Information for citizens traveling to European Union countries
On may 8, 2020, in order to contain COVID-19 and the spread of the coronavirus, the European Commission demanded that the countries participating in the Schengen agreement and countries associated with the Schengen agreement extend temporary entry restrictions until June 30, 2020 for all non-urgent travel to the European Union.
Temporary travel restrictions do not apply to citizens of all EU member States and associated Schengen countries returning to their place of residence. These exceptions continue to be applied to:
- all EU citizens and citizens from associated countries of the Schengen agreement and members of their families,
- third-country nationals who have a long-term residence permit as defined by the EU long-term stay Directive, as well as persons whose right to stay is based on other EU directives or national legislation, or who have a German national long-term stay visa.
Temporary travel restrictions also still do not apply to persons who perform important functions or whose travel is absolutely necessary, including:
- medical professionals, persons engaged in research activities in the field of medicine and medical staff for the care of the elderly;
- persons living in the border area and working in the territory of a neighboring state;
- personnel in the field of freight transport, as well as other transport personnel, if necessary;
- diplomats, employees of international organizations, military personnel, humanitarian organizations, if the entry is for official purposes,
- transit passenger,
- passengers entering due to significant family circumstances,
- persons in need of international protection or protection for other humanitarian reasons.
The final decision on whether an exceptional case occurs is made by the German border authorities when crossing the border.
For this reason, the diplomatic missions of the Federal Republic of Germany in Kazakhstan will not accept applications for Schengen visas at the moment until June 30, 2020. In exceptional cases, representative offices will accept applications provided that the applicants are individuals from the specified groups.
From June 16, 2020 The Embassy and Consulate General resumed accepting applications for a national visa. First of all, the Embassy and Consulate General accept applications from persons who belong to the above-mentioned exclusive categories of persons.
In addition, applications are received from persons who do not fall under these exceptional categories, but would like to enter for the purpose of family reunification, work or study. In these cases, the visa will be issued only after the ban on entry is lifted.