Regulation (EU) 2023/2667 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 22 November 2023amending Regulations (EC) No 767/2008, (EC) No 810/2009 and (EU) 2017/2226 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Council Regulations (EC) No 693/2003 and (EC) No 694/2003 and Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement, as regards the digitalisation of the visa procedure

Regulation (EU) 2017/2226 is amended as follows:

(1) in Article 16(2), point (d) is replaced by the following:

(d) where applicable, the number of the short-stay visa, including the three-letter code of the issuing Member State, the type of short-stay visa, the end date of the maximum duration of the stay as authorised by the short-stay visa, which shall be updated at each entry, and the date of expiry of the validity of the short-stay visa;;

(2) Article 19 is amended as follows:

(a) the title is replaced by the following:

Data to be added where an authorisation for short stay is revoked, annulled or extended and when a valid visa is confirmed in a new travel document;

(b) in paragraph 1, point (d) is replaced by the following:

(d) where applicable, the new number of the visa, including the three letter code of the issuing country;;

(c) the following paragraph is added:

1. Where a decision has been taken to confirm a valid visa in a new travel document, the visa authority which has taken the decision shall immediately retrieve the data provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article from the VIS and import them directly into the EES in accordance with Articles 12a of Regulation (EC) No 767/2008.

;

(3) in Article 24(2), point (b) is replaced by the following:

(b) the number of the short-stay visa, including the three-letter code of the issuing Member State referred to in Article 16(2), point (d);;

(4) in Article 32(5), point (c) is replaced by the following:

(c) number of the visa and the date of expiry of the validity of the visa;.

Article 7

Start of operations of the EU VAP

1. The Commission shall adopt a decision setting the date on which operations of the EU VAP start under Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 as amended by this Regulation. That decision shall be adopted not later than six months after verification by the Commission that the following conditions have been met:

(a) the implementing acts referred to in Article 45(2), points (g) to (r) of Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 and the delegated acts referred to in Article 7b(7) of that Regulation have been adopted;

(b) eu-LISA has declared the successful completion of the comprehensive tests which are to be conducted by eu-LISA in cooperation with the Member States;

(c) eu-LISA has validated the technical and legal arrangements, including that sufficient capacity and functionalities of the EU VAP exist, and notified them to the Commission.

1. The Commission decision referred to in paragraph 1 shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

1. By way of derogation from paragraph 1 and without prejudice to the obligation to issue visas in digital format pursuant to Article 26a of Regulation (EC) No 810/2009, a Member State may decide not to avail itself of the EU VAP for a period of up to 7 years from the date referred to in paragraph 1 and shall notify the Commission regarding its decision. The Commission shall publish the notification from the Member State in the Official Journal of the European Union.

During the transitional period of 7 years referred to in the first subparagraph, visa holders shall be able to verify the validity and the information in the digital visas using the web service of the EU VAP referred to in Article 7h of Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 if the Member State processing their visa application decided not to avail itself of the EU VAP.

1. A Member State may notify the Commission and eu-LISA that it wishes to avail itself of the EU VAP before the end of the transitional period referred to in paragraph 3.

The Commission shall determine the date from which that Member State shall avail itself of the EU VAP. The Commission decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

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

Article 8

Entry into force and application

1. This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

1. This Regulation shall apply from the date set by the Commission in accordance with Article 7(1).

1. By way of derogation from paragraph 2 of this Article, Article 1, points (1), (3), (15), (30), (34), (35) and (36) shall apply from 28 June 2024. Article 2, points (21) and (22) shall apply from 27 December 2023.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in the Member States in accordance with the Treaties.

Done at Strasbourg, 22 November 2023.

For the European Parliament

The President

R. Metsola

For the Council

The President

P. Navarro Ríos

Annex

ANNEX I

Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 is replaced by the following:

.

Annex

ANNEX I

Harmonised application form

Application for Schengen Visa

This application form is free

No logo is required for Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

Family members of EU, EEA or CH citizens or of UK nationals who are beneficiaries of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement shall not fill in fields No 21, 22, 30, 31 and 32 (marked with).

Fields 1–3 shall be filled in in accordance with the data in the travel document.

