Engineer Waleed bin Abdul Karim Al Khuraji, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, and Dimitri Giotakos, Head of the Visa Policy Section of the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission, met to discuss several issues, like making Saudi entry to Schengen Nations easier.
A meeting attended by Ambassador Tamim Al-Dosari, Deputy Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs, Ambassador Saad Al-Arifi, Head of Saudi Arabia’s Mission to the European Union, and Ambassador Patrick Simonet of the European Union to the Kingdom, discussed on ways to how to make it easier for Saudi citizens to enter Schengen nations without first acquiring a visa.
The meeting was presided over by Dimitri Giotakos, Director General of Home Affairs at the European Commission for the EU, and by Ambassador Tamim Al-Dosari, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Consular Affairs for Saudi Arabia. Although no precise date has been announced for the visa exemption collaboration to be agreed upon or implemented, both sides’ authorities intend to finalize such an agreement shortly.
Agenda of the meeting
The two parties examined bilateral ties between Saudi Arabia and the EU and how to further develop them. They also talked about innovative approaches to make it easier for Saudi citizens to enter nations in the Schengen zone without a visa. In order to further the shared interests of the Kingdom and the EU countries, they also emphasized their intention to intensify collaboration.
Last month, the diplomat emphasized that “the European Union is working in parallel with a system to exempt all citizens of the Gulf countries from visas” in a daily statement to the Asharq Al-Awsat. The European announcements came roughly a month after British authorities said they would make it simpler for Saudi Arabian citizens to obtain visas 24 hours before traveling digitally. Also, the governments of Europe and Saudi Arabia are always working to make travel easier for their residents.
The Background
According to earlier statements by Saudi Arabian authorities, anyone with a Schengen visa is eligible to perform Umrah without first needing a Saudi Arabian visa. The decision was made shortly after Saudi Arabian authorities declared they would resume granting visas on arrival to anyone who already has a Schengen visa.
Due to these new regulations, everyone who has a Schengen visa is qualified to get a tourist visa upon entering Saudi Arabia. A Schengen visa-free policy has been established over time by agreements between the Schengen area and nations outside of the Schengen area.
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However, Saudi Arabia and the Schengen nations have not yet passed any visa-free agreement; the Saudi entry to Schengen Nations is not possible as of now. This implies that a Saudi national with a passport needs a Schengen visa to enter the Schengen area. Travel to the region is permitted for 90 days during 180 days with a Schengen visa.
