Visa Policies and the Regulation of Territorial Access

Abstract

In this first empirical chapter, we focus on visa policies, which we consider central to the facilitation or prevention of mobility. A visa is “a document affixed to passports or travel documents which prima facie permits the holder to arrive at the border of the issuing state and, subject to further checks, to pass that border for a period of time” (Guild 2001b: 31). Thus, the institution of the visa allows states to decide well in advance to whom they will grant access to their territory (Guild 2001b; Guiraudon 2002).¹ Zolberg (2006: 443) terms this practice “remote control”. Potential travelers have to apply for a visa from their home country and, in so doing, approach the embassies and consulates of their destination countries. Applying by mail, if permissible, may take weeks or months; applying in person means traveling to the embassy or consulate and waiting in a line, possibly for hours. What is more, embassies and consulates can deny the application without giving any reason. In the face of the increase in tourist travel and limited administrative capacities to handle the increasing number of visa applications, however, many states have decided to lift the visa requirement for selected nationalities. As a result, extended mobility rights are offered to trustworthy and wanted groups of people so that those who still need to apply for a visa can be controlled more closely.