ETIAS Visa Waiver For Travelers From Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda is set to be one of the launch members for the EU’s new ETIAS visa, for travel, business, and tourism in the Schengen area. The visa is an all-encompassing document allowing travel to the whole of the Schengen area for 90 days. The new visa will come into use from 2023, until then Antigua and Barbudans will have to go through the usual procedures to visit the EU.

The ETIAS visa waiver has been brought in in response to heightened terrorist threats, aiming to monitor and screen more accurately the individuals coming into the EU. The ETIAS visa will be used by Antigua and Barbudans to prove that they are a low-risk traveller.

Antigua and Barbudans will not need an ETIAS visa to visit all parts of the EU. For EU nations not in the Schengen agreement or the EU, no ETIAS visa is needed. Similarly, for EU states that are not part of the Schengen agreement, such as Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, and, Croatia.

Antigua and Barbudans will still have to work with border control to visit the nations; the borders are by no means open. Antigua and Barbudans should speak to their local embassy or consulate of the nation they want to visit, to learn what visa is needed for these nations.

The ETIAS visa will give Antigua and Barbudan citizens access to most of the EU and non-EU nations easily. It will allow Antigua and Barbudans to travel to the 22 Schengen states (Sweden, Finland, Austria, Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Denmark, Lithuania, Malta, Slovenia, Italy, Greece, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic), under one electronic document.

ETIAS will also give Antigua and Barbudans access to defacto Schengen micro-states, and the non-EU Schengen members.

The micro-states in question are the wealthy nations of Monaco and San Marino, and the Catholic state of Vatican City. The Schengen states who are not in the EU are Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland.

The visa will be valid for Antigua and Barbudans to use for three years, and it will allow them to travel into the Schengen area for a maximum of 90 days.

It is not hard for Antigua and Barbudan citizens to obtain their ETIAS visa. It shouldn’t take long at all to get documentation together and to fill out the online forms. The fact that only a passport is required initially will save Antigua and Barbudans a huge amount of time.

The questions on the online form are not difficult to answer either. They are mainly just basic personal information, like the applicant’s full name, address, date of birth and birthplace, and parents’ information. Some of the questions are more serious than this, like questions on terrorism affiliation, involvement in human trafficking, travel to areas of conflict, illegal drug intake, past employment, and any previous travel in Europe.

ETIAS applications are expected to have an astonishingly high success rate at 95%. They will also be quick even though many will have to be received manually by administrative workers. Most will take just one working day, although if more documentation is needed to back up claims made, it could take three working days.

Lots of reasons could cause Antigua and Barbudan citizens to have their ETIAS visa application denied or revoked. Antigua and Barbudans must make sure that they do not falsify any information as this will automatically fail their application. Even if all the information they provide is correct, Antigua and Barbudans may still have their application denied. These include concerns about why the person is travelling, and most importantly that they are a risk to European citizens while travelling.

All is not lost if an Antigua and Barbudan has their ETIAS application rejected. They have options available. Most of the time, issues can be sorted with more documentation. Refused Antigua and Barbudans will have 96 hours to find requested documentation, and then the receiving nation has the power to decide whether to approve the visa. Getting a decision back could take as long as four weeks.

There are no exclusions for the ETIAS visa. All Antigua and Barbudan citizens will need one to travel to the Schengen area. This includes minors and elderly people over 70. However, there is no application fee for these groups. When arranging their ETIAS visa, Antigua and Barbudan citizens will need to arrange one separately for each person travelling with them.