Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION determining the Union position for a Decision of the Joint Committee set up under the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas, with regard to the adoption of Common Guidelines for the implementation of the Agreement
Date: 2014-10-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Community acquis, EU visa policy, Ukraine, agreement (EU), application of EU law













EUR-Lex - 52014PC0679 - EN











|



52014PC0679

Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION determining the Union position for a Decision of the Joint Committee set up under the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas, with regard to the adoption of Common Guidelines for the implementation of the Agreement /* COM/2014/0679 final - 2014/0315 (NLE) */









EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.           CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
The Agreement between the European Union
and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas entered into force on
1 January 2008. The Agreement established, on the basis of reciprocity, legally
binding rights and obligations for the purpose of simplifying the visa issuing
procedures for Ukrainian citizens. Article 12 of this Agreement set up a Joint
Committee tasked to monitor the implementation of the Agreement. 
The Joint Committee noted the need for
common guidelines in order to ensure a fully harmonised implementation of the
Visa Facilitation Agreement amongst the consulates of the Member States, and
for clarifying the relationship between the provisions of that Agreement and
the provisions of the contracting parties that continue to apply to visa issues
not covered by the Agreement.
The Joint Committee adopted such guidelines by its Decision No 1/2009 of
25.11.2009. These Guidelines are not part of the
Agreement and therefore they are not legally binding. However, it is highly
recommended that diplomatic and consular staff consistently follow them when
implementing the provisions of the Agreement.
Following the entry into force, on
1.07.2013, of the amended Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas, the Guidelines needed to be adapted
accordingly.
The Guidelines have been adapted in line
with the amended Agreement which contains new provisions on further facilitations
in the procedures for issuing visas for an intended stay of no more than 90
days per period of 180 days in the Schengen area for the citizens of Ukraine,
as well as with new EU legislation in the area of common visa policy, such as
the Visa Code. Therefore they reflect the applicable EU visa acquis in
force at present.
2.           RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS
WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
The Guidelines as annexed to the Annex of
this proposal for a Council Decision are the outcome of consultations with the
Member States in the context of the Visa Working Party on 12.12.2013, 10.01.,
20.02., and 15.04.2014. Commission consulted these Guidelines with responsible
authorities in Ukraine on several occasions, including in the Joint Committee
meeting on 14.05.2014.
3.           LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE
PROPOSAL
The Guidelines, which are to be adopted on
the basis of the empowerment given to the representative of the Commission in
the Joint Committee on the basis of this proposal, will not be legally binding
upon the Member States. These Guidelines are to provide guidance and explain in
detail the provisions of the Agreement to persons who implement the amended
Visa Facilitation Agreement between the EU and Ukraine. 
The Guidelines take into consideration the
provisions of the Visa Code and other legislative acts in the field of EU visa
policy in order to ensure that consular representatives of the Member States
act in accordance with the entire EU visa acquis when implementing the
provisions of the Visa Facilitation Agreement. 
The provisions of the Agreement have
precedence over the provisions of the Visa Code on matters which they both
regulate. 
4.            FINANCIAL AND BUDGET
IMPACT
This proposal has no impact on the EU
budget.
2014/0315 (NLE)
Proposal for a
COUNCIL DECISION
determining the Union position for a
Decision of the Joint Committee set up under the Agreement between the European
Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas, with regard to
the adoption of Common Guidelines for the implementation of the Agreement
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the
Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 218(9)
thereof;
Whereas:
(1)       Article 12 of the Agreement between the European Union and
Ukraine on the facilitation
of the issuance of visas[1] ("Visa Facilitation Agreement") sets up a Joint
Committee. It provides that the Joint Committee should in particular monitor
the implementation of that Agreement.
(2)       Within that
responsibility, the Joint Committee noted the need for common guidelines in
order to ensure a fully harmonised implementation of the Visa Facilitation
Agreement amongst the consulates of the Member States, and for clarifying the
relationship between the provisions of that Agreement and the provisions of the
contracting parties that continue to apply to visa issues not covered by the
Agreement.
(3)       The Joint Committee
already adopted such guidelines by its Decision No 1/2009 of 25.11.2009. Those
guidelines should be adapted to the new provisions of the amended Visa
Facilitation Agreement and to the changes in Union internal law on visa policy.
In the interests of clarity it is appropriate to replace those guidelines.
(4)       The amending Agreement
between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of
visas[2] entered into force on 1 July 2013.
(5)       Regulation (EC) No
810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council[3]
entered into force on 5 April 2010 and established the procedures and
conditions for issuing visas for transit through or intended stays in the
territory of the Member States not exceeding 90 days in any 180-days period.
(6)       The position to be adopted
within the Joint Committee regarding the adoption of the common guidelines
should be established,
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 
Sole Article
The position to be adopted by the Union
within the Joint Committee set up by Article 12 of the Agreement between the
European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas with
regard to the adoption of common guidelines on its implementation shall be
based on the draft Joint Committee decision annexed attached to this Decision.
Done at Brussels,
                                                                       For
the Council
                                                                       The
President
[1]               OJ L 332, 29.11.2007, p. 68.
[2]               OL L 168, 20.6.2013, p. 11.
[3]               Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community Code on
Visas (OJ L 243, 15.9.2009., p. 1).
ANNEX
to the
COUNCIL DECISION
determining the Union position for
a Decision of the Joint Committee set up under the Agreement between the
European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas, with
regard to the adoption of Common Guidelines for the implementation of the
Agreement
DRAFT
DECISION
N° …./2014 OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE
SET
UP BY 
THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND 
  UKRAINE ON THE FACILITATION OF ISSUANCE OF VISAS
of
…….2014
with
regard to the adoption of common guidelines on its implementation
(…/…/…)
THE COMMITTEE,
Having regard to the Agreement between the
European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas
(hereinafter referred to as “the Agreement”), and in particular Article 12
thereof,
Whereas that Agreement entered into force
on 1 January 2008,
HAS DECIDED THE FOLLOWING:
Article 1
The common guidelines on the implementation
of the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of
the issuance of visas are established in the annex to this Decision.
Article
2
Decision No 1/2009 of the Joint Committee is
repealed. 
