SIS alternative scenario

COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Brussels, 6 April 2009

6872/09

ADD 1 REV 1

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SIRIS 30

SIS-TECH 30

COMIX 171

ADDENDUM TO NOTE

from : Greek delegation

to : SIS/SIRENE Working Party/Mixed Committee (EU/Iceland-Norway and Switzerland-Liechtenstein)

Subject : SIS alternative scenario

Delegations will find below the contribution of the Italian, Lithuanian, Hellenic, Swedish, Cyprus, Hungarian, Estonian, Polish, Slovenian, Austrian, Romanian, Bulgarian, SlovakandLuxembourgdelegations [1].

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

Yes, the National contractor is responsible for both the projects.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

We consider an open issue the SIRENE specifications, not enough stable in our opinion.

The project is 70% complete.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

N.SIS partially paid the contractor for the application development, infrastructure implementation and tests. The remaining amount is around 20%.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

The N.SIS II Maintenance agreement covers three years after the go live date.

There shouldn’t be any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

Italy has just completed the upgrade of the SIS1 application to web technology (J2EE). In theory upgrades are possible, but all the possible impacts (including capacity planning of the infrastructure) have to be considered.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

The existing maintenance agreement will end at February 2010. Even if the request comes before the end of the contract, the budget is not sufficient for the N.SIS upgrade. As a consequence a new Call for Tender or direct contract is necessary. After the availability of the upgrade specifications, requested effort in term of test, migrations etc… and global project plan it is necessary at least 4 months.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

Not at the moment. The procedure for contract renewal (after February 2010) is going to start in the next months. With the information available at the moment the request will refer to normal system operation and minor evolutions.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

The N.SIS and N.VIS will be integrated. In case the N.VIS will be up and running before the SIS II, a specific service has to be implemented in SIS 1.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

Italy bought a new infrastructure for SISII. In case of N.SIS upgrade, it will be necessary an infrastructure migration to the new systems.

Developments made for SIS II have to be «ported» and adapted.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

Italy does not see any specific advantage.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

No.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

Before deciding the usage of an alternative network a comparative scenario (from cost point of view) has to be completed. The costs are composed by fix cost (TAP and lines setup) and variable cost (lines). The comparison should be made using the timeframe for the alternative network (e.g. 5 years contract).

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

In Lithuania different national contractors are responsible for SIS II and SISone4ALL projects.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

No.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

Yes.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

National N.SIS II maintenance agreement is already expired - so there is no direct financial impact. However currently LT is planning to launch new maintenance agreement, so a clear vision about SIS II – SIS R future is needed ASAP.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

This is subject of extra feasibility study – what exactly functionalities.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

New, approximately 4 months.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

There is national financial forecast for continuing SIS II activities, for SIS R there is not.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

N.SIS II is cooperating with N.VIS.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

In case of N.SIS 1 upgrade to SIS R, this upgrade should be compatible with already developed N.SIS II national systems.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

To be found.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

We are not certain about serious legal issues at national side, but financial and technical issues will be in place for sure.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

We think that S-TESTA should be used for N.SIS 1-SIS R (in case this decision will be made) since it was developed as modern technology for SIS.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

No, the National contractors for SIS II and N.SIS are not the same.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

We consider as an open issue that the technical documents (DTS-ICD) are not yet finalized, thus preventing us to conclude the development of our applications.

The project is 60% complete.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

Our N.SIS has partially paid the contractor for the H/W and S/W delivery, the application development, infrastructure implementation and internal testing. The remaining amount is around 30%.

Please note that we have a «fixed price contract» with our National contractor, so additional delays or extensions surely cause us financial and contractual consequences.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

The N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement covers eight years after the go live date.

In case of SIS II project cancellation we will lose the rights derived from the Maintenance Agreement. Additional contractual and/or financial consequences should be also considered.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

Our organization has already begun the upgrade of the SIS1 application to web technology (J2EE framework). In order to include some of SIS II functionalities we need to carry out deeper investigations, technical studies and internal tests. So we will need more time in order to give a reliable and technically feasible answer and to identify all possible impacts.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

The existing Maintenance Agreement will end by November 2010. It is not possible to further extend the existing contract. As a consequence we have to launch a new ‘‘Call for Tender’’ procedure.

