Agreement with South Korea on Holiday Employment
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2010 Press release 09 September 2010 Ministry of Justice Agreement with South Korea on holiday employment Today Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy Tobias Billström and the Ambassador of South Korea in Stockholm signed an agreement making it easier for young adults from Sweden and South Korea to work temporarily in the other country. "Increased mobility is of great importance for Sweden. This agreement gives young people opportunities to get to know the culture and social life in one another's countries. I hope that this, in turn, will lead to more South Koreans seeing Sweden as a an attractive country to work in," says Mr Billström. Background The agreement targets young people aged between 18 and 30. Provided certain conditions are satisfied, a visa or temporary residence permit will be issued for a working holiday/incidental employment for up to one year. The conditions include the following requirements: applicants may not be accompanied by children; they must have a valid passport and a return ticket or enough money to buy such a ticket; and they must also have sufficient funds to pay for their maintenance in the other country. The agreement will enter into force on 1 November 2010. Sweden has previously entered into agreements on working holidays for young people from Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Contact Markus Friberg Press Secretary to Tobias Billström 2009 Press release 17 December 2009 Ministry of Justice Tobias Billström to take part in welcome ceremony for Serbian citizens Early on Saturday morning, 19 December, Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy Tobias Billström will take part in a ceremony at Brussels Airport to welcome 50 Serbian citizens. Accompanied by Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic, they are publicising the recently achieved visa-free access to the Schengen area by travelling to Brussels, Rome, Paris and Berlin. Time and place The ceremony will take place at Brussels Airport (Zaventem) at 02.30 on Saturday 19 December. "It is hard to overestimate the significance of the fact that, from 19 December onwards, citizens of Serbia, Montenegro and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia can travel to the Schengen area without a visa. This means that the three countries are more closely tied to the EU and relations between the citizens of our countries and exchange between us are strengthened," says Mr Billström. The 50 participants applied for a place on the trip, and the majority of them have never previously travelled outside Serbia. Contact Markus Friberg Press Secretary to Tobias Billström Press release 01 December 2009 Ministry of Justice Troika Meeting with Russia in Stockholm On the afternoon of Wednesday 2 December, a meeting on justice and home affairs will be held between the EU and the Russian Federation within the framework of the Permanent Partnership Council. Russia will be represented by Minister of Justice Alexander Konovalov and Minister of the Interior Rashid Nurgaliev. The EU will be represented by Minister for Justice Beatrice Ask, Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy Tobias Billström and European Commission Vice-President Jacques Barrot. Representatives of the incoming Spanish Presidency will also participate. Discussions during the meeting will cover the fight against cross-border crime, visa and migration issues and judicial cooperation in criminal and civil cases. Contact Martin Valfridsson Press Secretary to Beatrice Ask Markus Friberg Press Secretary to Tobias Billström Jeanette Mattsson Assistant Press Secretary to Beatrice Ask Press release 30 November 2009 Ministry of Justice Consensus on cross-border crime and migration in the Stockholm Programme At today's Justice and Home Affairs Council, home affairs and migration ministers discussed the draft Stockholm Programme. There was broad consensus on creating a more secure and open Europe where the rights of individuals are safeguarded. The ministers agreed that effective measures against cross-border crime must go hand in hand with guaranteed legal security for the individual. Police cooperation needs to be made more effective, for example by making better use of Europol, and the rights of individuals strengthened by measures including the EU's swift accession to the European Convention on Human Rights. The meeting also discussed the issue of setting up a special coordinator for combating human trafficking. The purpose of the proposal is to achieve better coordination and use of all of the EU's resources to combat human trafficking. "Combating human trafficking is an important priority. We have highlighted this issue in various ways. In the Stockholm Programme we set out clear objectives for action against human trafficking. A coordinator is one way of further intensifying these efforts," says Minister for Justice Beatrice Ask. There was consensus in the Council that the EU needs a flexible migration policy to meet future labour needs while illegal migration must be combated. The importance of a common asylum system that safeguards the rights of migrants and guarantees an effective and legally certain processing of asylum application were emphasised. "I am particularly pleased that the EU now affirms that well-managed migration can be positive for all actors, the Member States and the EU as a whole, as well as for the country of origin and the individual migrant. This should be an integral part of the further development of a common immigration policy," says Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy Tobias Billström. Further, the issue of strengthened solidarity between the Member States on migration issues and the situation in the Mediterranean was addressed. In this context, discussions also addressed the role of Frontex, the rights of migrants and the level of ambition in the section on asylum policy. The Presidency also aimed for a balance that would be acceptable to all the Member States and the Council took several important steps forward. On Tuesday, the EU justice ministers will continue to discuss the Stockholm Programme. The Programme is to be adopted by EU heads of state and government at the European Council on 10-11 December. The Stockholm Programme is to define the framework for EU police and customs cooperation, rescue services, criminal and civil law cooperation, asylum, migration and visa policy for the period 2010-2014. Contact Martin Valfridsson Press Secretary to Beatrice Ask Markus Friberg Press Secretary to Tobias Billström Press release 30 November 2009 Ministry of Justice Partnership for Mobility between the EU and Georgia Today Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy Tobias Billström and Georgia's Deputy Prime Minister Giorgi Baramidze have signed a Partnership for Mobility between the EU and Georgia, together with representatives of the European Commission and the other 15 EU Member States participating in the Partnership. The Partnership for Mobility aims at broad, structured and intensified cooperation in the area of migration between the EU and Georgia. The Partnership involves a large number of cooperation projects to strengthen Georgia's capacity in the area of migration together with the EU Member States. The Partnership for Mobility with Georgia is a further prominent example of the good relations between the EU and Georgia. The partnership with Georgia is the third to be established after the partnerships last year with Moldova and Cape Verde. During the Swedish Presidency of the EU, further steps have been taken to enable the EU next year to establish partnerships with more countries prioritised for cooperation in the area of migration. Contact Markus Friberg Press Secretary to Tobias Billström Press release 30 November 2009 Ministry of Justice Agreement to place the European Asylum Support Office in Malta At today's Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels, ministers have agreed to place the European Asylum Support Office in Malta. "For the Common European Asylum System to become a reality, practical cooperation is of the greatest importance. I am therefore very pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement which means that the Support Office can be set up as early as next year, and that it will be based in Valletta," says Tobias Billström, Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy. During the Swedish Presidency an agreement has reached between the Council and the European Parliament on the establishment of a European Asylum Support Office. This will enable the Support Office to be set up next year. The Support Office is to promote and improve practical cooperation in the area of asylum, support harmonisation efforts in the EU and facilitate work in national agencies. Ministers have today agreed that the support office will be located in Malta. Contact Markus Friberg Press Secretary to Tobias Billström Press release 30 November 2009 Ministry of Justice Visa exemption for citizens from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Montenegro and Serbia The Council decided today to grant visa exemption for citizens from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Montenegro and Serbia when entering the EU/Schengen area. "Citizens from these countries wishing to celebrate Christmas with their friends and relations in the Schengen area can now do so without needing visas. The links between these three countries and the EU have been strengthened through this decision which is very important for the development of our relations. I look forward to the day when we can also decide on visa exemption for Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina," says Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy Tobias Billström. The decision is of great importance for the citizens concerned and is a major step forward in these countries' EU integration process. Visa exemption enables citizens from the Western Balkans and the EU to be drawn more closely together. New opportunities for exchange and cooperation are opened up. Visa exemption will apply as of 19 December 2009 and include visitors travelling with a biometric passport for stays of up to 90 days within a six- month period.