of the Agreement 

Definitions] 

(2) 

In  Article  3  point  (e),  the  word  "Community"  shall  be  replaced  by  the  words 
"European Union". 

[Article 4 of the Agreement 

Documentary evidence regarding the purpose of the journey] 

(3) 

Article 4 paragraph 1 shall be amended as follows: 

(a) 

point (d) shall be replaced by the following: 

"(d)  for  drivers  conducting  international  cargo  and  passenger  transportation  services  to  the 
territories of the Member States in vehicles registered in the Republic of Moldova:  

—  a  written  request  from  the  national  association  of  carriers  of  the  Republic  of  Moldova 
providing  for  international  road  transportation,  stating  the  purpose,  itinerary,  duration  and 
frequency of the trips;" 

(b) 

point (f) shall be replaced by the following: 

"(f) for journalists and the technical crew accompanying them in a professional capacity: 

—  certificate  or  other  document  issued  by  a  professional  organisation  or  the  applicant's 
employer  proving  that  the  person  concerned  is  a  qualified  journalist  and  stating  that  the 
purpose of the journey is to carry out journalistic work or proving that the person is a member 
of the technical crew accompanying the journalist in a professional capacity;" 

(c) 

point (k) shall be replaced by the following: 

"(k) for close relatives – spouse, children (including adopted), parents (including custodians), 
grandparents and grandchildren – visiting citizens of the Republic of Moldova legally residing 
in  the  territory  of  the  Member  States  or  citizens  of  the  European  Union  residing  in  the 
territory of the Member State of which they are nationals:  

— a written request from the host person;" 

(d) 

the following point (p) shall be inserted: 

"(p)  for  participants  in  official  EU  cross-border cooperation programmes,  such  as  under  the 
European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI):  

— a written request by the host organisation." 

[Article 5 of the Agreement 

Issuance of multiple-entry visas] 

(4) 

(4)  Article 5 paragraphs 1 to 3 shall be replaced by the following: 

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"1.  Diplomatic  missions  and  consular  posts  of  the  Member  States  shall  issue  multiple-entry 
visas with a term of validity of five years to the following categories of persons:  

(a) members of national and regional Governments and Parliaments, Constitutional Court and 
Supreme Court if they are not exempted from the visa requirement by this Agreement, in the 
exercise of their duties; 

(b) permanent members of official delegations who, following an official invitation addressed 
to  the  Republic  of  Moldova,  are  to  participate  regularly  in  meetings,  consultations, 
negotiations or exchange programs, as well as in events held in the territory of the Member 
States by intergovernmental programmes;  

(c) spouses and children (including adopted), who are under the age of 21 or are dependent, 
and  parents  (including  custodians)  visiting  citizens  of  the  Republic  of  Moldova  legally 
residing in the territory of the Member States or citizens of the European Union residing in 
the territory of the Member State of which they are nationals; 

(d) business people and representatives of business organisations who regularly travel to the 
Member States;  

(e) journalists and the technical crew accompanying them in a professional capacity. 

By  way  of  derogation  from  the  first  sentence,  where  the  need  or  the  intention  to  travel 
frequently  or  regularly  is  manifestly  limited  to  a  shorter  period,  the  term  of  validity  of  the 
multiple-entry visa shall be limited to that period, in particular where 

- in the case of the persons referred to in lit. a, the term of office, 

-  in  the  case  of  the  persons  referred  to  in  lit.  b,  the  term  of  the  validity  of  the  status  as  a 
permanent member of an official delegation, 

- in the case of the persons referred to in lit. c, the period of validity of the authorisation for 
legal residence of citizens of the Republic of Moldova legally residing in the European Union, 

-  in  the  case  of  the  persons  referred  to  in  lit.  d,  the  term  of  validity  of  the  status  as  a 
representative of the business organisation or the work contract, or 

- in the case of the persons referred to in lit. e, the work contract 

is less than five years. 

2.  Diplomatic  missions  and  consular  posts  of  the  Member  States  shall  issue  multiple-entry 
visas with a term of validity of one year to the following categories of persons, provided that 
during  the  previous  year  they  have  obtained  at  least  one  visa,  have  made  use  of  it  in 
accordance with the laws on entry and stay of the visited State: 

(a)  members  of  official  delegations  who,  following  an  official  invitation  addressed  to  the 
Republic of Moldova, are to participate regularly in meetings, consultations, negotiations or 
exchange  programs,  as  well  as  in  events  held  in  the  territory  of  the  Member  States  by 
intergovernmental organisations;  

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(b) representatives of civil society organisations travelling regularly to Member States for the 
purposes  of  educational  training,  seminars,  conferences,  including  in  the  framework  of 
exchange programmes;  

(c)  members  of  the  professions  participating  in  international  exhibitions,  conferences, 
symposia, seminars or other similar events who regularly travel to the Member States;  

(d)  drivers  conducting  international  cargo  and  passenger  transportation  services  to  the 
territories of the Member States in vehicles registered in the Republic of Moldova;  

(e) members of train, refrigerator and locomotive crews in international trains travelling to the 
territories of the Member States; 

(f) persons participating in scientific, cultural and artistic activities, including university and 
other exchange programs, who regularly travel to the Member States;  

(g)  students  and  post-graduate  students  who  regularly  travel  for  the  purposes  of  study  or 
educational training, including in the framework of exchange programmes;  

(h)  participants  in  international  sports  events  and  persons  accompanying  them  in  a 
professional capacity;  

(i) participants in official exchange programmes organised by twin cities or other localities; 

(j)  participants  in  official  EU  cross-border  cooperation  programmes,  such  as  under  the 
European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI). 

