Regulation (EU) 2019/592 amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 listing the third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders

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Series Details L 103I
Publication Date 12/04/2019
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Summary:

Regulation of 10 April 2019 amending the list of third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders and those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement, following the United Kingdom's decision to withdraw from the European Union.

Further information:

As EU citizens, British citizens enjoy the fundamental right to move and reside freely within the European Union and the right to enter any other Member State without any entry visa or equivalent formality. The UK's decision to withdraw from the EU means the UK becomes a third country once this is made effective. Therefore, it became necessary to determine whether the nationals of the UK who are British citizens need to be subject to a visa requirement when crossing the external borders of the Member States, or whether they are exempt from that requirement.

The European Commission presented this proposed Regulation on 13 November 2018 as part of a Contingency Action Plan for a withdrawal without an agreement between the UK and the EU. The European Parliament's relevant committee approved a negotiating position on this draft law on 29 January 2019, backing an exemption of visa requirements for UK nationals entering the EU for short periods after the withdrawal provided there is reciprocity for EU citizens entering in the UK in the same conditions.

Ambassadors from Member States approved on 1 February their own general approach on behalf of the Council of the European Union, triggering a dispute over the wording concerning the status of Gibraltar. On 1 April, a British Member of the European Parliament (MEP) - Claude Moraes - lost his role as a leading negotiator on the proposal over a dispute over the draft text that referred to Gibraltar as a colony.

Related Links
Commentary and Analysis
Politico, 01/02/2019: EU’s Gibraltar ‘colony’ line boosts Spain https://www.politico.eu/article/spain-uk-brexit-gibraltar-colony-eu-line-boosts-spain/

News
BBC News, 01/02/2019: UK objects to description of Gibraltar as 'British colony' in EU law https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-47087439
The Guardian, 01/02/2019: Brexit: visa-free travel plans spark Gibraltar 'colony' row https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/01/gibraltar-colony-row-flares-as-eu-makes-travel-visa-free-for-britons
CNN, 01/02/2019: EU offers Britons visa-free travel for short trips, if UK reciprocates https://edition.cnn.com/2019/02/01/europe/visa-free-travel-brexit-gbr-intl/index.html
Politico, 01/02/2019: EU capitals agree to visa-free Schengen access for Brits https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-capitals-agree-to-visa-free-schengen-access-for-brits-post-brexit/
Euronews, 01/02/2019: EU announces visa-free travel for UK citizens - even with no deal https://www.euronews.com/2019/02/01/eu-announces-visa-free-travel-for-uk-citizens-going-to-schengen-area-even-with-no-deal
The Guardian, 01/04/2019: British MEP stripped of parliament role over Gibraltar 'colony' spat https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/01/british-mep-stripped-of-parliament-role-over-gibraltar-colony-spat-claude-moraes
El País, 02/04/2019: EU Parliament pushes out British negotiator over Gibraltar 'colony' dispute https://elpais.com/elpais/2019/04/02/inenglish/1554189331_930101.html
EurActiv, 02/04/2019: British MEP kicked out as rapporteur for Gibraltar visa waiver law https://www.euractiv.com/section/uk-europe/news/british-mep-kicked-out-as-rapporteur-for-gibraltar-visa-waiver-law/

Official
EUR-Lex: COM(2018)745: Proposal to amend Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 listing the third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2018:745:FIN
European Parliament: Legislative Observatory: Procedure File for Proposal regarding third countries whose nationals are subject to or exempt from a visa requirement, as regards the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil-mobile/fiche-procedure/2018/0390(COD)
European Parliament: Press Release, 29/01/2019: Visa-free access to the EU for UK nationals and to the UK for EU nationals http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20190129IPR24504/
Council of the European Union: Press Release, 01/02/2019: Visa free travel after Brexit: Council agrees negotiating mandate https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2019/02/01/visa-free-travel-after-brexit-council-agrees-negotiating-mandate/

ESO Records
Gibraltar in the context of Brexit negotiations https://www.europeansources.info/record/gibraltar-in-the-context-of-brexit-negotiations/

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