Place and Meaning of the Visa Liberalization Process and Further Emigration from the Western Balkans

Kostić, Marina and Proroković, Dušan (2019) Place and Meaning of the Visa Liberalization Process and Further Emigration from the Western Balkans. In: Visa-Free Regime: International And Moldovan Experience. Moldova State University, Chișinău, pp. 48-64. ISBN 978-9975-149-70-9

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Abstract

The European Union Stabilization and Association Process (SAP), the accession process, regional cooperation and visa-free travel to Schengen area are four instruments of the gradual process of integration of the Western Balkans (WB) countries into the EU. The European Union put in the perspective the visa liberalization of the short term visa for the citizens of all Western Balkan countries at the EU-Western Balkans Summit held in Thessaloniki in 2003, and has confirmed it for several times since then by the Council’s conclusions. Although the process of Eurointegration had a positive impact on some of the economic indicators of the Western Balkan countries, this did not stop the outflow of population. Visa-free travel may have to do with this, but it may not be. In general, the movement of the inhabitants of the Western Balkan countries towards the Western European countries is facilitated, as is their employment within the EU, and the new trend that is noticed is the increased emigration of the population with higher education.

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