№68 Humanitarian Visas: Option or obligation?
№68 Humanitarian Visas: Option or obligation?

Author(s): Ulla Iben Jensen
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Politics, Law, Constitution, Jurisprudence, Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment, EU-Legislation
Published by: CEPS Centre for European Policy Studies
Keywords: Humanitarian Visas; EU-wide legal channels; EU territory; Common European Asylum System;
Summary/Abstract: Third-country nationals seeking protection have no EU-wide legal channels at present for entering EU territory and triggering protection mechanisms under the Common European Asylum System. As a result, many embark on hazardous journeys, with concomitant risks and loss of human life. The absence of ‘protection-sensitive’ mechanisms for accessing EU territory, along with EU external and extraterritorial border and migration management and control, undermine Member States' refugeeand human rights obligations. Humanitarian visas may offer a remedy in this regard by enabling third-country nationals to apply in situ for entry to EU territory on humanitarian grounds or becauseof international obligations. This study asks whether the existing Visa Code actually obliges Member States to issue humanitarian visas.

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