EUU, Alm.del - 2017-18 - Bilag 337: Rådets evaluerings- og overvågningsrapport om Danmarks implementering af Schengenreglerne på området vedr. den fælles visumpolitik

Europaudvalget 2017-18
EUU Alm.del Bilag 337
Offentligt

Council of the

European Union

Brussels, 25 January 2018

(OR. en)

5298/18

Interinstitutional File:

2017/0214 (NLE)

PARLNAT 19

NOTE

From:

To:

Subject:

General Secretariat of the Council

National Parliament

Council implementing decision setting out a recommendation on

addressing the deficiencies identified in the 2017 evaluation of Denmark on

the application of the Schengen acquis in the field of the common visa

policy

In accordance with Article 15(3) of Council Regulation 1053/2013 of 7 October 2013, establishing

an evaluation and monitoring mechanism to verify the application of the Schengen acquis and

repealing the Decision of the Executive Committee of 16 September 1998 setting up a Standing

Committee on the evaluation and implementation of Schengen, the Council hereby transmits to

national Parliaments the Council implementing decision setting out a recommendation on

addressing the deficiencies identified in the 2017 evaluation of Denmark on the application of the

Schengen acquis in the field of the common visa policy

Available in all official languages of the European Union on the Council public register,

doc.

15556/17 REV1

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ANNEX

Council Implementing Decision setting out a

RECOMMENDATION

on addressing the deficiencies identified in the 2017 evaluation of Denmark on the application

of the Schengen acquis in the field of the common visa policy

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EU) No 1053/2013 of 7 October 2013 establishing an

evaluation and monitoring mechanism to verify the application of the Schengen acquis and

repealing the Decision of the Executive Committee of 16 September 1998 setting up a Standing

Committee on the evaluation and implementation of Schengen

, and in particular Article 15 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

Whereas:

(1)

The purpose of this decision setting out a recommendation is to recommend to Denmark

remedial actions to address deficiencies identified during the Schengen evaluation in the

field of the common visa policy carried out in 2017. Following the evaluation, a report

covering the findings and assessments, listing best practices and deficiencies identified

during the evaluation was adopted by Commission Implementing Decision C(2017) 5133.

(2)

Some of the practices observed during the evaluation can be considered as best practice,

notably as regards the visa processing workflow and decision-making process in the

consulates, the risk assessments conducted by the consulates and the national IT system and

the use made of it by the consulates.

OJ L 295, 6.11.2013, p. 27.

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(3)

In light of the importance of the correct implementation of the provisions linked to the

decision-making process, the Visa Information System (VIS), the monitoring of external

service providers (ESP) and data protection, priority should be given to implementing

recommendations 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 to 10, 20, 21, 25 b) to 25 g), 26, 27 and 29.

(4)

This decision setting out a recommendation should be transmitted to the European

Parliament and to the parliaments of the Member States. Within three months of its

adoption, the evaluated Member State shall, pursuant to Article 16, paragraph 1 of

Regulation (EU) No 1053/2013, establish an action plan to remedy the deficiencies

identified in the evaluation report and provide this to the Commission and the Council,

HEREBY RECOMMENDS:

that Denmark should:

Ensure that the examination of visa applications is conducted under the control of expatriate

staff (i.e. officials of the ministry with a secure employment status, appropriate level of

training and subject to regular rotation) and that the final decisions remain within the

responsibility of expatriate staff (or at least staff with EU nationality); that the heads of the

visa sections or other expatriate staff are in charge of or supervise the distribution of visa

stickers to individual staff members in charge of printing; that the head of the visa section in

Bangkok continues to be an expatriate staff member to avoid any risk to the independence of

the decision-making process;

Amend the Ministry of Immigration and Integration's executive order and guidelines on

visa-issuing to clarify that the classification of countries into "main groups" does not preclude

a solid individual assessment of each application and that all bona fide applicants –

irrespective of their nationality and the purpose of travel – who fulfil the entry conditions

(Article 21 of the Visa Code) can obtain a visa;

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Provide the possibility to applicants to obtain an appointment directly at the consulates within

a reasonable timeframe, taking into consideration the availability of slots and the general rule

of two weeks (Article 9(2) Visa Code). Family members of EU/EEA/Swiss citizens covered

by Directive 2004/38/EC should be given an appointment at very short notice; one contact

with the consulate should be sufficient to make the appointment;

Consider granting a period of authorised stay with a few days more than the intended stay in

order to allow for slightly prolonging the stay in the Schengen area by a few days in case of

need (e.g. flight cancellations), where this is possible without additional burden on the

applicant;

Ensure that the alphanumerical application data (including scans) are fully encrypted and

protected when they are transferred from the ESP to the consulates;

Review the framework contract(s) with ESP to ensure that ESP are not allowed to store

applicants' personal data beyond the time limits allowed for by point A(d) of Annex X of the

Visa Code;

IT system

Ensure that adequate business continuity and disaster recovery procedures for the national

visa IT system are in place, tested and properly implemented at national system level;

Modify the national IT system in order to prevent the possibility of issuing uniform visas in

case of negative replies in prior consultation (or explain why this possibility should be

maintained);

Ensure that the Danish visa IT system provides for the functionality to delete erroneous

information from VIS and that staff are properly trained to use this functionality;

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10.

