Kazakhstan and EU move toward visa facilitation agreement
Kazakhstan has completed expert-level negotiations with the European Union on draft agreements for visa facilitation and readmission, Qazinform News Agency reports reffering to an official spokesperson of the Kazakh Foreign Ministry, Yerlan Zhetybayev.
He said consultations on draft agreements on the facilitation of visa requirements for nationals of Kazakhstan and readmission came to an end.
Both sides have now moved to internal procedures before signing.
For Kazakhstan, this means domestic approval processes; for the EU, procedures must be carried out across the entire Schengen area.
Signing will take place once all formalities are complete.
One of the agreements provides for reduced consular fees for Kazakh citizens, issuance of multiple-entry visas and shorter processing times for visa applications.
Further details will be announced after the agreements are signed.
Earlier, Qazinform reported that following the talks in Brussels, Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, European Council President António Costa, and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen adopted a joint statement.
