Western Balkans one step away from becoming a passport-free zone after Kosovo approves ID-only travel Berlin deal
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- Relations between Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo have hampered the full implementation.
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TIRANA, Feb. 8, 2023 – Most citizens from the six Western Balkans states can already travel around the region using just their ID cards, but now Bosnia and Herzegovina is the last holdout after Kosovo’s government gave the green light to a regional agreement reached in Berlin in November 2003.
The deal also enables full regional visa-free movement of citizens of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo, which are the only two countries in the region to still apply visas to each other’s citizens.
Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the agreement was in the framework of the Berlin Process, and is part of a larger package deal on the recognition of higher education qualifications and on the recognition of the professional qualifications of doctors, dentists and architects.
Kurti said that the government will proceed with the decision to get approval in parliament.
“The rapid ratification is an indicator of our dedication and commitment to regional cooperation, good neighborly relations and advancement towards integration in the European Union,” Kurti said.
According to Kurti, with the entry into force of this agreement for the region, “after the ratification by the two respective countries, the citizens of Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina will move freely only with identity cards”.
The agreement has not yet been approved by the authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The visa regime has hindered the travel of citizens living in Kosovo, but who are of Bosnian origin. Bosnia and Herzegovina does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, and citizens of both countries must obtain a visa if they want to travel to the respective countries.
In 2014, Kosovo decided the reciprocal measure regarding the visa regime for the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
