REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL FIFTH REPORT UNDER THE VISA SUSPENSION MECHANISM
Date: 2022-12-05
Institutions: Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs, European Commission
Subjects: EU visa policy, corruption, external border of the EU, illegal migration, judicial cooperation, money laundering, organised crime, return migration, right of asylum, terrorism, third country

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 5.12.2022  COM(2022) 715 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL FIFTH REPORT UNDER THE VISA SUSPENSION MECHANISM      {SWD(2022) 405 final}  
 
 
Table of contents 

Introduction ........................................................................................................................2 

I. 

Albania ......................................................................................................................3 

II.  Bosnia and Herzegovina ..........................................................................................8 

III.  Montenegro .............................................................................................................13 

IV.  North Macedonia ...................................................................................................18 

V. 

Serbia ......................................................................................................................22 

VI.  Georgia ....................................................................................................................27 

VII.  Moldova ..................................................................................................................32 

VIII.  Ukraine ....................................................................................................................37 

Conclusions .......................................................................................................................43 

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Introduction  

Visa  liberalisation  continues  to  be  a  powerful  tool  to  facilitate  people-to-people  contacts  and  to 
support  reforms  in  the  Western  Balkans  and  in  the  Eastern  Partnership  countries  in  the  areas  of 
justice, security and fundamental freedoms. 

Article 8(4) of the Visa Regulation1 requires the Commission to ensure an appropriate monitoring of 
the  continuous  fulfilment  of  the  visa  exemption  requirements  by  those  countries  whose  nationals 
obtained  visa-free  access  to  the  EU  following  the  successful  completion  of  a  visa  liberalisation 
dialogue.  To  this  end,  since  2017  the  Commission  has  adopted  four  reports  under  the  Visa 
Suspension Mechanism2, covering the visa-free countries in  the Western Balkans (Albania,  Bosnia 
and  Herzegovina,  Montenegro,  North  Macedonia  and  Serbia)  and  in  the  Eastern  Partnership 
(Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine). 

For the visa-free partners in the Western Balkans and Moldova, whose nationals have not needed a 
visa  to  travel  (visa-exempt)  for  more  than  7  years,  this  report  focuses  on  the  follow-up  to  the 
recommendations in the previous Commission reports and no longer provides the full details on the 
continuous  fulfilment  of  the  visa  liberalisation  benchmarks.  Aspects  related  to  the  benchmarks  for 
the visa-free Western Balkan countries  continue to  be assessed  as  part of  the enlargement process, 
under Chapter 23, Judiciary and Fundamental Rights, and Chapter 24, Justice and Home Affairs, and 
are  reported  in  the  Commission’s  annual  enlargement  package3.  For  Georgia  and  Ukraine,  which 
have had visa-free travel for less than 7 years, the report also assesses the continuous fulfilment of 
the visa liberalisation benchmarks. 

This  fifth  report  assesses  action  taken  in  2021  (in  migration,  asylum,  readmission,  judicial 
cooperation,  public  order,  and  security),  with  updates  for  2022,  where  deemed  relevant  to  have  a 
significant  impact  on the recommendations.  It  also reports on operational  cooperation with  the EU 
and with Member States4, and it includes an overview of migration trends5 reflecting Eurostat data 
for the 2021 statistical year, including changes compared with 2020. 

The  report  draws  on  contributions  from  all  the  countries  covered,  the  European  External  Action 
Service,  the  relevant  EU  justice  and  home  affairs  agencies6  and  Member  States.  It  is  also 

1  Regulation  (EU)  2018/1806  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  14 November  2018  listing  the  third 
countries  whose  nationals  must  be  in  possession  of  visas  when  crossing  the  external  borders  and  those  whose 
nationals are exempt from that requirement, OJ L 303, 28.11.2018, p. 39. 

2  COM(2017)  815  final  (first  report);  COM(2018)  856  final  (second  report);  COM(2020)  325  final  (third  report); 

COM(2021) 602 final (fourth report). 

3   The 2022 package was adopted on 12 October 2022. 
4  For this report,  the term  ‘Member States’ refers to Member States applying  Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 (‘the  Visa 

Regulation’), i.e. all current Member States (except Ireland) and Schengen Associated Countries. 

5  While the visa liberalisation benchmarks relating to migration are limited to managing migration policies of the third 
countries concerned, the section on migration trends reflects irregular migration to Member States, refusals of entry 
issued by Member States, and applications for international protection lodged in Member States by nationals of the 
countries covered in the report. 

6  The  European  Union  Agency  for  Asylum  (EUAA),  the  European  Border  and  Coast  Guard  Agency  (Frontex),  the 
European  Union  Agency  for  Criminal  Justice  Cooperation  (Eurojust),  and  the  European  Union  Agency  for  Law 
Enforcement Cooperation (Europol). The contribution of Europol is based on input provided by Member States and 
partner countries to Europol’s 2021  publication European Union serious and organised crime threat assessment,  A 
corrupting  influence:  the  infiltration  and  undermining  of  Europe’s  economy  and  society  by  organised  crime, 
Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. 

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accompanied  by  a  Commission  staff  working  document,  which  provides  additional  information  on 
action taken by the partner countries in cooperation with the EU and bilaterally with Member States. 

I.  Albania 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1. Action taken in the area of migration, asylum and cooperation in readmission 

In 2021, Albania continued to take action on border and migration management and asylum. Member 
States report good cooperation in general with Albania on migration and border management, as well 
as  on  returns  and  compliance  under  the  terms  of  the  EU  Readmission  Agreement.  This  good 
cooperation was also stated at the Joint Readmission Committee held in February 2022. 

In  2021,  Albania  cooperated  with  the  following  Member  States  on  migration  and  border 
management:  Belgium,  Germany,  France,  Croatia,  and  the  Netherlands.  Albania  maintains  close 
cooperation with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and, in 2021, was the first country to 
participate in a Frontex-led return operation. A Frontex Liaison Officer is present in the country. A 
roadmap  for  cooperation  with  the  European  Union  Asylum  Agency7  continues  to  be  implemented 
until the end of 2022. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Continue cooperating with the Member States most affected by unfounded asylum applications 

by Albanian nationals. 

Albania has continued to take action to address the issue of unfounded asylum applications made by 
its  citizens  by  strengthening  its  cooperation  and  exchange  of  information  with  Member  States, 
especially  those  most  affected  by  this  issue.  This  included  cooperating  on  the  implementation  of 
awareness  campaigns  to  prevent  abuses  of  the  visa-free  regime  and  intensifying  return  operations 
with  Frontex  and  Member  States,  such  as  France,  Germany,  Belgium  and  Italy.  Additionally, 
implementation  of  two  action  plans  is  ongoing  to  address  the  issue  of  unaccompanied  Albanian 
minors in Italy and Albanian asylum seekers in France. 

The  Albanian  State  Police  has  continued  to  implement  measures  to  strengthen  exit  controls  and 
checks on minors travelling abroad, and leaflets have been distributed to border crossing points for 
this purpose. 

b)  Step  up  participation  in  activities  of  the  European  Multidisciplinary  Platform  Against 
Criminal Threats’ (EMPACT) facilitation of illegal immigration operational action plan.  

In  2021,  Albania  participated  in  several  joint  action  day  activities  organised  by  the  EMPACT 
programme  that  focused  on  irregular  migration,  in  particular:  (i)  irregular  migration  at  border 
crossing  points;  (ii)  green  and  blue  borders;  (iii)  facilitation  of  irregular  migration,  trafficking  in 
human  beings  and  forgery  of  documents;  (iv)  using  INTERPOL  databases  to  identify  irregular 
migrants suspected of being foreign terrorist fighters and to combat trafficking in human beings for 

7 

European Asylum Support Office (EASO) at the time of signature. 

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the  purpose  of  sexual  exploitation,  begging  and  involvement  in  crime.  A  national  EMPACT 
coordinator was also appointed in April 2020. 

c)  Tailor information campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), 
and those making unfounded asylum claims.  

The Ministry of Interior of Albania worked closely with EU agencies such as Frontex and Europol, 
Member  States  and  their  national  development  agencies,  and  international  organisations  such  as 
IOM, UNHCR, and OSCE, on implementing awareness campaigns, promoting voluntary return, and 
supporting Albanian returnees in the reintegration process. 

d)  Ensure  further  aligning  Albania’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required  third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to 
the EU.  

Albania has taken no action to further align its visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required third 
countries8.  On  the  contrary,  in  2021  and  early  2022,  Albania  moved  further  away  from  the 
recommended alignment.  

Before 2021, Albania already had visa-free arrangements with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, 
Guyana, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, and Turkey, and  it  lifted visa requirements seasonally (from May to 
September) for nationals of Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand. Nationals of 
all these countries must  hold a valid visa to enter the EU. Seasonal lifting of visa requirements is not 
in line with EU visa policy. In 2021, Albania added Egypt and India to the list of countries benefiting 
from  seasonal  visa-free  travel.  On  2  December  2022,  Albania  informed  the  Commission  that  the 
seasonal  visa  exemption  for  Egyptian  nationals  travelling  for  touristic  purposes  expired  on  30 
September, and will not be renewed to ensure alignment with the EU visa policy. The country also 
took the decision to grant a permanent visa exemption to foreign citizens who have a valid permit of 
stay  in  the  United  Arab  Emirates.  While  this  decision  has  been  amended  to  impose  restrictive 
conditions (e.g. a residence permit must be for 10 years), the exemption has not been revoked. Such 
an  extension  is  not  in  line  with  EU  visa  policy  and  has  been  subject  to  abuse  as  some  foreign 
nationals  with  a  UAE  residence  permit  did  not  return  to  the  UAE  and  instead  absconded  with  the 
likely intention of entering the EU.  Furthermore, in April 2022, the seasonal visa-free travel period 
for Bahrain, India, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Thailand was extended until the end of the year. 
On 2 December 2022, Albania informed the Commission that the seasonal visa-exemption for Indian 
nationals travelling for touristic purposes, which expires on 31 December, will not be renewed. 

Any  further  deviation  from  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required  countries  should  be  avoided.  Albania 
should  ensure  progress  in  aligning  its  policy  with  the  EU’s  list,  in  particular  with  regard  to  those 
third  countries  presenting  irregular  migration  or  security  risks.  This  will  be  an  important  theme  of 
continued dialogue between the EU and Albania.  In the context of the visa suspension mechanism 
and in accordance with Article 8 of the Visa Regulation, the Commission will continuously monitor 
and assess the action of Albania towards EU visa alignment. 

8   Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806. 

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1.2. Monitoring trends in irregular migration, applications for international protection, returns 

and readmission 

The number of applications for international protection (or asylum applications)9 lodged in Member 
States  by  Albanian  nationals  increased  by  63%  between  2020  and  2021,  with  11 300  applications 
lodged in 2021. The recognition rate10 rose from 5% in 2020 to 9% in 2021. 
In  2021,  Member  States  reported  1 160  irregular  border  crossings,  19%  less  than  in  2020  (1 429), 
while the number of Albanian nationals found to be irregularly staying in Member States increased 
by 21% compared  with  2020  (from 30 870 in  2020 to  37 305 in  2021).  The number of refusals  of 
entry for Albanian nationals in Member States rose by 39% in 2021 (from 13 315 in 2020 to 18 565 
in 2021). 

The  number  of  return  decisions  issued  in  2020  (23 150)  fell  slightly  (by  5%)  in  2021  (22 025).  In 
2021, 9 415 returns of Albanian nationals were reported, compared with 10 190 in 2020 (a decrease 
of 8%). 

2. 

Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

In  2021,  efforts  continued  on  judicial  cooperation,  public  order  and  security.  In  general,  Member 
States report good cooperation with Albania in the field of security. Albania continued cooperating 
with  Europol,  Eurojust  and  Member  States,  including  Czechia,  Germany,  France,  the  Netherlands 
and Sweden. Following the entry into force of the Cooperation Agreement with Eurojust in 2019, an 
Albanian Liaison Prosecutor at Eurojust took up duty in January 2021, and the Office of the Liaison 
Prosecutor  for  Albania  at  Eurojust  was  inaugurated  in  October.  In  2021,  Albania  signed  five  new 
joint investigation teams’ agreements in cases supported by Eurojust. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Further  progress  towards  establishing  a  solid  track  record  of  corruption  cases  and  seizure, 

confiscation and recovery of criminal assets resulting from corruption offences. 

Albania has made progress in fighting organised crime and corruption as well as in combating illicit 
trafficking.  In  2021,  Albania  reported  an  increase  (18%)  in  the  number  of  police  operations 
compared with 2020. Additionally, in 2021, there was an increase in the number of criminal groups 
dismantled and criminal assets seized, whose value more than doubled compared with 2020. Seizures 
of narcotics also increased overall in 2021 compared with 2020. 

Efforts  continued  on  improving  the  track  record  of  investigations,  prosecutions  and  convictions  in 
fighting corruption. However, more political will and more structured and consistent effort, including 
on  adequate  resources,  tools  and  skills,  remain  necessary.  The  number  of  corruption  cases  sent  to 
court  was  440  in  2021,  including  31  by  the  Special  Prosecution  Office.  Final  convictions  of 
individuals charged with corruption offences amounted to 235 in first instance and 99 in appeal and 
final court level. The overall number of cases referred to the prosecution in 2021 was 3 351. 

9   For a definition, see https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/pages/glossary/application-international-protection_en  
10  For this report, the recognition rate is calculated as the share of positive decisions at first instance (including Geneva 
protection,  subsidiary  protection,  and  humanitarian  status)  in  the  total  number  of  decisions  at  first  instance.  For  a 
definition, 
https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/pages/glossary/recognition-rate-procedures-international-
protection_en  

see 

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Albania continued its efforts to build a track record of fighting organised crime. In 2021, there were 
41  new  cases  referred  to  prosecution  (compared  with  22  in  2020),  14  indictments  for  a  structured 
criminal group (compared with 15 in 2020), and 19 cases were closed with 75 individuals with final 
convictions at appeal level (compared with 13 in 2020). 

In the fight against illicit trafficking, there was an increase in the number of police operations carried 
out.  Albania  also  carried  out  seven  operations  with  international  partners,  including  under  the 
EMPACT joint action days. 

In  the  fight  against  money  laundering,  Albania  has  reported  on  cases  of  referrals,  investigations, 
prosecution,  seizure  and  confiscation  of  assets,  social  media  monitoring  of  citizens  returning  from 
countries  in  conflict,  and  progress  of  the  Central  Investigation  Directorate,  under  the  Financial 
Action Task Force action plan. However, Albania did not finish implementing this action plan by the 
February 2022 deadline. 

Amendments to the law on anti-money laundering aimed at aligning with the EU’s fourth and fifth 
anti-money  laundering  directives  were  adopted  in  Parliament  in  December  2021.  Additionally,  in 
2021, Albania adopted a law on the central register of bank accounts as part of its action to prevent 
money  laundering  and  financing  terrorism.  Moreover,  a  law  setting  up  a  beneficial  ownership 
register was adopted in 2020.Work to populate the register started in February 2021 with information 
on obliged entities, and is now largely populated. 

b)  Continue  developing  the  systematic  use  of  parallel  financial  investigations  and  increasing 
participation  in  coordinated  or  joint  investigations  and  prosecutions  with  countries  in  the 
region and Member States.  

Albania  has  continued  to  cooperate  with  countries  in  the  region  and  Member  States.  This  has 
happened mainly  with the exchange of police and judicial information  when investigating criminal 
offences  related  to  narcotics,  illicit  trafficking,  money  laundering,  economic  and  financial  crime, 
cybercrime  and  serious  crime.  Information  was  exchanged  mostly  through  INTERPOL,  Europol, 
Eurojust  and  the  CARIN  Network.  Compared  with  2020,  Albania  reported  an  increase  in  police 
operations,  criminal  proceedings  and  joint  investigation  teams  in  cooperation  with  international 
partners fighting organised crime. 

In 2021, there were 8 joint investigation teams involving Albanian partners (4 in 2020), resulting in 
30  joint  operational  meetings.  Albania  has  a  police  liaison  officer  in  Europol  and  is  planning  to 
deploy  a  second  one.  The  country  continued  to  participate  actively  in  EMPACT  joint  action  days 
promoting  cooperation  to  tackle  firearms  trafficking,  smuggling  migrants,  drugs  trafficking,  motor 
vehicle  crime,  trafficking  in  human  beings,  and  document  fraud.  In  2021,  the  Albanian  Liaison 
Office to  Eurojust registered 21 cases at the request  of the Albanian  authorities, 16 of which have 
been  completed.  At  the  request  of  Member  State  competent  authorities,  30  new  cases  have  been 
opened  with  the  Albanian  Liaison  Office.  Five  new  agreements  for  setting  up  joint  investigation 
teams  were  concluded.  Amendments  to  the  law  on  judicial  cooperation  in  criminal  matters  with 
foreign jurisdictions, adopted in July 2021, have proved useful  in helping set up joint investigation 
teams,  but  further  efforts  will  be  needed  to  align  national  legislation  with  the  EU  acquis.  The 
government  put  forward  for  public  consultation  a  draft  law  on  fiscal  and  criminal  amnesty  of 
subjects  that make the voluntary declaration of assets. This  matter is  covered in  the Commission’s 
Albania Report 2022. 