1. Surname (Family name):

For official use only

Date of application:

Application number:

1. Surname at birth (Former family name(s)):

1. First name(s) (Given name(s)):

1. Date of birth (day-month-year):

1. Place of birth:

1. Country of birth:

1. Current nationality:

Nationality at birth, if different:

Other nationalities:

Application lodged at:

☐

Embassy/consulate

☐

Service provider

☐

Commercial intermediary

1. Sex:

☐

Male

☐

Female

☐

Other

1. Civil status:

☐Single ☐ Married ☐ Registered Partnership ☐ Separated ☐ Divorced ☐ Widow(er) ☐ Other (please specify):

☐

Border (Name):

…

☐

Other:

1. Parental authority (in case of minors)/legal guardian (surname, first name, address, if different from applicant’s, telephone No, email address, and nationality):

File handled by:

1. National identity number, where applicable:

Supporting documents:

☐

Travel document

☐

Means of subsistence

☐

Invitation

1. Type of travel document:

☐Ordinary passport ☐ Diplomatic passport ☐ Service passport ☐ Official passport ☐ Special passport

☐Other travel document (please specify):

1. Number of travel document:

1. Date of issue:

1. Valid until:

1. Issued by (country):

☐

TMI

☐

Means of transport

☐

Other:

Visa decision:

☐

Refused

☐

Issued:

☐

A

☐

C

☐

LTV

☐

Valid:

From:

Until:

1. Personal data of the family member who is an EU, EEA or CH citizen or a UK national who is a beneficiary of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement, if applicable

Surname (Family name):First name(s) (Given name(s)):Date of birth (day-month-year):Nationality:Number of travel document or ID card:

1. Family relationship with an EU, EEA or CH citizen or a UK national who is a beneficiary of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement, if applicable:

☐spouse ☐ child ☐ grandchild ☐ dependent ascendant

☐registered partnership ☐ other:

1. Applicant’s home address and email address:

Telephone no.:

1. Residence in a country other than the country of current nationality:

☐

No

☐

Yes. Residence permit or equivalent … No. … Valid until…

Current occupation:

Number of entries:

☐1 ☐ 2 ☐ Multiple

Number of days:

Employer and employer’s address and telephone number. For students, name and address of educational establishment:

1. Purpose(s) of the journey:

☐Tourism ☐ Business ☐ Visiting family or friends ☐ Cultural ☐ Sports ☐ Official visit ☐ Medical reasons ☐ Study ☐ Airport transit ☐ Other (please specify):

1. Additional information on purpose of stay:

1. Member State of main destination (and other Member States of destination, if applicable):

1. Member State of first entry:

1. Number of entries requested:

☐Single entry ☐ Two entries ☐ Multiple entries

Intended date of arrival of the first intended stay in the Schengen area: Intended date of departure from the Schengen area after the first intended stay:

1. Fingerprints collected previously for the purpose of applying for a Schengen visa: ☐ No ☐ Yes.

Date, if known … Number of the visa, if known …

1. Entry permit for the final country of destination, where applicable:

Issued by … Valid from … until …

Surname and first name of the inviting person(s) in the Member State(s). If not applicable, name of hotel(s) or temporary accommodation(s) in the Member State(s):

Address and email address of inviting person(s)/hotel(s)/temporary accommodation(s):Telephone No:

Name and address of inviting company/organisation:

Surname, first name, address, telephone No, and email address of contact person in company/organisation:Telephone No of company/organisation:

Cost of travelling and living during the applicant’s stay is covered:

☐by the applicant

Means of support:

☐

Cash

☐

Traveller’s cheques

☐

Credit card

☐

Pre-paid accommodation

☐

Pre-paid transport

☐

Other (please specify):

☐

by a sponsor (host, company, organisation), please specify:

…☐

referred to in field 30 or 31

…☐

other (please specify):

Means of support:

☐

Cash

☐

Accommodation provided

☐

All expenses covered during the stay

☐

Pre-paid transport

☐

Other (please specify):

1. Surname and first name of the person filling in the application form, if different from the applicant:

Address and email address of the person filling in the application form:Telephone No:I am aware that the visa fee is not refunded if the visa is refused.

Applicable in case a multiple-entry visa is issued:

I am aware of the need to have adequate travel medical insurance for my first stay and any subsequent visits to the territory of Member States.

