Member state authorities can refuse a study visa to a student from a third country if they suspect that the specific knowledge acquired by the interested party in a sensitive field (in this case, information and security technologies) can be employed for purposes that could constitute a threat to public security at a domestic or international level.
In this regard, the directive on the conditions for admitting foreign nationals for study purposes (2004/114/EC) requires that the party requesting the study visa does not present a threat to public security. This allows the authorities to enjoy wide discretion as regards the existence of a threat, even potential but the decision to refuse a visa must nevertheless state proper reasons.
This is the decision made by the European Court of Justice on Tuesday 4 April in a case (C-544/15) in which the Administrative Court in Berlin requested the former to provide an interpretation of the above-mentioned directive involving an Iranian national who was refused a study visa in Germany to pursue their doctorate studies.
The interested party holds a Master of Science degree in the field of information technology awarded by a university that is the subject of restrictive measures from the EU because of its support from the Iranian Government in the military field.
The student sought to perfect her knowledge of the security of mobile systems in Germany, including intrusion detection on smartphones and security protocols. The German authorities justify the refusal to grant her a visa because they are concerned that the knowledge she might acquire during her research could subsequently be misused in Iran for purposes such as the collection of confidential information or internal repression.
The German court therefore sought to find out whether this rejection was legitimate and whether, under the terms of the directive, the national authorities enjoy a wide discretion (which could be subject only to limited judicial review) for determining whether the applicant represents a threat to public security, and whether they are entitled to refuse a visa in circumstances such as those of the present case.
The Court responded in the affirmative and therefore follows the conclusions of the Advocate General (see EUROPE 11678). The national authorities enjoy a wide discretion in assessing the facts in order to ascertain whether, in the light of all the relevant elements of the situation of the third country national who is applying for a visa for study purposes, that person represents a threat, even if potential, to public security.
In this case, given that the interested party studied in a university which is the subject of EU restrictive measures and plans to carry out research in a field that is sensitive for public security, if the elements available to the competent national authorities give reason to fear that the knowledge could subsequently be used for purposes contrary to public security, the judges conclude that the directive does not oppose visa refusals, as long as this refusal is based on duly justified grounds and a sufficiently solid factual basis, which the German court will have to verify. (Original version in French by Francesco Gariazzo)