THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 62, point (2)(b)(ii), thereof,
Having regard to the initiative of the Kingdom of
Spain(1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European
Parliament(2),
Whereas:
(1) The rules for issuing visas
at the border to seamen in transit need to be clarified and updated, in
particular to allow group transit visas to be issued at the border to seamen
who are of the same nationality and are travelling in a group, as long as
the period of transit is limited.
(2) It is therefore necessary
to replace the rules contained in the Schengen Executive Committee Decision
of 19 December 1996 on issuing visas to seamen in transit (SCH/Com-ex (96)
27)(3) by the rules set out in this Regulation. In the interests of clarity,
these rules should be amalgamated with the general rules contained in
Schengen Executive Committee Decision of 26 April 1994 on the issue of
uniform visas at the border (SCH/Com-ex (94) 2)(4), which also corresponds
to Annex 14 of the Common Manual(5). The said Decisions and Annex should
therefore be repealed. The Common Manual and the Common Consular
Instructions on visas for the diplomatic missions and consular posts(6)
should also be amended to take into account this Regulation.
(3) When deciding on the format
of the separate sheet mentioned in Annex I to which the group transit visa
should be affixed, Member States should take into account the uniform
format, as set out in Council Regulation (EC) No 333/2002 of 18 February
2002 on a uniform format for forms for affixing the visa issued by Member
States to persons holding travel documents not recognised by the Member
State drawing up the form(7).
(4)
The measures necessary for the implementation of this instrument should be
adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999
laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred
on the Commission(8).
(5) In
accordance with Articles 1 and 2 of the Protocol on the position of Denmark
annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty establishing the
European Community, Denmark is not taking part in the adoption of this
Regulation, and is not bound by it or subject to its application. Given that
this Regulation builds upon the Schengen acquis under the provisions of
Title IV of Part Three of the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Denmark shall, in accordance with Article 5 of the said Protocol, decide
within a period of six months after the Council has adopted this Regulation
whether it will implement it in its national law.
(6) As regards Iceland and
Norway, this Regulation constitutes a development of provisions of the
Schengen acquis within the meaning of the Agreement concluded by the Council
of the European Union and the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway
concerning the association of those two States with the implementation,
application and development of the Schengen acquis(9), which fall within the
area referred to in Article 1, point A, of Council Decision 1999/437/EC of
17 May 1999 on certain arrangements for the application of that
Agreement(10).
(7) This Regulation
constitutes a development of provisions of the Schengen acquis in which the
United Kingdom does not take part, in accordance with Council Decision
2000/365/EC of 29 May 2000 concerning the request of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Northern Ireland to take part in some of the provisions of
the Schengen acquis(11); the United Kingdom is therefore not taking part in
its adoption and is not bound by it or subject to its application.
(8) This Regulation constitutes
a development of provisions of the Schengen acquis in which Ireland does not
take part, in accordance with Council Decision 2002/192/EC of 28 February
2002 concerning Ireland's request to take part in some of the provisions of
the Schengen acquis(12); Ireland is therefore not taking part in its
adoption and is not bound by it or subject to its application.
(9) This Regulation constitutes
an act building on the Schengen acquis or otherwise related to it within the
meaning of Article 3(2) of the Act of Accession,
(1) OJ C 139, 12.6.2002, p. 6.
(2)
Opinion of 11 February 2003 (not yet published in the Official Journal).
(3) OJ L 239, 22.9.2000, p. 182.
(4) OJ L 239, 22.9.2000, p. 163.
(5) OJ C 313, 16.12.2002, p. 97.
(6) OJ C 313, 16.12.2002, p. 1.
(7) OJ L 53, 23.2.2002, p. 4.
(8) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.
(9) OJ L 176, 10.7.1999, p. 36.
(10) OJ L 176, 10.7.1999, p. 31.
(11) OJ L 131, 1.6.2000, p. 43.
(12) OJ L 64, 7.3.2002, p. 20. Article 1
1. By way of derogation from the
general rule that visas shall be issued by diplomatic and consular
authorities, in accordance with the provisions of Article 12(1) of the
Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement of 14 June 1985, signed at
Schengen on 19 June 1990(13), hereinafter referred to as the "Schengen
Convention", a third-country national who is required to be in possession of
a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States, may
exceptionally be issued with a visa at the border where the following
conditions are satisfied:
(a) he or
she shall fulfil the conditions laid down by the provisions of Article
5(1)(a), (c), (d) and (e) of the Schengen Convention;
(b) he or she has not been in a
position to apply for a visa in advance;
(c) he or she shall submit, if
required, supporting documents substantiating unforeseeable and imperative
reasons for entry, and
(d) return
to his or her country of origin or transit to a third State shall be
assured.