ANNEX
COMMON GUIDELINES 
FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION 
AND UKRAINE 
ON THE FACILITATION OF THE ISSUANCE OF
VISAS 
The purpose of the
Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the
issuance of visas, which entered into force on 1 January 2008, as amended by
the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine of 23.07.2012., which
entered into force on 1.07.2013 (in the following ‘the Agreement’), is to
facilitate, on the basis of reciprocity, the procedures for issuing visas for
an intended stay of no more than 90 days per period of 180 days to the citizens
of Ukraine.
The Agreement establishes,
on the basis of reciprocity, legally binding rights and obligations for the
purpose of simplifying the visa issuing procedures for Ukrainian citizens.
These Guidelines,
adopted by the Joint Committee established by the Agreement, aim at ensuring a
correct and harmonised implementation of the provisions of the Agreement by the
diplomatic missions and consular posts of the Member States.  These Guidelines
are not part of the Agreement and therefore they are not legally binding.
However, it is highly recommended that diplomatic and consular staff
consistently follow them when implementing the provisions of the Agreement.
The Guidelines are
conceived as a living document, to be updated in light of the experiences of
the implementation of the Agreement under the responsibility of the Joint
Committee set up by Article 12 of the Agreement. The Guidelines, adopted by the
Joint Committee on 25 November 2009 have been adapted in line with the
Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine amending the Agreement between
the European Community and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of
visas, and with new EU legislation such as the Visa Code.
I. GENERAL ISSUES. 
1.1. Purpose and
scope of application.
Article 1 of the
Agreement stipulates that: "The purpose of this Agreement is to facilitate
the issuance of visas for an intended stay of no more than 90 days per period
of 180 days to the citizens of Ukraine."
The Agreement
applies to all Ukrainian citizens who apply for a short-stay visa, whatever the
country in which they reside.
Article 1(2) of the
Agreement stipulates that: "Ukraine may only reintroduce the visa
requirement for citizens or certain categories of citizens of all Member States
and not for citizens or certain categories of citizens of individual Member
States. If Ukraine would reintroduce the visa requirement for EU citizens or
certain categories of EU citizens, the same facilitations granted under this
agreement to the Ukrainian citizens would automatically, on the basis of
reciprocity, apply to EU citizens concerned."
According to the
decisions taken by the Ukrainian government, as from 1 May 2005 or 1 January
2008 respectively, EU citizens are exempted from the visa requirement when
travelling to Ukraine for a period of time not exceeding 90 days or transiting
through the territory of Ukraine. This provision does not affect the right of
the Ukrainian government to amend these decisions.
1.2. Scope of the
Agreement.
Article 2 of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"1.        The
visa facilitations provided in this Agreement shall apply to citizens of Ukraine only insofar as they are not exempted from the visa requirement by the laws and regulations
of the European Union or the Member States, the present agreement or other
international agreements.
2.         The
national law of Ukraine, or of the Member States or European Union law shall
apply to issues not covered by the provisions of this Agreement, such as the
refusal to issue a visa, recognition of travel documents, proof of sufficient
means of subsistence and the refusal of entry and expulsion measures."
Without prejudice to
Article 10 (which provides for the exemption from the visa requirement for
holders of diplomatic passports and biometric service passports of Ukraine), the Agreement does not affect the existing rules on visa obligations and visa
exemptions.  For instance, Article 4 of Council Regulation N°539/2001  allows
Member States to exempt from the visa requirement civilian air and sea crews
among other categories.
Schengen rules and,
where appropriate, national law continue to apply to all issues not covered by
the Agreement such as the refusal to issue a visa, recognition of travel
documents, proof of sufficient means of subsistence, the refusal of entry, and
expulsion measures. This also applies to the Schengen rules determining the Schengen Member State responsible for processing a visa application. Therefore, a Ukrainian
citizen should continue to apply for a visa to the consulate of the Member
State of the main destination of his/her travelling; if there is no main
destination, (s)he should apply to the consulate of the Member State of first
entry into the Schengen area.
Even if the
conditions foreseen in the Agreement are met, for example, proof of documentary
evidence regarding the purpose of the journey for the categories foreseen in
Article 4 is provided by the visa applicant, the issuance of the visa still can
be refused if the conditions laid down in Article 5 of the Schengen Borders
Code  are not fulfilled, i.e. the person is not in possession of a valid travel
document, an alert in the SIS has been issued, the person is considered a
threat for public policy, internal security, etc. 
Other possibilities
for flexibility in the issuing of visas allowed in the Visa Code  for issuing
visas continue to apply. For instance, multiple-entry visas for a long period
of validity- up to five years- can be issued to categories of persons other
than those mentioned in Article 5, if the conditions foreseen in the Visa Code
are met (cfr. Article 24 (2) of the Visa Code). In the same way, the provisions
contained in the Visa Code allowing waiver or reduction of the visa fee will
continue to apply (cfr. infra II.2.1.1.).
1.3.      Types of
visas falling within the scope of the Agreement.
Article 3 (d) of the
Agreement defines "visa" as "an authorisation issued by a Member State or a decision taken by such State which is required with a view to:
–          entry for
an intended stay in that Member State or in several Member States of no more
than 90 days in total,
–          entry for
transit through the territory of that Member State or several Member States,"
The following types
of visas are covered by the Agreement:
- "C"
visas (short-stay visas).
The facilitations
provided by the Agreement apply both to uniform visas valid for the entire
territory of the Member States and to visas with limited territorial validity
(LTV).  
1.4. Calculation of
the length of stay authorised by a visa and in particular the question on how
to determine the six month period
The recent
modification of the Schengen Borders Code has re-defined the notion of short
stay. The current definition reads as follows: "90 days in any 180
day-period, which entails considering the 180-day period preceding each day of
stay". 
The day of entry
shall be calculated as the first day of stay in the territory of the Member
States and the day of exit shall be calculated as the last day of stay in the
territory of the Member States. The notion of "any" implies the
application of a "moving" 180-day reference period, looking at each
day of the stay back to the last 180 days period, in order to verify if the
90/180 day requirement continues to be fulfilled. This means that an absence
for an uninterrupted period of 90 days allows for a new stay of up to 90 days.
The definition entered
into force on 18 October 2013. The calculator may be found on-line at the
following address:
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/home-affairs/what-we-do/policies/borders-and-visas/border-crossing/index_en.htm
Example of
calculation of stay on the basis of the new definition:
A person holding a
multiple entry visa for 1 year (18.4.2014 – 18.4.2015) enters for the first
time on 19.4.2014 and stays for 3 days. Then he enters again on 18.6.2014 and
stays for 86 days. What is the situation on specific dates? When will this
person be allowed to enter again? 
