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IN THE SPOTLIGHT
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European Commission Publishes Progress Reports Confirming that Georgia and Ukraine Meet the Criteria for Visa Liberalisation18 December 2015
The European Commission adopted today the 4th progress reports on Georgia's implementation of the action plans on visa liberalisation (VLAP) and the 6th progress report on Ukraine's VLAP implementation. Both reports highlight the significant progress made by Georgia and Ukraine to meet the criteria for visa liberalisation. The EU-Georgia Visa Dialogue has proved to be an important and particularly effective tool for advancing far-reaching and difficult reforms in the Justice and Home Affairs area and beyond, impacting on areas such as the rule of law and justice reform. Beyond the VLAP benchmarks, Georgia has taken further steps to reform the judiciary as well as the Prosecutor's Office. The progress achieved by Ukraine in the implementation of the second phase benchmarks has been noteworthy, in particular given the exceptional circumstances and the internal and external challenges the country faces. As a next step following the positive assessment of the progress reports and taking into account the overall EU-Georgia and respectively EU-Ukraine relations, the Commission will present in early 2016 legislative proposals to the Council and the European Parliament to lift visa requirements for Georgian and Ukrainian citizens holding a biometric passport - amending Regulation (EC) No 539/2001. The visa-free travel will apply to all EU Member States, except for Ireland and UK, as well as the four Schengen associated countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland). The exemption from visa requirement concerns only short-stays, up to 90 days in any 180-day period for business, touristic or family purposes. European Commission Press release on Georgia Progress Report European Commission Press release on Ukraine Progress Report |
Project funded by the European Union
