After March 1st, 2007 Embassies of Belgium, Netherlands and partially of Germany introduced new practice of receiving and processing visa applications in Ukraine with the participation of Visa Facilitation Service (VFS) Company. This intermediary company started its operation in Kyiv by establishing the so-called “Visa Centers” as intermediaries between consular establishments and applicants and providing information and primary processing of visa documents.
Appearance of VFS Company on the Ukrainian visa service market provoked numerous questions on behalf of civil society concerning the founders and owners of the company, its business reputation and reasons for acquiring exclusive intermediary rights between Ukrainian citizens and EU Member States.
There is not much information about this intermediary company. It was registered in India and is part of Kuoni Travel Group Company, whose headquarters are located in Zurich. The VFS Company was founded in 2001 in Mumbai (India) as a company specializing on services for diplomatic missions in the world. The company demonstrated its activities mostly in two countries – Ghana and Russia, by providing services on visa application processing.
The very fact concerning intermediary services raises no concerns while there are questions concerning the grounds for company activities.
Firstly, as we know there was no tender procedure for such services in Ukraine. The growing market of visa services of EU Member States equals to the amount of no less than 60-70 billions of Euro annually (taking into account only the consular fees). Considering the size of this market VFS Company received access to its substantial part without any transparent procedures. There is a perspective of VFS competence extension if other EU Member States follow the transition to intermediary services.
Secondly, this company is a monopolist and thus it may administer prices in the given service sphere.
Regardless such warnings, the company continues to conquer the market: since November 2007 similar practice is applied by Consulates of Spain and Italy, and Consulate of Great Britain applies similar services since July 2007.
Thus, as of August 2008 the following "Visa Centers" operate in Kyiv:
1. Visa Center of Embassies of Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium, located at the address: Frunze Str., 60
2. Visa Center additionally providing services for Consulate of Italy, located at the address: Fedorova Str., 1
3. Visa Center of Great Britain located at the address: Iryninska Str., 5
Introduction of these innovations was followed by declarations concerning the efficiency of such new type of visa services in the form of the so-called outsourcing. Outsourcing means delegation of certain visa service functions to the competence of a certain alien company. According to representatives of diplomatic establishments intermediary company had to ensure the solution of such vital problems as visa queues and lack of required visa application documents; increase the efficiency of primary document processing at the initial stage of visa application procedure; and in such a way to lower the visa refusal risk.
For example, official representatives of the consulates stated that transfer of a part of visa applications competence is aimed at improving and facilitating visa procedure for the citizens of Ukraine. Announcements about introduction of new outsource services stated that applicants will enjoy "fast and first rate service" as well as (in some cases) the possibility to receive visas over the next working day after the documents were submitted to the Visa Center. Generally the services were supposed to receive positive feedback from applicants awaiting the possibility to receive visas over a short period of time (even for an extra fee) and avoid the necessity to wait in queues in front of the consular establishments.
The problems mentioned above were attested and CPCFPU researches confirmed these problems as well. The applicants complained about long queues and uncomfortable waiting conditions for documents submission and visa decision. However, these problems were not defined by Ukrainian applicants as the biggest obstacles. Official representatives of the Embassies did not take into account such vital problems as lack of unified visa requirements among EU Member States, non-transparency of visa refusals, requests for personal (private) documents, long and undefined period for visa processing, etc. The changes projected were superficial as by modifying the initial stage of visa application procedure diplomatic missions did not intend to introduce the changes which are of greatest importance for their clients, applicants from Ukraine.
Speaking about judicial terms of activities of "Visa Centers" official EU representatives referred to Common Consular Instructions that include Chapter VIII "Consular Cooperation on the Local Level", Paragraph 5.1 "Types of Intermediaries" stating the possibility for consular establishments to address private administrative agencies providing client assistance by presenting original and additional documents on behalf of the client.
By justifying legislative grounds for intermediaries representatives of Embassies referred to examples of VFS cooperation with 46 Embassies of EU Member States in 18 countries in the world, including diplomatic missions of Belgium, the Netherlands and Great Britain to Moscow. In particular, opening of 11 Visa Centers in Russia in 2006 was mentioned. As a result, citizens of Russia enjoyed the opportunity to fill in the applications on-line and thus efficiency of document checks was increased. As a result the necessity for interviews in the embassies was removed. The main outcome laid in the fact that visa refusal rate decreased. However VFS activities in Russia were criticized because of the monopolization of tourist market.
VFS started the formation of its Visa Centers in Russia in cooperation with Russian tour operator "Star Travel" and as a result joint "Interlink" Company was founded. In such a way a system of double intermediaries was introduced. On the one hand it gave the possibility for certain categories of citizens to avoid difficult trips to the distant capital but on the other hand it meant the monopolization of the given service market. Russian Union of Tour Industry reacted to such situation by addressing Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia with the request to change the situation of the given market monopolization.
Clients of Visa Centers in different countries continuously turned attention to the level of VFS responsibility, in particular the responsibility in terms of preserving original documents in Visa Center offices and ensuring confidential information in the documents required by EU Member Consulates. For example, in April 2006 VFS Visa Center together with British High Commission responsible for issuing British visas in India did not ensure personal data protection of people who filled in visa applications via Internet. Personal information was made available for anyone visiting VFS Company web site. As it turned out not only tourists from India but also all VFS clients applying since 2001 were not protected.
