EU to allow visa-free travel for nationals of 19 third countries

EU said nationals from 16 small island nations in the Caribbean and Pacific regions, the United Arab Emirates, Peru and Colombia will be able to come to the Schengen area without a visa. "This will open up opportunities and advantages also for EU citizens, as any existing visa requirement for EU citizens to travel to these countries will be eliminated," said Cecilia Malmstrom, Commissioner for Home Affairs. "The solution found to include Peru and Colombia on the visa-free list is a good result, " said Malmstrom, "It strikes the right balance between the desire to offer visa-free travel to Peruvian and Colombian nationals and the need to avoid migratory risks and safeguard the security of the EU." Malmstrom said, the Commission is committed to prepare the necessary additional assessment for Peru and Colombia as soon as possible. In November 2012, the Commission proposed to add five Caribbean Island Nations (Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago), 10 Pacific Island Nations (Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu) and Timor-Leste to the list of third countries and territories whose nationals are exempt from the visa obligation. Certain categories of British citizens who are not nationals of the UK, in particular British overseas territories citizens, were also included in the visa-free proposal. When ratification procedures are completed in both the EU and the concerned third country, the visa waiver agreement will enter into force for citizens of that country, thus enabling visa-free travel. This could happen in 2015 at the earliest.