On 25 September 2014, the Visa Information System (VIS) for Schengen short-stay visas started operation in all Schengen States' consulates present in the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo*, Montenegro and Serbia) and Turkey. This is part of the gradual worldwide deployment of the VIS (which started in October 2011) leading to all Schengen States' consulates worldwide being connected. The global roll-out is scheduled to be completed in summer 2015.

As VIS relates exclusively to Schengen short-stay visas, Albanian citizens holding a biometric passport will not be affected. However, residents in Albania who – due to their nationality – fall under the Schengen visa requirement will be submitted to the VIS procedure.

You are an EU citizen in Albania? Learn more about your right to consular protection and how you can benefit from it in Albania.

Consular protection is the help an EU Member State can provide to its citizens in case they need assistance abroad. Typically, consular protection can include cases such as:

·         A need for emergency travel documents;

·         A serious accident or serious illness;

·         Relief and repatriation in case of an emergency;

·         Being a victim of crime;

·         Arrest or detention;

·         Death.

In Albania, 16 EU Member States have a resident Embassy and/or Consulate, while 11 EU Member States do not.

You are an EU citizen in need of consular protection in Albania?

·         You can contact your resident Embassy or Consulate (see list below).

·         If your EU Member State has no resident Embassy or in Albania, you can turn to another EU Member State for consular protection. You can choose any of the Embassies or Consulates of EU Member States in Albania (see list below).

Indeed, any EU citizen abroad whose own Member State has no local representation is entitled to receive consular protection from the diplomatic or consular authorities of any other EU Member State. In that case, EU citizens are entitled to benefit from consular protection under the same conditions as the nationals of that other EU Member State.

You can find contact details of the resident EU Member States Embassies and Consulates in Albania in the list below.

Please note that the EU Delegation in Albania cannot provide direct consular assistance.

As an EU citizen, you can take simple steps to make consular protection more effective, for example:

·         Following the travel advice issued by your country’s Foreign Ministry.

·         When abroad, registering with your Embassy or Consulate and/or through dedicated platforms, if applicable.

·         Other tips include keeping an electronic copy of your travel documents, subscribing to a travel insurance or saving crisis contact details.

Erasmus+ is the European Union’s programme for education, training, youth and sport. Between 2014 and 2020, it will provide opportunities for four million people to study, train and gain life experience abroad.

Erasmus+ replaces a number of older programmes, including an international exchange programme called Erasmus Mundus.

See the Erasmus+ web portal’s Resources section for information about linguistic support, documents for applicants and the management of proposals.