On 11.9.2014: Over
the last 180 days (16.3.2014 – 11.9.2014) the person had stayed for 3 days (19.
– 21.4.2014) plus 86 days (18.6.2014 – 11.9.2014) = 89 days = No overstay. The
person may still stay for up to 1 day.
As of 16.10.2014:
The person might enter for a stay of 3 additional days (on 16.10.2014the stay
on 19.4.2014 becomes irrelevant (outside the 180 days period); on 17.10.2014
the stay on 20.4.2014 becomes irrelevant (outside the 180 days period; etc.).
As of 15.12.2014:
The person might enter for 86 additional days (on 15.12.2014, the stay on
18.6.2014 becomes irrelevant (outside the 180 days period); on 16.12.2014, the
stay on 19.6.2014 becomes irrelevant, etc.).
1.5.      Situation
regarding the Member States that do not yet fully apply the Schengen acquis, 
the Member States that do not participate in the EU Common Visa Policy and
associated countries.
Member States that
joined the EU in 2004 (Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic), 2007 (Bulgaria and Romania), and 2013 (Croatia) are bound by the Agreement as from its entry into force.
Only Cyprus, Romania, Bulgaria, and Croatia, do not yet fully implement the Schengen acquis. They will
continue issuing national visas with a validity limited to their own national
territory. Once these Member States fully implement the Schengen acquis, they
will continue to apply the Agreement.
National law
continues to apply to all issues not covered by the Agreement until the date of
full implementation of the Schengen acquis by these Member States. As from that
date, Schengen rules/national law shall apply to issues not regulated by the
Agreement.
Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Romania are authorised to recognise residence
permits, D visas and short stay visas issued by Schengen States and associated
countries for short stays on their territory. 
According to Article
21 of the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement, all Schengen States
must recognise the long-stay visas and residence permits issued by each other
as valid for short stays on each other’s territories. Schengen Member States
accept residence permits, D visas and short stay visas of associated countries
for entry and short stay and vice versa. 
The Agreement does
not apply to the UK, Ireland and Denmark but comprises joint declarations about
the desirability of those Member States to conclude bilateral agreements on
visa facilitation with Ukraine.
A bilateral
agreement on visa facilitation between Denmark and Ukraine entered into force
on 1 March 2009. No negotiations on visa facilitation have taken place between Ukraine and, respectively, the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Although associated
to Schengen, the Agreement does not apply to Norway, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Iceland but comprises joint declarations about the desirability of those Schengen
countries to conclude bilateral agreements on visa facilitation with Ukraine.
Norway has signed a bilateral visa facilitation agreement on 13 February
2008. This agreement entered into force on 1 September 2011.
Switzerland finalised the negotiations on a bilateral visa facilitation
agreement in November 2011. Iceland has indicated that negotiations with Ukraine have begun.
1.6.      European
Union Agreement/Bilateral agreements.
Article 13 (1) of
the Agreement stipulates that 
"1. As from its
entry into force, this Agreement shall take precedence over provisions of any
bilateral or multilateral agreements or arrangements concluded between
individual Member States and Ukraine, insofar as the provisions of the latter
agreements or arrangements cover issues dealt with by the present Agreement."
As from the date of
entry into force of the Agreement, provisions in the bilateral agreements in
force between Member States and Ukraine on issues dealt with by the visa
facilitation agreement ceased to apply. In accordance with European Union law,
Member States have to take the necessary measures to eliminate the
incompatibilities between their bilateral agreements and the European Union
Agreement.
However, Art. 13(2)
of the Agreement stipulates that
"2. The
provisions of bilateral Agreements or arrangements between individual Member
States and Ukraine 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 concerned or Ukraine to denounce or suspend these
bilateral agreements or arrangements."
The following Member
States have a bilateral agreement with Ukraine providing for the exemption from
the visa obligation for holders of service passports: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
In accordance with
Article 13(1), in so far as these agreements cover biometric service passport
holders, Article 10(2) of the amended Agreement takes precedence over these
Agreements. In accordance with Article 13(2), these agreements, which were
concluded before the entry into force of the amending Agreement, shall continue
to apply in so far as they cover non-biometric service passport holders,
without prejudice to the right of the Member States concerned or Ukraine to denounce or suspend these bilateral agreements or arrangements. The visa
exemption for the holders of non-biometric service passport granted by a Member State only applies for travelling on the territory of this Member State and not for
travelling to the other Schengen Member States.
Should a Member State have concluded a bilateral agreement or arrangement with Ukraine on issues not covered by the European Union Agreement, this exemption would
continue to apply after the entry into force of the European Union visa
facilitation Agreement.
1.7. European Community
Declaration on access of visa applicants and harmonisation of information on
procedures for issuing short-stay visas and documents to be submitted when
applying for short-stay visas.
In accordance with
this European Community Declaration annexed to the initial Agreement, common
basic information on access of visa applicants to diplomatic missions and
consular posts of the Member States and on the procedures and conditions for
issuing visas and on the validity of visas issued has been drafted to ensure
that applicants are given coherent and uniform information.  This information
is available at website of the EU Delegation to Ukraine:
http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/ukraine/index_en.htm
Diplomatic missions
and consular posts are requested to disseminate widely this information (on the
information boards, in leaflets, on websites, etc) and to disseminate also
precise information on the conditions for issuing visas, representation of
Member States in Ukraine and the harmonised EU list of required supporting
documentation.
 
II. GUIDELINES ON
SPECIFIC PROVISIONS.
2.1.      Rules that
apply to all visa applicants
Important: It is
recalled that the facilitations mentioned below regarding the visa handling
fee, the length of procedures for processing visa applications, departure in
case of lost or stolen documents, and the extension of visa in exceptional
circumstances apply to all Ukrainian visa applicants and visa holders.
2.1.1.   Visa
handling fee.
Article 6(1) of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"The fee for processing
visa applications of Ukrainian citizens shall amount to EUR 35. The
aforementioned amount may be reviewed in accordance with the procedure provided
for in Article 14(4)."
In accordance with
Article 6(1), the fee for processing a visa application is 35 EUR. This fee
will apply to all Ukrainian visa applicants (including tourists) and concerns
short-stay visas, irrespective of the number of entries. It also applies to
visa applications lodged at the external borders.
Article 6(2) of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"If Ukraine would reintroduce the visa requirement for EU citizens, the visa fee to be charged by Ukraine shall not be higher than EUR 35 or the amount agreed if the fee is reviewed in
accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 14(4)."
