European Parliament approves visa-free travel for Ukrainians

The European Parliament voted on April 6 to approve visa-free travel for Ukrainian citizens for a period of 90 days in every 180-day interval. After likely approval by the EU Council, visa-free travel is expected to take effect on June 12, as reported by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Zenon Zawada: This achievement is anticlimactic as Ukrainian President Poroshenko promised visa-free travel would be approved by fall 2016. It was also widely expected after the European Parliament voted in February to grant Georgians. Nonetheless, the vote was welcomed by Ukrainians, who had to provide time-consuming paperwork and sometimes maneuver through bureaucratic labyrinths to travel to the European Union. Visa-free travel will improve the ability of Ukrainians to trade with EU countries.

The visa-free regime serves as a valuable release of tension that had built up in the country among a disgruntled populace, particularly young professionals frustrated with the lack of reforms. Rather than protesting the government or joining the war effort, we expect thousands of young professionals to take advantage of the travel to create new economic opportunities for themselves.