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Criminal proceedings and parallel financial investigations were conducted by the Special Prosecution 
Office  for  Corruption  and  Organised  Crime  in  several  high-profile  cases  involving  politicians, 
members of Albanian institutions, the judiciary, local authorities and the business sector. 

c)  Continue  progress  in  implementing  the  Joint  Action  Plan  on  Counter-Terrorism  for  the 

Western Balkans. 

In  the  fight  against  terrorism,  Albania  continued  to  make  good  progress  in  implementing  the  five 
objectives set out in the 2018 joint action plan in the fight against terrorism for the Western Balkans 
and the measures included in the bilateral arrangement signed with the Commission in 2019. As of 
June 2021, all terrorism and financing-related offences were brought under the responsibility of the 
Special  Prosecution  Office  for  Corruption  and  Organised  Crime.  International  cooperation  and 
exchange of information on returnees remains satisfactory. 

There is also good cooperation with the Financial Intelligence Unit in implementing the action plan 
measures in line with the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force and the Committee of 
Experts  on  the  Evaluation  of  Anti-Money  Laundering  Measures  and  the  Financing  of  Terrorism 
(Moneyval). 

The  Financing  of  Terrorism  Investigation  Unit  attended  six  training  courses  in  2021  organised  by 
OCSE, UNODC, and CEPOL, among others. 

d)  Refrain  from  adopting  an  investor  citizenship  scheme  on  the  basis  of  the  new  Law  on 

Citizenship.  

In  spite  of  the  Commission’s  concerns  expressed  in  201911,  since  July  2020,  Albania  has  had 
legislation in place allowing to set up a ‘citizenship by investment scheme (‘golden passports’). The 
Agency  of  Special  Citizenship  Programs  has  established  a  joint  working  group  to  conduct  a 
feasibility  study  for  its  future  implementation.  In  2022,  the  Government  adopted  a  decision  which 
introduces a legal basis for the Ministry of Interior to launch a Public Private Partnership procedure 
for the implementation of the citizenship programs. 

Setting  up  an  investor  citizenship  scheme  would  be  contrary  to  the  recommendations  made  in  the 
Fourth  Report  under  the  Visa  Suspension  Mechanism  and  the  2021  enlargement  package12.  An 
investor citizenship scheme may be used to bypass the EU short-stay visa procedure and the in-depth 
assessment  of  individual  migratory  and  security  risks  this  procedure  entails,  including  a  possible 
evasion of measures to prevent money laundering and financing of terrorism. This is of great concern 
for the EU in the context of its visa-free agreement with Albania13. The Commission takes the view 

11  Ahead of  the  Albanian Parliament’s examination of the draft  Law on  Citizenship, the  Third Report under the Visa 
Suspension  Mechanism  recalled  that  in  October  2019  the  Commission  had  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Albanian 
government asking for clarification in this regard and alerting it about the inherent risks and possible consequences of 
introducing such a scheme. 

12  SWD(2021) 289 final. 
13  These risks were also highlighted in the Commission Recommendation of 28 March 2022 on immediate steps in the 
context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in relation to investor citizenship schemes and investor residence schemes 
(C(2022) 2028). In addition, in a resolution of 9 March 2022, the European Parliament proposed that ending investor 
citizenship schemes be included in EU membership criteria (2021/2026(INL)). 

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that, if such schemes  are  deemed to  constitute an increased risk to  the internal  security and public 
policy of the Member States, the visa-free regime may be suspended14. 

3. Recommendations for Albania 

Albania has taken action to address most of the Commission’s previous recommendations. However, 
the  country  has  also  taken  measures  that  are  contrary  to  two  recommendations,  concerning  visa 
alignment and investor citizenship scheme. Therefore, further progress is needed, and the following 
issues need to be addressed. 

a)  Align,  as  a  matter  of  priority,  Albania’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required  third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the 
EU. 

b)  Refrain from implementing an investor citizenship scheme and repeal the legal basis for such a 

scheme by amending the Law on Citizenship. 

c)  Continue cooperating with the Member States most affected by unfounded asylum applications 
by  Albanian  nationals  and  implementing  information  campaigns  on  the  visa-free  regime, 
tailoring them to relevant migrant profiles, including vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond 
the  period  for  which  entry  was  granted  (overstays),  those  ordered  to  return,  and  those  making 
unfounded asylum claims. 

d)  Continue  strengthening  the  prevention  of  and  fight  against  corruption,  organised  crime,  illicit 
trafficking,  terrorism  and  money  laundering  by:  (i)  stepping  up  Albania’s  participation  in 
EMPACT;  (ii)  further  progressing  towards  building  a  solid  track  record  of  corruption  and 
organised  crime  cases,  as  well  as  the  seizure,  confiscation  and  recovery  of  criminal  assets 
resulting  from  such  offences;  (iii)  addressing  all  remaining  items  in  the  Financial  Action  Task 
Force action plan. 

e)  Make further progress in implementing the bilateral arrangement under the Joint Action Plan on 

Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. 

II.  Bosnia and Herzegovina 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1. Action taken in the area of migration, asylum and cooperation in readmission 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Improve  coordination,  at  all  levels,  of  border  management  and  migration  management 
capacity,  notably  by  ensuring  the  functioning  of  the  asylum  system  and  providing  adequate 
reception  capacity  for  migrants;  take  the  necessary  steps  to  sign  the  status  agreement  with 
Frontex. 

14   See, in this respect, Council Decision (EU) 2022/366 of 3 March 2022 on the partial suspension of the application of 
the  Agreement between  the European Union and the Republic of Vanuatu on the short-stay visa waiver (OJ L 69, 
4.3.2022, p. 105).  

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Bosnia and Herzegovina is implementing a 2019-2023 strategy and action plan on integrated border 
management.  A  strategy  and  action  plan  on  migration  and  asylum  for  2021-2025  is  pending 
adoption. 

Member  States  and  Frontex  report  good  cooperation  in  readmission  with  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina 
and  a  satisfactory  implementation  of  the  EU  Readmission  Agreement,  as  also  stated  at  the  Joint 
Readmission  Committee  in  December  2021.  Several  Member  States  (Austria,  Croatia,  France, 
Germany,  Italy  and  the  Netherlands)  reported  cooperation  in  border  and  migration  management  as 
they provided equipment to and training of the relevant authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 
country  is  also  implementing  the  2020-2023  strategy  for  reintegration  of  returnees,  despite  limited 
resources. 

Efforts  were  made  to  improve  coordination  through  the  strategy  mentioned  above,  the  2019-2023 
action plan for integrated border management, and regular meetings of a task force established under 
the Ministry of Security. However, concrete results were limited. The Ministry of Security continued 
to  step  up  efforts  to  improve  migration  management,  and  relations  with  local  authorities  generally 
improved. Bosnia and Herzegovina still needs to take full ownership of migration management and 
all reception centres. There should be fairer burden sharing among all entities and cantons, and full 
ownership of State authorities in migration management. Only limited public funding is available to 
manage  migration,  which  also  impacts  the  State’s  effectiveness  in  formulating  policy.  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina remains  an important  transit country in  the Western  Balkans  route for  irregular flows 
and migrant smuggling to the EU. 

As reported in the 2021 and 2022 enlargement packages, serious obstacles remain to ensure effective 
access  to  asylum  procedures.  Asylum  legislation  needs  to  be  better  implemented,  in  particular  to 
ensure  systematic  respect  of  procedural  guarantees  for  asylum  seekers.  The  access  to  asylum 
procedures should be strengthened to ensure faster and effective processing of claims. In December 
2020,  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  adopted  a  2020-2021  roadmap  for  cooperation  with  the  European 
Asylum Support Office (now the EU Agency for Asylum (EUAA)) on strengthening the asylum and 
reception  systems  in  line  with  the  Common  European  Asylum  System  and  EU  standards. 
Cooperation with EUAA should continue and intensify. Adopting and implementing the 2021-2025 
strategy  and  action  plan  on  migration  and  asylum  should  significantly  contribute  to  improving 
asylum policy. More needs to be done to ensure efficient access to asylum, efficient procedures and 
inter-agency cooperation and coordination. 

In 2021, the number of people irregularly entering Bosnia and Herzegovina (15 812) was comparable 
to 2020 and much lower than in 2018 and 201915. A reception centre was opened in Lipa, near Bihać 
(Una-Sana Canton), in November 2021, with a capacity to host 1 500 people. By end 2021, about a 
third  of  available  places  in  the  national  reception  system  were  occupied  (2 162  out  of  6 050). 
Accommodation capacity remained concentrated in the Una-Sana and Sarajevo Cantons, with no fair 
sharing among entities and cantons 

Bosnia and Herzegovina has not  yet signed the status agreement with the EU that would allow  the 
European Border and Coast Guard Agency to deploy its standing corps at the country’s border with 
the EU, to carry out operational activities together with the Border Police. 

15   Though official data for 2022 are not yet available, there are signals that in the first six months of 2022 there was an 

increase in numbers of people irregularly entering Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

9 

 
 
                                                           
b)  Ensure  further  aligning  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-
required  third  countries,  in  particular  those  third  countries  presenting  irregular  migration  or 
security risks to the EU. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina has not taken action in 2021 to further align the country’s visa policy with 
the  EU’s.  In  fact  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  maintains  visa-free  regimes  with  Azerbaijan, Bahrain, 
China, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Russia and Turkey. Nationals of all these countries must hold a valid 
visa to enter the EU. Any further deviation from the EU’s list of visa-required countries should be 
avoided. Bosnia and Herzegovina should ensure progress in aligning its policy with the EU’s list, in 
particular with regard to those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the 
EU.  This  will  be  an  important  theme  of  continued  dialogue  between  the  EU  and  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina.  In the context of the visa suspension mechanism and in accordance with Article 8 of 
the Visa Regulation, the Commission will continuously monitor and assess the action of Bosnia and 
Herzegovina towards EU visa alignment. 

1.2. Monitoring  trends  in  irregular  migration,  applications  for  international  protection, 

returns and readmission 

In  2021,  2 695  applications  for  international  protection  were  submitted  by  nationals  of  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina in Member States, 78% more than in 2020 (1 510). The recognition rate increased from 
4% in 2020 to 5% in 2021. 

In  2021,  Member  States  reported  17  irregular  border  crossings  by  nationals  of  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina at the EU’s external borders, an increase of 42% compared with 2020 (12). In 2021, the 
number of nationals from Bosnia and Herzegovina found to be irregularly staying in Member States 
rose  by  17%,  with  4 200  irregular  stays  in  2021  compared  with  3 595  in  2020.  The  number  of 
refusals of entry decreased by 39%, from 8 145 cases in 2020 to 4 995 in 2021. 

Both the number of return decisions issued to nationals of Bosnia and Herzegovina (2 740 in 2021 
against  2 710  in  2020,  a  decrease  of  1%)  and  the  number  of  people  returned  (900  in  2021  against 
1 010 in 2020, a drop of 11%) stayed relatively stable in 2021 compared with 2020. 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

As reported in the 2021 Enlargement Package, the lack of commitment towards justice reforms from 
political  actors  and  the  poor  functioning  of  the  judicial  system  continue  to  undermine  citizens’ 
enjoyment  of  rights  and  the  fight  against  corruption  and  organised  crime.  Corruption  indicators 
remain high and this issue affects the daily life of citizens and foreign investors. The track record on 
prevention  and  repression  of  corruption  (including  at  high-level)  remains  insignificant,  due  to 
operational inefficiency and political interference. The lack of an efficient system of declaration of 
assets by judges and prosecutors is a particular source of concern  

In  the  area  of  public  order  and  security,  conflicting  competences  and  lack  of  cooperation  affect 
negatively  the  efficiency  of  law  enforcement  agencies.  The  professionalism  and  accountability  of 
law  enforcement  agencies  need  to  be  improved.  No  progress  was  achieved  in  ensuring  transparent 
appointments and promotions based on merit, free of political interference.  

The legislation on drugs, trafficking in human beings and cybercrime needs significant improvement. 
Bosnia and Herzegovina needs to establish a firearms focal point and harmonise criminal codes with 
the UN  Firearms Protocol.  Legal  mechanisms  to  freeze, manage and confiscate criminal  assets are 

10 

 
 
not sufficiently effective. The country should step up the fight against transnational organised crime 
networks in collaboration with Europol and by increasing its participation in EMPACT activities.  

Anti-terrorism  legislation  is  largely  aligned  with  the  EU  acquis  and  relevant  international  law. 
However, the strategy and a framework action plan for the prevention of and fight against terrorism 
have both come to an end in 2020. A follow-up strategy for 2021 to 2026 is being drafted but not yet 
adopted.  

Member States report good cooperation overall with Bosnia and Herzegovina in the field of security. 
In 2021, Bosnia and Herzegovina engaged in joint activities with several Member States, including 
Czechia, Germany, Latvia, the Netherlands and Sweden. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Continue  progress  in  the  fight  against  corruption,  including  at  high  level,  by  adopting  and 
implementing  efficient  legislation  on  conflicts  of  interest,  public  procurement  and  whistle-
blowers’  protection,  and  ensuring  the  effective  functioning  and  coordination  of  anti-
corruption bodies.  

The  recommendation  was  not  implemented  in  202116.  Draft  laws  were  prepared  on  conflicts  of 
interest and public procurement, in line with international standards and European best practices, but 
none was adopted in 2021. A draft law on whistle-blowers’ protection, in line with the EU acquis, is 
yet to be developed.  

The  functioning  and  coordination  of  corruption  prevention  bodies  among  themselves  and  with  the 
Agency  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  and  Coordination  of  the  Fight  against  Corruption  (APIK) 
continued to be ineffective. The independence of corruption prevention bodies set up at the entities 
and  cantonal  level  needs  to  be  significantly  strengthened.  As  reported  in  the  2021  enlargement 
package,  the  anti-corruption  office  of  the  Sarajevo  Canton  continued  to  make  good  progress,  also 
mapping corruption risks  and monitoring public  procurement,  and remains  a good  example among 
cantonal  bodies.  In  May  2021  the  Tuzla  Canton  adopted  legislation  to  establish  an  anti-corruption 
office,  and  in  December  2021  a  Law  on  reporting  and  verification  of  asset  declarations  of  public 
officials,  following  the  model  of  the  Sarajevo  Canton.  Country-wide  coordination  continues  to  be 
lacking.  

b)  Strengthen  efforts  tackling  organised  crime,  particularly  by  ensuring  effective  cooperation 
among law enforcement bodies and with prosecutors’ offices as well as building a track record 
of proactive investigations, confirmed indictments, prosecutions and final convictions against 
organised crime.  

This  recommendation  was  not  implemented.  As  reported  in  the  2021  enlargement  package,  the 
limited cooperation of law enforcement agencies with the prosecutors’ offices and lack of effective 
checks  by  the  prosecutors  on  the  police  continued  to  seriously  hamper  the  effectiveness  of 
investigations.  Systemic  shortcomings  in  the  operational  cooperation  of  law  enforcement  agencies 
and a very limited exchange of intelligence are persistent challenges. In the few high-level corruption 

16 Amendments to the law on public procurement were finally adopted in August 2022. 

11 

 
 
                                                           
 
cases reported, selective judicial follow-up, legal mistakes, negligence, abuse of procedures, political 
pressure,  questionable  court  decisions  and  verbal  attacks  on  the  prosecution  continued  to  be 
observed. 

c)  Set up a Europol contact point and continue progress in implementing the Joint Action Plan 

on Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans  

This  recommendation  has  not  been  implemented.  As  reported  in  the  2021  enlargement  package, 
while  the  authorities  have  taken  some  preparatory  steps,  there  is  no  operational  cooperation  with 
Europol. The March 2017 agreement on operational and strategic cooperation with Europol has yet 
to  be  implemented  as  the  contact  point  for  Europol  has  not  been  fully  set  up.  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina authorities recently appointed the liaison officer to The Hague, but the official cannot 
be posted to Europol headquarters as long as the national contact point in Sarajevo is not operational. 
The  country’s  cooperation  with  Europol  remains  limited.  Exchange  of  information  is  still  taking 
place  through  a  unit  within  the  Directorate  for  Coordination  of  Police  Bodies  of  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina, whose mandate has expired and with which the Republika Srpska entity has suspended 
operational cooperation.  