Article 6(3) of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"The Member
States shall charge a fee of EUR 70 for processing visas in cases where, based
on the distance between the applicant's place of residence and the place where
the application has been submitted, the applicant has requested that a decision
on the application be taken within three days of its submission, and the
consulate has accepted to take a decision within three days."
A €70 fee shall be
charged for processing visa applications in cases where the visa application
and the supporting documents have been submitted by the visa applicant whose
place of residence is known to be in the oblast in which the Member State to
which the applicant wishes to travel has no consular representation (if in that
oblast there is no consulate, nor visa centre, nor consulates of the Member
States that have concluded representation agreements with the Member State to
which the applicant wishes to travel), and when the diplomatic mission or
consular post has agreed to take a decision on the visa application within
three days. Evidence regarding the place of residence of visa applicant is
provided in the visa application form. 
In principle, Article
6(3) aims at facilitating applying for a visa by the applicants living at a
large distance from the consulate. Should  a long trip be needed in order to
apply for the visa, the aim is to issue it quickly, so that the applicant can
receive the visa without having the need of undertaking the same lengthy travel
for a second time.
For the above
mentioned reasons, in cases where the "standard" processing time for
a visa application by a given diplomatic mission or consular post takes 3 days
or less, the standard €35 visa fee shall be charged. 
For diplomatic
missions and consular posts that have an appointment system, the period of time
to get an appointment is not counted as part of the processing time (see also
point 2.1.2).
Article 6(4) of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"4.        Without
prejudice to paragraph 5 fees for processing the visa application are waived
for the following categories of persons:
(a)        for close
relatives – spouses, children (including adopted) parents (including
custodians), grandparents and grandchildren – of citizens of Ukraine 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;"
This paragraph
regulates the situation of Ukrainian close relatives travelling to the Member
States to visit Ukrainian citizens legally residing in the Member States or
citizens of the European Union residing in the territory of the Member State of
which they are nationals. Ukrainian visa applicants who are family members of a
Union citizen, in the sense of Article 5(2) of Directive 2004/38/EC of 29 April
2004 , shall be issued visas free of charge, as soon as possible and on the
basis of an accelerated procedure.
"(b)      for
members of official delegations who, following an official invitation addressed
to Ukraine, shall participate in meetings, consultations, negotiations or
exchange programmes, as well as in events held in the territory of one of the
Member States by intergovernmental organisations;
(c)        members
of national and regional Governments and Parliaments, Constitutional Courts and
Supreme Courts, in case they are not exempted from the visa requirement by the
present Agreement;
(d)       pupils,
students, post-graduate students and accompanying teachers who undertake trips
for the purpose of study or educational training;
(e)        disabled
persons and the person accompanying them, if necessary;" (N.B. In order to
benefit of the waiving of the fee evidence should be provided that both visa
applicants fall under this category.)
"(f)       persons
who have presented documents proving the necessity of their travel on
humanitarian grounds, including to receive urgent medical treatment and the
person accompanying such person, or to attend a funeral of a close relative, or
to visit a close relative seriously ill;
(g)        participants
in international sports events and persons accompanying them;" (N.B.
accompanying persons are only covered that do so in professional capacity;
supporters shall not be considered as accompanying persons.)
"(h)      persons
participating in scientific, cultural and artistic activities including
university and other exchange programmes;  
(i)         participants
in official exchange programmes organised by twin cities and other municipal
entities;
(j)         journalists
and the technical crew accompanying them in a professional capacity; (N.B.
covered are the journalists covered by Article 4(1)(e)).
(k)        pensioners;"
(N.B. In order to benefit of the waiving of the fee from this category, visa
applicants have to present evidence proving their pensioner status.)  
"(l)       drivers
conducting international cargo and passenger transportation services to the
territories of the Member States in vehicles registered in Ukraine;
(m)       members of
train, refrigerator and locomotive crews in international trains, travelling to
the territories of the Member States;
(n)        children
under the age of 18 and dependant children under the age of 21."  (N.B. in
order to benefit of the waiving of the fee from this category, visa applicants
have to present evidence proving their age; and –if under the age of 21- in
addition their dependency.);
"(o)      representatives
of the religious communities;
(p)        for
members of the professions participating in international exhibitions,
conferences, symposia, seminars or other similar events held in the territory
of the Member States;
(q)        participants
aged 25 years or less in seminars, conferences, sports, cultural or educational
events, organised by non-profit organisations;
(r)        representatives
of civil society organisations undertaking trips for the purposes of
educational training, seminars, conferences, including in the framework of
exchange programmes;
(s)        for
participants in official EU cross-border cooperation programmes, such as under
the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI).
The first subparagraph
shall apply also where the purpose of the journey is transit."
The latter applies
only if the purpose of travel to the third country is equivalent to one of the
purposes listed under Article 6(4) (a) to (s) e.g. if the transit is needed to
attend a seminar, to visit family members, to participate in an exchange
programme of civil society organisations, etc in the third country.  
The fee is fully
waived for the above mentioned categories of persons. Moreover, according to
Article 16 (6) of the Visa Code "in individual cases, the amount of the
fee to be charged may be waived or reduced when to do so serves to promote
cultural or sporting interests as well as interests in the field of foreign
policy, development policy, other areas of vital public interest or for
humanitarian reasons."  
However, this rule
cannot be applied to waive the €70 visa fee for processing visas in individual
cases where the visa application and the supporting documents have been
submitted by the visa applicant whose place of residence is known to be based
far away from the diplomatic mission or consular post of the Member State and
who belongs to one of the visa fee exempted categories listed in Article 6(4)
of the Agreement. 
It should also be
recalled that the visa fee exempted categories of persons could still be
subject to a service fee in case a Member State cooperates with an external
service provider.
Article 6(5) of the
Agreement stipulates that:
“5. 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. If applicants are required 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."
 
Maintaining the
possibility for all categories of visa applicants to lodge their applications
directly at the consulate instead of via an external service provider implies
that there should be a genuine choice between these two possibilities. Even if
direct access does not have to be organised under identical or similar
conditions to those for access to the service provider, the conditions should
not make direct access impossible in practice. Even if it is acceptable to have
a different waiting time for obtaining an appointment in the case of direct
access, the waiting time should not be so long that it would render direct
access impossible in practice.
2.1.2.   Length of
procedures for processing visa applications. 
Article 7 of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"1.        Diplomatic
missions and consular posts of the Member States shall take a decision on the
request to issue a visa within 10 calendar days of the date of the receipt of
the application and documents required for issuing the visa.
