Category: News & Events

Visas, Immigration & Nationality

US Extends Visa Interview Waiver Authority Through 2024

The United States State Department will continue to exempt certain visa applicants from in-person interviews next year, extending the waiver authority that was set to expire on December 31, 2023. This policy, known as the visa interview waiver authority, permits consular officers to bypass in-person interviews for low-risk visa applications. Acting in conjunction with the…
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UK Tourists: Iceland Travel Warning

A huge volcanic eruption in Iceland has led the UK Foreign Office to issue a travel warning. In southwestern Iceland, the Fagradalsfjall volcano erupted, blasting a flash of light into the evening sky and flinging semi-molten rock into the air in a stunning display of the Earth’s strength in the land known for fire and…
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EU’s New Entry/Exit Scheme Finally Gets 2024 Launch Date

The European Union’s much-delayed Entry/Exit Scheme (EES) is due to start on 6 October 2024. The launch has been postponed multiple times as EU countries struggled to integrate their border systems with the central EES database. The new border system is an automated IT system for registering non-EU nationals travelling for a short stay, each…
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Bulgaria’s Schengen Bid Gets Dutch Approval

The Dutch government has submitted to the country’s parliament a decision to back Bulgaria’s accession to the Schengen passport-free travel area, the Dutch embassy in Romania said on 15 December. “Happy to announce that today the Dutch government informed the Parliament of its support for Schengen accession of Bulgaria,” the Dutch Embassy “The Netherlands already…
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Romania Nearing Visa-Free Travel to the US

Romania is on the brink of an important juncture in its foreign relations, with the possibility of joining the Visa Waiver Programme with the United States.  Recent negotiations and assurances from both the Romanian and US ambassadors indicate that Romanians may be able to travel to the US visa-free as early as 2025. According to…
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