The problem of judicial grounds for operation of Visa Centers was raised in Ukraine as well. In 2007 Speaker of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Mr. Andriy Deshchytsya informed about MFA addresses to the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Finances, Antimonopoly Committee, and Security Service of Ukraine with a request to analyze VFS operation in the sphere of visa services for Ukrainian citizens, and company monopoly state in particular, in compliance with Ukrainian legislature.
The answer to the question concerning VFS responsibility in Ukraine is listed in general information on Visa Center activities clearly stating that RNT Company set as a service partner by VFS (in case of the Embassy of Italy in Kyiv) is responsible for receiving relevant documents from the citizens, transfer of documents to the Embassy and back to the applicant. Company owners emphasize that they take all preventive measures while processing documents of the applicants but "RNT Company is not hold responsible for any documents lost during the transfer, stolen or damaged as a result of force majeure circumstances or any other circumstances not controlled by RNT or created against company’s will". Representatives of Visa Centers limit their own responsibility in terms of courier document delivery offered to the applicants for an extra fee. All announcements about specifics of Visa Center operation mention that "RNT Company is not in control and does not intrude into the wok of courier companies".
The idea of Visa Centers introduction working concurrently with consular establishments of numerous EU Member States is not new. Propositions concerning unified requirements and procedures were presented earlier. For example, in 2006 intentions to create "Unified Visa Centers" were stated by European Commissioner Franco Frattini during the meeting of ministers on judicial and internal affairs of European Union in Luxembourg. Visa Centers were supposed to take over the functions of data collection, check and issuance of entry permits (including biometric data, in particular fingerprints) on EU territory. Such changes were planned in order to save the money for EU Member States and raise the security level on the one hand and facilitate the procedure of receiving visas for EU applicants on the other hand.
As the majority of EU Consulates is located in Kyiv, introduction of this innovation could solve the problem of big distances on condition that Visa Centers are opened in the regions. As of now this is not the case.
Thus Visa Centers in Ukraine realized only a part of the constructive idea of "Unified Visa Centers" offered by Frattini and supported by independent experts.
By defining the content of Visa Center activity as a "service partner" Embassies of Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain preserved the right to request additional documents from the applicants justifying and stating the purpose of the visit; hold and interview in doubtful cases; and what is more important, to approve the decision concerning visa issuance or refusal.
Document processing fee is a touchy issue in the work of Visa Centers. Fee for the visa services provided by centers for processing visa applications from Ukrainian citizens were defined in the following way: application reception and processing costs 170 UAH (~24 Euro), bank services and queue registration – 40 UAH (~6 Euro). Citizens should additionally pay consular fee of 35 Euro. Besides, Ukrainian citizens pay for translation of documents, their certification, insurance, etc. Thus Schengen visa cost considerably increased.
Agreement on the Facilitation of Visa Issuance between Ukraine and EU entered into force on January 1st, 2008. According to Paragraph 1 of Article 6 fee for processing visa applications for Ukrainian citizens shall amount to 35 Euro and some categories of the citizens defined in this Agreement are exempted from visa fees. However, due to mandatory intermediary services actual visa fee equals to 60-65 Euros. Such considerable difference between real practice and international obligations was not unnoticed.
Ukrainian party (both state officials and NGO representatives) repeatedly pointed out the contradictions between the Agreement provisions concerning maximum fee for visa processing procedure and the practice of mandatory intermediary services.
European Union representatives share different views on this issue. European Commission representative Emma Udwin stated that increase of visa fee for Ukrainians caused by intermediary services of VFS is not in compliance with the spirit of the Agreement on Visa Regime Facilitation between EU and Ukraine. In March 2007 answering the question of UNIAN journalists concerning the decision of Belgium and the Netherlands to cooperate with international VFS Company she emphasized: "You should separate legal provisions and the spirit of the Agreement. Their activities do not contradict with the content of the Agreement, however we believe that increase of fees contradicts with the idea and spirit of the Agreement. Thus speaking about visa fees, actual increase of fee amounting to 60 Euro should be reviewed in terms of the Agreement spirit aimed at elimination of visa fee raise for Ukraine. That is why we do not support such fees".
Governments of those EU Member States that apply intermediary practices have different opinions in this regard. Their opinion was decisive as visa issuance process is in the competence of internal policy of EU Member States. Member States applying the outsource practice stated that applicants have the choice whether to apply to Visa Centers or directly to the Consular establishments.
Taking into account the facts mentioned above numerous questions have aroused: whether the applicants have the declared choice; whether the service in Visa Centers is efficient; whether the procedure is comfortable and understandable; whether visas are issued faster than during the regular procedure in the Consulates. All these questions need thorough investigation and research with regard to their high social significance.
In order to define the service efficiency level provided by Visa Centers and to evaluate the changes and innovations introduced by certain Consulates with the support of European Program of IRF CPCFPU conducted monitoring of Visa Centers’ activities presented in the next chapter.
