EU to scrap visa requirements for BiH later this year

The citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) will be granted visa-free access to the European Union’s member countries later this year, Mondo news agency said on Tuesday.

EU members have reached an agreement to scrap visa obligations for the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The bloc is expected to boost its presence in BiH, as the office of the special representative will become a delegation of the European Commission, Slovenian Foreign Minister Samuel Zbogar said.

Zbogar made the remarks after Monday’s meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels. He added that the proposal for lifting travel restrictions will be submitted to the European Commission on September 2nd.

The proposal follows last year’s Council Decision exempting from the short-term visa obligation the citizens of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

It will be now up to the European Parliament and to the Council of the European Union to take a final decision on the Commission proposal. If the motion wins an approval, the travel restrictions could be lifted on December 19 or January 1 at latest.