| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Title | COM |
| Series Details | (2014) 681 final (29.10.14) |
| Publication Date | 29/10/2014 |
| Content Type | Policy-making, Report |
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The European Union (hereinafter the EU) launched a visa liberalisation dialogue with Georgia on 4 June 2012. On 25 February 2013, the European Commission presented the Georgian Government with an Action Plan on Visa Liberalisation (VLAP) identifying the benchmarks Georgia needs to meet in order for its citizens, who are holders of biometric passports, to travel to the Schengen zone without the need for a visa. On 15 November 2013, the Commission adopted its First Progress Report on the implementation by Georgia of the VLAP. The report assessed the progress made by Georgia in the implementation of the first phase (legislative and planning) VLAP benchmarks as very good and put forward a number of recommendations. In February, March and May 2014, Georgia submitted an updated progress report. An evaluation mission took place in spring 2014 with experts from EU Member States, assisted by the Commission services, the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the EU Delegation to Georgia. The mission focused on Block 3 and Block 4 of the VLAP, which had not previously been assessed on the ground. This is the second and final progress report on the first phase of the implementation of the VLAP by Georgia. It sets out how the first-phase benchmarks have been addressed and recommends starting the assessment of the second-phase benchmarks, which concern the effective and sustainable implementation of relevant measures. The report is accompanied by a Commission Staff Working Document (CSWD), which looks in greater detail at the developments described here. In addition, as required by the VLAP methodology, it analyses the expected migratory and security impacts of future visa liberalisation. The report follows the structure of the VLAP. Set out in sections corresponding to the four VLAP blocks and taking into account the recommendations made in the 2013 report, it describes how the Georgian authorities have addressed the VLAP requirements and, in the concluding section, it recommends that assessment should move on to implementation of the second-phase VLAP benchmarks. |
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| Source Link | http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2014:681:FIN |
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| Countries / Regions | Europe, Georgia |
