THE Delegation of the European Union [EU] in Guyana yesterday announced that beginning today, a new Visa Information System (VIS) will be launched for the Schengen States.

The Visa Information System (VIS) is a system for the exchange of visa data between Schengen States, and its implementation is a key element of the common visa policy which, together with other policies, allows the European Union to establish an area of freedom, security and justice.

All Schengen States’ consulates/ embassies issuing visas for the citizens of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana or other applicants from other states (whereas none of them resides in Guyana) will use the Visa Information System (VIS). This effectively means that as of today (May 15), first-time visa applicants will have to appear in person at an embassy of the respective Schengen State when lodging the application, in order to provide their fingerprints.

The Schengen States are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland (not a European Union Member State), Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein (not a European Union Member State), Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway (not a European Union Member State), Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland (not a European Union Member State). These countries adhere to the Schengen Agreement, and their territory is in the Schengen area.

The main objectives of the VIS are to facilitate visa application procedures, to facilitate checks at external borders, and to enhance security. The VIS facilitates the exchange of data between Schengen States on visa applications, in order to ease procedures, prevent “visa shopping”, and assist in the fight against fraud.

For the purpose of implementation of the VIS, consular posts and external border crossing points of the Schengen States will be connected to the central VIS database. The VIS has been progressively rolled out in the different regions of the world.