Visa issuance suspended for three weeks, Bošnjak seeks help from EU Delegation

For three weeks now, the acceptance of applications for visas and residence permits for foreign nationals in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been suspended due to technical problems with the software for processing biometric data, and Ivica Bošnjak, Deputy Minister of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina who is acting as minister, says he is trying to resolve the problem.

- The system partially crashed. I had a meeting this morning. This afternoon I will have a meeting with the EU Delegation to find a solution. Much does not depend on me – Bošnjak claims for Faktor.

From the company Page from East Sarajevo, which developed the system together with an American partner, they stated that the problem would not have occurred if the Ministry of Security of BiH had fulfilled its obligations, and that, among other things, the competent ministry did not initiate a procedure or organize system maintenance after the warranty period for the system expired, which is a mandatory procedure for the functioning of such extensive and technically complex systems.

Bošnjak responds by shifting responsibility to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, headed by Elmedin Konaković.

- The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not issue (the decision officially putting this system into operation) for a year; the decision was made after the warranty period expired. There are many things, and all of them need to be sorted out now. I am trying to solve the problem. If it were up to me, it would be solved immediately – added Bošnjak.

The problem with the biometric identification system for foreigners calls into question a number of official visits to Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as tourists.

The official acceptance of the system was signed in 2024, but the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina made the decision much later, after the warranty expired, writes Faktor.