Europe will discuss requiring visas for Americans and Canadians
Whether or not tourists from the U.S. and Canada should have easy access to Europe will be up for debate next week.
The European Union's executive plans to discuss instituting mandatory visa requirements for American and Canadian visitors because the U.S. and Canada maintain similar restrictions on some EU nationals.
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More than 12.5 million Americans visited Europe in 2015, according to the State Department.
EU Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva said Friday the item will be on the Commission's agenda next week.
"Our goal remains full and reciprocal visa waiver with our strategic partners," Andreeva said.
On Wednesday, the European Commission announced plans to establish an "Entry-Exit System” to reinforce border checks for non-EU nationals traveling to the EU.
It is not uncommon for countries to base their visa requirements on other countries' treatment of their citizens.
Under the new system, non-EU citizens will be registered by name, type of travel document and biometrics, and the date and place of entry and exit. The EU commissions hopes it will tighten border crossings, detect over-stayers and identify undocumented people in the Schengen area.
The proposed Entry-Exit System will replace manual stamping of passports which the commission called "time consuming, does not provide reliable data on border crossings and does not allow the detection of over-stayers or address cases of loss or destruction of travelling documents."
Andreeva said EU rules require the Commission to propose reciprocal visa requirements for countries that don't allow EU nationals visa-free entry. The European Parliament and EU member states have the power to reject the Commission's proposal.
EU officials say the U.S. currently requires visas for travelers from Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland and Romania.
Canada requires visas for citizens of Bulgaria and Romania.
Additional reporting by the Associated Press.
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