2. A visa issued at the
border when the conditions described in paragraph 1 are satisfied may, as
appropriate, be either a transit visa (type B) or a travel visa (type C)
within the meaning of the provisions of Article 11(1) of the Schengen
Convention, which
(a) is valid for
all Member States applying the provisions of Title II, Chapter 3, of the
Schengen Convention, or
(b) has
limited territorial validity within the meaning of the provisions of Article
10(3) of the Schengen Convention.
In both cases, the
visa issued shall not be valid for more than one entry. The validity of such
travel visas shall not exceed 15 days. The validity of such transit visas
shall not exceed five days.
3. A
third-country national who applies for a transit visa at the border shall be
in possession of the visas required to continue his or her journey to States
of transit other than Member States applying the provisions of Title II,
Chapter 3, of the Schengen Convention, and for the State of destination. The
transit visa issued shall allow for direct transit through the territory of
the Member State or Member States concerned.
4. A third-country national
falling within a category of persons for which it is obligatory to consult
one or more of the central authorities of other Member States shall not, in
principle, be issued with a visa at the border. Nevertheless, a visa may be
issued at the border for such persons in exceptional cases, in accordance
with the provisions of Article 5(2) of the Schengen Convention.
(13) OJ L 239, 22.9.2000, p. 19. Article 2
1. A seaman who is required to be in
possession of a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States
may be issued with a transit visa at the border where:
(a) he fulfils the conditions
in Article 1(1) and (3), and
(b) he
is crossing the border in question in order to embark on, re-embark on or
disembark from a ship on which he will work or has worked as a seaman.
The transit visa shall be issued in compliance with
the provisions of Article 1(2) and, in addition, shall include a mention
that the holder is a seaman.
2.
Seamen who are of the same nationality and travelling in a group of between
five and 50 individuals may be issued with a group transit visa at the
border where the requirements of paragraph 1 above are met in respect of
each of the seamen in the group.
3.
Before issuing a visa at the border to a seaman or seamen in transit, the
competent national authorities shall comply with the operational
instructions set out in Annex I.
4.
When carrying out these operational instructions, the competent national
authorities of the Member States shall exchange the necessary information
concerning the seaman or seamen in question by means of a duly completed
form for seamen in transit as set out in Annex II.
5. Annexes I and II shall be
amended in accordance with the regulatory procedure referred to in Article
3(2).
6. This Article shall apply
without prejudice to the provisions of Article 1(4).
Article 3
1. The Commission shall be assisted by
the Committee set up by Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No 1683/95(14).
2. Where reference is made to
this paragraph, Articles 5 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.
The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision
1999/468/EC shall be set at two months.
3. The Committee shall adopt
its rules of procedure.
(14) OJ L 164, 14.7.1995, p. 1. Regulation as amended by
Regulation (EC) No 334/2002 (OJ L 53, 23.2.2002, p. 7). Article 4
This Regulation shall not affect the competence of Member
States with regard to the recognition of States and territorial units and
passports, travel and identity documents issued by their authorities.
Article 5
1. The following shall be repealed:
(a) Schengen Executive
Committee Decision (SCH/Com-ex (94) 2) of 26 April 1994, and
(b) Schengen Executive
Committee Decision (SCH/Com-ex (96) 27) of 19 December 1996.
2. Point 5 and point 5.1 of
Part II of the Common Manual shall be replaced by the following:
"The rules on issuing visas at the border, including
the issue of such visas to seamen in transit, are contained in Council
Regulation (EC) No 415/2003 of 27 February 2003 on the issue of visas at the
border, including the issue of such visas to seamen in transit(15) (see
Annex 14)."
3. The first sentence
of Annex 14 shall be replaced by the following:
"The
rules on the issue of visas at the border, including the issue of such visas
to seamen in transit, are contained in, or adopted on the basis of, Council
Regulation (EC) No 415/2003."
The rest of Annex 14
shall be repealed.
