CHAPTER IIENTRY AND USE OF DATA BY VISA AUTHORITIES

Article 8Procedures for entering data upon the application

1.

F1When the application is admissible according to Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No 810/2009, the visa authority shall create without delay the application file, by entering the data referred to in Article 9 in the VIS, as far as these data are required to be provided by the applicant.

2.

When creating the application file, the visa authority shall check in the VIS, in accordance with Article 15, whether a previous application of the individual applicant has been registered in the VIS by any of the Member States.

3.

If a previous application has been registered, the visa authority shall link each new application file to the previous application file on that applicant.

4.

If the applicant is travelling in a group or with his spouse and/or children, the visa authority shall create an application file for each applicant and link the application files of the persons travelling together.

5.

Where particular data are not required to be provided for legal reasons or factually cannot be provided, the specific data field(s) shall be marked as ‘not applicable’. In the case of fingerprints, the system shall for the purposes of Article 17 permit a distinction to be made between the cases where fingerprints are not required to be provided for legal reasons and the cases where they cannot be provided factually; after a period of four years this functionality shall expire unless it is confirmed by a Commission decision on the basis of the evaluation referred to in Article 50(4).

Article 9F1Data to be entered on application

The visa authority shall enter the following data in the application file:

  1. 1.

    the application number;

  2. 2.

    status information, indicating that a visa has been requested;

  3. 3.

    the authority with which the application has been lodged, including its location, and whether the application has been lodged with that authority representing another Member State;

  4. 4.

    the following data to be taken from the application form:

    1. (a)

      F2surname (family name); first name or names (given names); date of birth; sex;

    2. (aa)

      surname at birth (former surname(s)); place and country of birth; current nationality and nationality at birth;

    3. (b)

      the type and number of the travel document or documents and the three-letter code of the issuing country of the travel document or documents;

    4. (c)

      the date of expiry of the validity of the travel document or documents;

    5. (ca)

      the authority which issued the travel document and its date of issue;

    6. (d)

      place and date of the application;

    7. (e)

      F3. . . . .

    8. (f)

      details of the person issuing an invitation and/or liable to pay the applicant's subsistence costs during the stay, being:

      1. (i)

        in the case of a natural person, the surname and first name and address of the person;

      2. (ii)

        in the case of a company or other organisation, the name and address of the company/other organisation, surname and first name of the contact person in that company/organisation;

    9. (g)

      F1Member State(s) of destination and duration of the intended stay or transit;

    10. (h)

      F1main purpose(s) of the journey;

    11. (i)

      F1intended date of arrival in the Schengen area and intended date of departure from the Schengen area;

    12. (j)

      F1Member State of first entry;

    13. (k)

      F1the applicant’s home address;

    14. (l)

      current occupation and employer; for students: name of F1educational establishment;

    15. (m)

      in the case of minors, surname and first name(s) of the applicant's F1parental authority or legal guardian;

  5. 5.

    a photograph of the applicant, in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1683/95;

  6. 6.

    fingerprints of the applicant, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Common Consular Instructions.

Article 10Data to be added for a visa issued

1.

Where a decision has been taken to issue a visa, the visa authority that issued the visa shall add the following data to the application file:

(a)

status information indicating that the visa has been issued;

(b)

the authority that issued the visa, including its location, and whether that authority issued it on behalf of another Member State;

(c)

place and date of the decision to issue the visa;

(d)

the type of visa;

F4(da)

if applicable, the information indicating that the visa has been issued with limited territorial validity pursuant to Article 25(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 810/2009;

(e)

the number of the visa sticker;

(f)

the territory in which the visa holder is entitled to travel, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Common Consular Instructions;

(g)

the commencement and expiry dates of the validity period of the visa;

(h)

the number of entries authorised by the visa in the territory for which the visa is valid;

(i)

the duration of the stay as authorised by the visa;

(j)

if applicable, the information indicating that the visa has been issued on a separate sheet in accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 333/2002 of 18 February 2002 on a uniform format for forms for affixing the visa issued by Member States to persons holding travel documents not recognised by the Member State drawing up the form23 F1;

F5(k)

if applicable, the information indicating that the visa sticker has been filled in manually F6;

F4(l)

if applicable, the status of the person indicating that the third-country national is a member of the family of a Union citizen to whom Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council 24 applies or of a third-country national enjoying the right of free movement equivalent to that of Union citizens under an agreement between the Union and its Member States, on the one hand, and a third country, on the other.

