The European Union will do it for the sake of security. This is stated on the website of the EU Council.

According to the statement, adoption of regulation on a new design for visas is necessary to prevent their forgery. “The current visa sticker has been in circulation for over 20 years and has compromised itself by serious incidents involving counterfeiting and fraud”, the statement said.

It’s reported that the changes will not affect Ireland and the UK, but they will provided with necessary technical information at their request.

After approval of the regulation it will be placed in the Official Journal of the EU. The decision will come into force on the twentieth day after the publication. EU countries will have to introduce new visas no later than 15 months after the adoption of the changes.

In December 2016 it was reported that Russia is on the first place in the world in terms of the number of Schengen visas issued to the citizens. This figure exceeds three million documents a year.

In the fall of 2015 in Russia, the rules for issuing visas to the Schengen countries have changed. When processing entry documents, citizens older than 12 years are required to undergo a fingerprint procedure every five years.

The Schengen visa is now necessary for entry into 26 countries: Austria, Belgium, Hungary, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Iceland, Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Finland, France, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Sweden, and Estonia.

September 2017