In  September  2021,  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina’s  third  report  on  implementation  of  the  2019 
arrangement  to  the  2018  Joint  Action  Plan  on  Counter-Terrorism  for  the  Western  Balkans  only 
showed  limited  progress.  Policy  discussions  on  counterterrorism  between  the  EU  and  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina take place regularly. The capacity and effectiveness of the counterterrorism task force 
and  the  counterterrorism  section  of  the  state  prosecutor’s  office  needs  to  be  strengthened 
significantly. Bosnia and Herzegovina is working on adopting a national strategy on counterterrorism 
and  prevention  of  violent  extremism.  The  country  has  not  yet  adopted  new  anti-money-laundering 
and terrorism-financing legislation in line with international standards and EU acquis. 

3.  Recommendations for Bosnia and Herzegovina 

Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  needs  to  make  further  efforts  on  fighting  corruption  and  organised  crime 
and managing migration and asylum. In particular, the following issues need to be further addressed. 

a)  Align, as a matter of priority,  Bosnia and Herzegovina’s visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-
required  third  countries,  in  particular  those  third  countries  presenting  irregular  migration  or 
security risks to the EU. 

b)  Continue  efforts  to  ensure  effective  coordination  of  border  management  and  migration 
management, including the fair distribution of reception capacity among all entities and cantons, 
guarantee more efficient access  to  asylum procedures, and adopt  and implement  a strategy and 
action plan on migration. 

c)  Sign and ratify the EBCGA status agreement with the EU.  

d)  Make the joint national contact point with Europol operational. 

e)  Adopt  and  implement  the  national  strategy  for  preventing  and  combating  terrorism  and  violent 
extremism and continue implementing the bilateral arrangement under the Joint Action Plan on 
Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. 

f)   Demonstrate  progress  in  fighting  corruption  and  organised  crime,  including  at  high  level,  by: 
adopting  and  implementing  efficient  legislation  on  conflicts  of  interest,  implementing  the  new 

12 

 
 
law on public procurement, protecting whistle-blowers, and ensuring that anti-corruption bodies 
work effectively and coordinate with each other. 

g)  Establish  or  designate  an  asset  recovery  office  in  charge  of  the  identification  and  tracing  of 

criminal assets in order to enhance cooperation with Member States. 

h)  Adopt  an  updated  national  risk  assessment  and  legislation  on  anti-money  laundering  and 

countering terrorism financing in line with international standards and EU acquis. 

III.  Montenegro 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1. Action taken in the area of migration, asylum and cooperation in readmission 

In  2021,  Montenegro  continued  to  increase  its  capacity  in  border  management  and  asylum  and 
implement the relevant strategies. The strategy on migration and reintegration of returnees for 2021-
2025  was  adopted  in  September  2021.  In  June  2022,  Montenegro  joined  the  European  Migration 
Network, an EU network of migration and asylum experts, as a non-voting observer member. 

In December 2021, Montenegro signed a cooperation roadmap with the European Asylum Support 
Office  (now  the  EU  Agency  for  Asylum),  aimed  at  strengthening  Montenegro’s  asylum  system, 
including  the  status  determination  procedure,  reception  conditions,  and  developing  contingency 
planning. 

The  constructive  cooperation  with  Frontex  under  Montenegro’s  Status  Agreement  with  the  EU 
continued to yield results and strengthen the capacity of Montenegro’s border police. 

Member  States  also  reported  good  cooperation  with  Montenegro  in  migration  and  border 
management  (in  particular  Germany,  France,  Croatia,  and  the  Netherlands),  returns,  and 
implementation  of  the  EU  Readmission  Agreement,  as  also  expressed  at  the  Joint  Readmission 
Committee held in November 2021. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Tailor information campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), 
and those making unfounded asylum applications.  

In  2021,  Montenegro  did  not  consider  it  necessary  to  organise  information  campaigns  due  to  the 
continuing travel restrictions linked to the COVID-19.  

b)  Ensure  further  aligning  Montenegro’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required  third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to 
the EU.  

Montenegro has taken no action to align its visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required countries. 
On the contrary, in 2021 and early 2022, Montenegro moved further from the recommended policy. 

13 

 
 
 
Nationals  from  Armenia,  Kazakhstan,  Russia,  Azerbaijan,  Belarus,  Cuba,  Ecuador,  Turkey,  Qatar 
and  Kosovo  continue  to  be  exempt  from  short-stay  visa  requirements.  For  some  nationalities, 
exemptions are seasonal and, for others, they are valid all year. 

In March 2021, Montenegro extended the visa exemption to foreign citizens who have a valid permit 
to stay in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Such an extension is not in line with EU visa policy and 
has been subject to abuse as some foreign nationals with a UAE residence permit did not return to 
the UAE and instead absconded with the likely intention of entering the EU. 

On  26 May  2022,  Montenegro  adopted  a  decision  granting  a  temporary  visa  exemption  for  Saudi 
Arabian  citizens  from  1 June  to  30 September  2022,  which  aimed  to  mitigate  the  decrease  in  the 
number of tourists coming from Russia and Ukraine.  

Any further deviation from the EU’s list of visa-required countries should be avoided. Montenegro 
should  ensure  progress  in  aligning  its  policy  with  the  EU’s  list,  in  particular  with  regard  to  those 
third  countries  presenting  irregular  migration  or  security  risks.  This  will  be  an  important  theme  of 
continued  dialogue  between  the  EU  and  Montenegro.    In  the  context  of  the  visa  suspension 
mechanism  and  in  accordance  with  Article  8  of  the  Visa  Regulation,  the  Commission  will 
continuously monitor and assess the action of Montenegro towards EU visa alignment. 

1.2. Monitoring trends in irregular migration, applications for international protection, returns 

and readmission 

The  number  of  applications  for  international  protection  lodged  in  Member  States  by  Montenegrin 
nationals rose by 65% between 2020 and 2021, with 420 applications lodged in 2021 compared with 
255 in 2020. The recognition rate increased from 2% in 2020 to 5% in 2021. 

Member  States  reported  two  irregular  border  crossings  in  2021  by  Montenegrin  nationals  after  2 
years  with  no  irregular  border  crossings.  The  number  of  Montenegrin  nationals  found  to  be 
irregularly  staying  in  2021  increased  by  10%  (from  925  in  2020  to  1 020  in  2021).  In  2021,  the 
number of refusals of entry for nationals of Montenegro in Member States was 515, 6% more than in 
2020 (485). 

The number of return decisions issued to  the country’s nationals decreased by of 1% (490 in 2021 
against 495 in 2020), while the number of people returned dropped by 12% (260 in 2021 against 295 
in 2020). 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

In  2021,  Montenegro  continued  taking  action  against  organised  crime  (including  trafficking  in 
human beings) and terrorism. In December 2021, the government adopted the 2022-2025 strategy for 
the prevention and suppression of terrorism, money laundering and terrorism financing and the 2022-
2023 action plan. 

   This  designation  is  without  prejudice  to  positions  on  status,  and  is  in  line  with  UNSCR  1244/1999  and  the  ICJ 

Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence. 

14 

 
 
 
                                                           
Member  States  report  good  overall  cooperation  with  Montenegro  in  the  field  of  security.  In  2021, 
Montenegro continued to cooperate bilaterally with a number of Member States in the area of public 
order  and  security,  including  Germany  and  Sweden.  Montenegro  also  kept  up  its  cooperation  with 
Europol  and  Eurojust.  Furthermore,  the  Montenegrin  police  continued  to  share  information  with 
INTERPOL to identify active terrorist groups and contribute to fighting terrorist threats. 

Cooperation  with  the  European  Monitoring  Centre  for  Drugs  and  Drug  Addiction  (EMCDDA)  is 
lagging  behind.  Montenegro  should  take  steps  towards  renewing  technical  cooperation  with  the 
agency  to  improve  cooperation  on  drugs  information  and  launch  discussions  on  signing  a  working 
arrangement. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Consolidate the track record of final convictions and confiscation of assets.  

The existing judicial information system (PRIS) should be improved by implementing the 2021-2023 
judiciary  ICT  development  programme.  The  programme  aims  to  ensure  fully  digitalising  and 
producing complete records of all final court decisions and make it possible to generate accurate and 
reliable statistics. Full implementation of the system in all courts is expected by mid-2023. 

Montenegro  continues  to  develop  its  track  record  of  investigations,  prosecutions,  and  final 
convictions in high-level corruption cases, but this can be further improved. 

In 2021, the Special State Prosecutor’s Office opened investigations into criminal offences of high-
level  corruption  in  15  cases  against  70  individuals  and  19  legal  entities  (compared  with  8  cases 
against 35 individuals and 8 legal entities in 2020). 

Montenegro  needs  to  substantially  improve  its  legal  approach  to  and  track  record  of  financial 
investigations  and  confiscation  of  assets  for  criminal  offences  of  high-level  corruption.  In  2021, 
assets were temporarily frozen in three cases. There has been some initial progress in using extended 
confiscation  in  corruption  cases,  with  a  final  confiscation  in  one  case,  and  there  is  a  better 
understanding about the importance of launching parallel financial investigations. 

The need for a more deterrent and consistent sanctioning policy has yet to be addressed to improve 
the  criminal  justice  response  to  corruption  and  high-level  corruption.  The  use  of  plea  bargain 
agreements must be exercised with extreme care, for the right purposes, and observing all necessary 
safeguards. 

The track record of preventing corruption continued to improve. Both the Agency for Prevention of 
Corruption  and  its  council  were  proactive  in  their  work  and  increased  outreach  activities  with  the 
public, media, and civil society. 

Significant  progress  was  achieved  in  the  number  of  verified  asset  declarations  and  in  applying  in-
depth  verification  procedures  by  the  agency.  In  2021,  the  number  of  administrative  and 
misdemeanour proceedings initiated doubled compared with 2020. Despite the proactive approach of 
the  agency  in  investigating  and  sanctioning  breaches  of  the  law  preventing  corruption  in  assets 
declarations  and  threats  to  the  public  interest,  there  is  still  a  significant  backlog  from  the  previous 
years, particularly when it comes to high-profile cases. 

In  the  fight  against  organised  crime,  Montenegro  continued  to  make  criminal  investigations  more 
effective. The full use of special investigative measures was restored. Legislative changes introduced 

15 

 
 
safeguards  against  political  influence  in  the  appointment  or  dismissal  of  the  Police  Director.  A 
register  of  beneficial  ownership  was  also  created.  The  administrative  framework  for  firearms  was 
improved.  On  trafficking  in  human  beings,  more  cases  were  pending  at  courts  and  more  final 
convictions pronounced. 

Some  key  figures  of  organised  crime  groups  were  arrested,  and  another  record  number  of  drug 
seizures  took  place.  The  first  joint  investigation  team  was  launched,  and  the  number  of  final 
convictions in organised crime cases is on the rise. 

However, the country needs to improve its track record of court decisions on tobacco smuggling and 
money laundering, the use of financial investigations and the capacity to confiscate the proceeds of 
crime.  Montenegro  has  yet  to  address  some  horizontal  systemic  deficiencies  in  its  criminal  justice 
system,  including  the  way  organised  crime  cases  are  handled  in  courts.  This  will  require  a  more 
deterrent  sentencing  policy  and  revising  the  use  of  plea  bargains  in  organised  and  serious  crime 
cases. 

b)  Strengthen the capacity to prosecute and judge money-laundering cases.  

On anti-money laundering, Montenegro has yet to align its legislation with the fifth EU Anti-Money 
Laundering  Directive17  and  solve  some  implementation  issues  on  beneficial  ownership  and 
supervision. The law on games of chance has yet to be aligned with the EU acquis and international 
standards. The current law leaves substantial loopholes and increases the risk of money laundering 
and  terrorist  financing  in  this  high-risk  area  as  legal  safeguards  against  the  influence  of  organised 
crime in the ownership structure of games of chance are insufficient. 

A  register  of  beneficial  ownership  was  created  in  February  2022,  providing  the  authorities  with 
information  on  natural  persons  ultimately  owning  or  controlling  the  shares  of  companies  or 
organisations  registered  in  Montenegro.  The  Central  Bank  of  Montenegro  has  a  central  register  of 
resident accounts but  does not  have a register of non-resident accounts,  which is  a  crucial tool for 
investigations  involving  non-residents.  The  problem  of  an  incomplete  land  register  has  not  been 
addressed, and this hampers the efficiency of financial investigations and asset confiscations. 

The initial track record of investigations into money laundering continued to improve but the number 
of cases remains limited. In 2021, two court verdicts were brought against three individuals, all based 
on plea bargain agreements. 

c)  Achieve better results in response to organised crime, including by addressing the frequent use 

of plea bargains.  

In organised crime cases, the number of court judgments and convictions continued to rise in 2021, 
reflecting the constant increase in the number of investigations in the last 2 years. 

The Ministry of Justice received support from the Council of Europe Programme Office in Podgorica 
to  analyse  how  plea-bargaining  agreements  are  applied,  setting  out  recommendations  for  possible 
amendments needed to the law. This will be used by the working group, which the Ministry has set 
up, to prepare a proposal of amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code. 

17   Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on the prevention of the use 
of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, amending Regulation (EU) No 
648/2012  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council,  and  repealing  Directive  2005/60/EC  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directive 2006/70/EC, OJ L 141, 5.6.2015, p. 73–117. 

16 

 
 
                                                           
d)  Continue making progress implementing the Joint Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism for the 

Western Balkans.  

Montenegro  has  continued  implementing  the  bilateral  arrangement  under  the  Joint  Action  Plan  on 
Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. In June 2021, the National Security Council established 
a  bureau  for  the  operational  coordination  of  the  institutions  comprising  the  Security  Intelligence 
Sector. The country also adopted a decision to appoint a national coordinator and the members of the 
national  inter-departmental  team  to  end  violent  extremism,  terrorism,  money  laundering  and 
terrorism financing. 

In  April  2021,  Montenegro  adopted  implementing  regulations  to  the  law  on  the  designation  and 
protection  of  critical  infrastructures.  In  December  2021,  the  new  strategy  for  the  prevention  and 
suppression  of  terrorism,  money  laundering  and  terrorist  financing  was  adopted.  The  government 
also  proposed  a  law  that  month  on  processing  air  transport  passenger  name  record  data,  aiming  to 
prevent  and  detect  terrorist  offences  and  serious  crime.  This  regulates  the  passenger  name  record 
system in Montenegro for the first time. 

Montenegro  continued  to  cooperate  with  Europol,  and  the  counterterrorism  unit  continues  to 
exchange  information  with  Member  States,  other  Western  Balkan  countries,  and  other  non-EU 
countries that are operational partners of Europol through the Secure Information Exchange Network 
Application (SIENA) communication channel. 

e)  Effectively phase out the investor citizenship scheme as soon as possible.  

Montenegro has not phased out its investor citizenship scheme yet despite the previously announced 
decision to end it in 2021. On the contrary, in December 2021 the Montenegrin government decided 
to extend the scheme until the end of 2022. 

In  2021,  Montenegro  received  241  applications  for  807  individuals.  As  of  December  2021,  264 
Montenegrin passports had been issued on that basis. 

The Commission regrets the decision to extend the investor citizenship scheme and continues to urge 
Montenegro to end it as soon as possible. The decision to extend the scheme is of great concern for 
the EU in the context of its visa-free agreement with Montenegro18. The Commission will continue 
monitoring the scheme as long as  it is  operational  and applications continue being processed. This 
monitoring is necessary because investor citizenship schemes may be used to bypass the EU short-
stay  visa  procedure  and  the  in-depth  assessment  of  individual  migratory  and  security  risks  this 
procedure entails. The Commission takes the view that, if such schemes are deemed to constitute an 
increased risk to the internal security and public policy of the Member States,  the visa-free regime 
may be suspended19. 

3.  Recommendations for Montenegro 

18  These risks were also highlighted in the Commission Recommendation of 28 March 2022 on immediate steps in the 
context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in relation to investor citizenship schemes and investor residence schemes 
(C(2022) 2028). In addition, in a resolution of 9 March 2022, the European Parliament proposed that ending investor 
citizenship schemes be included in EU membership criteria ((2021/2026(INL)). 

19   See, in this respect, Council Decision (EU) 2022/366 of 3 March 2022 on the partial suspension of the application of 
the  Agreement between  the European Union and the Republic of Vanuatu on the short-stay visa waiver (OJ L 69, 
4.3.2022, p. 105).  