I am aware of and consent to the following: the collection of the data required by this application form and the taking of my photograph and, if applicable, the taking of fingerprints, are mandatory for the examination of the application; and any personal data concerning me which appear on the application form, as well as my fingerprints and my photograph will be supplied to the relevant authorities of the Member States and processed by those authorities, for the purposes of a decision on my application.

Such data as well as data concerning the decision taken on my application or a decision whether to annul, revoke or extend a visa issued will be entered into and stored in the Visa Information System (VIS) for a maximum period of five years, during which it will be accessible to the visa authorities and the authorities competent for carrying out checks on visas at external borders and within the Member States, immigration and asylum authorities in the Member States for the purposes of verifying whether the conditions for the legal entry into, stay and residence on the territory of the Member States are fulfilled, of identifying persons who do not or who no longer fulfil these conditions, of examining an asylum application and of determining responsibility for such examination. Under certain conditions the data will be also available to designated authorities of the Member States and to Europol for the purpose of the prevention, detection and investigation of terrorist offences and of other serious criminal offences. The authority of the Member State responsible for processing the data is: [(…)].

I am aware that I have the right to obtain, in any of the Member States, notification of the data relating to me recorded in the VIS and of the Member State which transmitted the data, and to request that data relating to me which are inaccurate be corrected and that data relating to me processed unlawfully be deleted. At my express request, the authority examining my application will inform me of the manner in which I may exercise my right to check the personal data concerning me and have them corrected or deleted, including the related remedies according to the national law of the Member State concerned. The national supervisory authority of that Member State [contact details: …] will hear claims concerning the protection of personal data.

I declare that to the best of my knowledge all particulars supplied by me are correct and complete. I am aware that any false statements will lead to my application being rejected or to the annulment of a visa already granted and may also render me liable to prosecution under the law of the Member State which deals with the application.

I undertake to leave the territory of the Member States before the expiry of the visa, if granted. I have been informed that possession of a visa is only one of the prerequisites for entry into the European territory of the Member States. The mere fact that a visa has been granted to me does not mean that I will be entitled to compensation if I fail to comply with the relevant provisions of Article 6(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/399 (Schengen Borders Code) and I am therefore refused entry. The prerequisites for entry will be checked again on entry into the European territory of the Member States.

Place and date:

Signature of applicant:

(signature of parental authority/legal guardian, if applicable):

Annex

ANNEX II

Annexes I and II to Regulation (EC) No 694/2003 are replaced by the following:

.

Annex

ANNEX I

DIGITAL FACILITATED TRANSIT DOCUMENT (FTD)

The digital FTD shall contain the following data fields:

issuing Member State;

surname, name;

surname at birth;

date of birth;

country and place of birth;

sex;

nationality;

nationality at birth;

type and number of travel document;

issuing authority of the travel document;

date of issue and of expiry of the travel document;

authority that issued the digital FTD, including its location, and whether that authority issued it on behalf of another Member State;

place and date of the decision to issue the digital FTD;

digital FTD number;

the territory in which the digital FTD holder is entitled to travel;

the commencement and expiry dates of the validity period of the digital FTD;

the number of entries authorised by the digital FTD in the territory for which the FTD is valid;

the duration of transit as authorised by the digital FTD;

remarks of the issuing authority to indicate any further information, which is considered necessary, provided that it complies with Article 5 of this Regulation;

the facial image of the digital FTD holder.

Annex

ANNEX II

DIGITAL FACILITATED RAIL TRANSIT DOCUMENT (FRTD)

The digital FRTD shall contain the following data fields:

issuing Member State;

surname, name;

surname at birth;

date of birth;

country and place of birth;

sex;

nationality;

nationality at birth;

type and number of travel document;

issuing authority of the travel document;

date of issue and of expiry of the travel document;

date and time of departure of train (first entry);

date and time of departure of train (second entry);

authority that issued the digital FRTD, including its location and whether that authority issued it on behalf of another Member State;

place and date of the decision to issue the digital FRTD;

digital FRTD number;

the territory in which the digital FRTD holder is entitled to travel;

the commencement and expiry dates of the validity period of the digital FRTD;

the duration of transit as authorised by the digital FRTD;

remarks of the issuing authority to indicate any further information, which is considered necessary, provided that it complies with Article 5 of this Regulation;

the facial image of the digital FRTD holder.