2.

If an application is withdrawn or not pursued further by the applicant before a decision has been taken whether to issue a visa, the visa authority with which the application was lodged shall indicate that the application has been closed for these reasons and the date when the application was closed.

Article 11Data to be added where the examination of the application is discontinued

F1Where the visa authority representing another Member State discontinues the examination of the application, it shall add the following data to the application file:

  1. 1.

    status information indicating that the examination of the application has been discontinued;

  2. 2.

    the authority that discontinued the examination of the application, including its location;

  3. 3.

    place and date of the decision to discontinue the examination;

  4. 4.

    the Member State competent to examine the application.

Article 12Data to be added for a visa refusal

1.

Where a decision has been taken to refuse a visa, the visa authority which refused the visa shall add the following data to the application file:

F1(a)

status information indicating that the visa has been refused and whether that authority refused it on behalf of another Member State;

(b)

the authority that refused the visa, including its location;

(c)

place and date of the decision to refuse the visa.

F12.

The application file shall also indicate the ground(s) for refusal of the visa, which shall be one or more of the following:

(a)

the applicant:

  1. (i)

    presents a travel document which is false, counterfeit or forged;

  2. (ii)

    does not provide justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay;

  3. (iii)

    does not provide proof of sufficient means of subsistence, both for the duration of the intended stay and for the return to his country of origin or residence, or for the transit to a third country into which he is certain to be admitted, or is not in a position to acquire such means lawfully;

  4. (iv)

    F7has already stayed for 90 days during the current 180-day period on the territory of the Member States on the basis of a uniform visa or a visa with limited territorial validity;

  5. (v)

    is a person for whom an alert has been issued in the SIS for the purpose of refusing entry;

  6. (vi)

    is considered to be a threat to public policy, internal security or public health as defined in Article 2(19) of the Schengen Borders Code or to the international relations of any of the Member States, in particular where an alert has been issued in Member States’ national databases for the purpose of refusing entry on the same grounds;

  7. (vii)

    does not provide proof of holding adequate and valid travel medical insurance, where applicable;

(b)

the information submitted regarding the justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay was not reliable;

(c)

the applicant’s intention to leave the territory of the Member States before the expiry of the visa could not be ascertained;

(d)

sufficient proof that the applicant has not been in a position to apply for a visa in advance justifying application for a visa at the border was not provided.

F1Article 13Data to be added for a visa annulled or revoked

1.

Where a decision has been taken to annul or to revoke a visa, the visa authority that has taken the decision shall add the following data to the application file:

(a)

status information indicating that the visa has been annulled or revoked;

(b)

authority that annulled or revoked the visa, including its location;

(c)

place and date of the decision.

2.

The application file shall also indicate the ground(s) for annulment or revocation, which shall be:

(a)

one or more of the ground(s) listed in Article 12(2);

(b)

the request of the visa holder to revoke the visa.

F43.

Where a decision has been taken to annul or to revoke a visa, the visa authority that has taken the decision shall immediately retrieve and export from the VIS into the Entry/Exit System established by Regulation (EU) 2017/2226 of the European Parliament and of the Council 25 (EES) the data listed under Article 19(1) of that Regulation.

Article 14Data to be added for a visa extended

F11.

Where a decision has been taken to extend the period of validity and/or the duration of stay of an issued visa, the visa authority which extended the visa shall add the following data to the application file:

(a)

status information indicating that the visa has been extended;

(b)

the authority that extended the visa, including its location;

(c)

place and date of the decision;

F1(d)

the number of the visa sticker of the extended visa;

(e)

the commencement and expiry dates of the extended period;

(f)

period of the extension of the authorised duration of the stay;

F1(g)

the territory in which the visa holder is entitled to travel, if the territorial validity of the extended visa differs from that of the original visa;

(h)

the type of the visa extended.

2.

