Schengen: Checklist given to Denmark
01 January 1995
Denmark has been given a checklist of criteria it must meet in order to join the Schengen Agreement. In order to obtain "observer" status (a stage prior to entry) Denmark was given an extensive list of questions to answer by the Schengen countries. In almost every answer the Danish government meets these criteria or indicates its willingness to do so. The main questions are presented below.
The Schengen Agreement covers nine of the 15 EU states - Germany, France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Greece. Denmark and Austria currently have observer status with a view to full membership, and Sweden has indicated its interest in joining too. The Schengen Agreement is significant because it is to come into full operation at the end of March and includes many features which have yet to be agreed let alone effected across the EU as a whole. It covers police cooperation, legal cooperation, immigration, asylum and visa policies and external border controls. Internal border controls between the participating countries are to be abolished. A computer database, the Schengen Information System (SIS), covering policing and immigration will go online.
When it comes into operation the countries outside the Agreement - the UK, Ireland, Finland and Sweden - will not only face entry controls but will also be excluded from the Schengen Information System (SIS).
The criteria
1. Abolition of checks at internal borders: "Is Denmark prepared to fully abolish all checks at internal frontiers for EU as well as third country nationals and is Denmark prepared to take the necessary measures to ensure free traffic?" Answer: in the affirmative on both points. 2. Checks at external borders - frontier surveillance: Is Denmark prepared to conduct checks at external borders in line with the Schengen Agreement? Answer: Yes, providing agreement can be reached which is compatible with the Nordic Passport Control Agreement (this was before the Norwegian referendum rejecting membership of the EU). As a result of intensified "spot checks" started in February 1994 the "flow of persons who, using Denmark as a transit country, attempting to enter Germany from either Norway of Sweden" seems "to have [been] practically eliminated". Denmark does not conduct "exit controls" but is prepared to introduce them. 3. Airports: How long will it take Denmark to comply with external controls at airports? Answer: for the main international airport in Copenhagen it will take five years; in the meantime there will be temporary arrangements. Figures are given for the source of arrivals at Copenhagen airport: Schengen countries 3.6 million (28%); Domestic flights 2.3 million (18%); UK & Ireland 1 million (8%); Norway and Sweden 3.1 million (25%); Other countries 2.7 million (21%). 4. Computerised police information system and data protection legislation: What computerised databases are there, can they be accessed at external frontiers, what data protection legislation is in place? Answer: Denmark has a computerised database, accessible to frontier control points, covering police and aliens, including the following registers: National Criminal Records, Passports Register, Central Motor Vehicle Register, Central Fingerprint Register, Special Drugs Investigations Register and the Aliens Register. 5. Narcotic drugs: What agreements has Denmark signed, what laws on money-laundering does it have? Answer: Denmark meets all the Schengen criteria. 6. Visas: A number of questions are put relating to "the cardinal point being the fight against illegal immigration". Answer: Denmark agrees with the list of visa countries with the exception of Thailand because of "commercial considerations and traditionally close political connections". Denmark is prepared to introduce the uniform Schengen visa. In 1992 64% of the 19,189 visa applications were agreed. There is a joint Danish-Nordic list of people not permitted to enter. 7.Taking back (readmission): Asks