By  way  of  derogation  from  the  first  sentence,  where  the  need  or  the  intention  to  travel 
frequently  or  regularly  is  manifestly  limited  to  a  shorter  period,  the  term  of  validity  of  the 
multiple-entry visa shall be limited to that period. 

3.  Diplomatic  missions  and  consular  posts  of  the  Member  States  shall  issue  multiple-entry 
visas  with  a  term  of  validity  of  a  minimum  of  2  years  and  a  maximum  of  5  years  to  the 
categories of persons referred to in paragraph 2, provided that during the previous two years 
they have made use of the one year multiple-entry visas in accordance with the laws on entry 
and stay of the visited State unless the need or the intention to travel frequently or regularly is 
manifestly limited to a shorter period, in which case the term of validity of the multiple-entry 
visa shall be limited to that period." 

[Article 6 of the Agreement 

Fees for processing visa applications] 

(5) 

Article 6 shall be amended as follows: 

(a) 

paragraph 2 shall be amended as follows: 

(i) 

in the first sentence, the opening words shall be replaced by the following: 

"4. Without prejudice to paragraph 4 fees for processing the visa application are waived for 
the following categories of persons:" 

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(ii) 

in point (a), the following words shall be inserted: 

"or citizens of the European Union residing in the territory of the Member State of which they 
are nationals" 

(iii) 

in point (j), the following words shall be inserted: 

"and the technical crew accompanying them in a professional capacity" 

(iv) 

the following points (p) to (r) shall be inserted: 

"(p) participants aged 25 years or less in seminars, conferences, sports, cultural or educational 
events, organised by non profit organisations;  

(q) representatives of civil society organisations undertaking trips for purposes of educational 
training, seminars, conferences, including in the framework of exchange programmes; 

(r)  participants  in  official  EU  cross-border  cooperation  programmes,  such  as  under  the 
European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI)." 

(v) 

the following sentence shall be inserted: 

"The first sentence shall apply also where the purpose of the journey is transit." 

(c) 

the following paragraph shall be inserted: 

"4. If a Member State cooperates with an external service provider in view of issuing a visa 
the external service provider may charge a service fee. This fee shall be proportionate to the 
costs incurred by the external service provider while performing its tasks and shall not exceed 
EUR  30.  The  Member  States  shall  maintain  the  possibility  for  all  applicants  to  lodge  their 
applications  directly  at  their  consulates.  The  external  service  provider  shall  conduct  its 
operations in accordance with the Visa Code and in full respect of Moldovan legislation." 

[Article 6 bis 

Lodging of an application without the presence of the applicant] 

(6) 

The following Article 6 bis shall be inserted: 

"Article 6 bis 

Lodging of an application without the presence of the applicant 

Member States consulates may waive the requirement to appear in person, when the applicant 
is known to them for his integrity and reliability, unless the applicant is required to appear in 
person for the collection of biometric identifiers." 

[Article 8 of the Agreement 

Departure in the case of lost or stolen documents] 

(7) 

Article 8 shall be replaced by the following: 

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"Article 8 

Departure in the case of lost or stolen documents 

Citizens of the European Union and of the Republic of Moldova who have lost their identity 
documents, or from whom these documents have been stolen while staying in the territory of 
the  Republic  of  Moldova  or  the  Member  States,  may  leave  the  territory  of  the  Republic  of 
Moldova or the Member States on the basis of valid identity documents entitling them to cross 
the  border  issued  by  diplomatic  missions  or  consular  posts  of  the  Member  States  or  of  the 
Republic of Moldova without any visa or other authorisation." 

[Article 10 of the Agreement 

Diplomatic passports] 

(8) 

Article 10 shall be amended as follows: 

(a) 

the title shall be replaced by the following: 

" Diplomatic and service passports" 

(b) 

paragraph 2 shall be renumbered 3 and shall be replaced by the following: 

"3. Persons mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2 may stay in the territories of the Member States 
for a period not exceeding 90 days per period of 180 days." 

(c) 

the following new paragraph 2 shall be inserted: 

"2.  Citizens  of  the  Republic  of  Moldova,  holders  of  valid  biometric  service  passports  can 
enter, leave and transit through the territories of the Member States without visas." 

[Article 12 

Joint Committee for management of the Agreement] 

(9) 

In  Article  12  paragraph  1,  the  word  "Community"  shall  be  replaced  by  the  words 
"European Union". 