The application file shall also indicate the grounds for extending the visa, which shall be one or more of the following:

(a)

force majeure;

(b)

humanitarian reasons;

F3(c)

serious occupational reasons;

(d)

serious personal reasons.

F43.

The visa authority that has taken a decision to extend the period of validity, the duration of stay of an issued visa, or both, shall immediately retrieve and export from the VIS into the EES the data listed under Article 19(1) of Regulation (EU) 2017/2226.

Article 15Use of the VIS for examining applications

1.

The competent visa authority shall consult the VIS for the purposes of the examination of applications and the decisions relating to those applications, including the decision whether to annul, revoke, F1or extend the visa in accordance with the relevant provisions.

2.

For the purposes referred to in paragraph 1, the competent visa authority shall be given access to search with one or several of the following data:

(a)

the application number;

F6(b)

surname (family name), first name or names (given names); date of birth; nationality or nationalities; sex;

(c)

the type and number of the travel document; three letter code of the issuing country of the travel document; and the date of expiry of the validity of the travel document;

X1(d)

the surname, first name and address of the natural person or the name and address of the company/other organisation, referred to in point (4)(f) of Article 9;

(e)

fingerprints;

(f)

the number of the visa sticker and date of issue of any previous visa.

3.

If the search with one or several of the data listed in paragraph 2 indicates that data on the applicant are recorded in the VIS, the competent visa authority shall be given access to the application file(s) and the linked application file(s) pursuant to Article 8(3) and (4), solely for the purposes referred to in paragraph 1.

F44.

For the purposes of consulting the EES in order to examine and decide on visa applications in accordance with Article 24 of Regulation (EU) 2017/2226, the competent visa authority shall be given access to search the EES directly from the VIS with one or several of the data referred to in that Article.

5.

Where the search with the data referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article indicates that data on the third-country national are not recorded in the VIS or where there are doubts as to the identity of the third-country national, the competent visa authority shall have access to data for identification in accordance with Article 20.

Article 16Use of the VIS for consultation and requests for documents

1.

For the purposes of consultation between central visa authorities on applications according to Article 17(2) of the Schengen Convention, the consultation request and the responses thereto shall be transmitted in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article.

2.

The Member State which is responsible for examining the application shall transmit the consultation request with the application number to the VIS, indicating the Member State or the Member States to be consulted.

The VIS shall transmit the request to the Member State or the Member States indicated.

The Member State or the Member States consulted shall transmit their response to the VIS, which shall transmit that response to the Member State which initiated the request.

3.

The procedure set out in paragraph 2 may also apply to the transmission of information on the issue of visas with limited territorial validity and other messages related to consular cooperation as well as to the transmission of requests to the competent visa authority to forward copies of travel documents and other documents supporting the application and to the transmission of electronic copies of those documents. The competent visa authorities shall respond to the request without delay.

4.

The personal data transmitted pursuant to this Article shall be used solely for the consultation of central visa authorities and consular cooperation.

Article 17Use of data for reporting and statistics

The competent visa authorities shall have access to consult the following data, solely for the purposes of reporting and statistics without allowing the identification of individual applicants:

  1. 1.

    status information;

  2. 2.

    the competent visa authority, including its location;

  3. 3.

    current nationality of the applicant;

  4. 4.

    F1Member State of first entry;

  5. 5.

    date and place of the application or the decision concerning the visa;

  6. 6.

    F1the type of visa issued;

  7. 7.

    the type of the travel document;

  8. 8.

    the grounds indicated for any decision concerning the visa or visa application;

  9. 9.

    the competent visa authority, including its location, which refused the visa application and the date of the refusal;

  10. 10.

    the cases in which the same applicant applied for a visa from more than one visa authority, indicating these visa authorities, their location and the dates of refusals;

  11. 11.

    F1main purpose(s) of the journey;

  12. 12.

    X1the cases in which the data referred to in point (6) of Article 9 could factually not be provided, in accordance with the second sentence of Article 8(5);

  13. 13.

    the cases in which the data referred to in point (6) of Article 9 was not required to be provided for legal reasons, in accordance with the second sentence of Article 8 (5);

  14. 14.

    the cases in which a person who could factually not provide the data referred to in point (6) of Article 9 was refused a visa, in accordance with the second sentence of Article 8(5).