2.         The
period of time for taking a decision on a visa application may be extended up
to 30 calendar days in individual cases, notably when further scrutiny of the
application is needed.
3.         The
period of time for taking a decision on a visa application may be reduced to 2 working
days or less in urgent cases."
A decision on the
visa application shall be taken, in principle, within 10 calendar days of the
date of the receipt of the complete visa application and supporting documents.
This period may be
extended up to 30 days when further scrutiny is needed- for example, for
consultation of central authorities. 
All these deadlines
start running only when the application file is complete, i.e. as from the date
of reception of the visa application and the supporting documents. 
For diplomatic
missions and consular posts that have an appointment system, the period of time
to get an appointment is not counted as part of the processing time.  When
setting the appointment, it should be taken into account the eventual urgency
claimed by the visa applicant in view of the implementation of Article 7(3). 
As a rule, appointments should take place within a period of two weeks from the
date when the appointment was requested (cfr. Article 6(5)).  A longer period
should be an exception also in peak periods. The Joint Committee will monitor
this issue carefully. The Member States will endeavour to ensure that
appointments at the request of the members of official delegations of Ukraine to lodge applications at diplomatic missions and consular posts should take place
as soon as possible, preferably within a period of two working days, in urgent
cases when the invitation has been sent out late. 
The decision about
the reduced time for taking a decision on a visa application as defined in
Article 7(3) is taken by the consular officer.
2.1.3. Extension of
visa in exceptional circumstances.
Article 9 of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"The citizens
of Ukraine who do not have the possibility to leave the territory of the Member
States by the time stated in their visas for reasons of force majeure shall
have the term of their visas extended free of charge in accordance with the
legislation applied by the receiving State for the period required for their
return to the State of their residence."
Regarding the
possibility of extending the validity of the visa in cases of force majeure
-for instance, stay in a hospital due to unforeseen reasons/sudden
desease/accident - where the holder of the visa does not have the possibility
to leave the territory of the Member State by the date stated in the visa, the
provisions of the Article 33(1) of the Visa Code shall apply as long as they
are compatible with the Agreement (for example, the extended visa shall remain
a uniform visa, entitling entry to the territory of all the Schengen Member
States for which the visa was valid at the time of issue).  However, under the
Agreement the extension of the visa is done for free in case of force majeure.
2.2. Rules that
apply to certain categories of visa applicants.
2.2.1.   Documentary
evidence regarding the purpose of the journey.
For all the
categories of persons listed in Article 4(1) including drivers conducting
international cargo and passenger transportation services only the indicated
documentary evidence will be required regarding the purpose of the journey. For
those categories of applicants no other documents regarding the purpose of stay
must be asked for. As stated in Article 4(3), no other justification,
invitation or validation regarding the purpose of the journey will be
required.  
If in individual
cases doubts remain regarding the real purpose of the journey, the visa
applicant shall be called for an (additional) in depth interview to the
embassy/consulate where (s)he can be questioned regarding the actual purpose of
the visit or the applicant's intention to return- cfr Article 21(8) of the Visa
Code. In such individual cases, additional documents can be provided by the
visa applicant or exceptionally requested by the consular officer.  The Joint
Committee will closely monitor the issue.
For the categories
of persons not mentioned in Article 4, the current rules shall continue to
apply regarding documentation proving the purpose of the journey.  The same
applies to documents regarding parents' consent for travel of children under 18
years old.
Schengen rules or
national law shall apply to issues not covered by the provisions of this
Agreement, such as recognition of travel documents, travel medical insurance
and guarantees regarding return and sufficient means of subsistence (cfr supra
I.1.2.).  
In line with the
"European Union Declaration “on documents to be submitted when applying
for short-stay visas" attached to the Agreement, "the European Union
will establish a harmonised list of supporting documents, in accordance with
Article 48(1)(a) of the Visa Code, in order to ensure that applicants from
Ukraine are required to submit, in principle, the same supporting
documents"; Member States' Consulates, acting in Local Schengen
Cooperation, are asked to ensure that Ukrainian visa applicants are given
coherent and uniform basic information and are required to submit, in
principle, the same supporting documents irrespectively of the Consulate of the
Member State where they apply. 
In principle, the
original request or certificate of the document required by Article 4(1) shall
be submitted with the visa application. However, the consulate can start
processing the visa application with facsimile or copies of the request or
certificate of the document.  Nevertheless, the consulate may ask for the
original document in case of the first application and shall ask for it in
individual cases where there are doubts.
As the below lists
of authorities sometimes also contain the name of the person who can sign the
relevant requests/certificates, the Ukrainian authorities should inform the
Local Schengen Cooperation when these persons are replaced. 
Article 4-
Supporting documents regarding the purpose of the journey
"1.        For
the following categories of citizens of Ukraine, the following documents are
sufficient for justifying the purpose of the journey to the other Party:
(a)        for
members of official delegations who, following an official invitation addressed
to Ukraine, shall participate in meetings, consultations, negotiations or exchange
programmes, as well as in events held in the territory of one of the Member
States by intergovernmental organisations:
–          a letter
issued by an Ukrainian authority confirming that the applicant is a member of
its delegation travelling to the other Party to participate at the
aforementioned events, accompanied by a copy of the official invitation;"
The applicant’s name
must be indicated in the letter issued by the competent authority confirming
that the person is part of the delegation travelling to the territory of the
other Party to participate in the official meeting.  The name of the applicant
must not necessarily also be indicated in the official invitation to
participate in the meeting, although this might be the case when the official
invitation is addressed to a specific person.
This provision
applies to members of official delegations whatever the passport (non-biometric
service or ordinary passport) they hold.
"(b)      for
business people and representatives of business organisations:
–          a written
request from a host legal person or company, or an office or a branch of such
legal person or company, state and local authorities of the Member States or
organising committees of trade and industrial exhibitions, conferences and
symposia held in the territories of the Member States;"
"(c)      for
drivers conducting international cargo and passenger transportation services to
the territories of the Member States in vehicles registered in Ukraine:
–          a written
request from the national association of carriers of Ukraine providing for
international road transportation, stating the purpose, duration,
destination(s) and frequency of the trips;"
The competent
authorities that provide for the international road transportation and are
responsible for stating the purpose, duration, destination(s) and frequency of
the trips of the drivers conducting international cargo and passenger
transportation services to the territories of the EU Member States in vehicles
registered in Ukraine, are:
Association of International Road Carriers of Ukraine
(AsMAP/"АсМАП")
The mailing address
of the AsMAP is:
11, Shorsa str.
