Legal provisions of COM(2009)91 - Amendment of the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement and Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 as regards movement of persons with a long-stay visa

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dossier COM(2009)91 - Amendment of the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement and Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 as regards movement of ...
document COM(2009)91 EN
date March 25, 2010

Contents

Article 1

The Schengen Convention is amended as follows:

(1)Article 18 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 18

1. Visas for stays exceeding three months (long-stay visas) shall be national visas issued by one of the Member States in accordance with its national law or Union law. Such visas shall be issued in the uniform format for visas as set out in Council Regulation (EC) No 1683/95 (18) with the heading specifying the type of visa with the letter “D”. They shall be filled out in accordance with the relevant provisions of Annex VII to Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code) (19).

2. Long-stay visas shall have a period of validity of no more than one year. If a Member State allows an alien to stay for more than one year, the long-stay visa shall be replaced before the expiry of its period of validity by a residence permit.

(2)Article 21 is amended as follows:

(a)paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

‘1.   Aliens who hold valid residence permits issued by one of the Member States may, on the basis of that permit and a valid travel document, move freely for up to three months in any six-month period within the territories of the other Member States, provided that they fulfil the entry conditions referred to in Article 5(1)(a), (c) and (e) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 establishing a Community Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code) (20) and are not on the national list of alerts of the Member State concerned.

(b)the following paragraph is inserted after paragraph 2:

‘2a.   The right of free movement laid down in paragraph 1 shall also apply to aliens who hold a valid long-stay visa issued by one of the Member States as provided for in Article 18.’.

(3)Article 25 is amended as follows:

(a)paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

‘1.   Where a Member State considers issuing a residence permit, it shall systematically carry out a search in the Schengen Information System. Where a Member State considers issuing a residence permit to an alien for whom an alert has been issued for the purposes of refusing entry, it shall first consult the Member State issuing the alert and shall take account of its interests; the residence permit shall be issued for substantive reasons only, notably on humanitarian grounds or by reason of international commitments.

Where a residence permit is issued, the Member State issuing the alert shall withdraw the alert but may put the alien concerned on its national list of alerts.’;

(b)the following paragraph is inserted after paragraph 1:

‘1a.   Prior to issuing an alert for the purposes of refusing entry within the meaning of Article 96, the Member States shall check their national records of long-stay visas or residence permits issued.’;

(c)the following paragraph is added:

‘3.   Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall apply also to long-stay visas.’.

Article 2

Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 is amended as follows:

(1)paragraph 1(b) is replaced by the following:

‘(b)they are in possession of a valid visa, if required pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 listing the third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders and those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement (21), except where they hold a valid residence permit or a valid long-stay visa.

(2)paragraph 4(a) is replaced by the following:

‘(a)third-country nationals who do not fulfil all the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 but who hold a residence permit, a long-stay visa or a re-entry visa issued by one of the Member States or, where required, a residence permit or a long-stay visa and a re-entry visa, shall be authorised to enter the territories of the other Member States for transit purposes so that they may reach the territory of the Member State which issued the residence permit, long-stay visa or re-entry visa, unless their names are on the national list of alerts of the Member State whose external borders they are seeking to cross and the alert is accompanied by instructions to refuse entry or transit;’.

Article 3

This Regulation shall not affect the obligation for Member States to issue residence permits to third-country nationals as provided by other Union instruments.

Article 4

The Commission and the Member States shall inform the third-country nationals concerned fully and accurately of this Regulation.

Article 5

By 5 April 2012, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and the Council a report on the application of this Regulation. If appropriate, that report shall be accompanied by a proposal to amend this Regulation.

Article 6

This Regulation shall enter into force on 5 April 2010.

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