17 

 
 
                                                           
Montenegro  has  taken  action  to  address  some  of  the  Commission’s  previous  recommendations, 
especially  on  anti-money  laundering  and  counterterrorism  and  in  the  fight  against  corruption  and 
organised crime. However, Montenegro has also taken steps contrary to the recommendations with 
regards to its visa policy and investor citizenship scheme. Further efforts are needed across all home 
affairs area, and the following issues need to be addressed. 

a)  Align, as a matter of priority, Montenegro’s visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the 
EU. 

b)  End the investor citizenship scheme without delay. 

c)  Tailor the information campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted  (overstays), 
and those making unfounded asylum applications. 

d)  Continue  progress  in  preventing  and  fighting  organised  crime,  corruption  and  terrorism  by:  (i) 
stepping up Montenegro’s participation in EMPACT; (ii) further progressing towards building a 
solid  track  record  of  corruption  and  organised  crime  cases,  as  well  as  the  seizure,  confiscation 
and recovery of criminal assets resulting from such offences;  (iii) strengthening the capacity to 
prosecute and adjudicate money-laundering cases and adopting a new  law on the prevention of 
money  laundering  and  terrorism  financing;  and  (iv)  continuing  progress  on  implementing  the 
Joint Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. 

e)  Take  the  necessary  steps  to  renew  technical  cooperation  with  the  European  Monitoring  Centre 

for Drugs and Drug Addiction. 

IV.  North Macedonia 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1. Action taken in the area of migration, asylum and cooperation in readmission 

In 2021, North Macedonia continued taking action in border and migration management and asylum, 
including improving reception conditions for asylum applicants. 

Member  States  reported  good  cooperation  on  border  management,  migration  and  asylum.  In 
particular,  North  Macedonia  continued  bilateral  cooperation  with  Member  States,  including 
Germany,  France,  Croatia,  the  Netherlands,  and  Poland.  Member  States  also  report  very  good 
cooperation  with  North  Macedonia  on  returns  and  readmissions,  as  also  expressed  at  the  Joint 
Readmission Committee held in June 2022. Cooperation with the EU Agency for Asylum continued 
under the agreed roadmap to strengthen capacity in asylum and reception. Cooperation with Frontex 
also kept up.  

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Further improve the registration of migrants in a more systematic manner; tailor information 
campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including vulnerable groups, 

18 

 
 
 
 
those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), and those making 
unfounded asylum applications.  

North  Macedonia  continued  to  take  action  to  address  migration  challenges  and  improve  the 
registration of migrants. North Macedonia continued to develop national migrant registration systems 
and  improve  identifying  and  registering  mixed  migrant  flows.  The  EU  Readmission  Agreement  is 
being implemented in a satisfactory manner. 

Access to the asylum procedure continued to be ensured. However, the entire asylum procedure can 
last  several  years,  and  this  is  not  efficient  and  increases  the  risks  of  onward  movements.  North 
Macedonia still needs to address, among other things, credibility assessments, the legal reasoning of 
decisions,  and  the  individual  assessment  of  the  personal  circumstances  of  applicants,  correctly 
assessing  relevant  and  updated  country  of  origin  information,  and  prioritising  manifestly  founded 
cases. Although guaranteed by law, no favourable procedure has been implemented for people with 
special needs. Implementation of the asylum procedure is not yet in line with the EU acquis. In the 
Gazi  Baba  municipality,  people  apprehended  in  irregular  movements  continue  to  be  arbitrarily 
detained in the reception centre for foreigners, to ensure that they testify as witnesses in court cases 
against smugglers. However, this practice is not in line with international standards. There are still no 
effective judicial checks on detention practices, and migrants in detention do not benefit from legal 
counselling and assistance to have effective access to justice and legal remedies. 

b)  Ensure  further  aligning  North  Macedonia’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required 
third  countries, in particular  those third  countries presenting irregular migration or security 
risks for the EU.  

North  Macedonia  has  not  taken  action  in  2021  to  further  align  the  country’s  visa  policy  with  the 
EU’s.  Nationals  of  the  following  countries,  who  are  visa  required  for  the  EU,  still  enjoy  visa  free 
access  in  North  Macedonia:  Azerbaijan,  Botswana,  Cuba,  El  Salvador,  Kosovo,  and  Turkey.  Any 
further deviation from the EU’s list of visa-required countries should be avoided. North Macedonia 
should  ensure  progress  in  aligning  its  policy  with  the  EU’s  list,  in  particular  with  regard  to  those 
third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the EU. This will be an important 
theme  of  continued  dialogue  between  the  EU  and  North  Macedonia.    In  the  context  of  the  visa 
suspension mechanism and in accordance with Article 8 of the Visa Regulation, the Commission will 
continuously monitor and assess the action of North Macedonia towards EU visa alignment. 

1.2. Monitoring trends in irregular migration, applications for international protection, returns 

and readmission 

In  2021,  the  number  of  applications  for  international  protection  in  Member  States  by  nationals  of 
North Macedonia rose almost fourfold (an increase of 293%), with 5 345 applications lodged in 2021 
compared with 1 360 in 2020. The recognition rate slightly decreased from 1.8% in 2020 to 1.2% in 
2021. 

In  2021,  12  irregular  border  crossings  by  North  Macedonian  nationals  were  reported  at  EU  level, 
against  18  in  2020.  In  2021,  the  number  of  North  Macedonian  nationals  found  to  be  irregularly 
staying  remained  relatively  stable  compared  with  the  previous  year,  with  6 305  irregular  stays  in 

   This  designation  is  without  prejudice  to  positions  on  status,  and  is  in  line  with  UNSCR  1244/1999  and  the  ICJ 

Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence. 

19 

 
 
                                                           
2021 against 6 270 in 2020 (an increase of less than 1%). The number of refusals of entry increased 
by 20%, from 2 415 refusals in 2020 to 2 905 in 2021. 

Last  year  marked  a  decreasing  trend  in  the  number  of:  (i)  return  decisions  issued  to  North 
Macedonian nationals (2 200 in 2021 against 2 360 in 2020, a 7% decrease); and (ii) people returned 
(1 040  in  2021  against  1 510  in  2020,  a  31%  decrease).  Member  States,  nevertheless,  report  good 
cooperation on return and readmission. 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

North Macedonia continued to take action fighting organised crime (including drug trafficking and 
trafficking in human beings), corruption and money laundering. The country also continued the fight 
against  terrorism  and  financing  of  terrorism  and  the  prevention  of  radicalisation,  following-up 
implementation of the Joint Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. 

Member States, Europol and Eurojust report good overall cooperation with North Macedonia in the 
field of security. In 2021, North Macedonia continued to cooperate bilaterally with Member States, 
including Czechia, Germany, France and the Netherlands. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Improve  the  track  record  of  final  convictions  in  high-level  corruption  cases,  including  by 

confiscating more criminal assets.  

North Macedonia continued implementing reforms in the fight against corruption, including at high 
level. More criminal assets should be confiscated in criminal proceedings: there were only four cases 
of  confiscation  of  property  in  2021.  The  confiscation  of  criminal  assets  should  become  a  strategic 
priority in the fight against organised crime, terrorism and high-level corruption in the country. 

b)  Further improve the track record of investigations, prosecutions and convictions in organised 

crime and money laundering.  

North Macedonia has made progress in consolidating its track record of investigations, prosecutions 
and  convictions  in  organised  crime  and  money  laundering.  For  money  laundering,  in  2021, 
indictments  were  filed  against  9  individuals,  first  instance  verdicts  were  reached  for  7  individuals 
and  second  instance  verdicts  were  reached  for  2  individuals.  For  organised  crime,  in  2021,  17 
investigations  were  launched  against  119  individuals.  There  were  also  indictments  brought  against 
55 individuals. Financial investigations were conducted in 3 cases. Confiscation of criminal assets is 
not sufficiently used, (only 10 cases with first instance decisions to confiscate assets mostly of minor 
value, e.g. cars, money and mobile phones). 

With  regard  to  the  fight  against  money  laundering,  North  Macedonia  adopted  a  new  national  risk 
assessment in June 2021, as well as an action plan to be implemented by 2024. A beneficial owners’ 
register has also been set up, while a comprehensive bank account register remains to be established. 

c)  Increase participation in coordinated or joint investigations and prosecutions with countries in 

the region and with Member States.  

North  Macedonia  increased  its  strategic  and  operational  cooperation  with  international  partners  by 
participating  in  joint  projects  with  INTERPOL,  Europol, SELEC,  CEPOL, Frontex and the OSCE. 
With  EMPACT,  the  country  also  participated  in  more  bilateral  and  multilateral  operations  (joint 

20 

 
 
action  days)  and  other  activities  to  intensify  the  exchange  of  operational  information  with 
INTERPOL, Europol, SELEC and Member States. 

The  country  continued  carrying  out  a  national  plan  to  reintegrate,  re-socialise  and  rehabilitate 
returning foreign terrorist fighters and their families. However, further progress is needed to develop 
a single and comprehensive approach dealing with this issue. 

d)  Make full use of the National Coordination Centre for the Fight against Organised Crime.   

The National Coordination Centre for Fight against Organised and Serious Crime is operational, but 
it needs to improve its operational capacity as not all authorities have posted members to the Centre, 
and  this  is  limiting  its  efficiency.  It  contributed  to  providing  data  and  facilitating  the  exchange  of 
information between the participating institutions, thus supporting their efforts to combat organised 
and serious crime. 

e)  Continue  progress  in  implementing  the  Joint  Action  Plan  on  Counter-Terrorism  for  the 

Western Balkans.  

North Macedonia has made significant progress in implementing the bilateral arrangement under the 
Joint Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans, and the parties agreed to update the 
arrangement. North Macedonia submitted the fourth interim report in March 2022. Further efforts are 
required to implement the remaining activities set out in the arrangement. 

The National  Committee for Countering Violent Extremism and Countering Terrorism participated 
in projects and workshops to boost regional security cooperation and capacity building to address the 
challenges  in  reintegrating  foreign  terrorist  fighters  and  preventing  radicalisation  and  violent 
extremism. North Macedonia also  established an inter-agency working group and  set up  a national 
action team to counter terrorism. The country cooperated and exchanged information effectively with 
Europol  on  counterterrorism  and  completed  implementing  measures  on  anti-money  laundering  and 
terrorism financing. 

f)  Fully  implement  the  new  module  on  suspicious  transactions  reported  by  the  Financial 

Intelligence Unit (FIU) and establish a track record in its use by the prosecution offices.  

The IT case management system has been implemented by the FIU. The competent authorities (such 
as the Ministry of Interior, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Public Revenue Office, the Financial 
Police Office, and the Customs Administration) submit reports on suspicious transactions to the FIU 
electronically.  If  the  processing  and  analysis  of  such  data  reveals  suspicions  of  money  laundering, 
financing  of  terrorism  or  other  crimes,  the  FIU  submits  a  report  or  notice  to  the  competent 
authorities. 

In January 2021, the FIU set up an electronic system for monitoring the outcome of the steps taken 
by the competent institutions following the FIU’s submission of a report or notice. In addition, to get 
a  complete  picture  of  the  system’s  efficiency  and  effectiveness,  the  FIU  entered  every  report  or 
notice  submitted to  the competent  authorities from  the beginning of 2017  into the case monitoring 
system. 

g)  Refrain from enabling systematic acquisition of citizenship for special economic interest. 

The  Law  on  Citizenship  of  North  Macedonia  allows  for  the  acquisition  of  citizenship  for  special 
economic interest without any previous residence requirements. As of October 2021, 115 individuals 
had  acquired  citizenship  for  economic  interest,  representing  an  increase  compared  to  2020  (until 
December 2020, 103 individuals had obtained citizenship for economic interest). In view of the fact 

21 

 
 
that the Law on Citizenship of North Macedonia allows for the acquisition of citizenship for special 
economic  interest  without  any  previous  residence  requirements,  as  well  as  of  the  numbers  of  total 
and  successful  applicants,  the  migratory  and  security  risks  this  could  pose  to  the  EU  are  being 
closely monitored. The Commission has brought these risks to the attention of North Macedonia. The 
systematic granting of citizenship in return for investment is of great concern to the EU and can have 
an impact on the visa-free regime as it may be used to bypass the short-stay visa procedure and the 
in-depth assessment of individual migratory and security risks it entails. The Commission takes the 
view that, if the implementation of this law is deemed to constitute an increased risk to the internal 
security and public policy of the Member States, the visa-free regime may be suspended20. 

3.  Recommendations for North Macedonia 

North  Macedonia  has  taken  action  to  address  the  Commission’s  previous  recommendations. 
However,  further  efforts  are  needed  on  migration  management,  anti-money 
laundering, 
counterterrorism, the fight against corruption and organised crime, and the acquisition of citizenship 
for special economic interest. In particular, the following issues need to be further addressed. 

a)   Align, as a matter of priority, North Macedonia’s visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required 
third countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks 
to the EU. 

b)  Tailor  information  campaigns  on  the  visa-free  regime  to  relevant  migrant  profiles,  including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), 
and those making unfounded asylum applications. 

c)  Refrain from enabling systematic acquisition of citizenship for special economic interest. 

d)  Adopt  updated  strategies  for  countering  terrorism  and  preventing  and  countering  violent 
extremism and continue progressing on the implementation of the Joint Action Plan on Counter 
Terrorism for the Western Balkans. 

e)  Continue  efforts  preventing  and  fighting  corruption  and  organised  crime  by:  (i)  improving  the 
track  record  of  final  convictions  in  high-level  corruption  cases,  including  by  confiscating 
criminal assets; (ii) improving the track record of investigations, prosecutions and convictions for 
organised  crime  and  money  laundering;  (iii)  participating  in  more  coordinated  or  joint 
investigations and prosecutions with countries in the region and Member States; and (iv) making 
full use of the National Coordination Centre for the Fight against Organised and Serious Crime. 

V.  Serbia 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1 Action taken in the area of migration, asylum and cooperation in readmission 

In 2021, Serbia continued to take action on border and migration management and asylum. Member 
States  in  general  reported  good  cooperation  with  Serbia  on  migration  and  border  management,  as 

20   See, in this respect, Council Decision (EU) 2022/366 of 3 March 2022 on the partial suspension of the application of 
the  Agreement between  the European Union and the Republic of Vanuatu on the short-stay visa waiver (OJ L 69, 
4.3.2022, p. 105).  

22 

 
 
 
                                                           
well as on return and readmission. The legal framework for border control is largely harmonised with 
the EU acquis. Serbia continued to effectively implement the integrated border management strategy 
and  its  action  plan,  while  remaining  under  serious  migration  pressure  like  other  Western  Balkans 
countries. It continued to implement the roadmap to strengthen asylum and reception as agreed with 
the EU Agency for Asylum. 

There  was  regular  cooperation  with  Europol  at  many  levels  to  fight  migrant  smuggling.  Serbia 
participated  in  several  international  operations  combating  irregular  migration  and  trafficking  in 
human beings. The country is also implementing a strategy to prevent and end trafficking in human 
beings  for  2017-2022,  which  focuses  on  protecting  women  and  children.  Serbian  authorities 
continued  to  strengthen  their  capacity  for  accommodating  and  caring  for  migrants  in  the  specific 
context of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The  Status  Agreement  between  Frontex  and Serbia21 entered into force on 1 May 2021. A Frontex 
Liaison  Officer  is  stationed  in  Belgrade  (with  a  regional  mandate  covering  Serbia,  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina, and Montenegro). The joint operation of Frontex and Serbia was launched on 16 June 
2021  aiming  to  control  irregular  immigration,  tackle  cross-border  crime  and  strengthen  law 
enforcement cooperation. The 2022 joint operation is ongoing. 

One  Member  State  signalled  a  significant  readmission  issue  due  to  a  difference  in  interpreting  a 
bilateral  agreement;  the  negotiations  to  resolve  this  are  ongoing.  Another  Member  State 
communicated  on  cooperation  to  fight  the  use  of  false/forged  travel  documents.  Furthermore,  yet 
another Member State reported that three Serbian illegal immigration networks were dismantled.  

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Adopt  the  Schengen  action  plan  and  ensure  all  relevant  government  institutions  are 

sufficiently involved. 

