Irked by Canada’s decision to re-impose visa requirements for Czech nationals, the European Commission has given Canada until the end of 2009 to reverse the decision, or the commission will recommend that Ottawa’s diplomats and service passport holders will have to apply for visas to enter the EU.
 
Canada requires visa applications from only three EU states – Bulgaria, Romania and since July 14 2009, the Czech Republic.
 
This was the first time that a non-EU state re-imposed a visa requirement for citizens of an EU member state.
 
"This highly regrettable situation should be brought to an end as soon as possible," the EC said in a report on October 20 2009.
 
The EC said that it "welcomes the willingness of all sides to engage in a dialogue" and encouraged Canada and the Czech Republic to continue their consultations in the framework of a Canada-Czech Republic Experts Working Group to address all issues in relation to the re-imposition of the visa requirement.
 
The Commission acknowledged that Canada provides several visa process facilitations to Czech citizens in the Czech Republic, but urged Canada to return to the previous situation regarding issuing visas for Czech citizens by reinstating visa issuing facilities in the Czech Republic.
 
"The Commission calls upon Canada to set out clearly a path of measures it intends to take to lift the visa requirement for Czech citizens in the near future."
 
The EC said that unless these measures were established "in a satisfactory manner" by the end of 2009, the commission would recommend imposing or re-imposing a visa requirement for "certain categories of Canadian citizens; e.g. holders of diplomatic and service passports".
 
When it announced the visa decision in July, Citizenship and Immigration Canada said that since the visa requirement was lifted on the Czech Republic in October 2007, nearly 3000 refugee claims had been filed by Czech nationals, compared with less than five in 2006.
 
"The Czech Republic is now the second top source country for refugee claims," the statement said.
 
"The relatively higher acceptance rate of refugee claims originating in the Czech Republic masks the troubling fact that more than half of the claims are abandoned or withdrawn before a final decision is made by the Immigration and Refugee Board, indicating that many claimants may not be genuine refugees," according to the statement.

The statement quoted Canada’s citizenship, immigration and multiculturalism minister Jason Kenney as saying that "in addition to creating significant delays and spiralling new costs in our refugee program, the sheer volume of these claims is undermining our ability to help people fleeing real persecution.

"All too often, people who really need Canada’s protection find themselves in a long line, waiting for months and sometimes years to have their claims heard. This is unacceptable.  

"The visa requirement I am announcing will give us a greater ability to manage the flow of people into Canada and verify bona fides. By taking this important step towards reducing the burden on our refugee system, we will be better equipped to process genuine refugee claims faster."

"The visa process will allow us to assess who is coming to Canada as a legitimate visitor and who might be trying to use the refugee system to jump the immigration queue," Kenney said.

"It is not fair for those who have been waiting patiently to come to Canada, sometimes for years, when others succeed in bypassing our immigration system."

Canada regularly reviews its visa policies toward other countries, the statement said.

"Countries are aware that if they do not satisfy the conditions of a visa-exemption, a visa may be imposed."

The change means that nationals from the Czech Republic who want to travel to Canada first need to apply for a Temporary Resident Visa and meet the requirements to receive one.

It is up to the applicant to satisfy the visa officer their visit to Canada is temporary, they will not overstay their approved time in Canada, they have enough money to cover their stay in Canada, they are in good health, they do not have a criminal record, and are not a security risk to Canadians.

"These requirements are the same for anyone who wants to visit Canada," the statement said.

Applicants from the Czech Republic now have to submit their applications to the Canadian visa office in Vienna, Austria which serves nationals from several other European countries.

"Canada has strong ties with the Czech Republic," Kenney said. "We continue to welcome all genuine travellers to Canada from this country."
 
Earlier in 2009, Canada stirred controversy when it gave refugee status to a South African who alleged that he was the target of racial discrimination in post-apartheid South Africa. The case is being reviewed.