Visa-Free Travel Between Kosovo and EU Commences

At the beginning of the year, residents of the partially recognized state of Kosovo gained the freedom to travel to European Union countries without the need for visas. On Monday, hundreds of Kosovars headed to Priština Airport to take advantage of this opportunity to fly to EU nations, as reported by Reuters.

Kosovo started working towards meeting nearly a hundred criteria required for a visa-free regime with the EU as early as 2012. Although the European Commission officially acknowledged the fulfilment of these criteria in 2018, the political decision on granting visa-free access was repeatedly delayed.

Resistance from France and the Netherlands, fearing potential new migration waves, and the stance of five other EU member states—Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Romania, and Slovakia—that did not recognize Kosovo's independence from Serbia were among the reasons for these delays.

Finally, in March 2023, the Council of the European Union made a positive decision regarding the implementation of a visa-free regime for Kosovo, which came into effect at the beginning of 2024. This regime allows passport holders issued by Kosovo to stay in EU countries for 90 days within a 180-day period without the need for a visa.

"I feel free now, like a bird when I can travel across Europe," said Habib Spahi, a resident of Priština, who, along with his son, embarked on a two-day trip to Vienna.

Kosovo became the last of the six Western Balkan countries to receive visa-free access to the EU. Serbia, Montenegro, and North Macedonia obtained this right in 2009, while Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina did so in 2010.

Before the EU lifted the visa requirement for Kosovo, passport holders could travel without a visa to only 14 countries worldwide. The country declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, but Belgrade still considers it part of its territory.

The Gaze reported earlier that the leaders of France, Germany, and Italy urged Serbia to recognize the de facto independence of Kosovo. In particular, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated that it was time for their Balkan neighbours to fulfil their previous commitments.

Their statement came amid international concerns that former wartime adversaries might return to open conflict following a series of violent incidents in 2023.