The electronic passports needed for Peruvians to visit the Schengen countries will be available in Lima and nationwide no later than by October this year, the National Migration Authority's President, Edgard Reymundo, said on Tuesday.
During his remarks at a press conference, the government official stated that whether the firm or the country in charge to design and produce the valid biometric passport is expected to be announced in July.
The reported e-passport will allow the entry to the Schengen area and European Union (EU) nations following the entry into force of the visa-free regime which is valid strictly for short-term trips up to 90 days.
Furthermore, the public entity has proposed a long-term production contract from "government to government" to guarantee the transparency of the issuance process considering other countries display high technical expertise regarding this matter.
"Countries such as France, Spain, South Korea and Canada have expressed interest; nevertheless, the Foreign Affair Ministry will be the entity in charge to extend the invitations for taking part of the biding," Reymundo said.
The e-passport introduces a new design with additional security features, including a chip containing the holder’s facial biometric. The chip is protected by a number of security mechanisms which are described in a number of international standards and EU regulations.
The Schengen member states and EU countries where a Peruvian can travel visa free are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Check Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Island, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Rumania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.
(END) LBH/ART/LOG
Published: 3/4/2014