ETIAS Visa Waiver for Travelers from Macao

Macanese people are now part of the 60 ETIAS countries who must get an ETIAS visa waiver before they may travel to the EU for short-term periods of less than 90 days.

The ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System) visa waiver has been prepared for its launch in 2023. ETIAS gives a carrot of access rights, and a stick of travel restrictions, all of which are detailed below.

Before the ETIAS visa waiver, citizens of nations like Macao could enter the EU easily for short-term travel. The EU simply did not have the capacity to screen everybody. The world is simply too dangerous to have such a generous entrance policy.

The use of AI technology by border control agencies will allow for the cross-reference of all Macanese data with Interpol databases and refuse ETIAS visa waivers to any Macaoan they feel might be a threat to the safety of the Schengen area. The planned regulations for the treatment of criminal convictions has recently changed. Flags for criminal convictions are now set to be removed from the system after 15 years, and flags for terrorism convictions will be removed after 25 years.

The ETIAS visa waiver will complicate how Macanese can enter the EU, but it shouldn’t fundamentally alter their ability to enter the area. The US’s visa waiver system has had a 95% acceptance rate and there is no indication that ETIAS will be any different.

Tracking incoming Macanese will also make it easier for the EU to identify travellers who pose a public health risk. This will be crucial for the EU’s tackling of future pandemics.

All short-term travellers from Macao to the Schengen area. Short-term is actually fairly long, with a 90 day time period being taken as the maximum. Longer stays are considered residencies and Macanese must arrange a standard visa and residency permit instead.

Most Macanese will need to pay a 7euro application fee, but the very old and minors will not have to pay an application fee.

We have already mentioned the strict limits on the ETIAS visa which travellers into Europe must follow closely to avoid getting in trouble with immigration authorities.

The ETIAS visa has no authority outside of the Schengen area, which not all of Europe is a part of. Nations like Russia and the UK have immigration policies totally independent of the EU, and Macanese must arrange the necessary documentation with these nations separately if they mean to visit them.

The ETIAS visa waiver process will see scores of successful applications, but sadly, also many rejections. The 5% of Macanese who have their application outright rejected, and who are unable to make successful appeals, will have to look at alternative means to travel to the Schengen area legally. Although they are unlikely to be successful if the EU has defined them as a threat, obtaining a standard visa from their destination nation will be their best chance of obtaining the legal right to travel to the EU.

When the Macanese citizens apply for ETIAS visa will get the right to visit all the nations listed below.

This list includes all the nations that an ETIAS visa waiver will grant Macanese access to. There are 26 such nations, including all those inside the Schengen area, both in and out of the EU, and the micro-states with a defacto Schengen status.

The documentation included in the ETIAS requirements is simple. They include the Macaoan applicant's passport, credit card, and proof of address.

There are more detailed questions that Macanese must answer in their application than the basic personal information that is to be expected. The following questions are designed to protect the health, wellbeing, and safety of residents of the EU. These questions will have a huge impact on if the Macanese application is accepted.

A refusal is not necessarily an outright refusal. Citizens of Macao still have the chance to prove that they should be allowed into the EU. Macanese people whose application is rejected, can reopen their application by supplying the EU with any requested further documentation or information within 96 hours. After this, the receiving nations according to the Macanese travel itinerary will have four weeks to make a decision.