PURPOSE: To remove visa derogations for Romanian nationals.
CONTENT: Council Regulation No 539/2001 is a list of all third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the EU's external borders. Also listed in the Regulation are those nations whose nationals are exempt from that requirement.
Romania is listed in Annex II of the Regulation thus exempting it from any visa requirements. However, there is an asterix attached to Romania's entry in the Annex which effectively means that the application of a visa derogation to Romanian nationals is to be decided by the Council at a later stage. The Commission is obliged to offer a report on the visa situation with Romania plus a list of recommendations.
Following just such an evaluation the Commission recommends an amendment to Regulation 539/2001/EC allowing the derogation from visa requirements for Romanian nationals to take effect as from 1 January 2002. This corresponds to Parliamentary wishes as well as confirming the Commission's line in its initial proposal for a Regulation.