Implementation  of  the  twinning  project  ‘Development  of  the  Schengen  action  plan’  (IPA  2014) 
began in October 2018; Hungary and Lithuania were the external partners of the Serbian Ministry of 
Interior.  The  project  evaluated  Serbia’s  legal  framework  and  its  compliance  with  the  Schengen 
acquis, and contributed to aligning national legislation with the Schengen acquis. The result was a 
document  that  can  be  used  to  finalise  the  draft  action  plan  to  join  the  Schengen  area.  The  project 
ended in December 2021. 

b)  Develop  and  adopt  a  new  integrated  border  management  (IBM)  strategy  and  action  plan  in 

line with new IBM concepts.  

On  19 August  2021,  a  special  working  group  was  set  up  and  tasked  with  drafting  the  2022-2027 
integrated border management strategy in the Republic of Serbia. The  adoption of the strategy and 
action plan is under way. 

c)  Tailor information campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), 
and those making unfounded asylum applications.  

21   Status Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Serbia  on actions carried out by the European 

Border and Coast Guard Agency in the Republic of Serbia. 

23 

 
 
                                                           
In  2021,  34  programmes  were  funded  to  raise  awareness  of  refugees,  internally  displaced  persons 
and returnees about the visa-free regime, as well as their social integration and available mechanisms 
for  exercising  their  rights.  The  government  financed  local  authorities  to  address  the  needs  of 
returnees. The Ministry of the Interior is implementing the strategy for reintegration of returnees and 
the strategy for social inclusion of Roma men and women in the Republic of Serbia for 2016-2025. 

d)  Ensure further aligning Serbia’s visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required third countries, 
in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the EU.  

Serbia’s visa policy is not fully aligned with the list of third countries whose nationals are subject to 
a  visa  for  short  stays  in  the  EU.  The  nationals  of  the  following  countries  that  are  on  the  EU  visa-
required  list  can  travel  visa-free  to  Serbia:  Armenia,  Azerbaijan,  Bahrain,  Belarus,  Bolivia,  China, 
Cuba, Guinea Bissau, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Oman, 
Qatar, Russia, Suriname, and Turkey.  

The  lack  of  alignment  with  the  EU’s  visa  policy  has  increasingly  triggered  irregular  flows  on  the 
Western Balkans route, showing a negative impact on the implementation of Serbia’s migration and 
border management system, and should be addressed as a matter of priority. Evidence from the first 
months  of  2022  indicates  in  particular  that  nationals  of  Burundi,  Tunisia,  India,  Cuba  and  Turkey 
were moving from Serbia to continue irregular journeys towards Member States along the Western 
Balkans migration route. Visa policies of third countries can have a significant influence on irregular 
migration  movements  towards  the  EU.  Visa  policy  alignment  with  the  EU  therefore  contributes  to 
the  good  functioning  of  the  visa-free  regime  of  these  partners  with  the  EU.  On  20  October  2022, 
Serbia  informed  the  Commission  to  have  adopted  a  decision  establishing  a  visa  requirement  for 
nationals of Burundi22 and Tunisia23, in line with Serbia’s commitments at the highest political level 
to  the  Commission.  Serbia  has  committed  to  further  align  with  the  list  of  third  countries  whose 
nationals are subject to a visa for short stays in the EU, in particular by establishing visa requirement 
for  nationals  of  India  by  the  end  of  2022.  The  Commission  expects  further  visa  alignment  in  line 
with these commitments and looks forward to further detail from Serbia on the steps to be taken and 
their effective implementation. In the context of the visa suspension mechanism and in accordance 
with  Article  8  of  the  Visa  Regulation,  the  Commission  will  continuously  monitor  and  assess  the 
action of Serbia towards EU visa alignment. 

1.2 Monitoring trends in irregular migration, applications, for international protection returns 

and readmission 

In  2021,  3 390  applications  for  international  protection  were  submitted  by  Serbian  nationals  in 
Member  States,  an  increase  of  22%  compared  with  2020  (2 780).  The  recognition  rate  increased 
from 4% in 2020 to 6% in 2021. 

Irregular crossings of the EU external borders by Serbian nationals of rose by 28% from 21 in 2020 
to 37 in 2021. The number of Serbian nationals found to be staying irregularly in Member States fell 
by  12%,  with  14 430  people  in  2021  compared  with  16 355  in  2020.  However,  in  2021,  after  the 
steady  decrease  registered  since  2018,  the  number  of  Serbian  nationals  refused  entry  rose  by  15% 
(8 265 in 2021 against 7 210 in 2020). 

22 The decision entered into force on 22 October 2022. 

23 The decision entered into force on 20 November 2022. 

24 

 
 
                                                           
Both  the  number  of  return  decisions  issued  to  Serbian  nationals  (5 650  in  2021  against  6 265  in 
2020)  and  the  number  of  people  returned  (3 020  in  2021  against  3 540  in  2020)  decreased 
respectively  by  10%  and  15%  in  2021  compared  with  2020.  Frontex  reports  a  good  overall 
experience in return-related activities carried out in Serbia. 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

Serbia continued its action on fighting organised crime (including trafficking in drugs and in human 
beings), fighting terrorism, preventing corruption, and strengthening judicial cooperation in criminal 
matters. Member States report good  overall cooperation with Serbia in the field of security. Serbia 
continued  cooperating  with  Europol  and  Eurojust  and  engaged  in  joint  activities  with  several 
Member  States.  The  secure  communication  channel  SIENA  is  operational  and  regularly  used. 
Cooperation between Serbia and CEPOL is well-established. 

The first stage of the constitutional reform aimed at strengthening the independence of the judiciary 
was successfully completed in February 2021 by the promulgation of the constitutional amendments 
in  Parliament.  The  implementing  legislation,  which  is  scheduled  to  be  adopted  by  February  2023, 
will  be  important  for  strengthening  the  guarantees  against  potential  political  influence  over  the 
judiciary. 

In 2021, Serbia intensified operations against organised crime after a reduction in activities in 2020 
as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A particular effort was devoted to fight drugs smuggling and 
the  illicit  manufacturing  and  trade  of  weapons.  Many  operational  activities  were  carried  out  in 
cooperation with Europol; Serbian police also took part in many analytical EMPACT projects. Serbia 
reported particularly close collaboration with one Member State to improve international cooperation 
in  confiscating  criminal  assets.  In  the  second  half  of  2021,  preliminary  work  began  to  amend  the 
Criminal Code, with the focus on organised crime, in particular preventing the illegal manufacturing 
and smuggling of weapons. 

However,  a  number  of  significant  challenges  remain.  Criminal  networks  originating  from,  or  with 
links to, Serbia, remain active in the EU. Their criminal activities are diverse and include organised 
property  crime  (burglaries,  motor  vehicle  crime,  robberies),  migrant  smuggling,  cyber-dependent 
crime,  non-cash  payment  fraud,  production  and  trafficking  of  illicit  tobacco  smuggling,  and  drugs 
trafficking  (especially  cocaine  and  heroin  trafficking)24.  Serbia  is  a  major  transit  country  for 
smuggling migrants along the Western Balkans route, so Serbian smugglers are actively involved in 
transporting  irregular  migrants  across  the  region.  In  several  Member  States,  Serbian  trafficking 
networks exploit victims, including minors, especially in labour exploitation and forced criminality. 
In  the  fight  against  terrorism,  Serbia  considers  the  return  of  foreign  terrorist  fighters  as  its  biggest 
security issue. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Improving  the  track  record  of  investigations,  indictments  and  final  convictions  in  high-level 

corruption cases, including the seizure and confiscation of criminal assets.  

24   Member States’ contributions to the EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment 2021. 

25 

 
 
                                                           
Serbia  has  made  changes  to  improve  measuring  its  track  record  of  investigations,  prosecution  and 
final  convictions  in  high-level  corruption  cases,  including  the  seizure  and  confiscation  of  criminal 
assets. 

In  high-level  corruption  cases,  there  was  a  slight  increase  in  the  number  of  indictments  and  final 
convictions in 2021 compared with 2020. 

Based  on  indictments  from  the  Prosecutor’s  Office  for  Organised  Crime,  the  courts  delivered  first 
instance  judgments  against  10  individuals  in  2021  (compared  with  22  in  2020).  There  were  final 
convictions  against  19  individuals  (compared  with  11  in  2020).  The  Prosecutor’s  Office  for 
Organised Crime ordered investigations against 22 individuals and issued 22 indictments (compared 
with 19 in 2020). As in 2020, there were no cases with a final confiscation of assets (compared with 
3 in 2019). Serbia still needs to build a convincing track record of confiscating assets in corruption 
cases. 

In 2021, the special departments for combating corruption in the higher prosecution offices received 
3 035  criminal  complaints  (compared  with  2 936  in  2020).  They  ordered  270  investigations  and 
initiated parallel financial investigations against 67 individuals (compared with 23 in 2020). A total 
of  540  indictments  were  issued  (470  in  2020).  The  courts  delivered  judgments  against  271 
individuals at first instance based on indictments from these departments (230 in 2020). There were 
final convictions against 255 individuals (compared with 195 in 2020). 

In  2021,  prosecutions  of  general  jurisdiction  (not  specialised  departments)  issued  29  orders  to 
investigate corruption and economic crime offences (22 in 2020) and filed less indictments than in 
2020 due to the gradual shift of cases to the specialised departments (63 indictments in 2021 against 
to  136  in  2020).  The  courts  convicted  132  individuals  at  first  instance  and  80  individuals  at  final 
instance. A final confiscation of assets only took place in 1 case (against 3 in 2020). 

b)  Adopting  a  new  anti-corruption  strategy  underpinned  by  a  credible  and  realistic  action  plan 

and an effective coordination mechanism.  

Given that the national anti-corruption strategy for 2013-2018 has expired, Serbia needs to adopt and 
start  implementing  a  new  strategy  underpinned  by  a  realistic  action  plan  and  an  effective 
coordination mechanism. However, the development of this new strategy and action plan is still in 
progress. 

For  sectors  particularly  vulnerable  to  corruption,  Serbia  adopted  the  operational  plan  for  the 
prevention of corruption in areas of special risk in September 2021. 

Lastly,  the  Ministry  of  Education  adopted  a  specific  operational  plan  for  fighting  corruption  in 
education in October 2021, and the Ministry of Health adopted a plan against corruption in the health 
sector in December 2021. Both plans are to be implemented in 2022. 

c)  Continuing  progress  implementing  the  Joint  Action  Plan  on  Counter-Terrorism  for  the 

Western Balkans.  

Under  Objective  1  of  the  Joint  Action  Plan,  in  December  2021,  the  government  appointed  the 
Minister of Interior as the National Coordinator for Prevention and Combating Terrorism. A National 
Coordination Body exists, tasked with the coordination of preventing and combating terrorism. 

26 

 
 
Under  Objective  2,  the  government  continued  carrying  out  the  action  plan  to  identify  returning 
terrorist fighters with Serbian citizenship when they cross the state border.  

d)  Increase  efforts  to  prevent  all  forms  of  radicalisation  leading  to  violent  extremism  and 

terrorism, including violent right-wing extremism.  

Serbia  continues  efforts  in  this  field.  In  2021,  the  SIENA  platform  was  used  intensively.  Between 
April  and  May  2021,  Serbia,  together  with  Europol,  targeted  extremist  content  online.  Czechia 
signalled  cooperation  with  Serbia  to  fight  fake  news  to  strengthen  the  capacity  of  journalists  and 
election monitors confronting disinformation and propaganda. 

3.  Recommendations for Serbia 

Serbia has taken action to address  the Commission’s previous  recommendations.  However,  further 
efforts  are  needed  on  visa  policy,  border  management,  the  fight  against  corruption  and  organised 
crime,  and  preventing  and  countering  all  forms  of  violent  extremism.  In  particular,  the  following 
issues need to be further addressed. 

a)  Adopt a new integrated border management (IBM) strategy and action plan in line with new IBM 

concepts. 

b)  Follow  up  on  the  commitments  at  the  highest  political  level  and  align,  as  a  matter  of  priority, 
Serbia’s visa policy  with  the EU’s list  of visa-required third  countries, in particular those third 
countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the EU. 

c)  Adopt a new anti-corruption strategy followed by a credible and realistic action plan. 

d)  Improve  the  track  record  in  fighting  organised  crime,  including  drug  trafficking,  money 

laundering, confiscation of criminal assets and exploiting migrants in Member States. 

e)  Continue  implementing  the  bilateral  arrangement  under  the  Joint  Action  Plan  on  Counter-
Terrorism  for  the  Western  Balkans,  especially  concerning  the  fight  against  terrorism  financing 
(Objective 4) and protection of critical infrastructures (Objective 5); adopt the new strategy and 
action  plan  on  counterterrorism  and  prevention  of  violent  extremism,  covering  all  forms  of 
radicalisation and violent extremism (irrespective of their political, religious or ethno-nationalist 
root causes) in line with EU policies. 

VI.  Georgia 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1.  Action taken to ensure the continuous fulfilment of the visa liberalisation benchmarks 

Member States confirmed continued good cooperation on return and readmission with the Georgian 
authorities. The well-established Readmission Case Management System proved particularly useful 
during  the  pandemic.  Efforts  to  facilitate  the  professional  and  social  reintegration  of  returnees 
continued through the state’s reintegration programme. 

27 

 
 
 
A  revised  working  arrangement  between  Frontex  and  Georgia  was  signed  on  11 February  202125. 
Through advanced cooperation with Frontex, Georgia participates in joint operations and collecting 
return operations. More Frontex officers have been deployed to Georgian international airports, and 
Georgian police officers have been deployed to airports in those Member States concerned. 

Georgia is applying the new migration strategy for 2021-2030 and the related action plan for 2022. 
In 2021, the country became an observer in the European Migration Network. In August 2021, a new 
action plan to reduce statelessness was adopted. 

The  latest  integrated  border  management  strategy  and  respective  action  plan  expired  in  2018.  The 
new  ones  have  not  been  approved  yet:  the  new  expected  approval  date  is  autumn  2022.  Efforts  to 
strengthen  border  safety  and  security  with  new  infrastructure  and  additional  equipment  continued, 
with reinforcement of land, air and sea capacity. 

Georgia  regularly  cooperates,  both  operationally  and  analytically,  with  Europol,  including  on 
migrant  smuggling.  To  target  criminal  networks  involved  in  this  activity,  the  country  cooperates 
bilaterally with Member States, including via an extensive network of police attachés. 

Georgia reported that it was exchanging information with INTERPOL on lost and stolen passports. 
Non-biometric  passports  will  be  fully  phased  out  by  31 December  2024  when  all  non-biometric 
documents  expire.  By  1 January  2022,  the  remaining  number  of  valid  non-biometric  passports 
totalled 12 371. 

One  Member  State  reported  cooperation  with  Georgia  on  fighting  document  fraud.  A  bilateral 
agreement to fight illegal immigration was signed with another Member State. 

1.2.  Action  taken  to  address  the  recommendations  in  the  Fourth  Report  under  the  Visa 

Suspension Mechanism on migration 

a)  Continue to proactively address the issue of unfounded asylum applications in Member States; 
tailor  information  campaigns  on  the  visa-free  regime  to  relevant  migrant  profiles,  including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), 
and unfounded asylum applications.  

Georgia made a significant effort to address unfounded asylum applications in Member States. Since 
1 January  2021,  2 202  citizens  have  been  prevented  from  leaving  the  country  based  on  legislation 
allowing  the  authorities  to  prevent  departures  to  Member  States  if  basic  conditions  (means  of 
subsistence, etc.) are not fulfilled. People helping Georgian citizens staying abroad illegally can be 
prosecuted although authorities recognise that those procedures are not easy to implement. 

Georgia  also  conducted  targeted  information/awareness  raising  campaigns  on  travel  and  residence 
conditions in the EU. 

b)  Ensure  further  aligning  Georgia’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required  third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to 
the EU.  

25   https://frontex.europa.eu/media-centre/news/news-release/frontex-renews-working-arrangement-with-georgia-

e02I2v#:~:text=Under%20the%20revised%20arrangement%2C%20Frontex,of%20border%20management%20and
%20return.  

28 

 
 
                                                           
Georgia’s visa policy is still not aligned with the list of third countries whose nationals are subject to 
a visa for short stays in the EU. The following countries that are on the EU visa-required list enjoy 
visa  freedom  in  Georgia:  El  Salvador,  Ecuador,  Iran,  Jordan,  Kazakhstan,  Kuwait,  Kyrgyzstan, 
Lebanon,  Oman,  Qatar,  Russia,  Saudi  Arabia,  South  Africa,  Tajikistan,  Thailand,  Turkey, 
Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Georgia made no progress on this point in 2021.  

1.3.  Monitoring  trends  in  irregular  migration,  applications  for  international  protection, 

returns and readmission 

In 2021, the number of applications for international protection in Member States increased by 69% 
compared  with 2020, with  14 600 applications  lodged in  2021  and 8 650  in  2020. The  recognition 
rate slightly decreased from 4.3% in 2020 to 4.9% in 2021. 