Ensure that VIS Mail 1 and the list of authorities (LoA) are fully integrated in the national IT

system and that replies to VIS Mail messages are sent systematically. Instruct all consulates to

use VIS Mail for consular cooperation, data amendment and supporting document requests;

11.

Ensure that consulates make a precise use of the available options in the drop-down list in the

IT system for the applicant's current occupation and choose “other” or “no occupation” only

where no better option is available;

12.

Ensure that, where application data is not available for an obligatory field in VIS, consulates

enter "not applicable" or "N/A" into the system (except for numerical fields where "+00"

should be entered). Modify the IT system accordingly (if/where necessary);

Consulate in New Delhi

13.

Update the consulate's website to ensure that that the information is complete, correct, up-to-

date and can be easily found in the relevant section;

14.

Instruct the ESP to improve its website to make it more user-friendly, to better structure the

information and to complete and correct the information where necessary;

15.

Inform applicants wishing to obtain a long-validity visa to indicate this wish in fields 24 or 25

of the application form or in another manner (e.g. on a separate document);

16.

Bring the consulate's checklists for supporting documents in line with the harmonised list of

supporting documents for India (or consider revising the harmonised list within Local

Schengen Cooperation);

17.

18.

Abolish any additional forms to be signed by applicants unless they are required by law;

Update the visa fee in local currency at regular intervals to reflect fluctuations in the exchange

rate and to ensure that it does not exceed the visa fee set in the Visa Code or that it does not

differ significantly from what other Member States charge in local currency;

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19.

Ensure that applicants lodging at the ESP's visa application centre in Bhutan are not obliged

to pay mandatory fees in addition to the service fee, such as courier fees for the transport of

the application and travel document between Bhutan and India, if the total fee would exceed

the ceiling for the service fee established by the Visa Code;

20.

Instruct the ESP to inform applicants correctly that giving fingerprints within 59 months after

having provided fingerprints for a previous application is not required and that refusing to

give fingerprints again will not have any negative effect for the visa application;

21.

Apply the provisions for revocation and annulment correctly, notably by using the standard

form and notifying it to the applicant, stamping the visa sticker with the correct stamp and

entering the decision systematically and correctly in the VIS;

22.

Ensure that misprinted visa stickers are correctly invalidated and – unless they are already

affixed to the travel document – subsequently destroyed;

23.

Consider introducing additional security measures for the consulate's archives (secured doors

or metal frame, fire protection system);

Consulate in Bangkok

24.

Update the consulate's website to ensure that that the information is complete, correct, up-to-

date and can be easily found in the relevant section;

25.

Instruct the ESP to

improve its website to make it more user-friendly, to better structure the information

and to complete and correct the information where necessary;

take adequate measures to reduce the waiting times for lodging the application, for

example by introducing an appointment system;

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ensure that applicants are received for lodging the applications in a more orderly

manner: new applicants should not be called to the counter before the processing of the

previous application has been finalised and the documents are properly stored;

applicants should be invited to the counter one by one (with the exception of minors).

Ensure that all workstations at the ESP are immediately locked when abandoned;

verify that all application forms are duly signed by the applicant;

perform a thorough data quality check for each application at its back office to improve

the quality of application data registered in the system. Consider keeping an error log to

report errors regularly to the ESP (as done by the consulate in New Delhi);

inform applicants correctly that giving fingerprints within 59 months after having

provided fingerprints for a previous application is not required and that refusing to give

fingerprints again will not have any negative effect for the visa application. Where new

fingerprints are provided (on a voluntary basis) they should be imported and used in

VIS, so that the 59-month deadline starts running anew;

delete application data from its servers immediately after transfer to the consulate (with

the exception of data needed to contact the applicant) and regularly monitor the

implementation of that rule by checking the ESP's hard drives and systems;

26.

Consider the use of an automated tracking system to register the handover of application files

and passports between the ESP and the consulate;

27.

Ensure that applications received from the ESP are imported into the IT system and VIS

application files are created without delay;

28. Remove the Embassy stamp from the ESP office;

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29.

Improve the implementation of the "red carpet" programme for accredited companies in

Bangkok, by regularly monitoring the agreements with companies, updating the list of

persons authorised to sign the employer letters and systematically checking signatures. Avoid

issuing long-validity visas to first-time applicants, who cannot prove their integrity and

reliability;

30.

Implement the Danish data protection authority's recommendation to abolish the use of the

local warning list for applicants and consult it on whether the warning list for hosts also falls

within the scope of this recommendation;

31.

Ensure that the consulate systematically checks the table of travel documents recognised by

Member States and issues visas with a limited territorial validity (LTV) where the applicant's

travel document is not recognised by all Member States;

32.

Consider taking measures to ensure that visa archives are well secured (secured doors or

metal frame) and accessible only to a limited number of authorised persons.

Done at Brussels,

For the Council

The President

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