BLS International Limited Services will continue to process visa applications for Spain, as on Monday, the Spanish Council of Ministers has given the green light to an agreement which justifies a previous emergency deal between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation and BLS for extending the contract between the two sides in February.
The contract signed between Spain and the BLS in December 2016 has expired at the beginning of this year, and in order to continue the smooth processing of visa applications, the Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation has approved a resolution to award BLS with another contract for visa processing.
As a result, two special appeals have been filed against said award before the Central Administrative Court of Contractual Appeals (TACRC), due to which the award agreement with BLS has been suspended on February 25, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
However, the Council of Ministers has agreed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has taken the right decision by awarding BLS with the duty of processing visa applications for Spain.
According to them, failing to establish the contract with BLS at the time would represent a “risk of collapse of consular services as of January 25, by having to assume a high number of visa applications (including all appointments already established by BLS) without having the necessary material and personal means to do so.”
The Council also points out that since Spain processes a high volume of Schengen visa applications, and is the second Schengen country with the highest number of such visas processed, not establishing the contract would have left thousands of applicants unable to have their visas processed within reasonable time limits.
This would also violate procedures deadlines, appearance and resolution of requests and optional appeals for reinstatement, set by the Schengen Visa Code, which all Member States are obliged to apply and respect.
During the meeting held on March 20, the Council has also noted that failing to issue visas on time would harm the Spanish tourism industry, and its image.
Spain is indeed the second most favorite country for filing a Schengen visa for, just after France. Schengen Visa Statistics for 2021 show that the Spanish embassies, consulates, and visa processing centers worldwide have received 483,469 applications, 377,440 of which have received a positive response, while another 15.5 per cent have been rejected.
The total number of Schengen visa applications lodged worldwide in the same year was 2,926,104, which is quite low compared to the 16 million applications of 2019, before the outbreak of the pandemic.
The procedures for getting a Schengen Visa for Spain are the same as for every other Schengen Area country. The applicant needs to make an appointment, and collect several documents, including here complete the visa application form, purchase health insurance worth €30,000, and present proof of sufficient financial means for the planned stay in Spain.
In addition, every applicant should pay a fee of €80, expect for those from countries with which Spain has an agreement in place for a reduced visa fee, as well as certain categories, like Erasmus students for short term exchanges.
"processing" - Google News
March 20, 2023 at 02:00PM
https://ift.tt/gMm3yv0
Spain Extends Collaboration with BLS Company for Processing Schengen Visa Applications - SchengenVisaInfo.com - SchengenVisaInfo.com
"processing" - Google News
https://ift.tt/OVJrRvq
https://ift.tt/t21UMwA
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Spain Extends Collaboration with BLS Company for Processing Schengen Visa Applications - SchengenVisaInfo.com - SchengenVisaInfo.com"
Post a Comment