President Aliyev approves readmission agreement
By Nigar Orujova
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev approved an agreement between Azerbaijan and the European Union on the readmission of people residing illegally in the EU area on June 30.
The agreement was undersigned in Brussels on February 28, 2014.
The visa facilitation agreement and the agreement 'On the Readmission of People Residing without Authorization in EU countries' between Azerbaijan and the EU will enter into force in September.
Azerbaijan and the EU signed the visa facilitation agreement as part of the EU summit in Vilnius in November 2013. Azerbaijan also signed the readmission agreement with the EU earlier this year.
The Azerbaijani parliament has already ratified both agreements.
Under a new rule, a decision on issuing visa will be made within 10 days, and two days or less in case of emergency.
The application cost will drop to €35 for Azerbaijani citizens, and the list of required documents will be reduced for certain categories of the population, including relatives and members of official delegations, students, teachers, businessmen, scientists, and journalists.
The visa facilitation and readmission agreements are parts of the EU Eastern Partnership program aimed at the closer cooperation of the EU with six former Soviet republics - Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine.