General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

The collection of your personal data required by the application form, the taking of your photograph and the taking of your fingerprints are mandatory for the examination of your visa application. Failure to provide such data will result in the application being inadmissible. 
 

The responsible authorities: 

The authorities responsible for processing the data in Belgium are:

The Minister of immigration, in her capacity as controler regarding the Belgian immigration legislation
Federal Public Service of Interior
Directorate General Immigration Office
Pachecolaan/Boulevard Pacheco 44
1000 Brussel/Bruxelles
 

Contact details of the data protection officers: 

Data protection officer
Federal Public Service Interior
Directorate General Immigration Office
Pachecolaan/Boulevard Pacheco 44
1000 Brussel/Bruxelles
Email: dpo.dvzoe[at]ibz.fgov.be
Tel.: +32 2 793 80 00

Data protection officer
Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation
Directorate General Consular Affairs
Karmelietenstraat/Rue des Petits Carmes 15
1000 Brussel/Bruxelles
Email: dpo[at]diplobel.fed.be
Tel.: +32 2 501 34 46
 

Legal basis:

The legal basis for the collection and processing of your personal data is set out in Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 (VIS Regulation), Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 (Visa Code) and Council Decision 2008/633/JHA.
 

The processing of personal data: 

The data will be shared with the relevant authorities of the Member States (1) and processed by those authorities for the purposes of a decision on your visa application.

The data and data concerning the decision taken on your application or a decision whether to annul, revoke or extend a visa issued will be entered into, and stored in the Visa Information System (VIS) for a maximum period of five years, during which it will be accessible to the visa authorities and the authorities competent for carrying out checks on visas at external borders and within the Member States, immigration and asylum authorities in the Member States for the purposes of verifying whether the conditions for the legal entry into, stay and residence on the territory of the Member States are fulfilled, of identifying persons who do not or who no longer fulfil these conditions, of examining an asylum application and of determining responsibility for such examination. Under certain conditions the data will be also available to designated authorities of the Member States and to Europol for the purpose of the prevention, detection and investigation of terrorist offences and of other serious criminal offences.
 

Third countries and international organisations:

Your personal data might also be transferred to third countries or international organisations for the purpose of proving the identity of third-country nationals, including for the purpose of return. Such transfer may only take place under certain conditions (2). You can contact the authority responsible for processing the data (see contact details above) to obtain further information on these conditions and how they are met in your specific
case.
 

Transparancy and rights of the data subject: 

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (3) and the VIS Regulation (4), you are entitled to obtain access to your personal data, including a copy of it, as well as the identity of the Member State which transmitted it to the VIS. You also have the right that your personal data which is inaccurate or incomplete be corrected or completed, that the processing of your personal data be restricted under certain conditions, and that your personal data processed unlawfully be erased. 

You may address your request for access, rectification, restriction or erasure directly to the authority responsible for processing the data (see contact details above). Further details on how you may exercise these rights, including the related remedies according to the national law of the State concerned, are available on its website and can be provided upon request. 

You may also address your request to any other Member State.

The list of competent authorities and their contact details is available at this website
 

Lodge a complaint:

You are also entitled to lodge at any time a complaint with the national data protection authority of the Member State of the alleged infringement, or of any other Member State, if you consider that your data have been unlawfully processed. The data protection authority of Belgium is:  

Data Protection Authority
Drukpersstraat/Rue de la Presse 35
1000 Brussel/Bruxelles
Email: contact[at]apd-gba.be
Tel.: +32 2 274 48 00
  

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(1) https://eur-lex.europa.eu/

(2) Article 31 of Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 (VIS Regulation)

(3) Articles 15 to 19 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation)

(4) Article 38 of Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 (VIS Regulation)