Kyiv, 03150, Ukraine
Officials entitled
to sign the requests are:
Kostiuchenko Leonid
– President of the AsMAP of Ukraine;
Dokil’ Leonid –
Vice-President of the AsMAP of Ukraine;
Kuchynskiy Yurii –
Vice-President of the AsMAP of Ukraine.
State Enterprise "Service on International Road Carriages (SE "SIRC")
The mailing address
of the SE "SIRC" is:
57, av. Nauka
Kyiv, 03083,
Ukraine
Tel. +38 044 524 21
01
Fax +38 044 524 00
70
Officials entitled
to sign the requests are:
Tkachenko Anatolij –
Director of the SE "SIRC";
Neronov Oleksandr –
First Deputy Director of the SE "SIRC".
Ukrainian Road Transport and Logistics Union
The mailing address
of the Ukrainian Road Transport and Logistics Union is:
28, Predslavinska str.
Kyiv, 03150, Ukraine
Tel./fax +38 044 528 71
30 / +38 044 528 71 46 / +38 044 529 44 40
Official entitled to
sign the requests is:
Lypovskiy Vitalij –
President of the Union
All-Ukrainian
Association of Automobile Carriers
(AAAC)(Всеукраїнська
асоціація
автомобільних
перевізників)
The mailing address
of the AAAC is:
139, Velyka
Vasylkivska str.
Kyiv, 03150, Ukraine
Tel./ fax:
+38044-538-75-05, +38044-529-25-21
Officials entitled
to sign the requests are: 
Reva Vitalii
(Віталій
Рева) - President of the AAAC 
Glavatskyi Petro
(Петро
Главатський)
- Vice President of the AAAC
e-mail:
vaap@i.com.ua4. All-Ukrainian Association of Automobile Carriers (AAAC)
(Всеукраїнська
асоціація автомобільних
перевізників)
The mailing address
of the AAAC is:
3, Rayisy Okipnoyi
str.
Kyiv, 02002, Ukraine
Tel./ fax:
+38044-517-44-31, +38044-516-47-26
Officials entitled
to sign the requests are: 
Vakulenko Volodymyr
(Вакуленко
Володимир
Михайлович) - Vice
President of the AAAC
5. Ukrainian State
Enterprise “Ukrinteravtoservice”
(Українське
державне
підприємство
по
обслуговуванню
іноземних та
вітчизняних
автотранспортних
засобів
«Укрінтеравтосервіс»)

The mailing address
of the Ukrainian State Enterprise “Ukrinteravtoservice” is:
57, av. Nauky
Kyiv, 03083, Ukraine
Officials entitled
to sign the requests are: 
Dobrohod Serhii
(Доброход
Сергій
Олександрович)
– Director General of the Ukrainian State Enterprise “Ukrinteravtservice”
(phone: +38 044 524-09-99; cell. +38 050 463-89-32);
Kubalska Svitlana
(Кубальська
Світлана
Сергіївна) – Deputy
Director General of the Ukrainian State Enterprise “Ukrinteravtoservice”
(phone: +38 044 524-09-99; cell. +38 050 550-82-62);
Taking into account
the current problems with this category of visa applicants the Joint Committee
shall closely monitor the implementation of this provision.
"(d)      for
members of train, refrigerator and locomotive crews in international trains,
travelling to the territories of the Member States:
–          a written
request from the competent railway company of Ukraine stating the purpose,
duration and frequency of the trips;"
The competent
authority in the field of the rail transportation of Ukraine is the State
Administration of Railway Transport of Ukraine
("Ukrzaliznytsia"/"Укрзалізниця").
The mailing address
of "Ukrzaliznytsia" is:
5-7 Tverskaya str.
Kyiv, 03680, Ukraine
According to the
responsibility allocation in the leadership of "Ukrzaliznytsia", the
officials in charge responsible for providing the information concerning the
purpose, duration and frequency of the trips of the members of train,
refrigerator and locomotive crews in international trains traveling to the
territories of the EU Member States are:
Bolobolin Serhii
(Болоболін
Сергій
Петрович) – First
Director-General of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044 465 00 10);
Serhiyenko Mykola
(Сергієнко
Микола
Іванович) – First Deputy
Director-General of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044 465 00 01);
Zhurakivskyy Vitaliy
(Жураківський
Віталій
Олександрович)
– First Deputy Director-General of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044 465 00 41);
Slipchenko Oleksiy
(Сліпченко
Олексій
Леонтійович)
– Deputy Director-General of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044 465 00 14);
Naumenko Petro
(Науменко
Петро
Петрович) –Deputy
Director-General of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044 465 00 12);
Chekalov Pavlo
(Чекалов
Павло
Леонтійович)
- Deputy Director-General of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044 465 00 13);
Matviiv Igor – Head
of the Department of International Relations of Ukrzaliznytsia (phone: +38 044
465 04 25).
"(e)      for
journalists and the technical crew accompanying them in a professional
capacity:
–          a 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;"
This category does
not cover free-lance journalists.
The certificate or
document proving that the applicant is a professional journalist and the
original document issued by his/her employer stating that the purpose of the
journey is to carry out a journalistic work or proving that the person is a
member of the technical crew accompanying the journalist in a professional
capacity must be presented.
The competent
Ukrainian professional organisation proving that the person concerned is a
qualified journalist is:
1. National Union of
Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU)
("Національна
спілка
журналістів
України",
НСЖУ).
NUJU issues to the
qualified mass-media employees the national professional journalist’s cards and
international press-cards of the standard pattern set by the International
Federation of Journalists.
The mailing address
of the NUJU is:
27-a Khreschatyk
str.
Kyiv, 01001, Ukraine
The authorized
person of the NUJU is:
Nalyvaiko Oleg
Igorovych (Наливайко
Олег
Ігорович) – Head of the NUJU
Phone/Fax: +38044-234-20-96;
+38044-234-49-60; +38044-234-52-09
e-mail:
spilka@nsju.org; admin@nsju.org.  
2. Independent Media
Union of Ukraine (IMUU) Незалежна медіа-профспілка України.
