European Parliament ratifies visa facilitation, readmission agreement with Moldova

The European Parliament on Tuesday, November 13, ratified the agreements on visa facilitation and readmission of persons signed between Moldova and the members of the European Union on October 10 in Brussels. According to the Romanian media, a number of MEPs for Romania’s Social Democratic Party didn’t give their votes for the ratification of the agreements. However, they stressed they were not against the agreements in principle, but against the usage of the “Moldovan language”. The purpose of the visa facilitation agreement is to facilitate the issuance of visas to the citizens of Moldova for an intended stay of no more than 90 days per period of 180 days. This facilitation is done, among others, by reducing the period for taking a decision on the issuance of visas. The decision on whether to issue a visa will have to be taken within 10 calendar days. In urgent cases, this period may be reduced to 2 working days or even less. The visa fee for Moldovan citizens will also be limited to 35 €, instead of the general fee of 60 €. Moreover, certain categories of persons will benefit from a full waiving of the visa fee: close relatives, officials participating in government activities, students, disabled persons, journalists, children, pensioners, and other. The aim of the readmission agreement is to establish rapid and effective procedures for the identification and orderly return of persons who do not fulfil the conditions for entry to, presence in, or residence on the territories of Moldova or one of the Member States of the European Union, and to facilitate the transit of such persons. The agreements will enter in force on 1 January 2008.