In 2021, there were 30 irregular crossings of borders of Member States by Georgians, identical to the 
number  in  2020.  In  2021,  the  number  of  Georgian  nationals  found  to  be  irregularly  staying  in 
Member States rose by 28%, with 13 000 people in 2021 against 10 165 in 2020. Following the same 
growing trend, the number of refusals of entry issued to Georgian nationals increased by 50% from 
2 065 in 2020 to 3 105 in 2021. 

In 2021, the number of return decisions issued to nationals of Georgia fell by 13% (10 595 in 2021 
compared with 12 120 in 2020) as did the number of people returned (5 495 in 2021 compared with 
6 330  in  2020).  However,  Frontex  reports  a  satisfactory  implementation  of  the  EU  Readmission 
Agreement in 2021. Several Member States report good cooperation with  Georgia, in particular on 
the use of return flights. 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

2.1.  Action taken to ensure the continuous fulfilment of the benchmarks 

Member  States  report  good  overall  cooperation  with  Georgia  in  the  field  of  security.  Georgia 
continued  cooperating  with  Europol  and  Eurojust  and  engaged  in  joint  activities  with  several 
Member States. The country cooperated regularly with EU asset recovery offices, executing requests 
on time. 

Georgia  continued  fighting  corruption:  in  2021,  197  individuals  were  prosecuted,  and  117  were 
convicted,  including  7  high-ranking  officials.  A  considerable  effort  was  made  to  train  specialised 
prosecutors  and  financial  investigators,  with  a  focus  on  asset-tracking  techniques  and  freezing  and 
confiscation  procedures.  On  16 March  2021,  the  responsibility  to  coordinate  anti-corruption  was 
transferred  from  the  Ministry  of  Justice  to  the  government,  with  the  Prime  Minister  becoming  the 
direct  supervisor  of  the  whole  policy.  In  April  2021,  the  Group  of  States  Against  Corruption  of 
Council of Europe (GRECO) published a report confirming that Georgia had largely implemented its 
recommendations on combating corruption issued in 2017. 

Georgia continued to fight organised crime as part of the 2021-2024 national strategy on combating 
organised  crime  and  the  corresponding  2021-2022  action  plan.  Efforts  were  made  in  particular  to 
fight  cybercrime,  drug  trafficking  and  money-laundering  schemes  used  by  organised  crime;  those 
activities  included  frequent  international  cooperation.  Georgia  finalised  the  application  of  the 
previous national strategy on harmful drug use and its 2021-2022 action plan. The new 2022-2026 
strategy and the 2022-2023 action plan are scheduled to be adopted in 2022. The 2021-2026 national 
strategy  for  the  prevention  of  drug  abuse  is  currently  being  implemented.  The  intelligence-led 

29 

 
 
policing strategy for 2021-2025 was adopted on 11 July 2021. Capacity building to train additional 
specialists in fighting money laundering continued in 2021. 

Georgia  actively  participates  in  the  ‘Fighting  organised  crime  in  the  Eastern  Partnership  region’ 
project implemented by Europol. Cooperation with CEPOL continued to be intensive, especially on 
stepping  up  the  exchange  programme:  many  Georgian  security  and  police  officers  benefited  from 
internships in relevant Member State institutions. 

Georgia  is  implementing  a  national  strategy  and  action  plan  on  the  fight  against  terrorism.  The 
country is involved in international efforts against terrorism and is an active member of the Global 
Coalition  against  Daesh.  Georgia  has  a  comprehensive  legal  framework  in  place  to  criminalise 
terrorism financing. 

Georgian organised crime networks continue, nevertheless, to be among the most active in organised 
property  crimes  across  the  EU,  including  burglaries,  theft  of  vehicles  and  vehicle  parts,  and 
organised  shoplifting.  Georgian  criminal  networks  also  continue  to  be  involved  in  smuggling 
irregular migrants from Turkey to the EU. 

On  30 December  2021,  Parliament  adopted  a  legislative  package  through  a  rushed  procedure  that 
dismantled the State Inspector’s Service, which benefitted from EU support. The State Inspector was 
dismissed  without  following  the  standard  procedure.  This  raised  concerns  about  maintaining  the 
independence  of  Georgia’s  data  protection  authority,  which 
is  a  benchmark  under  visa 
liberalisation.Two  separate  institutions  have  been  established  in  place  of  the  State  Inspector’s 
Service and the position of State Inspector: the Special Investigation Service and the Personal Data 
Protection Service.  

2.2. 

 Action  taken  to  address  the  recommendations  in  the  Fourth  Report  under  the  Visa 

Suspension Mechanism 

a)  Improve the efficiency of anti-corruption institutions and law enforcement agencies to better 

address cases of high corruption; ensure that all such cases are investigated.  

On 16 March 2021, anti-corruption coordination was transferred from the Ministry of Justice to the 
administration office of the government (AOG), answering directly to the Prime Minister. On 9 June 
2021, the Anti-Corruption Secretariat  was established within the AOG to  exercise the functions  of 
the  Secretariat  of  the  Anti-Corruption  Council,  develop  the  new  anti-corruption  strategy  and  its 
action plans, and monitor their implementation. 

In  2021,  218  investigations  were  launched,  197  individuals  were  prosecuted  and  117  individuals 
were convicted in connection to corruption. Out of the 2021 prosecutions and convictions, 14 high-
ranking  officials,  including  the  deputy  minister,  a  deputy  district  prosecutor,  the  head  and  deputy 
head  of  the  public  law  legal  entity,  governors,  deputy  governors,  a  deputy  mayor  and  members  of 
local  councils  (at  the  time  of  committing  the  crime)  were  prosecuted  and  7  were  convicted  for 
corruption. However, more needs to be done to tackle high-level corruption, in particular the role of 
large-scale vested interests and their influence in the economic and political spheres26. 

26  See Commission Opinion on Georgia’s application for membership of the European Union, COM(2022) 405 final. 

30 

 
 
                                                           
b)  Finalise the reform of the Supreme Court by bringing the selection procedure for judges fully 
in  line  with  the  Venice  Commission  recommendations  and  European  standards;  finalise 
prosecution reform, including the separation of power of investigators and prosecutors.  

Between  2019  and  2021,  28  judges  were  appointed  to  the  Supreme  Court  with  a  lifetime  term  of 
office. These appointments, made before the existing shortcomings in the nomination process were 
addressed, are not in line with the recommendations of the OSCE/Office for Democratic Institutions 
and Human Rights and the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission. The EU had expressed repeated 
concerns27  over  this  procedure,  which  undermined  judicial  independence  and  public  trust  in  the 
Georgian justice system. 

On 30 September 2020 and 1 April 2021, Parliament adopted amendments to the selection process of 
Supreme  Court  judges.  A  number  of  Venice  Commission  recommendations,  however,  remained 
unaddressed, and further work is needed to fully align the procedure for appointing Supreme Court 
judges with those recommendations. 

The second instalment of EUR 75 million of macro-financial assistance to Georgia was cancelled by 
the  Commission  in  its  decision  of  7 October  2021,  in  particular  due  to  the  failure  to  fulfil  the 
condition related to the judiciary, i.e. to increase the independence, accountability and quality of the 
judicial system. The selection of Supreme Court judges proceeded in the absence of  the legislative 
changes  needed  to  ensure  full  compliance  with  all  Venice  Commission  recommendations.  The 
process  also  failed  to  guarantee  the  equal  treatment  of  all  candidates.  Furthermore,  several  further 
amendments aiming to increase the transparency of the judicial system were not adopted. 

Amendments  laying  down  a  clear  separation  between  a  prosecutor  and  an  investigator’s  powers 
during  an  investigation  were  submitted  to  Parliament  on  24 November  2021;  the  legislative 
procedure is ongoing. 

a)  Finalise  the  operational  development  of  the  Financial  Intelligence  Unit  (FIU)  by  ensuring 
that it: (i) is able to obtain any required information from reporting entities; and (ii) has full 
timely  access  to  the  necessary  financial,  administrative  and  law  enforcement  information  to 
carry out its work properly.  

According to  information provided by  Georgia  and confirmed by the latest  MONEYVAL report28, 
the operational development of the FIU has been finalised. However, due to other shortcomings, the 
same  report  rates  the  overall  performance  of  Georgia’s  FIU  as  only  partially  compliant  with  its 
recommendations. 

b)  Continue  efforts  to  prevent  and  fight  organised  crime,  in  particular  profit-laundering  from 

illegal activities.  

Georgia  continued  to  fight  organised  crime  as  part  of  its  national  strategy  in  this  area  and  its 
corresponding  action  plans.  The  Georgian  Liaison  Office  at  Europol  cooperates  closely  with  the 
teams in the European Serious Organised Crime Centre. Bilateral cooperation was also strengthened, 
including action via bilateral arrangements and the network of police attachés to 11 Member States, 
with a particular focus on anti-money laundering. 

27  https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/georgia-statement-spokesperson-appointment-supreme-court-judges_en 
28  https://rm.coe.int/moneyval-2020-20-5th-round-mer-georgia/1680a03271 

31 

 
 
                                                           
In  2021,  the  Georgian  Liaison  Prosecutor  at  Eurojust  registered  2  new  cases,  while  21  new  cases 
were  registered  by  Eurojust  national  members  towards  Georgia.  These  cases  mainly  relate  to 
corruption, migrant smuggling, swindling and fraud, and money laundering. In 2021, Georgia signed 
a new joint investigation team agreement in a case supported by Eurojust. 

Despite  the  measures  mentioned  above,  criminal  networks  originating  from,  or  with  links  to, 
Georgia, remain active in the EU. Their criminal activities are diverse and include organised property 
crime  (burglaries,  motor  vehicle  crime,  robberies),  migrant  smuggling,  and  drugs  trafficking 
(especially heroin trafficking)29. 

c)  Continue  efforts  to  fully  align  national  legislation  with  the  EU  acquis  on  anti-money 

laundering and counterterrorism financing.  

In  2021,  Georgia  made  an  effort  to  better  align  its  money-laundering  and  terrorism-financing 
legislation with the EU’s. This made it possible for the Georgian authorities to act on United Nations 
Sanctions  Committee  listings  as  soon  as  they  were  published.  Another  legislative  change  will 
authorise FMS (Georgian FIU) to submit more confidential information to more national institutions 
(including the ministry of finance) than before for money-laundering and terrorism-financing crimes. 
The legislative procedure to approve these amendments is ongoing. 

3.  Recommendations for Georgia  

Overall,  Georgia  continues  to  fulfil  the  visa  liberalisation  benchmarks  and  has  taken  action  to 
address  the  Commission’s  previous  recommendations.  However,  further  efforts  are  needed  in  visa 
policy and fighting money laundering and organised crime. In particular, the following issues need to 
be further addressed. 

a)  Align Georgia’s visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required third countries, in particular 

those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the EU. 

b)  Continue  to  address  unfounded  asylum  applications  in  Member  States;  tailor  information 
campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including vulnerable groups, 
those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), and those making 
unfounded asylum applications. 

c)  Increase efforts to tackle corruption, in particular the role of large-scale vested interests and 
their  influence  in  the  economic  and  political  spheres,  in  particular  by  strengthening  the 
independence and coordination of anti-corruption institutions as well as providing them with 
necessary resources.  

d)  Finalise  efforts  to  fully  align  national  legislation  with  the  EU  acquis  on  anti-money 

laundering and counterterrorism financing. 

e)  Step  up  efforts  against  organised  crime,  especially  the  networks  connected  to  operations  in 

the EU. 

f)  Fully  align  the  procedure  for  appointing  Supreme  Court  judges  with  the  Venice 
Commission’s  recommendations,  and  adopt  and  implement  legislation  evaluating  the 
integrity and performance of Supreme Court judges. 

g)  Ensure the independence of the data protection authority. 

29   Member States’ contributions to the EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment 2021. 

32 

 
 
                                                           
VII.  Republic of Moldova 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

In  2021,  Member  States  reported  good  overall  cooperation  with  the  Republic  of  Moldova  (further 
‘Moldova’)  on  migration  and  border  management,  including  readmission.  Some  issues  were 
signalled on the return of third-country nationals, especially those married to Moldovan citizens, but 
these concerned a very limited number of cases. Some administrative delays were also signalled in 
treating  readmission  requests  by  Moldova.  Four  Member  States  (France,  Germany,  Latvia  and 
Lithuania)  reported  bilateral  operational  activities  and  projects  with  the  country  on  migration  and 
border management. 

Moldova  continued  efforts  to  improve  border  management  and  migration  systems  by  investing  in 
infrastructure, software and training. The country is also a beneficiary of a cooperation plan between 
Frontex and the Moldovan Border Police. In December 2021, the plan was renewed for 2022-2024. 

The  EU  Border  Assistance  Mission  to  Moldova  and  Ukraine  (EUBAM)  reoriented  its  work 
immediately  from  24 February  2022 to  assist  managing  displaced  persons  from  Ukraine.  Measures 
include  advising  on  streamlining  flows,  assisting  vulnerable  migrants,  providing  information  on 
basic  border  control  procedures  to  be  followed  for  entry,  and  assisting  in  customs  clearance  of 
humanitarian  aid.  On  2 June,  a  new  Memorandum  of  Understanding  was  signed  between  the 
Commission, Ukraine and Moldova30 providing the possibility of EUBAM using executive powers 
in  border  control  if  requested  by  one  of  the  countries.  EUBAM  operates  in  full  cooperation  with 
Frontex staff to cover the key crossing points. 

As  regards  document  security,  Moldova  now  only  delivers  biometric  ICAO-compliant  passports. 
Phasing non-ICAO-compliant passports out was completed on 1 January 2021. Moldova continued 
intensive  training  for  those  staff  dealing  with  passports.  The  cooperation  with  INTERPOL  on  lost 
and stolen passports is regular and systematic. 

In 2021, Moldova became an observer in the European Migration Network. 

1.1. Action  taken  to  address  the  recommendations  in  the  Fourth  Report  under  the  Visa 

Suspension Mechanism in migration 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Continue tailoring information campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, 
including vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted 
(overstays) and those making unfounded asylum applications. 

The topic of visa-free travel  to  the EU is regularly  addressed in  information  campaigns  on general 
European integration issues. A more targeted action in 2021 was the publication of a revised edition 
of the guide on freedom of movement in the EU for Moldovan citizens. Tailor-made campaigns are 
carried out among vulnerable minorities via community mediators. 

30   https://eubam.org/newsroom/the-eu-steps-up-support-to-border-management-on-the-moldova-ukraine-border/  

33 

 
 
 
                                                           
b)  Ensure  further  aligning  Moldova’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  lists  of  visa-required  third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to 
the EU. 

Moldova’s visa policy is not fully aligned with the list of third countries whose nationals are subject 
to a visa for short stays in the EU. The following countries that are on the EU visa-required list enjoy 
visa freedom in Moldova:  Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Cuba, El Salvador, Ecuador, Kazakhstan, 
Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan. There  were no significant developments in 
2021. 

1.2.  Monitoring  trends  in  irregular  migration,  applications  for  international  protection, 

returns and readmission 

The  number  of  applications  for  international  protection  by  Moldovan  nationals  in  Member  States 
increased  by  63%  between  2020  and  2021,  with  4 830  applications  lodged  in  2020  against  7 885 
applications in 2021. The recognition rate was 1.0% in 2021, unchanged from 2020. 

In  2021,  attempts  by  Moldovan  nationals  to  cross  the  EU’s  external  borders  irregularly  remained 
very  low  (21)  and  lower  than  in  2020  (34).  The  number  of  Moldovan  nationals  found  to  be 
irregularly staying rose from 24 610 in  2020 to  42 150 in  2021 (an increase of 71%).  In 2021, the 
number of Moldovan nationals being refused entry in Member States was 9 065, which is 11% less 
than  in  2020,  the  year  in  which  the  highest  number  on  record  for  this  nationality  was  reached 
(10 150). 

In 2021, the number of return orders issued to Moldovan nationals increased by 17% (7 935 in 2021 
compared with 6 765 in 2020). However, the number of returns was 14% less than in 2020 (2 785 in 
2021  compared  to  3 240  in  2020).  Nevertheless,  Member  States  report  good  cooperation  on 
readmission of own nationals, and Frontex reports a smooth implementation of return operations. 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

In 2021, Moldova continued cooperating with several Member States in the field of security. 