4. The following
sentence shall be added at the end of point 2.1.4 of Part I of the Common
Consular Instructions:
"By way of derogation from the
foregoing, group transit visas may be issued to seamen in accordance with
the provisions of Council Regulation (EC) No 415/2003 of 27 February 2003 on
the issue of visas at the border, including the issue of such visas to
seamen in transit(16)."
(15) OJ L 64, 7.3.2003, p. 1.
(16) OJ L 64, 7.3.2003, p. 1. Article 6
This Regulation shall enter into force on the first day of
the second month following that of its publication in the Official Journal
of the European Union.
This Regulation shall be
binding in its entirety and directly applicable in the Member States in
accordance with the Treaty establishing the European Community.
Done at Brussels, 27 February 2003.
For the Council
The President
M. Chrisochoïdis
Annex 1 Operational instructions for issuing visas at the border to
seamen in transit who are subject to visa requirements
The objective of these operational instructions is to provide
rules for the exchange of information between the competent authorities
of the Member States applying the Schengen acquis with respect to seamen
in transit subject to visa requirements. Insofar as a visa is issued at
the border on the basis of the information that has been exchanged, the
responsibility lies with the Member State issuing the visa. For the
purposes of these operational instructions: "Schengen port": means a
port constituting an external border of a Member State applying in full
the Schengen acquis; "Schengen airport": means an airport constituting
an external border of a Member State applying in full the Schengen
acquis, and "Schengen territory": means the territory of the Member
States in which the Schengen acquis is applied in full.
I Leaving service from a vessel that has entered a Schengen
port
(a) entry into Schengen territory
via an airport situated in another Member State applying in full the
Schengen acquis
- the shipping company or its
agent shall inform the competent authorities at the Schengen port where
the ship is berthed or expected that seamen subject to visa requirements
are due to enter via a Schengen airport. The shipping company or its
agent shall sign a guarantee in respect of those seamen,
- the said competent authorities shall verify as
soon as possible whether the information provided by the shipping
company or its agent is correct and examine whether the other conditions
for entry into the Schengen territory have been satisfied. Within the
framework of that examination the travel route within the Schengen
territory shall also be verified e.g. by reference to the airline
tickets,
- the competent authorities at the
Schengen port shall inform the competent authorities at the Schengen
airport of entry, by means of a duly completed form for seamen in
transit who are subject to visa requirements (as set out in Annex II),
sent by fax, electronic mail or other means, of the results of the
verification and indicate whether a visa can in principle be issued at
the border,
- where the verification of the
available data is positive and the outcome clearly concurs with the
seaman's declaration or documents, the competent authorities at the
Schengen airport of entry or exit can issue a transit visa at the border
with a maximum validity of five days. Furthermore, in such cases the
seaman's travel document referred to above shall be stamped with a
Schengen entry or exit stamp and given to the seaman concerned;
(b) entry into the Schengen
territory via a land or sea border situated in another Member State
applying in full the Schengen acquis
- the
procedure is the same as that for entry via a Schengen airport except
that the competent authorities at the border post via which the seaman
concerned enters the Schengen territory shall be informed.
II Leaving service from a vessel that has entered a Schengen
port
(a) exit from the Schengen
territory via an airport situated in another Member State applying in
full the Schengen acquis
- the shipping company or
its agent shall inform the competent authorities at the said Schengen
port of the entry of seamen subject to visa requirements who are due to
leave their service and exit from the Schengen territory via a Schengen
airport. The shipping company or its agent shall sign a guarantee in
respect of those seamen,
- the competent
authorities shall verify as soon as possible whether the information
provided by the shipping company or its agent is correct and examine
whether the other conditions for entry into the Schengen territory have
been satisfied. Within the framework of that examination the travel
route within the Schengen territory shall also be verified e.g. by
reference to the airline tickets,
- where the
verification of the available data is positive, the competent
authorities may issue a transit visa with a maximum validity of five
days;
(b) exit from the
Schengen territory via a land or sea border situated in another Member
State applying in full the Schengen acquis
- the
procedure is the same as that for exit via a Schengen airport.
