Kosovo authorities said on Saturday that Spain, one of the five member countries of the European Union (EU) not to recognize the independence of Kosovo, recognized the passport of this former Serbian province. “The good news continues for our citizens and our country. DG Home (Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Union, Editor’s note) has informed us that Spain now also recognizes the passports of the Republic of Kosovo” , welcomed Kosovar Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi.
A change which does not constitute official recognition of the country
“We can therefore go to this country without a visa,” the Kosovar leader said on Facebook, specifying that “Spain has now been added to the countries of the Schengen zone” in which Kosovar nationals can go without a visa since January 1st. The news was also shared on
“Spain recognizes ordinary passports issued by Kosovo from January 1, 2024. This change does not in any way constitute official recognition of Kosovo as an independent state,” the document states. Spain, whose authorities have not yet commented, is one of five EU countries – along with Cyprus, Greece, Romania and Slovakia – which have not recognized independence proclaimed in 2008 by Kosovo, and which has also never been accepted by Serbia.
But unlike the other four countries, Spain did not recognize the Kosovo passport either, whose nationals could not travel to the Iberian country even with a visa for the Schengen zone. Coming into force early on January 1, the visa waiver regime allows Kosovars to travel to the Schengen zone without a visa for periods of up to 90 days, within a 180-day period.
Kosovo, with a population of 1.8 million, is the last of the six Western Balkan countries to benefit from such a regime. Before the EU removed the visa regime for Kosovo, Kosovar passport holders could travel visa-free to only 14 countries around the world. Kosovo’s independence has been recognized by more than 100 countries, including the United States, and 22 of the 27 EU member states, but not by Russia and China, Belgrade’s allies.