Division 2.2.3 Holders of diplomatic and service passports

Article 8 of the Agreement reads:

‘1.

Citizens of Cape Verde or of the Member States who are holders of valid diplomatic or service passports can enter, leave and transit through the territories of the Member States or of Cape Verde without visas.

2.

The citizens referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article may stay in the territories of the Member States or of Cape Verde for a period not exceeding 90 days per period of 180 days.’.

The procedures regarding posting of diplomats in the Member States are not covered by the Agreement. The usual accreditation procedure applies.

In a Joint Declaration annexed to the Agreement the Parties agreed that any of them may invoke a partial suspension of the Agreement, in particular Article 8 thereof, if its implementation leads to abuse by the other Party or to a threat to public security. The partial suspension of the Agreement must be conducted in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 12(5) thereof.

If the implementation of Article 8 is suspended, the two Parties will initiate consultations in the framework of the Joint Committee with a view to solving the problems that led to the suspension.

As a priority, both Parties agreed to undertake to ensure a high level of security for diplomatic and service passports, in particular by integrating biometric identifiers. For the Union, this will be ensured in accordance with the requirements set out in Council Regulation (EC) No 2252/2004^f1.