Turkey Travel Agencies Association (TÜRSAB) President Firuz Bağlıkaya stated that the difficulties experienced in Schengen visa applications caused the burden on travel agencies to increase even more, and said, “This problem, which negatively affects the commercial activities of our travel agencies, leads to cancellations in tours.” used the phrases. In his statement, Baglikaya said that the long-standing problems regarding the Schengen visa required for travel to European Union (EU) member countries have turned into an important and devastating problem for both citizens who want to travel to these countries and travel agencies that are members of the union. stated that. Stating that especially the outgoing agencies have faced a visa problem after the great victimization they have experienced during the epidemic that has affected the world and brought travel to a standstill for the last three years, Bağlıkaya said: “The problems experienced in visa applications are our travel agencies. This problem, which negatively affects the commercial activities of our travel agencies, leads to cancellations in tours. The increasing travel trend all over the world after the pandemic process is reflected in visa applications, causing backlogs, and the response times to visa applications reach up to 10 weeks, and The drop in acceptance rates in visa applications poses a significant problem.However, the fact that the visa fees of an average of 3 thousand TL are not refunded in case of rejection of the application also increased the problems experienced within the framework of the Schengen visa. brings with it the ace. Therefore, this situation, which is not under their responsibility, causes our travel agencies to come face to face with their customers at the point of consumer rights, causing them to lose confidence.” He stated that the tourism sector, which is an important sector in Turkey and in the world, suffered serious losses and was injured. “We fully support the initiatives that have been made or will be carried out by all relevant authorities of our state, especially our Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As the Union, we reiterate our request for the authorities of both the European Union and the Republic of Turkey to speed up the steps towards a solution to solve the Schengen visa problem, which has a negative impact on the activities of our member travel agencies, and announce to the tourism industry and the public that we will follow the issue persistently.” used.
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