European Parliament Commission approved the abolition of visas for Ukraine

On March 9, the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs approved a bill, according to which Ukraine is included in the list of countries whose citizens will not need a visa for short-term trips to the European Union.

39 committee members voted for the bill, four against, and one deputy abstained.Thus, in order to obtain a full-fledged visa-free regime with the EU countries, Ukraine has two steps left: on April 5, the bill will be considered at a meeting of the European Parliament, after which the approval of the EU Council will be required.However, according to experts, the likelihood that the bill will be adopted is very high, and the remaining stages can be considered rather a formality - the introduction of a visa-free regime with Ukraine does not raise objections from European states.For example, in February Jean-Claude Juncker, head of the European Commission, promised that the decision to abolish visas for Ukrainian citizens would be made before summer.

Recall that the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has repeatedly stated that he considers the introduction of a visa-free regime with the EU one of the main points of his election program.Negotiations have been going on for several years: initially it was expected that an agreement would be reached in the fall of 2016, but the approval of the bill took a little longer.A little earlier than Ukraine, Georgia managed to get a visa-free regime: the European Parliament has already approved the corresponding bill, which will come into force on March 28.

However, the innovations will affect only those who plan to visit the EU on a short-term visit - primarily for tourist purposes.You will still need a visa to obtain the right to work or long-term study at the university.If we talk about students, the new regime still greatly simplifies life: for example, Ukrainian students will be able to attend summer schools or engage in volunteer activities in the European Union without additional documents.Ukrainians will be able to stay on the territory of the EU countries and members of the Schengen Agreement for up to 90 days during each period of 180 days (in the case of a longer period, a visa is required).