EU slaps tougher visa regime on Ethiopia
- In Reports
- 10:45 PM, Apr 29, 2024
- Myind Staff
On Monday, the EU announced it is now imposing a tougher visa process on Ethiopia because of the African country's "insufficient" cooperation in taking back rejected asylum-seekers and irregular migrants.
Due to the recent move, Ethiopians will no longer be able to obtain multiple-entry visas, diplomats will now need to pay for visas, and they will no longer have flexibility in the type of evidence they give to meet requirements for visits to the EU.
The processing time for standard EU visas for Ethiopians was also extended to 45 days, from the current 15 days.
The stricter rules are part of the European Union's carrot-and-stick approach to managing irregular immigration.
This month, the bloc has approved changes to its asylum and migration regulations, set to take effect in 2026. The reforms are geared towards tightening border procedures and hastening the repatriation of irregular migrants who are not eligible for asylum.
In parallel, Brussels is using its trade heft and desire for EU visas as leverage to get reluctant outside countries to take back rejected irregular migrants.
The EU has already imposed similar tougher visa processes on Gambia.
The recent action taken against Ethiopia comes in response to an assessment by the European Commission, that "cooperation by Ethiopia in the field of readmission of its nationals illegally staying in the EU is insufficient," the Council of the EU, representing EU member countries, said in a statement.
"There is a lack of response from the Ethiopian authorities with regard to readmission requests and difficulties persist with the issuance of emergency travel documents and with the organisation of both voluntary and non-voluntary return operations," it said.
It said that, while the tougher visa conditions were "temporary", Brussels would continue to assess Ethiopia's cooperation on this issue.
The Council of the EU has emphasised that the application of EU visa regulations to countries depends on the level of cooperation from those countries in repatriating migrants.
Last September, it noted that Ethiopia accepted back just 10 percent of its nationals flagged for return in 2020 and 2021.
Image source: Times of India
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