Pristina officials warn of Kosovo citizens getting Albanian passports

Officials in Pristina have warned that Kosovo citizens might soon start getting passports in Albania in order to be able to travel without visas across the Schengen zone. Outgoing Integrations Minister Besim Beqaj said on Saturday (November 13th) that the ministry does not rule out the possibility of abuses involving the visa liberalisation regime. Acknowledging precedent, Beqaj said it was a “public secret” that Kosovars are registering under fictitious addresses in Serbia to get biometric passports and travel to Europe without a visa. Albanian Ambassador to Pristina Islam Lauka said Kosovars must prove three years of residency in order to get a passport or meet one of the seven other criteria. The European Commission decided a week ago to abolish the visa regimes for Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina as of December 15th.