The mailing address
is:
Office 25,
27 – A, Khreshchatyk
Str.,
Kyiv, 01001, Ukraine
The authorized
persons are:
Lukanov Yurii
(Луканов Юрій
Вадимович)– Head of the
IMUU
Vynnychuk Oksana
(Оксана
Винничук) – Executive Secretary
of the IMUU
Phone + 38 050 356 57
58
e-mail:
secretar@profspilka.org.ua
"(f)       for
persons participating in scientific, cultural and artistic activities,
including university and other exchange programmes:
–          a written
request from the host organisation to participate in those activities;"
"(g)      for
pupils, students, post-graduate students and accompanying teachers who undertake
trips for the purposes of study or educational training, including in the
framework of exchange programmes as well as other school related activities:
–          a written
request or a certificate of enrolment from the host university, college or
school or student cards or certificates of the courses to be attended;"
A student card can
only be accepted as justification of the purpose of the journey when it is
issued by the host university, college or school where the studies or
educational training is going to take place.
"(h)      for
participants in international sports events and persons accompanying them in a
professional capacity:
–          a written
request from the host organisation: competent authorities, national sport
Federations and National Olympic Committees of the Member States;"
The list of
accompanying persons in case of international sports events will be limited to
those accompanying the sportsman/woman in a professional capacity: coaches,
masseurs, manager, medical staff and head of the sports club.  Supporters shall
not be considered as accompanying persons.
"(i)       for
participants in official exchange programmes organised by twin cities and other
municipal entities:
a written request of
the Head of Administration/Mayor of these cities or other municipal
entities;"
The Head of
Administration/Mayor of the city or other municipal entity competent to issue
the written request is the Head of Administration/Mayor of the host city or the
municipality where the twinning activity is going to take place.  This category
only covers official twinnings.
"(j)       for
close relatives – spouse, children (including adopted), parents (including
custodians), grandparents and grandchildren – visiting citizens of Ukraine
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;"
This paragraph
regulates the situation of Ukrainian close relatives travelling to the Member
States to visit Ukrainian citizens legally residing in the Member States or
citizens of the European Union residing in the territory of the Member State of
which they are nationals.  
The authenticity of
the signature of the inviting person must be proved by the competent authority
according to the national legislation of the country of residence.
It is also necessary
to prove the legal residence of the inviting person and the family tie; for
example providing together with the written request from the host person, copies
of documents explaining his/her status, such as a photocopy of the residence
permit and confirming the family ties.
This provision also
applies to relatives of staff working in diplomatic missions and consulates
travelling for a family visit of up to 90 days to the territory of the Member
States except for the need to proof legal residence and family ties.
In line with the
European Union Declaration on facilitations for family members, attached to the
Agreement, "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 Ukraine 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."
"(k)      relatives
visiting for burial ceremonies:
–          an
official document confirming the fact of death as well as confirmation of the
family or other relationship between the applicant and the buried;"
The Agreement does
not specify which country's authorities should issue the above mentioned
official document: the country where the burial ceremony will take place or the
country where resides the person who wants to visit the burial ceremony.  It
should be accepted that the competent authorities of both countries could issue
such official document.
The above mentioned
official document confirming the fact of death as well as the family or other
relationship between the applicant and the deceased must be presented; e.g.
birth and/or marriage certificates.
"(l)       for
visiting military and civil burial grounds:
–          an
official document confirming the existence and preservation of the grave as
well as family or other relationship between the applicant and the
buried;"
The Agreement does
not specify whether the above mentioned official document should be issued by
the authorities: of the country where the burial ground is located or those of
the country in which the person who wants to visit the burial ground resides. 
It should be accepted that the competent authorities of both countries could
issue such official document.
The above mentioned
official document confirming the existence and preservation of the grave as
well as of the family or other relationship between the applicant and the
buried must be presented.
In accordance with
the Declaration annexed to the Agreement, as a rule, short-stay visas for
persons visiting military and civil burial grounds shall be issued for a period
of up to 14 days.
"(m)     for
visiting for medical reasons and necessary accompanying persons:
–          an
official document of the medical institution confirming necessity of medical care
in this institution, the necessity of being accompanied and proof of sufficient
financial means to pay the medical treatment."
The document of the
medical institution confirming the necessity of medical care in this
institution and the proof of sufficient financial means to pay for the medical
treatment, shall be submitted, should also confirm that it is necessary to be
accompanied.
"(n) for
representatives of civil society organisations when undertaking trips for the
purposes of educational training, seminars, conferences, including in the
framework of exchange programmes:
— a written request
issued by the host organisation, a confirmation that the person is representing
the civil society organisation and the certificate on establishment of such
organisation from the relevant Register issued by a state authority in
accordance with the national legislation;"
The document proving
registration in Ukraine of a civil society organization is a letter issued by
the State Registration Service of Ukraine with information from the Register of
Public Associations.
"(o) for
members of the professions participating in international exhibitions,
conferences, symposia, seminars or other similar events held in the territory
of the Member States:
— a written request
from the host organisation confirming that the person concerned is
participating in the event;
(p) for
representatives of the religious communities:
— a written request
from a religious community registered in Ukraine, stating the purpose, duration
and frequency of the trips;"
The document proving
registration in Ukraine of a religious community is an extract from the Unified
State Register of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs with information
that organizational and legal form of a legal entity is religious community.
"(q) 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."
Important: The
Agreement does not create any new liability rules for the physical or legal
persons issuing the written requests.  The respective EU/national law applies
in case of false issuance of such requests. 
2.2.2.   Issuance of
multiple-entry visas.
In cases where the
visa applicant needs to travel frequently or regularly to the territory of the
Member States, short-stay visas shall be issued for several visits, provided
that the total length if these visits does not exceed 90 days per period of 180
days. 
Article 5 of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"1.        Diplomatic
missions and consular posts of the Member States shall issue multiple-entry
visas with the term of validity of five years to the following categories of
persons:
(a)        members
of national and regional Governments and Parliaments, Constitutional Courts and
Supreme Courts, national and regional prosecutors and their deputies, if they
are not exempted from the visa requirement by the present Agreement, in the
exercise of their duties;
(b)        permanent
members of official delegations who, following official invitations addressed
to Ukraine, shall regularly participate in meetings, consultations,
negotiations or exchange programmes, as well as in events held in the territory
of the Member States by intergovernmental organisations;
(c)        spouses
and children (including adopted), who are under the age of 21 or are dependant,
and parents (including custodians) visiting citizens of Ukraine 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 subparagraph, 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 Ukraine 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,
- in the case of the
persons referred to in lit. e the work contract
 is less than five
years."
