EU Ministers Move Closer to New 2028-34 Schengen & Visa Fund at 20 Feb JHA Budget Meeting

Justice and Home-Affairs (JHA) attachés met in Brussels on 20 February under the banner of the Ad Hoc Working Party on JHA Financial Instruments to hammer out compromise text for the bloc’s next-generation Border Management and Visa (BMV) Fund. The fund—worth an estimated €13 billion for 2028-2034—aims to finance biometric e-gates, upgraded consular software and joint return operations across all 29 Schengen members, including Czechia. Council documents show that the Cyprus Presidency tabled a revised draft which now explicitly earmarks at least 15 % of national envelopes for “digital visa processing.” Czech representatives argued for an even higher ring-fence, citing Prague’s full switchover to its online “Foreigners Account” portal from January 2026. They also lobbied for a carve-out that would let member states use up to 5 % of allocations to co-fund private-sector pilot projects—such as automated hotels check-in systems already being tested in Karlovy Vary. Negotiators reached provisional agreement on performance indicators, including average processing time for short-stay visas and reduction of manual passport stamping at land borders. The text now moves to COREPER in March before trilogue talks with the European Parliament, where Czech MEP Karlo Ressler is rapporteur. Why it matters for business mobility: The BMV Fund will pay for the hardware and software that companies ultimately rely on for smooth border crossings. Czech firms bidding on IT, cybersecurity and airport-equipment contracts could see a multi-million-euro pipeline once the envelope is approved, while HR teams should prepare for faster—but more data-intensive—visa workflows. If the timeline holds, the first Czech-funded projects could launch in early 2028, just as Prague’s second runway expansion comes online, potentially doubling capacity for intercontinental flights.