According to our previous experience, we will at least need 6 to 9 months in order to complete the whole process.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

Not at the moment.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

We are going to use separate queries through a unique end-user interface only for National Issue Visa Stickers.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

It is evident that from contractual and financial point of view our country will face serious impacts. We will need a new ‘‘Call for Tender’’ procedure in order to maintain the existing Maintenance Agreement and at the same time we have to cancel the «fixed price contract» with our National SIS II contractor. From technical point of view we need to carry out deeper investigations, technical studies and internal tests to upgrade the existing Systems in order to include some of SIS II functionalities.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

Hellas does not see any specific advantage.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

It is very likely. It is not clear yet and we have, among others, to wait the advises from the competent Legal Services in order to identify any possible legal implications.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

From our point of view we deem that s-TESTA network infrastructure has to be considered as first technical choice under any circumstances (SIS II or any alternative scenario). We have spent too many human and financial resources in order to build s-TESTA so it is necessary to take into account the advantages of the usage of this specific network.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

• Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

No contractor is involved, except for providing resources on a time and material basis. The Swedish SIS II project team deals with SIS II and the maintenance team with N.SIS. The question is however not that relevant for SE since we will use the N.SIS II to connect to the SIS 1+R if that alternative is chosen.

• Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

SE has some activities still to perform, for instance as regards national input of data to the SIS II. This is however irrespective of what central system alternative that will be chosen.

• Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

No contract is involved. The question is in our view not that relevant when assessing the two central alternatives.

• How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

No contract is involved. It should however be clear that both with the SIS 1+R alternative and for SIS II we will use the N.SIS II solution and hence we must have an ongoing maintenance for that component.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

• Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS 11 functionalities?

The SIS 1+ R alternative will be built to be connected to the N.SIS II. The N.SIS do not need to be involved and will, in our case, be phased out after step 2.

• In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

Not applicable, See last question above.

• Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

The only need as regards the N.SIS is to keep it into operation and cater for integration of new MS until a central system that can connect to our N.SIS II is in place.

• Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

It is agreed on central level that all connections between SIS II and VIS should be handled via national solutions. Our new SIS II client is being put in place this spring, using converted data from SIS 1+, and it is ready to communicate with the Swedish Migration Board that will handle the connection to the central VIS.

• Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

N/A. We do not upgrade (see earlier answers also)

• Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

N/A.

• Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

As explained, the N.SIS need not to be involved in the SIS 1+R environment. SE assume that the legal basis for SIS II will be used irrespective of what central platform is used. We do not forsee any legal issues for Sweden using this alternative.

• What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

This is a central decision. If it is decided to go for SIS 1+R and if it is decided to use s-TESTA – then we will use it.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

YES

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

No. On N.SIS II the implementation of 2.5.3 is completed and we are in the process of the informal Compliance tests.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

The Contractor has been paid, with the 0.3% that was remaing.

• How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

The Maintenance Agreement covers 5 years. Yes, in case of SIS II Project cancellation will be a financial impact.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

At the moment Cyprus is not participating in SIS 1+.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

No.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

There are no open issues; we are waiting for the decision on the central side. However projects financed under EBF are running. The allocation located for the further development of the SIS II may be lost should there be radical changes in the central project. It is our opinion that such loss of resources must be avoided.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

The developments finished till 2007 December were paid for. Considering the lack of the strategic decision about the future of the SIS II, henceforward HU is preparing to develop the SIS II application. HU is planning to use the financial fund of the External Borders Fund for the development.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

Our N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement is for four years, it was signed on the 1st of March in 2008. As a financial impact of a possible SIS II project cancellation we would lose the costs of the SIS II development and test processes which have been done and paid yet, and the a part of the SIS II hardware, which has been purchased become needless.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

