The European Commission on 27th April proposed to lift visa requirements for Kuwait and Qatar nationals.
As per the proposal, Qataris and Kuwaitis holding biometric passports will no longer require a visa when travelling to the European Union for a short stay of up to 90 days in any 180-day period for family purposes or business tourism.
Following an initial assessment, the Commission concluded that both Qatar and Kuwait reflect low irregular migration risk and show an increased cooperation on security issues with the European Union.
The biometric passports are a pre-condition for visa-free travel to European Union, and have undergone reforms in human rights. Both Kuwait and Qatar are also important economic partners for European Union in the area of energy.
The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union will examine the proposal and decide whether to grant visa-free travel to the European Union.
Visa-free travel to the EU for Kuwaitis and Qataris will begin once the visa waiver deals get effective. Taking into account the complexities of EU legislative procedures, it is difficult to estimate the duration of the process.
