Visa liberalization for Turkey
Turkey and the European Union
In the last few years, the Republic of Turkey has started the bureaucratic process that is aimed at gaining European Union Membership. One of the major steps towards this achievement is the still ongoing negotiations that would lead towards a Visa liberalization for Turkish citizen coming to EU as short-term visitors.
Dialogues on the matter between Turkey and European Union have begun in December 2013 but, up to this moment, have not yet reached a conclusion.
The reach of an agreement is considered to be potentially beneficial to both sides since a stronger partnership between the two sides, EU and Turkey, would strengthen the overlook on European borders and the strategic presence in the Balkan region.
Should Turkey be inducted into the EU’s visa liberalization scheme, the country would join third-country national from 60 other countries whose citizens can currently visit most EU countries without need for a Consular visa. Moreover, Turkey would in such case automatically become eligible for European Union’s Visa Waiver program, ETIAS, that will be launched in 2024.
But what is the current situation of Turkey’s application for EU visa liberalization?
Status of the visa liberalization protocol
Negotiations between Turkish government and EU Council have now been going on for nearly 10 years.
In 2016 the round table established that Turkey would need to meet a total of 72 benchmark requirements to access the visa-free regime. Despite the many steps forward taken since then, there currently are still 5 points where, according to EU authorities, Tukey is still not compliant.
The five conditions that have not yet been satisfied are:
- adopting measures to prevent corruption, ensuring an effective follow-up to the recommendations issued by the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO)
- aligning the legislation on personal data protection with EU standards
- concluding an operational cooperation agreement with Europol
- offering effective judicial cooperation in criminal matters to all EU Member States
- revising the legislation and practices on terrorism in line with European standards
Once all of these standards will be met with, the EU Commission will likely give the green light to a visa liberalization that would be the first major step towards the induction of Turkey in the European Union.
Until then Turkish passport holders are still required to own a Consular Schengen Visa to access any of the 34 countries part of the border-free travel area.
Turkish visitors are also required a Visa so as to access the Republic of Ireland but, since EIRE does not participate in the Schengen program and in the upcoming ETIAS scheme, any visa liberalization as discussed above might not extend to visits to Ireland itself.
Who is responsible for making a final decision on visa liberalization for Turkey?
European Parliament and Council are in charge with the decision on the Commission’s proposal in the ordinary legislative procedure. Once all the co-legislators will have voted in favor of the amendment, the visa exemption for Turkish citizens will become effective from the day after the publication in the EU Official Journal.
What measures will be taken to avoid a surge in irregular migration by Turkish passport holders?
The Visa Regulation and visa liberalization rules enforced in the European Union, already include a provision which would allow the EU to temporarily re-impose visa requirements for citizen of any third country in case of a considerable growth of irregular migration from such country. This mechanism can be activated by any Member State in case of a sizeable increase in the number of:
- illegally overstaying third-country nationals
- unfounded asylum applications
- rejected readmission requests to the third country for its own citizens
The European Commission has already proposed to reinforce this suspension mechanism by extending the possible basis for discontinuing, by remarkably accelerating the emergency protocol’s steps and also by allowing the Commission itself to activate the countermeasure on its own.
On top of all these pre-existing clauses, EU in also currently on the verge of launching two digital schemes that will serve as an additional and effective tool to digitally overlook the Schengen Area borders. Such programs are the EES (EU Entry/Exit System) and EU Visa Waiver program ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System).