Visa free travel to Schengen countries a real possibility

Travelling to many European nations is set to get easier as Georgia looks to enter the second phase of the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan (VLAP).

Today, Deputy Foreign Minister Tamar Beruchashvili said she believed Georgian citizens could soon travel visa-free to Schengen countries.

The Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the chief negotiator and coordinating body of the Visa Liberalization dialogue between the European Union (EU) and Georgia, hosted the EU Assessment Group in Georgia.

The EU Assessment Group will measure how Georgia planned to move forward and implement criteria of the VLAP.

If the Group evaluates the changes positively, Georgia will gain the chance to move into the second phase of visa dialogue this summer.

"As you know there are precedents for a visa-free regime with the European Union and Moldova has already received it. To get visa free travel with the EU is our task and our whole efforts are directed toward this,” Beruchashvili said.

"I strongly believe that soon we will see very serious benefits in this process and the citizens of Georgia will be able to travel visa free travel to Schengen zone countries.”

The Schengen area comprises of 26 countries that have abolished border control between their common borders. It functions as a single country for international travel purposes and encourages free movement of goods, information, money and people.

Georgia already has completed the first phase of the VLAP and looked to the European Commissioner Adviser’s assessment to move forward.

In order to achieve a visa free regime with the EU, Georgia needed to meet a number of criteria listed in the VLAP.