For these categories
of persons, taking into account their professional status or the family
relationship with a Ukrainian citizen legally residing in the territory of the
Member States or a citizen of the European Union residing in the territory of
the Member State of which they are nationals, it is justified to issue, as a
rule, a multiple-entry visa with a validity of five years. In the previous
Agreement the expression "with the term of validity of up to five years
" left discretion to Consulates in deciding on the period of validity of
the visa, setting up only the maximum length of validity. Under the amended
Agreement this discretion has  disappeared with the new wording "with the
term of validity of five years",  stipulating that, should the applicant
meet all the requirements of Article 5(1), the term of validity of the
multiple-entry visa shall be 5 years. 
For persons falling
under Article 5(1)(a), confirmation should be given regarding their
professional status and the duration of their mandate.
This provision will
not apply to persons falling under Article 5(1)(a) if they are exempted from
the visa requirement by the Agreement, i.e. if they are holders of a diplomatic
or biometric service passports. 
For persons falling
under Article 5(1)(b), proof must be presented regarding their permanent status
as a member of the delegation and the need to participate regularly in
meetings, consultations, negotiations or exchange programs.
For persons falling
under Article 5(1)(c), proof must be presented regarding the legal residence of
the inviting person (cfr. supra II.2.2.1).
For persons falling
under Article 5(1)(d) and (e), proof must be presented regarding their
professional status and the duration of their activities.
"2.        Diplomatic
missions and consular posts of the Member States shall issue multiple-entry
visas with the 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)        drivers
conducting international cargo and passenger transportation services to the
territories of the Member States in vehicles registered in Ukraine;
(b)        members
of train, refrigerator and locomotive crews in international trains, travelling
to the territories of the Member States;
(c)        persons
participating in scientific, cultural and artistic activities, including
university and other exchange programmes, who regularly travel to the Member
States;
(d)       participants
in international sports events and persons accompanying them in a professional
capacity;
(e)        participants
in official exchange programmes organised by twin cities and other municipal
entities.
(f)        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; 
(g)        for
participants in official EU cross-border cooperation programmes, such as under
the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI);
(h)        students
and post-graduate students who regularly travel for the purposes of study or
educational training, including in the framework of exchange programmes; 
(i)          for
representatives of the religious communities:
(j)         for
members of the professions participating in international exhibitions,
conferences, symposia, seminars or other similar events held in the territory
of the Member States;
(k)        persons
needing to visit regularly for medical reasons and necessary accompanying
persons.
By way of derogation
from the first subparagraph, 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 the previous
Agreement the expression "with the term of validity of up to one year
" left discretion to Consulates in deciding on the period of validity of
the visa, setting up only the maximum length of validity. Under the amended
Agreement this discretion has  disappeared with the new wording "with the
term of validity of one year",  stipulating that, should the applicant
meet all the requirements of Article 5(2), the term of validity of the
multiple-entry visa shall be one year. Multiple-entry visas valid for one year
shall be issued to the above mentioned categories if during the previous year
(12 months) the visa applicant has obtained at least one Schengen visa and has
made use of it in conformity with the laws on entry and stay of the State(s)
visited (for instance, the person has not overstayed) and if there are reasons
for requesting a multiple-entry visa. The Schengen visa obtained during the
previous year can be one that has been issued by another Schengen state than
the one where the applicant requested the new visa. In cases where it is not
justified to issue a visa valid for one year, (for instance, if the duration of
the exchange programme is of less than one year or the person does not need to
travel frequently or regularly for a full year) the validity of the visa will be
of less than one year, provided that the other requirements for issuing the
visa are met.
"3.        Diplomatic
missions and consular posts of the Member States shall issue multiple-entry
visas with the term of validity of a minimum of two years and a maximum of five
years to the categories of persons referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article,
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.
4.         The total
period of stay of persons referred to in paragraphs 1 to 3 of this Article
shall not exceed 90 days per period of 180 days in the territory of the Member
States."
Multiple-entry visas
valid from 2 years up to 5 years shall be issued to the categories mentioned
under Article 5(2), provided that during the previous two years they have made
use of the 1 year multi-entry Schengen visas in accordance with the laws on
entry and stay in the territory(ies) of the visited State(s) and that the need
to travel frequently or regularly is not manifestly limited to a shorter
period.  It has to be noted that a visa with a validity from 2 to 5 years,
shall only be issued if the visa applicant has been issued two visas valid for
one year -and not less- during the previous two years, and if (s)he has used
these visas in accordance with the laws of entry and stay in the territory(ies)
of the visited State(s). Diplomatic missions and consular posts shall decide,
on the basis of the assessment of each visa application, the period of validity
of these visas- i.e. from 2 to 5 years.
Regarding the
definition of the criteria in Article 5(2): "provided that…there are
reasons for requesting a multiple-entry visa", and Article 5(3):
"provided that…the reasons for requesting a multiple-entry visa are still
valid", the criteria set up in the Article 24(2)(a) of the Visa Code for
issuing these type of visas shall apply: i.e. that the person needs to travel
frequently to one or several Member States, for example on business.
There is no
obligation to issue a multiple-entry visa if the applicant did not make use of
a previous visa.  Nevertheless, such a visa can be issued if the non-use of the
previous visa is due to circumstances independent of the will of the applicant;
for instance, a long absence from his job of a lorry driver due to illness.
Cfr II.2.2.1.
regarding documents justifying the purpose of the journey for issuing
multiple-entry visas for the categories mentioned in Article 5.
2.2.3. Holders of
diplomatic and service passports.
Article 10 of the
Agreement stipulates that:
"1.        Citizens
of Ukraine, holders of valid diplomatic passports can enter, leave and transit
through the territories of the Member States without visas.
2.         Citizens
of Ukraine, holders of valid biometric service passports can enter, leave and
transit through the territories of the Member States without visas.
3.         Persons
mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article may stay in the territories of
the Member States for a period not exceeding 90 days per period of 180
days."
Existing bilateral
agreements or arrangements providing for the visa exemption for holders of
non-biometric service passports shall continue to apply, unless denounced or
suspended (cfr. supra 1.6).
The posting of
diplomats in the Member States is not regulated by the Agreement.  The usual
accreditation procedure applies.
III. STATISTICS
In order to allow
the Joint Committee set up by the Agreement to monitor effectively the
Agreement, diplomatic missions and consular posts of the Member States must
submit statistics to the Commission every six months, regarding in particular,
where possible, and specifying by month:
types of visas
issued to the different categories covered by the Agreement; 
the number of visa
refusals for the different categories covered by the Agreement;
percentages of
applicants called for a personal interviews per categories of persons;
five year
multiple-entry visas issued for Ukrainian nationals (by country).
-           percentages
of visas issued free of charge to the different categories covered by the
Agreement.