Algerians must apply the new Visa Information System to enter the Schengen zone-countries

Algerians wishing to travel to the fifteen European countries of the border-control free zone known as Schengen area can get the electronic biometric visa from Tuesday October 12.

Measures of the biometric electronic visa enter into effect in all embassies and consulates of the Schengen zone-countries adopted in Algeria. The process will be generalized to other consulates after it was only limited on the French and Italian consulates in Algeria, as an experimental stage.

In this regard, the Commissioner of Internal Affairs at the European Union, Cecilia Malmstrom, said that Schengen zone-countries chose the North African region as a step to the application of these procedures for electronic via, and the process will reach Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Libya and Mauritania, then it will be circulated later in the middle East, Gulf regions, Afghanistan and Iran.

According to these new procedures, Algerian applicants wishing to obtain a visa from the Schengen zone-countries must attend personally to the consulate or the office of visa for completing the biometric fingerprints (10 fingers), and the main features of the face . The process is called the Visa Information System, which linked the base data to 2500 consulates for the Schengen zone across the world.

 This procedure allows the new storage of personal data and biometric fingerprints for Algerian visa applicants in the information system, and therefore avoids renewal during the visa application in the future.

 The new system will also allow an easy identification of potential operations of fraud and forgery, and the police control at the borders and airports.

 The system can compare between the person holder of the passport and the information of the computer connected to a special center in the French city Strasburg.