Schengen area: digitalisation of the visa procedure

The Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs adopted the report by Matjaž NEMEC (S&D, SI) on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1683/95 as regards the digitisation of the visa procedure.

The committee recommended that the European Parliament's position, adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure, should amend the proposal as follows:

Digital Schengen visa

The amended text stressed that in order to make the Schengen visa application process smoother and more effective for third-country nationals and Member State authorities, it is necessary to allow Schengen visa applications to be lodged online, thereby making full use of recent legal and technological developments.

Members laid down the data fields of the digital visa in the annex replacing the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1683/95.

The digital visa will be issued as a 2D barcode and contain the facial image of the visa holder. The 2D barcode should be cryptographically signed by the Country Signing Certificate Authority of the issuing Member State.

Member States may add national entries in the ‘comments’ section in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council.

Implementing acts

The Commission will adopt implementing acts to establish technical specifications for the uniform digital format for visas relating to: (a) technical standards and methods for: (i) encoding the data contained in the digital visa; and (b) the facial image; (c) specifications for generating the printable version of the digital visa.

Start of issuing visas in digital format

Once the implementing acts as regards the technical specifications have been adopted and eu-LISA has declared the successful completion of comprehensive tests, the Commission will adopt a decision, by means of an implementing act, setting the date from which Member States will issue digital visas.

By 1 December 2026 and every year thereafter until the decision of the Commission has been adopted, the Commission will submit a report to the European Parliament and to the Council on the progress with regard to the implementation of this Regulation. That report will contain detailed information about the costs incurred and information on any risks which impact the overall costs.