[Article 13 of the Agreement 

Relation  of  this  Agreement  with  bilateral  Agreements  between  Member  States  and  the 
Republic of Moldova] 

(10) 

Article 13 shall be amended as follows: 

(a) 

the existing paragraph shall be numbered as paragraph 1; 

(b) the following paragraph shall be inserted: 

"2.  The  provisions  of  bilateral  Agreements  or  arrangements  between  individual  Member 
States and the Republic of Moldova concluded before the entry into force of this Agreement 
providing for the exemption of the holders of non-biometric service passports from the visa 
requirement  shall  continue  to  apply  without  prejudice  to  the  right  of  the  Member  States 

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concerned or the Republic of Moldova to denounce or suspend these bilateral agreements or 
arrangements." 

[Article 14 

Reciprocity clause] 

(11) 

In Article 14, the following first sentence shall be inserted: 

"The Republic of Moldova may only reintroduce the visa requirement for citizens or certain 
categories  of  citizens  of  all  EU  Member  States  and  not  for  citizens  or  certain  categories  of 
citizens of individual Member States." 

Article 2 

This  Agreement  shall  be  ratified  or  approved  by  the  Parties  in  accordance  with  their 
respective procedures and shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following 
the date on which the last Party notifies the other that the procedures referred to above have 
been completed. 

Done at XXX, on XXX 2012 in duplicate in the official languages of the Parties, each of these 
texts being equally authentic. 

For the European Union  

For the Republic of Moldova 

JOINT DECLARATION ON COOPERATION ON TRAVEL DOCUMENTS 

The  Parties  agree  that  the  Joint  Committee  established  pursuant  to  Article  12  of  the 
Agreement,  when  monitoring  the  implementation  of  the  Agreement,  should  evaluate  the 
impact  of  the  level  of  security  of  the  respective  travel  documents  on  the  functioning  of  the 
Agreement. To that end, the Parties agree to regularly inform each other about the measures 
taken for avoiding the proliferation of travel documents, developing the technical aspects of 
travel  document  security  as  well  as  regarding  the  personalisation  process  of  the  issuance  of 
travel documents. 

EUROPEAN UNION DECLARATION ON DOCUMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED 
WHEN APPLYING FOR SHORT-STAY VISAS 

The European Union will establish a harmonised list of supporting documents, in accordance 
with Article 48 paragraph 1 lit. a of the Visa Code, in order to ensure that applicants from the 
Republic  of  Moldova  are  required  to  submit,  in  principle,  the  same  supporting  documents. 
The European Union will inform the Republic of Moldova in the Committee, when such a list 
has  been  established.  The  European  Union  will  also  inform  the  citizens  of  the  Republic  of 
Moldova in accordance with Article 47 paragraph 1 lit. a of the Visa Code. 

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EUROPEAN UNION DECLARATION ON COOPERATION WITH EXTERNAL 
SERVICE PROVIDERS 

The European Union commits itself to outsource the reception of visa applications only as a 
last  resort,  when there  are  particular  circumstances  or  reasons  relating  to  the  local  situation, 
such as where 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 it is not possible to 
ensure a good territorial coverage of the third country concerned in any other way; and where 
other forms of cooperation prove not to be appropriate for the Member State concerned. 

EUROPEAN UNION DECLARATION ON FACILITATIONS FOR FAMILY 
MEMBERS 

The European Union takes note of the suggestion of the Republic of Moldova to give a wider 
definition to the notion of family members that should benefit from visa facilitation as well as 
of the importance that the Republic of Moldova attaches to the simplification of movement of 
this category of persons. 

In order to ease the mobility of an extended number of persons which have family links (in 
particular  sisters  and  brothers  and  their  children)  with  citizens  of  the  Republic  of  Moldova 
legally  residing  in  the  territories  of  Member  States  or  with  citizens  of  the  European  Union 
residing in the territory of the Member State of which they are nationals, the European Union 
invites the Member States’ consular offices to make full use of the existing possibilities in the 
Visa  Code  for  facilitating  the  issuance  of  visas  to  this  category  of  persons,  including  in 
particular,  the  simplification  of  documentary  evidence  requested  for  the  applicants, 
exemptions from handling fees and, where appropriate, the issuing of multiple-entry visas. 

JOINT DECLARATION CONCERNING SWITZERLAND AND LIECHTENSTEIN 

The  Parties  take  note  of  the  close  relationship  between  the  Union  and  Switzerland  and 
Liechtenstein,  particularly  by  virtue  of  the  Agreement  of  26  October  2004  concerning  the 
association  of  these  countries  with  the  implementation,  application  and  development  of  the 
Schengen acquis. 

In such circumstances, it is desirable that the authorities of Switzerland and Liechtenstein and 
the Republic of Moldova conclude, without delay, bilateral agreements on the facilitation of 
the issuance of short-stay visas in similar terms as the amended Agreement. 

EN 

14 

   EN