This matter comes at a moment when European cohesion – and its borderless travel zone – is under some stress. Austria has just introduced a “border management plan” at the Brenner pass, and spot checks are occurring at or near frontiers throughout Europe.
The European Commission adopted a political Communication on the state of play and way forward as regards the situation of non-reciprocity with certain third countries in the area of visa policy. As the US requires visas from citizens of Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland and Romania, the Commission is obliged to pursue a reciprocal regime on US citizens entering Europe. As of the 12th of April, it has duly asked the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament to consider suspending the Schengen visa waivers for visitors from the US, as well as Canada.
This has occurred almost automatically. The Commission has to regard the rights of EU citizens as equal, and the selection of some member states for visa requirements is regarded as anathema. So 24 months ago it issued a formal notice to the US State department asking for a reconsideration of their position with regards to the five member states, and that notice period has now expired, so they had to forward the issue onto the Council and Parliament.
This matter comes at a moment when European cohesion – and its borderless travel zone – is under some stress. Austria has just introduced a “border management plan” at the Brenner pass, and spot checks are occurring at or near frontiers throughout Europe.
“Whilst we have every sympathy with the Commission, they are victims of their own process. It is important that the European economy does not become a victim too. The business of accommodating US and Canadian visitors is an enormously important industry for Europe. We effectively sell them services worth approximately 50 billion euros: it is an export industry on the same level as the automotive sector. Millions of jobs are dependent on it.”
Nothing on this scale has been threatened before, so it is difficult to make estimates. But when a visa regime is imposed we would expect leisure travel (which, including visiting friends and relatives) makes up over 80% of this total, to suffer a fall in magnitude of roughly 30%.
Mario Bodini, Chairman of ETOA, said “There should be reciprocity, but is not a 15 billion euros and 600,000 jobs problem. And reciprocity is a principal widely ignored in visa circles: Europeans enjoy far more freedom to travel around the world than the world enjoys coming to Europe.
Mercifully both the Council and the European Parliament have to take into consideration the economic impact and the practicalities of any move. And the practicalities are overwhelming. Even if the numbers were to drop, it would leave the main Schengen entry countries with a 10 million visa processing task. That alone should sink this idea.”
Tom Jenkins, CEO of ETOA added, “The US and Canada are two of our most important and longstanding origin markets. At a time of difficulty for the tourism industry in Europe, this does not project the necessary welcome.”
GBTA warns against EU suspension of Visa Waiver Agreement with United States and Canada
Michael W. McCormick, executive director and COO of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), said: “GBTA strongly discourages European policy makers from considering a suspension of its visa waiver agreement with the United States and Canada. The agreement facilitates travel, spurring job creation and economic growth and is a vital tool for promoting international trade. A suspension would have a negative impact on business travel, which accounted for an estimated $1.2 trillion dollars in global spending last year.
A suspension would also create a backlog of visa applications for travel to Europe, decrease international travel and create a lasting, negative impact on EU relations with the United States and Canada. In a time where the global economy already faces many uncertainties, this move could deal a devastating blow to further economic growth.”
In a Communication released today, the European Commission acknowledges that a suspension of the visa waiver agreement would adversely affect trans-Atlantic cooperation at a time when it is more important than ever to step up our common efforts. It also points out the subsequent decrease in the number of travelers from Canada and the United States, which would lead to a considerable economic loss for the EU.
ETC urges the European Parliament and the Council to consider the impact of change of visa regime on US and Canada citizens entering Europe
The European Travel Commission has been following with increasing concern the developments in the visa waiver reciprocity mechanism applied by the European Commission towards the citizens of the United States and Canada. In order to preserve the smooth bilateral relations and the huge positive impact of US and Canadian travellers on the European economy, ETC appeals to the EU authorities to follow the requirements of Regulation No1289/2013 and take into account the political, economic and administrative consequences of the suspension of the visa waiver with US and Canada.
Currently, the travellers from US and Canada account for the largest percentage of all extra-European arrivals. In 2015, travel from the US to Europe boomed, aided by a strong economy and a strong US dollar. Both emerging and mature European destinations have seen visits from the US and Canada grow, with arrivals from the two markets reaching 30.3 million tourists. The US visitors alone spent more than $38 million during their stay. Introducing visa restrictions for US and Canadian citizens would inevitably lead to a steep decrease in these numbers, leaving thousands of jobs in Europe at stake.
ETC urges the European Parliament and the Council to do their utmost to resolve the situation as soon as possible, in any case not allowing for the visa waiver for Canadian and US citizens to be put on hold. The ultimate solution pursued should be full visa reciprocity, therefore we call for the US and Canadian authorities to cooperate and ensure a balanced and fair outcome. “At times when European tourism is already suffering the consequences of the tragic events in France and Belgium, we saw travellers from North America resilient in their plans to come to Europe. It would be extremely inconsiderate to close our doors to them and renounce billions of export revenue” said Eduardo Santander, Executive Director of the European Travel Commission.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
