eu-com-schengen-coop

EUROPEAN UNION
DELEGATION TO INDIA
1. Introduction
LOCAL SCHENGEN COOPERATION (LSC) in INDIA
2013-2014 REPORT 40
11 June 2014
As of mid-January 2014 all European Union Member States (EU MS) were accredited in New
Delhi, making India one of the four countries in the world where all EU MS are represented, after
US, Russia and China. All Schengen associated countries -except one- were also present. These 25
Schengen partners, [henceforth referred to as Member States (MS)] had a robust presence
encompassing almost 50 Embassies/High Commissions and Consulates General 41 , in the capital and
six other locations 42 , of which only 42 issued visas at the end of the reporting period throughout the
sub-continent.
At the end of the reporting period, if compared to the previous one;
1) two MS had started issuing visas (16 th September and 1 st October 2013 respectively);
2) two MS did not issue visas, availing themselves of country-wise representation agreements with
MS present locally 43 . One of them terminated its representation agreement at the end of the
reporting period (31.03.2014);
3) two MS had representations arrangements in one location (Goa), while several MS had modified
such arrangements.
Most MS cover several countries in India's immediate neighbourhood 44 , issuing for those nationals
Schengen (and/or national) visas, or have representation agreements in loco 45 .
The Indian sub-continent has the second widest Schengen external service provider (ESP) network
in the world, after Russia and before China. Avoiding disproportionate efforts to access visa
services remained the main concern of all twenty three MS issuing Schengen visas. Of these,
seventeen had so far outsourced visa-related ancillary/non-judgemental tasks. Sixteen to the same
ESP, one to a different provider. Six MS received visa applicants directly, but two of them planned
to outsource in the next future. Further MS diplomatic and consular network rationalisation 46
coupled with a predictable increase of visa applications and the future introduction of biometric
40 April 2013 - March 2014.
41 These numbers do not include the following missions: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Romania; UK and Ireland.
42 The widest (9 MS) Schengen Consular presence is in Mumbai, followed by: Kolkata (4 MS); Chennai and Bangalore
(3 MS); Pondicherry and Goa (1 MS).
43
The same applied to the unrepresented MS.
44 Bhutan, Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Though in the neighbourhood, the situation related to Burma is
not considered here.
45 By definition representation agreements for Schengen purposes do not include national visas processing, of EU
interest in relation to, for instance, students mobility linked with the EU-funded Erasmus Mundus programme.
46 For instance, as of June 2013 the Dutch Consulate General in Mumbai stopped issuing visas. The competences were
transferred to the Dutch Embassy in New Delhi.
12893/14 PR/lm 90
DG D 1 A
EN