Five euros of tax for entrance to the European Union. This announcement for Brussels concerned citizens of the Balkan countries, especially Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The European Union also wants to introduce registration of all those who enter the territory of the Union. What is the goal of all these procedures?
The European Commission presented in Brussels a system of electronic registration for those who enter the territory of the EU – ETIAS. This system would include all tourists and businessmen who need only a valid passport, but not a visa, to enter the EU.
Their data will then be compared on border crossings with the existing databases of the EU: wanted circulars, arrest warrants, suspects of terrorism or offenses regarding the obtaining of visa.
If something suspicious comes up, alarms will automatically set off in control systems on border crossings or airports.
Around 1.800 border crossings and airports on the outer borders of the Schengen zone should be equipped with this system.
Connecting the various databases with the registry of those who enter the EU will take at least three years and cost around 220 million EUR.
This measure will affect around 30 to 40 million people who enter or leave the European Union annually. They will have to register online. The system is similar to the American “ESTA” or Australian “ETA” system.
Registration costs five euros and is valid for five years, while tax for entrance to the USA costs 14 USD and is valid for two years.
“ETIAS is basically the visa’s little brother,” said one official in Brussels.
Many citizens of the Balkan countries can travel without visas, so now they will be introduced to a sort of “light-visa”, primarily to prevent the stay longer than three months.
The EU hopes that they will increase the safety on borders with the new electronic registry.
(Source: akta.ba)
