The European authorities, due to the situation, see it as unlikely that the Schengen visa exemption process for Ecuadorians will be resumed.
Referential image: Ecuadorians traveling, at the Quito airport, on December 23, 2022.
Although Foreign Minister Gustavo Manrique remains optimistic about Ecuador’s diplomatic efforts to obtain an exemption from the Schengen visa for the European Union, the outlook is not positive.
One of the biggest concerns of European countries remains unresolved: the high percentage of rejection of Ecuadorian applications for short-stay visas (less than 90 days).
As was in the forecasts of the European authorities, Ecuador closed 2022 with a rejection rate of 22%. One of the main factors is the presentation of false or dubious documents.
In addition, the problem of “processors” persists, which flood the systems for requesting visa appointments at the European consulates in Ecuador. It is, for the most part, the ‘agencies’ that charge to carry out these processes on behalf of Ecuadorians.
The Foreign Ministry has been working, together with European officials, to eliminate the problem of these intermediary agencies, which offer management of the Schengen visa. However, the problem persists and continues to grow since 2019.
In addition, Ecuador was collaterally affected by the corruption scandal involving officials of the European Parliament, who are being investigated for allegedly accepting bribes from Qatar to achieve exemption from the Schengen visa.
However, this brought the process to a standstill and given the European situation and the migratory problems they face, not only from North Africa and the Middle East, but also due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the authorities of the European Union find it difficult that it be resumed
This, mainly due to the number of Ecuadorians who want to travel to Europe, with the intention of not returning, and which is exemplified by the migratory problem that has been observed in recent years towards the United States.
For European officials in Ecuador, the collapse of the Ecuadorian passport issuance system is not a coincidence either . Beyond the delay in the procedures, during the confinement due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Civil Registry receives an unusual demand for passports.
