| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Title | COM |
| Series Details | (2015) 435 final (14.9.15) |
| Publication Date | 14/09/2015 |
| Content Type | Policy-making |
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Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 lists the third countries whose nationals must be in possession of a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States and those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement. Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 is applied by all Member States, with the exception of Ireland and the United Kingdom. Regulation (EU) No 509/2014 amended Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 by transferring 19 countries to Annex II, which lists the third countries whose nationals are exempt from the visa requirement. The reference to each of those countries in Annex II is accompanied by a footnote which specifies that "the exemption from the visa requirement shall apply from the date of entry into force of an agreement on visa exemption to be concluded with the European Union". Regulation (EU) No 509/2014 was adopted on 20 May 2014 and entered into force on 9 June 2014. In March 2015, the Commission presented a Recommendation to the Council to authorise it to start negotiations on visa waiver agreements with Colombia and Peru. On 19 May 2015, the Council addressed negotiating directives to the Commission. The negotiations with Colombia were held on 20 May 2015 in Brussels. During that meeting the entire draft text could be reviewed, a few modifications were suggested and agreement was reached on all aspects. The agreement was initialled by the chief negotiators on 9 June 2015; an official ceremony was held in the margins of the EU-CELAC Summit on 10 June 2015. The attached proposal constitutes the legal instrument for the signature of the agreement. |
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| Source Link | http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2015:435:FIN |
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| Countries / Regions | Europe, South America |