III Transferring from a vessel that entered a Schengen port to a
vessel that will sail from a port situated in another Member State
applying in full the Schengen acquis
- the shipping company or its agent shall inform the
competent authorities at the said Schengen port of the entry of seamen
subject to visa requirements who are due to leave their service and exit
from the Schengen territory via another Schengen port. The shipping
company or its agent shall sign a guarantee in respect of those seamen,
- the competent authorities shall verify as soon
as possible whether the information provided by the shipping company or
its agent is correct and examine whether the other conditions for entry
into the Schengen territory have been satisfied. The competent
authorities at the Schengen port from which the seamen will leave the
Schengen territory by ship shall be contacted for the examination. A
check shall be carried out to establish whether the ship they are
joining is berthed or expected there. Within the framework of that
examination the travel route within the Schengen territory shall also be
verified,
- where the verification of the
available data is positive, the competent authorities may issue a
transit visa with a maximum validity of five days.
IV Issue of group visas to seamen in transit at the border
- seamen who are of the same nationality and are
travelling in a group of between five and fifty individuals may be
issued at the border with a group transit visa, which shall be affixed
to a separate sheet,
- this separate sheet shall
include, numbered in sequence, the personal data of all the seamen
(surname and forename, date of birth, nationality and travel document
number) covered by the visa. The data on the first and last seaman shall
appear in duplicate to avoid falsifications and additions,
- for the issue of this visa, the procedures laid
down in these operational instructions for the issue of individual visas
to seamen shall be followed.
Annex 2
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF FORM
The first four points deal with the identity of the seaman.
1. A. Surname(s)(1)
B. Forename(s)
C. Nationality
D. Rank/Grade.
2. A. Place of birth
B. Date of birth.
3. A. Passport number
B. Date of issue
C. Period of validity.
4. A. Seaman's book number
B. Date of issue
C. Period of validity.
Points 3 and 4 have been shown separately for clarity
since, depending on the nationality of the seaman and the Member State being
entered, a passport or a seaman's book can be used for identification
purposes.
The next four points deal with the shipping
agent and the vessel concerned.
5.
Name of shipping agent (the individual or corporation who represents the
shipowner on the spot in all matters relating to the shipowner's duties in
fitting out the vessel).
6. A. Name
of vessel
B. Flag (under which the
merchant vessel is sailing).
7. A.
Date of arrival of vessel
B. Origin
(port) of vessel
Letter "A" refers to the vessel's
date of arrival in the port where the seaman is to sign on.
8. A. Date of departure of
vessel
B. Destination of vessel
(next port).
Points 7A and 8A give indications
regarding the length of time for which the seaman may travel in order to
sign on. It should be remembered that the route followed is very much
subject to unexpected interferences and external factors such as storms,
breakdowns, etc.
The next four points clarify the
reason for the seaman's journey and his destination.
9. The "final destination" is
the end of the seaman's journey. This may be either the port at which he is
to sign on or the country to which he is heading if he is leaving service.
10. Reasons for application
(a) In the case of signing on,
the final destination is the port at which the seaman is to sign on.
(b) In the case of transfer to
another vessel within the Schengen territory, it is also the port at which
the seaman is to sign on. Transfer to a vessel situated outside the Schengen
territory must be regarded as leaving service.
(c) In the case of leaving
service, this can occur for various reasons, such as end of contract,
accident at work, urgent family reasons, etc.
11. Means of transport
List of means used within the Schengen territory by
the seaman in transit who is subject to a visa requirement to reach his
final destination. On the form, the following three possibilities are
envisaged:
(a) car (or coach);
(b) train;
(c) aeroplane.
12. Date of arrival (on the Schengen
territory)
Applies primarily to a seaman at the first Schengen
airport or border-crossing point (since it may not always be an airport) at
the external border via which he wishes to enter the Schengen territory.
Date of transit
This is the date on which the seaman signs off at a
port in the Schengen territory and heads towards another port also situated
in the Schengen territory.
Date of
departure
This is the date on which the seaman signs off at a
port in the Schengen territory to transfer to another vessel at a port
situated outside the Schengen territory or the date on which the seaman
signs off at a port in the Schengen territory to return to his home (outside
the Schengen territory).
After determining the three
means of travel, available information should also be provided concerning
those means:
(a) car, coach:
registration;
(b) train: name,
number, etc.;
(c) flight data:
date, time, number.
13. Formal
declaration signed by the shipping agent or the shipowner confirming his
responsibility for the stay and, if necessary, for the repatriation costs of
the seaman.
If the seamen are travelling in a group,
each one has to fill in the data for points 1A to 4C.
(1) Please give the surname(s)
that appear in the passport.
(1) Please give the surname(s) that appear in the
passport.