Moldova  continued  to  implement  the  2020-2027  national  anti-drug  strategy,  the  2020-2025  anti-
money  laundering/counter-terrorism  financing  strategy  and  the  2018-2023  national  strategy  for 
preventing and combating trafficking in human beings. The latter strategy aims to improve services 
for  victims  of  trafficking  and  vulnerable  groups  (including  migrants  and  asylum  seekers)  and  the 
systematic  training  of  investigators,  prosecutors  and  judges  to  deal  with  human  trafficking  cases. 
However, the national strategy on combating organised crime expired in 2019; the new strategy and 
its accompanying action plan have still not been adopted. 

The  fight  against  corruption  continued  to  be  executed  by  the  National  Anti-corruption  Centre  in 
cooperation  with  the  Anti-corruption  Prosecutor  Office  (a  specialised  section  of  the  Prosecutor 
General Office). 

Moldova has invested substantially in policy reform measures to combat organised crime and illicit 
financial  flows.  In  2021,  18  organised  criminal  groups  were  investigated  and  44  group  members 
were  arrested.  Moldova  is  considered  to  be  a  reliable  partner  in  efforts  against  organised  crime, 
especially  in  fighting  cybercrime  (e.g.  investigating  online  payment  fraud/extortion,  stamping  out 
child  sexual  exploitation  online).  The  government  and  Parliament  prepared  a  set  of  legislative 
amendments  on  freezing,  recovering  and  confiscating  criminal  assets,  in  order  to  improve  the 

34 

 
 
efficiency of the Criminal Assets Recovery Agency (a specialised autonomous subdivision operating 
in the National Anticorruption Centre since 2018). However, the legislative process is still ongoing. 

Criminal  networks  originating  from,  or  with  links  to,  Moldova,  remain  active  in  the  EU.  Their 
criminal activities are diverse and include organised property crime (burglaries, motor vehicle crime, 
robberies),  migrant  smuggling,  cyber-dependent  crime,  non-cash  payment  fraud,  production  and 
trafficking of illicit tobacco smuggling, and drugs trafficking31. 

The Commission made the recommendations below in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension 
Mechanism. 

a)  Adopt a strategy and action plan for justice reforms. 

The new 2022-2025 strategy for ensuring the independence and integrity of the justice sector and its 
accompanying action plan was adopted on 6 December 2021.  

b)  Adopt constitutional amendments related to the judiciary in line with the Venice Commission’s 

recommendations. 

Parliament adopted constitutional amendments related to the judiciary on 23 September 2021, which 
entered into force on 1 April 2022. The amendments significantly improve the legal framework  on 
the independence, accountability, and efficiency of the judiciary and judicial administration, in  line 
with  recommendations  of  the  Council  of  Europe.  In  particular,  the  amendments  bring  the 
composition of the Superior Council of Magistracy in line with  the recommendations by excluding 
ex  officio  membership  and  revising  the  appointment  process  of  the  Council’s  lay  members.  This 
strengthens  the  role  of  the  President  in  appointing  judges,  regulating  the  functional  immunity  of 
judges at the constitutional level, and changing the appointment procedure of judges to the Supreme 
Court of Justice to reduce the risk of politicisation. 

c)  Ensure that judicial appointments are carried out in a merit-based and transparent selection 
process, including well-reasoned justifications for appointments and rejections with reference 
to competence and integrity criteria. 

Moldova  has  comprehensive  legislation  regulating  judicial  appointments.  The  main  institutions 
involved in the judicial selection process are the College for Selection and Career of Judges and the 
Superior  Council  of  Magistracy.  The  National  Anticorruption  Centre  carries  out  the  vetting  of 
candidates  by  verifying  declarations  of  assets/interests  as  well  as  certificates  from  the  National 
Integrity Authority and by consulting criminal records. 

Transparency  of  the  selection  process  is  ensured  by  publishing  announcements  on  competition 
launches,  information  about  the  candidates,  and  the  results  of  competitions.  However,  the 
appointment  and  promotion  system  of  judges  and  prosecutors  after  the  initial  training/graduation 
examination  stage  by  the  Superior  Council  of  the  Magistracy  and  the  Superior  Council  of  the 
Prosecutors is not sufficiently transparent, and criteria are unclear. 

In March 2022, the law on pre-vetting candidates to judicial and prosecutorial councils was adopted. 
The  law  provides  for  an  assessment  of  the  integrity  of  future  members  of  the  Superior  Council  of 
Magistracy,  the  Superior  Council  of  Prosecutors  and  their  specialised  bodies  by  an  Evaluation 

31   Member States’ contributions to the EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment 2021. 

35 

 
 
                                                           
Committee  composed  of  three  national  and  three  international  members.  This  aims  to  increase  the 
integrity  of  the  self-administration  bodies  of  judges  and  prosecutors  and  boost  the  public’s 
confidence in their activities and the justice system as a whole. Most recommendations of the Venice 
Commission were implemented. 

d)  Ensure the effective implementation of the asset declaration system by high-level actors. 

On 7 October 2021, Parliament adopted amendments to the asset declaration system by laying down 
the following features: (i) declaration of assets at their real market value; (ii) extending the scope of 
checks on people in case of justified suspicion; and (iii) allowing integrity inspectors to request  an 
independent  evaluation  of  assets.  In  2021,  the  National  Integrity  Authority  continued  to  check 
priority  declarations  of  ministers,  members  of  Parliament,  heads  of  administrative  agencies, 
management  of  the  national  bank,  judges  and  prosecutors.  The  GRECO  Fourth  Evaluation  Round 
Second Interim Compliance Report praises the asset declaration reforms but warns that the National 
Integrity Authority’s strategy is not fully effective. 

e)  Impose an effective division of powers between the anti-corruption agencies, and ensure that 

the Anti-Corruption Prosecution Office focuses on high-level corruption cases. 

In 2021, work began on the draft amendments to the Criminal Code and to the Criminal Procedure 
Code to  delineate the powers  of the Anti-Corruption  Prosecution Office  in  investigating high-level 
corruption cases and to restructure the National Anticorruption Centre. The discussions continued at 
the level of competent government agencies, with the aim to adopt the amendments by Parliament in 
2022. 

f)  Adopt secondary legislation implementing the law on anti-money-laundering sanctions. 

There were no major legislative developments on this point. The authorities foresee entry into force 
of the respective legal acts only in 2023.  

g)  Progress in investigating and prosecuting in major money-laundering schemes. 

The  Anti-Corruption  Prosecution  Office  continued  to  investigate  major  cases.  One  example  is  the 
‘Laundromat’  scheme,  in  which  some  Moldovan  and  Latvian  banks  illegally  transferred  Russian 
funds evaluated at USD 22 billion abroad. The case is being investigated in cooperation with Latvia. 
A  new  investigation  team  was  created  on  5 November  2021  comprising  the  Anti-Corruption 
Prosecution Office prosecutors and the criminal investigation officers of the National Anticorruption 
Centre. In 2021, the Office opened or continued 26 other investigations of major cases. 

h)  Align national legislation with the EU acquis on anti-money laundering and counterterrorism 

financing. 

Directive  (EU)  2015/849  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  20  May  2015  on  the 
prevention  of  the  use  of  the  financial  system  for  the  purposes  of  money  laundering  or  terrorist 
financing  was  transposed  in  Moldovan  law  in  two  steps,  in  2017  and  2020.  Further  administrative 
rules were adopted in March 2021 by the National Bank.  

The law on prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorism financing is to be modified 
only  in  2022.  It  should  include  the  transposition  of  the  5th  Anti-Money  Laundering  Directive,  the 
2018 Cash Control Regulation provisions, the MONEYVAL recommendations and other necessary 
amendments, specific for Moldova 

36 

 
 
i)  Strengthen  efforts  against  bank  fraud  by  updating  the  criminal  asset  recovery  strategy  and 

setting up a new asset recovery mechanism. 

On  18 May  2021,  the  asset  recovery  strategy  was  replaced  by  a  new  asset  recovery  mechanism 
approved  by  a  joint  order  of  the  Office  of  the  Prosecutor  General,  the  National  Anticorruption 
Centre, the State Fiscal Service and the Service for Prevention and Combating Money Laundering. 
The Criminal Assets Recovery Agency, together with the other competent authorities, are currently 
working  on  the  draft  of  the  National  Programme  on  Asset  Recovery,  which  should  be  adopted  by 
Parliament in 2022.  

j)  Finalise the investigation into the 2014 banking fraud to bring those responsible to justice and 

recover the misappropriated funds. 

The investigation into the 2014 banking fraud  continued in 2021. Six new criminal cases linked to 
the fraud were submitted to the court by the Anti-Corruption Prosecution Office. The assets seized in 
those  six  cases  totalled  EUR 2 288 718.  A  further  EUR 1 400 000  was  recovered  through 
international legal cooperation. Since the beginning of the investigation, the total value of recovered 
funds is EUR 367 115 731. One reason for adopting the asset recovery mechanism mentioned above 
in May 2021 was to speed up the return of the funds stolen in this bank fraud to the Moldovan state. 

3.  Recommendations for Moldova 

Moldova has taken action to address the Commission’s recommendations. However, further efforts 
are needed on visa policy, money laundering and organised crime. In particular, the following issues 
need to be further addressed, 

a)  Align Moldova’s visa policy with the EU’s list of visa-required third countries, in particular 

those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the EU. 

b)  Continue  tailoring  information  campaigns  on  the  visa-free  regime  to  relevant  migrant 
profiles, including vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was 
granted (overstays), and those making unfounded asylum applications. 

c)  Clearly  separate  the  powers  and  enhance  intra-agency  coordination  of  the  anti-corruption 

bodies investigating high-level corruption cases. 

d)  Complete  the  alignment  with  EU  anti-money-laundering  legislation,  adopt  secondary 
legislation  implementing  the  law  on  anti-money-laundering  sanctions,  and  implement 
MONEYVAL recommendations. 

e)  Increase  efforts  against  organised  crime,  including  certain  networks  smuggling  people  and 
goods  into  the  EU,  in  close  cooperation  with  EU  institutions,  Member  States  and 
international partners. 

f)  Strengthen  the  efforts  to  fight  against  bank  fraud  by  adopting  the  national  criminal  asset 
recovery strategy and setting up a new efficient mechanism for freezing, seizure, confiscation 
and capitalisation of criminal assets. 

VIII.  Ukraine 

37 

 
 
 
As this report’s scope covers up until the end of 2021, this section mainly reflects the situation before 
the start of Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine on 24 February 
2022. 

Russia's  aggression  has  led  to  an  influx  of  millions  of  people  seeking  refuge  in  the  EU  and 
neighbouring countries. Following a Commission proposal to activate for the first time the temporary 
protection directive32, on 4 March 2022, the Council adopted Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/382 
that  granted  temporary  protection  status  to  Ukrainian  nationals  (and  other  categories  of  persons) 
displaced  from  Ukraine  on  or  after  24  February  2022.  Furthermore,  the  Commission  adopted 
operational  guidelines  for  external  border  management  to  facilitate  border  crossings  at  the  EU-
Ukraine borders33. There were nearly 8.9 million entries into the EU by Ukrainian nationals between 
24 February and 5 September. 

Under  these  exceptional  circumstances,  the  visa-free  regime  between  the  EU  and  Ukraine  has 
allowed  to  facilitate  travel  to  and  from  Ukraine,  in  particular  for  those  Ukrainian  nationals  who 
decided not to take up residence in the EU or do not fall under the scope of the temporary protection 
directive.  

Despite  the  drastically  changed  situation,  the  Commission  considers  that  it  remains  relevant  to 
continue monitoring respect of the visa liberalisation  benchmarks by Ukraine, and will continue to 
support  the  Ukrainian  authorities  to  implement  the  country’s  reforms  that  are  necessary  for  the 
continuous fulfilment of the benchmarks. 

1.  Migration, asylum and readmission 

1.1 Action taken to ensure the continuous fulfilment of the visa liberalisation benchmarks 

In  2021,  Member  States  confirmed  good  and  continued  cooperation  with  Ukraine  on  return  and 
readmission  and  other  migration  areas,  in  particular  with  Belgium,  Germany,  Estonia,  Latvia, 
Lithuania,  and  Poland.  Ukraine  continued  to  work  with  many  Member  States  to  draft  and  adopt 
implementation protocols on readmission.  The country also continued efforts to reduce the number 
of  unfounded  asylum  applications  filed  by  its  citizens  in  the  EU  by  carrying  out  a  number  of 
information campaigns on asylum seekers’ rights. 

Ukraine  continued  implementing  the  2019-2025  integrated  border  management  strategy  and  the 
corresponding  action  plan,  as  well  as  the  2018-2021  migration  policy  strategy  and  its  action  plan. 
The  work  on  the  new  action  plan  for  after  2022  started  with  the  participation  of  EU4IBM  project 
experts. 

In 2021, there was a considerable effort to improve the efficiency of  IT systems supporting border 
and  immigration  controls,  including  the  continuation  of  the  EU-funded  IOM  project  ‘Support  for 
migration and asylum management in Ukraine’ (IMMIS). 

A  joint  analysis  of  threats  to  border  security  was  carried  out  with  Slovakia,  Poland,  Hungary, 
Romania and Moldova. In addition, a joint trilateral assessment of threats to state border security was 
conducted with Poland and Belarus. Furthermore, a joint Ukrainian-German border police situation 
report continued to be developed. 

32   Directive 2001/55/EC 
33   Commission Communication ‘Providing operational guidelines for external border management to facilitate border 

crossings at the EU-Ukraine borders’ (2022/C 104 I/01). 

38 

 
 
                                                           
In 2021, work in  the  area of  asylum  was considerably  disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The 
need  to  enforce  social-distancing  rules  put  asylum  seekers  and  staff  in  the  asylum  centres  and 
temporary  holding  facilities  under  considerable  stress.  Considerable  investment  (including  in  more 
medical installations, isolation rooms and fire safety) was made so that temporary holding facilities 
and other facilities could meet the particular health and safety requirements. 

Ukraine  has  been  issuing  biometric  passports  since  2015.  The  last  non-biometric  passports  were 
issued in 2016, and their complete phase-out is planned for 2026 when they expire. 

1.2 Action taken to address the recommendations on migration in the Fourth Report under the 

Visa Suspension Mechanism  

a)  Continue efforts to reduce the number of Ukrainian nationals irregularly staying in Member 

States and lodging unjustified asylum applications. 

The  Ukrainian  authorities’  efforts  focus  on  information  to  citizens  about  visa-free  travel  rules. 
Besides being available on websites, the information is also given in specifically designed campaigns 
(see recommendation (c) below) or general campaigns about European integration (e.g. EUKraina), 
which include chapters on visa-free travel. 

Prior  to  the  Russia’s  invasion  of  Ukraine,  the  Ukrainian  authorities  proactively  engaged  with  the 
Commission  asking  for  best  practices  and/or  concrete  measures  that  could  be  taken  to  reduce  the 
number  of  unjustified  asylum  applications.  In  the  current  context,  Ukraine  is  cooperating  closely 
with the EU and Member States on informing Ukrainians on the rights and obligations linked to the 
temporary protection regime. 

b)  Eliminate  the  possibility  for  Ukrainian  nationals  to  hold  more  than  one  valid  passport  at  a 
time; stop issuing such ‘additional’ passports and cancel the validity of those that have been 
issued. 

Ukraine proactively approached the Commission and Poland to discuss possible solutions. At the end 
of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, there were consultations by Ukraine with the EU and Poland on 
the technical aspects of this issue. These consultations were affected by Russia’s aggression against 
Ukraine  but  have  continued  between  Ukraine  and  Poland,  including  on  practical  solutions  in  the 
context of the war. Some aspects were however mutually explained, especially the issuing of more 
than one passport. For many reasons, this practice is common, even in Member States and does not 
need to be changed. Moreover, the country’s authorities already ensure that every Ukrainian citizen 
has  a  unique  personal  identification  number,  which  never  changes  and  appears  on  every 
identification document, including passports. 

c)  Tailor information campaigns on the visa-free regime to relevant migrant profiles, including 
vulnerable groups, those remaining beyond the period for which entry was granted (overstays), 
and those making unfounded asylum applications. 

Ukrainian authorities conducted regular information campaigns on the rights and responsibilities of 
its  citizens  when  travelling  to  EU  countries.  This  included  the  ‘Safe  Migration’  and  ‘Work  Safe’ 
campaigns, with the latter dedicated to preventing trafficking in human beings and the exploitation of 
migrants. 

39 

 
 
d)  Ensure  further  aligning  Ukraine’s  visa  policy  with  the  EU’s  list  of  visa-required  third 
countries, in particular those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to 
the EU. 

