Starting 2021, Georgian border police will decide who can enter the Schengen area
By Natalia Kochiashvili
Thursday, December 31
From January 1 on, the Georgian border police will decide who to can travel to the Schengen area - a new law will be enacted at the Georgian border checkpoints, according to which the Georgian Border Police will check a citizen with several criteria before flying to the Schengen area, and if any of them is violated, they will not be able to cross the Georgian border.
The person allowed in the Shengen zone should have: no history of being banned from entering the Schengen area, a valid biometric passport with more than 3 months left before the expiration date, a the ticket or booking required to leave the Schengen area, a hotel / accommodation booking or the consent of the host family (including residential address), a health insurance document valid in the Schengen area and the document proving the finances required for the trip.
The adoption of this law became necessary after Germany and Sweden openly stated that the tendency of Georgians to use the visa-free regime in bad faith is remarkable. The two countries even talked about suspending visa-free travel with Georgia.
The EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzel visited the Tbilisi Airport on December 30, two days before the law enters into force. He got acquainted with the new process of inspection and what Georgian citizens, wishing to travel to Schengen countries, should know about this.
According to him, this is not a new restriction, because Georgian citizens underwent a similar procedure after arriving in the Schengen countries.
"The law ensures the smooth functioning of visa-free travel between the EU and Georgia," Hartzel said. According to him, the European Union is working with the relevant agencies of Georgia to conduct border inspections as smoothly as possible, under international standards and regulation.
The EU Ambassador considers Georgia's decision to check citizens at Georgian airports before flying to Schengen countries as crucial:
"Visa-free travel is one of the most visible successes in Georgia-EU relations and it is therefore very important to prevent the misuse of visa-free travel and ensure that this regime operates as efficiently as possible."
According to him, this is not a new restriction, because Georgian citizens underwent a similar procedure after arriving in the Schengen countries.
Hartzel also recalled some challenges in the implementation of the visa-free regime and emphasised that to solve the problems, Georgia and the Parliament of Georgia have made an important decision to adopt a law on pre-departure inspection.
