This Wednesday, the ambassadors of the Member States of the European Union have agreed on the Council’s negotiating mandate for visa-free travel for citizens holding Kosovo passports.

Based on this mandate, the presidency of the Council will start negotiations with the European Parliament.

“Today we have taken an important step towards the liberalization of visas for Kosovo and we hope to reach an agreement with the European Parliament to quickly make this promise a reality. Visa liberalization has been made possible by Kosovo’s efforts to strengthen its border, migration management and security, and we believe that this good cooperation will only grow in the future”, stated the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavsky.

The rules will allow citizens of Kosovo to travel visa-free to the EU for a period of 90 days in each 180-day cycle. According to the Council’s position, the exemption from the visa requirement will apply from the date of commencement of operation of the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) and in any case no later than 1 January 2024.

In the announcement of the Council for the liberalization of visas for Kosovo, it is stated that “Kosovo has made very important progress in all stations of conditions for visa liberalization, including the areas of document security, borders, migration, public order, and fundamental rights related with freedom of movement”.

Based on these results, the Commission had proposed the lifting of visas for citizens of Kosovo.

/A.S./