Ukraine’s visa policy is not fully aligned with the list of third countries whose nationals are subject 
to a visa for short stays in the EU. The following countries that are on the EU visa-required list enjoy 
visa  freedom  in  Ukraine:  Armenia,  Azerbaijan,  Bahrain,  Belarus,  Ecuador,  Kazakhstan,  Kuwait, 
Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan.  There were 
no significant developments in 2021. 

1.3. Monitoring trends in irregular migration, applications for international protection, returns 

and readmission 

In  2021,  the  number  of  Ukrainian  applicants  for  international  protection  in  Member  States  was 
6 460,  8%  more  than  in  2020  (5 990).  The  recognition  rate  rose  from  11.2%  in  2020  to  17.1%  in 
2021. 

The  number  of  Ukrainian  nationals  irregularly  crossing  the  EU  border  in  2021  was  small  (113  in 
2021, 87 in 2020 and 93 in 2019). In 2021, 36 670 Ukrainian nationals were found to be irregularly 
staying  in  EU  (50 415  in  2020,  a  decrease  of  27%).  The  number  of  refusals  of  entry  to  Ukrainian 
nationals fell by 11%, from 56 370 in 2020 to 50 220 in 2021. 

In  2021,  the  number  of  return  orders  issued  to  Ukrainian  nationals  decreased  by  17%  (17 820  in 
2021 compared with 21 540 in 2020). The number of returns was 21% lower than in 2020 (9 590 in 
2021 compared with 12 145 in 2020). 

2.  Judicial cooperation, public order and security 

2.1. Action taken to ensure the continuous fulfilment of the benchmarks 

Member  States  reported  good  overall  cooperation  with  Ukraine  in  the  field  of  security.  In  2021, 
Ukraine continued cooperating with Europol and Eurojust and engaged in joint activities with several 
Member  States.  Ukraine  gives  access  to  most  of  its  databases  to  Europol.  On  21 October  2021, 
Parliament  adopted  the  law  ratifying  the  Memorandum  of  Understanding  between  Ukraine  and 
Europol  on  confidentiality  and  ensuring  safety  of  information,  which  will  allow  exchanging 
confidential information. Cooperation with Eurojust continued via the Ukrainian representative at the 
EU agency. 

In 2021, the Ukrainian Liaison Prosecutor at Eurojust registered 23 new cases, while 58 new cases 
were  registered  by  Eurojust  National  Members  towards  Ukraine.  These  cases  relate  mainly  to 
swindling  and  fraud,  money  laundering  and  corruption.  In  2021,  Ukraine  signed  six  new  joint 
investigation team agreements in cases supported by Eurojust. 

Ukraine is carrying out its strategy for combating organised crime, which was adopted in September 
2020. An action plan to further implement the strategy was drafted in November 2021 but could not 
be  adopted  before  the  beginning  of  Russia’s  war  of  aggression  against  Ukraine.  Since  2020,  the 
Department  of  Strategic  Investigations  of  the  National  Police  of  Ukraine  has  the  lead  role  in 
coordinating  efforts  against  organised  crime.  In  2021,  police  investigations  made  it  possible  to 

40 

 
 
 
 
prosecute  428  organised  groups  and  41  larger  criminal  organisations.  The  State  Bureau  of 
Investigation dismantled another 21 groups/organisations and indicted 143 of their members. 

The fight  against the production and trafficking of illegal drugs continued;  laws on narcotic drugs, 
psychotropic substances and precursors were amended in April 2021. A big effort was made to fight 
the trafficking of illegal weapons; in 2021 various police and security agencies seized 3 098 firearms, 
3 236 grenades and 201 grenade launchers of all types. 

In the fight against terrorism, priority was given to address incidents related to the armed conflict in 
the  Donetsk  and  Luhansk  areas.  Ukraine  also  participated  in  the  DARIF  project  (Danube  Forum), 
protecting  critical  transport  infrastructure  on  the  Danube  and  its  neighbouring  area  from  terrorism 
and organised crime. 

In 2021, Ukraine continued to counter international terrorist and violent extremist organisations from 
North  Africa,  the  Middle  East,  Central  and  South-East  Asia  (including  the  Islamic  State  and  Al 
Qaeda). As a result, 601 foreigners suspected of involvement in international terrorist organisations 
activities  were  banned  from  entering  Ukraine,  27  were  detained  and  101  were  forcibly  returned  to 
their countries of origin. 

Despite the authorities’ efforts, criminal networks originating from, or with links to, Ukraine, remain 
active  in  the  EU.  Their  criminal  activities  are  diverse  and  include  organised  property  crime 
(burglaries,  motor  vehicle  crime,  robberies),  migrant  smuggling,  cyber-dependent  crime,  non-cash 
payment  fraud,  production  and  trafficking  of  illicit  tobacco  smuggling,  and  drugs  trafficking 
(especially cocaine and heroin trafficking)34. 

On  money  laundering,  Ukraine  appeared  to  be  a  destination  for  the  transfer  of  illicit  funds  and  an 
origin of illicit funds sent to other countries. 

2.2  Action  taken  to  address  the  recommendations  in  the  Fourth  Report  under  the  Visa 

Suspension Mechanism. 

a)  Improve  the  efficiency  of  anti-corruption  institutions  and  law  enforcement  agencies  by 

focusing anti-corruption efforts on high-level corruption and state capture cases. 

In 2021, there was some progress in the fight against high-level corruption, with a bigger number of 
convictions. Ukraine reported that the High Anti-Corruption Court  (HACC)  issued 72 sentences  in 
2021. Some of the verdicts concerned individuals occupying or having occupied high-level positions 
in national or local administrations, the judiciary, armed forces, and politics. On 1 June 2021, Law 
No 1498-IX was adopted allowing the deployment of an autonomous e-case management system for 
the  National  Anti-Corruption  Bureau  of  Ukraine  (NABU),  the  Specialised  Anti-Corruption 
Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) and HACC. The law aims to boost the transparency, effectiveness and 
efficiency of criminal investigations in high-level corruption cases. 

Ukraine  also  reintroduced  criminal  liability  for  false  declarations  and  restored  key  corruption 
prevention  powers  of  the  National  Agency  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  (NACP)  in  June  2021, 
which the Constitutional Court had declared unconstitutional  in  October  2020.  A  compromise  was 

34   Member States’ contributions to the EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment 2021. 

41 

 
 
                                                           
made for the applicable sanction regime, and now failing to make an asset declaration can lead to 1 
year in prison.  

b)  Adopt the necessary legislation on NABU to remove the legal uncertainty of its status. 

On  10 November  2021,  Law  No 1810-IX  amending  the  law  on  NABU  entered  into  force.  The 
amendments included the status of NABU and confirms it as a central executive body with special 
status. NABU’s special status protects it, in particular, from reorganisation without amending the law 
and gives better protection to its employees. The status also includes a procedure to interact with the 
government.  This  prevents  a  priori  the  government  from  interfering  in  how  NABU  operates.  The 
Director of NABU has full control of the structure of the service, recruitment and job descriptions. 

c)  Carry out a transparent, depoliticised and merit-based selection of the heads of NABU, SAPO, 
the Asset Recover and Management Agency (ARMA) and law enforcement agencies, as well as 
management-level  prosecutors,  using  adequate  procedures  and  selection  criteria,  including  
credible integrity checks. 

The amendments to the  Law on NABU mentioned above stipulates a commission for selecting the 
NABU Director composed of six people, three appointed by the government and three appointed on 
the  basis  of  proposals  from  international  and  foreign  organisations.  However,  the  NABU  selection 
process was not finalised and could not proceed further. A new SAPO Head was appointed only on 
July 28, 2022, following a selection process that lasted for almost two years.  

On 1 September 2021, the prosecutors self-governing body – the Council of Prosecutors of Ukraine – 
resumed  its  work,  taking  over  the  tasks  previously  handled  by  the  commission  mentioned  above. 
However,  unlike  the  commission,  the  Council’s  procedures  lack  transparency,  meritocracy  and 
checks on integrity. 

As regards the selection of the head of ARMA, a temporary head was appointed on 4 August 2021. 
The competition for selecting the new head started, but the process was not finalised. 

d)  Improve  ARMA  legislation  to  manage  seized  assets  and  adopt  a  national  strategy  on  asset 

recovery. 

In 2021, Parliament started to examine draft amendments to five different laws affecting the work of 
ARMA,  but  none  were  adopted.  The  government  produced  three  different  draft  resolutions  on  the 
same  topic,  but  again  none  was  adopted.  In  addition,  the  2022-2024  asset  recovery  strategy  was 
developed, but it was not adopted and needs further revisions. 

e)  Create conditions for NABU and other eligible agencies to carry out autonomous wiretapping 

of communication. 

Law  No 187-IX,  adopted  on  4 October  2019  gives  NABU  the  possibility  to  autonomously  gather 
information  from  telecommunication  networks.  However,  NABU  still  cannot  carry  out  these 
operations due to the lack of technical capacity and the necessary secondary legislation, including an 
inter-agency agreement with the Security Service of Ukraine. 

f)  Improve  the  effectiveness  of  the  fight  against  organised  crime  and money  laundering  by:  (i) 
fully  making  intelligence-led  policing  a  part  of  the  national  strategy  on  the  fight  against 
organised crime; (ii) clarifying and separating the powers of all law enforcement agencies and 
taking measures to ensure that NABU, SAPO and HACC have exclusive powers to investigate, 

42 

 
 
prosecute  and  adjudicate  high-level  corruption  cases;  (ii)  continuing  efforts  to  fully  align 
national  legislation  with  the  EU  acquis  on  anti-money  laundering  and  counterterrorist 
financing, and improve its implementation. 

Intelligence-led policing was considered a priority by Ukrainian authorities. Measures were taken to 
introduce  the  serious  and  organised  crime  threat  assessment  (SOCTA)  methodology  developed  by 
Europol into Ukrainian police activities. Ukraine purchased the required software, and, in February 
2021, began training analysts to use those new tools. On 26 January 2022, the government gave its 
final approval for adopting the SOCTA methodology. 

3.  Recommendations for Ukraine 

Overall,  Ukraine  continues  to  fulfil  the  visa  liberalisation  benchmarks  and  has  taken  action  to 
address  the  Commission’s  previous  recommendations.  However,  further  progress  is  needed,  in 
particular,  in  fighting  corruption.  Since  the  beginning  of  the  unprovoked  and  unjustified  Russian 
military  aggression  against  Ukraine,  the  Commission  has  supported  strengthening  the  resilience  of 
the Ukrainian public  administration,  and Ukraine was  granted  EU candidate country status  in  June 
2022. The Commission will continue to support the Ukrainian authorities, including in the country’s 
reforms  that  are  necessary  for  the  continuous  fulfilment  of  its  visa  liberalisation  requirements. 
Taking this into account, Ukraine needs to further address the following issues. 

a)  Align Ukraine’s visa policy with the EU’s lists of visa-required third countries, in particular 

those third countries presenting irregular migration or security risks to the EU. 

b)  Continue efforts to improve the efficiency of anti-corruption institutions and law enforcement 

agencies, including by enabling NABU to carry out autonomous wiretapping. 

c)  Urgently finalise the ongoing competitions for the leadership positions of NABU and ARMA. 

d)  Take  further  steps  to  improve  anti-corruption  legislation  in  order  to  strengthen  institutional 
independence  and  procedures,  particularly  by:  (i)  amending  the  procedures  for  selecting 
SAPO  officials,  setting  out  a  crucial  role  for  independent  experts  with  international 
experience in selection processes; and (ii) amending ARMA legislation on managing seized 
assets and adopting a national strategy on asset recovery. 

e)  Improve the selection procedure for senior executives in the prosecutor’s office by making it 
more transparent, fair and based on merit and by including a thorough check on candidates’ 
integrity,  drawing  on  positive  features  from  the  temporary  procedure  that  applied  until 
September 2021. 

f)  Take further steps to improve Ukraine’s compliance with the Financial Action Task Force’s 
standards while considering the security constraints imposed by the martial law, in particular 
those  on  virtual  assets,  ultimate  beneficial  ownership,  and  supervision  of  designated  non-
financial businesses and professions. 

When assessing progress in the areas mentioned above in the next report, the Commission will take 
into  account  the  consequences  of  the  ongoing  Russian  military  aggression  against  Ukraine  and  its 
impact on the functioning of the Ukrainian public administration. 

Conclusions 

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The Commission considers that all the countries assessed have taken action to address a number of 
the recommendations made in the Fourth Report under the Visa Suspension Mechanism.  For those 
countries whose nationals obtained the visa exemption less than 7 years ago and for which reporting 
on the fulfilment of the visa liberalisation benchmarks is still necessary, the Commission considers 
that the visa liberalisation requirements continue to be fulfilled. However, all countries need to take 
further  action  to  ensure  the  continuous  fulfilment  of  the  benchmarks  and  to  address  the 
Commission’s recommendations. 

In  2021,  the  end  of  COVID-19  travel  restrictions  had  an  impact  on  trends  in  irregular  migration, 
applications  for  international  protection,  returns  and  readmission.  Most  countries  registered  an 
increase in these trends compared with 2020. Nevertheless, in general, Member States and Frontex 
continue to report good cooperation with all eight countries on border management, asylum, return 
and readmission. 

In  terms  of  further  action  to  take  on  migration,  asylum  and  readmission,  several  countries  need  to 
continue  addressing  unfounded  asylum  applications,  including  by  strengthening  participation  in 
EMPACT  and  continuing  to  organise  targeted  information  campaigns.  The  reception  capacity  of 
some Western Balkan partners also continues to raise concerns. The Frontex status agreements with 
North Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina need to be concluded and implemented. 

To  ensure  migration  and  security  is  well-managed  –  an  underlying  condition  for  the  continuous 
fulfilment of the benchmarks – all the countries covered should align their visa policy with the EU’s, 
in  particular  as  regards  those  third  countries  presenting  irregular  migration  or  security  risks  to  the 
EU. The Commission looks forward to  concrete  steps being taken by  all relevant  partners and this 
will  be  an  important  theme  for  forthcoming  dialogue.  It  will  also  remain  attentive  to  any  possible 
displacement of arrivals between partners driven by visa-free access. Furthermore, the Commission 
continues to insist that those countries operating investor citizenship schemes phase them out. This is 
necessary  to  prevent  possible circumventions  of the EU short-stay visa procedure and the in-depth 
assessment of individual migratory and security risks it entails. This issue is of even higher concern 
to  the  EU  in  the  context  of  Russia’s  ongoing  military  aggression  against  Ukraine.35  In  case  the 
granting of citizenship under investor citizenship schemes is deemed to constitute an increased risk 
to  the  internal  security  and  public  policy  of  the  Member  States,  the  visa-free  regime  may  be 
suspended. 36 

In  judicial  cooperation,  public  order  and  security,  Member  States  also  report  good  overall 
cooperation  with  all  eight  countries.  However,  further  efforts  are  needed,  in  particular  in  the  fight 
against organised crime, financial fraud, money laundering, and corruption. 

Visa  liberalisation  has  been  a  key  part  of  the  EU’s  cooperation  on  migration,  security,  and  justice 
with  the  countries  of  the  Western  Balkans  and  the  Eastern  Partnership.  It  facilitates  mobility  and 

35   The risks related to investor citizenship schemes were – with regard to the Member States – also highlighted in the 
Commission  Recommendation  of  28  March  2022  on  immediate  steps  in  the  context  of  the  Russian  invasion  of 
Ukraine in relation to investor citizenship schemes and investor residence schemes, C(2022)2028 final. In addition, 
in a resolution of 9 March 2022, the European Parliament proposed that cessation of investor citizenship schemes be 
included in the accession criteria.  

36  See, in this respect, Council Decision (EU) 2022/366 of 3 March 2022 on the partial suspension of the application of 
the  Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Vanuatu on the short-stay visa waiver (OJ L 69, 
4.3.2022, p. 105). 

44 

 
 
                                                           
people-to-people  contacts,  and  can  also  trigger  key  policy  reforms  in  these  countries.  The  recent 
developments  in  the  EU’s  enlargement  policy,  with  Ukraine,  Moldova  and  Georgia  having  their 
perspective to become EU members recognised37, make implementing visa liberalisation benchmarks 
and following up the Commission’s recommendations an even more important objective for both the 
EU and the candidate and potential candidate countries. 

Therefore, close monitoring of this process will continue, including through meetings between senior 
officials, the regular Justice, Liberty and Security subcommittee meetings, and discussions between 
the  EU  and  the  countries  covered  in  the  report.  The  monitoring  of  aspects  related  to  the  visa 
liberalisation benchmarks will also continue being included in the Commission’s annual enlargement 
package. 

37  European Council conclusions, 23-24 June 2022. 

45