92001E1345

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1345/01

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(4 May 2001)

Subject: Transit through EU Member States by workers from third countries who are legally resident in Switzerland

These days approximately 365 000 Yugoslav and Turkish citizens live and work legally in Switzerland and hold the requisite papers.

Many of those immigrants return annually to their country of origin (at holiday times or for other reasons) and do so over land, which requires them to cross certain EU Member States such as Germany, Austria and Italy.

Under current regulations, such workers are required to apply for a visa from the embassy of each transit country. This involves making preparations well in advance (each visa takes between three and eight weeks to be issued), which makes it impossible for them to travel at short notice, imposes additional costs and causes working days to be lost.

In September of last year the Syndicat Industrie & Bâtiment sent a petition to the Commission requesting cancellation of the requirement that such citizens in transit who are legally resident in Switzerland must hold a visa on the grounds that, since they have a job and a home in Switzerland, the EU Member States are not at any risk. Furthermore, citizens of a third country who have been legally resident in the EU since August 2000 do not require a visa in order to cross Switzerland.

What action does the Commission intend to take in this area in order to facilitate the crossing of certain Member States by people who are passing through on the way to their country of origin?

Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission

(17 July 2001)

The Commission is aware of the situation referred to by the Honourable Member.

In law, all the Member States, which are bound by Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 listing the third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders and those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement(1), must make nationals of the third countries listed in Annex I subject to the visa requirement. Accordingly, nationals of those third countries who are legally resident in Switzerland must apply for a Schengen visa in order to transit via Member States. The Commission notes that none of the national derogations left to the discretion of the Member States under Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 allows for the exemption of foreign workers holding Swiss residence permits whose country of origin is listed in Annex 1 to the Regulation.

However, the Commission would point out that, where the individual situation of the persons referred to by the Honourable Member so warrants, Member States could issue multiple-entry Schengen visas which are valid for a longer period, thus making it easier for such persons to transit via Member States. This can be done without changing the current rules.

The Commission intends to look into the matter with the aim of weighing up all the institutional, legal and political aspects, with due account also to Switzerland's recent request to participate in Schengen.

(1) OJ L 81, 21.3.2001.