Laws, Regulations & Policy Commission Approves Visa Validation at E. Aegean Island Ports by GTP editing team 16 March 2017 written by GTP editing team 16 March 2017 1 comment Share 0FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail 24 Symi Island port. Copyright: leoks / Shutterstock The European Commission has agreed to the extension by one year of a visa facilitation pilot program that allows non-European Union citizens from Turkish ports to visit select Greek islands in the Eastern Aegean without a visa from a Greek consulate. European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos announced the decision at a meeting with Eastern Aegean island mayors on Tuesday in Brussels. “Once again we discussed the importance of the European Commission’s support for the future development of the islands, for tourism, for local communities and the economy,’’ Avramopoulos said after the meeting. The Commission’s approval comes after South Aegean Governor George Hatzimarkos sent a letter in January to Avramopoulos requesting it re-examine its negative response last month. The visa facilitation pilot program issues tourist visas to travelers coming from Turkey to the border entry points of the islands of the Eastern Aegean (Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Kos, Rhodes, Symi, Kastelorizo). Follow GTP Headlines on Google News to keep up to date with all the latest on tourism and travel in Greece. Share 0 FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail GTP editing team This is the team byline for GTP. The copyrights for these articles are owned by GTP. They may not be redistributed without the permission of the owner. previous post Greece Says ‘Independent’ Parthenon Marbles Story ‘Inaccurate’ next post Athens Hotels: 2016 Tourism Season was ‘Marginally Positive’ You may also like Greece’s Hotel Market Sees Major Investments Over Four Months 5 February 2025 Greek Tourism Ministry Monitors Santorini Situation as Seismic Activity Continues 5 February 2025 Global Air Passenger Demand Reaches Record High in 2024, IATA Reports 5 February 2025 Greek PM Reassures Public About Santorini’s Ongoing Seismic Activity 5 February 2025 Milos: Ministry Suspends 5-star Hotel Construction Near Sarakiniko Beach 5 February 2025 ELIME and HELMEPA Join Forces for Safer, More Sustainable Greek Ports 5 February 2025 1 comment Gerald Brown 20 March 2017 - 16:51 Then the question has to be: If these Turkish travellers try to move off those East Aegean islands to other parts of Greece, how tight is the security at embarkation point to stop them? Are passengers boarding ferries having their IDs thoroughly checked against databases? Reply Leave a Reply to Gerald Brown Cancel Reply Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ
