Annex COMMON GUIDELINES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND UKRAINE ON THE FACILITATION OF THE ISSUANCE OF VISAS

The purpose of the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas, which entered into force on 1 January 2008, as amended by the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine of 23 July 2012, which entered into force on 1 July 2013 (‘the Agreement’), is to facilitate, on the basis of reciprocity, the procedures for issuing visas for an intended stay of no more than 90 days per period of 180 days to the citizens of Ukraine.

The Agreement establishes, on the basis of reciprocity, legally binding rights and obligations for the purpose of simplifying the visa issuing procedures for Ukrainian citizens.

These Guidelines, adopted by the Joint Committee established by Article 12 of the Agreement (‘the Joint Committee’), aim at ensuring a correct and harmonised implementation of the provisions of the Agreement by the diplomatic missions and consular posts of the Member States. These Guidelines are not part of the Agreement and therefore they are not legally binding. However, it is highly recommended that diplomatic and consular staff consistently follow them when implementing the provisions of the Agreement.

These Guidelines are intended to be updated in light of experience of the implementation of the Agreement under the responsibility of the Joint Committee. The Guidelines adopted by the Joint Committee on 25 November 2009 have been adapted in line with the Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine amending the Agreement between the European Community and Ukraine on the facilitation of the issuance of visas (‘the amending Agreement’), and with new Union legislation such as Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council^f1 (‘the Visa Code’).