Hungary currently is using the Portuguese solution called SISone4ALL. The NHU.SIS development has been done by the Portuguese experts, we have no information on the upgrade possibilities of the system.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

We do not need a new Call for Tender, we can expand the content of the existing maintenance agreement.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

No.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

Our national system (N.SIS) is the localized system of Portugal solution, called SISOne4All. Now, our national Visa System (N.VIS) works with N.SIS via web service. N.VIS is acting as a client from the point of N.SIS. The former Boarder Guard system is also connected to N.SIS and is also acting as client to N.SIS and N.VIS. Thus, there is no need to have separate query system. We are going to support this solution in the future. Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

The question is not really clear. What does N.SIS upgrade mean? We understand it this way: According to the JDC plans the existing C.SIS will be further developed to have the SIS II functionalities, so that the HPS developed system would not be implemented. Therefore our currently developed N.SIS (developed to connect to CS.SIS) should also be further developed to be able to connect to the upgraded C.SIS including the SIS II functionalities.

Answer: The following problems are foreseen:

We have to re-write the interface according to the JDC solution, (XML based but not identical with the ICD)

The number of the upgrades of the C.SIS are not analyzed yet in all aspects including effects and related concerns.

Our national system should be modified and tested again. The volume of the testing efforts is not estimated yet.

We adopted the central queries of the Central System based on ICD and made them transparent to our external systems; these should be re-developed, implemented and tested again.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

The question is not really clear. We understand it the same way as the previous question.

We suppose, the upgraded C.SIS will be more effective than the current system (which is not ready yet and is under long run development)

The test mechanism will be much more efficient than the current one in all relations.

The XML based interface will provide better solution than the current ICD which is in addition, very sophisticated.

The interface will be more simple, therefore the further developments will be easier in the future too.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

In that case, according to the available information, HU will need to issue changes in its legislation. Pursuant to the present conception the member states – who support the realization of the SIS I+R – aspire to make a system, which is fully fit to the accepted community legal environment of the SIS II. Considering the facts above the SIS I+ R Evolution will operate in accordance with the SIS II EU norms, which will supplant the corresponding CISA regulations. In the view of codification the changes of the EU legal base will demand the realization of a new act – rotating the present Hungarian SIS act – because the currently operating SIS act disposes on co-operation and information exchange in the framework of CISA.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

Yes, we intend to use the s-TESTA network and its hardware, because it has higher capacity and safer operating features.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

Yes.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

There are currently no major issues.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

Due to the contract, the financial information is restricted.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

The impact of cancellation of SIS II needs detailed analysis and additional information about the alternative solution. We don’t have the maintenance contract yet because the project is in development phase.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

No. We have been developing new NS-SIS for SIS II.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

Not applicable.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

No.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

Our national IT infrastructure and national systems have been built taken into account the integrated queries concept. The integrated queries functionality will be built into end-system.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

We indicate high risk for current SIS II integration program cancellation. In case of alternative solution we need to restart our whole program. The other high risk is financial - because significant part of the project was financed though Schengen Facilities and External Border Fund and SIS II integration goal was not achieved, we could be forced to pay the used funds back.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

The positive impact concerns the ongoing ability to retain actual situation on free movement.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

We haven’t analyzed this topic.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

s-TESTA network should be used in order to efficiently use the Community budget.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

Yes. In Poland, the contractor is responsible for both national systems – N.SIS (SIS 1+) and NS-SIS (SIS II).

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

The project of NS-SIS (SIS II) is already fully completed – 100%. We have NS-SIS system prepared for connection to CS-SIS with ICD 2.5.3 version of the interface. Of course the system is still updated in line with ICD upgrade.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

Yes, we have already paid the whole amount of money to our contractor. Each year we have to pay for maintenance of the NS-SIS.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

Our current maintenance agreement for NS-SIS is valid until the end of April 2009. As a rule, we sign the maintenance agreement each year.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

It would be difficult to upgrade Polish N.SIS to SIS II requirements (functionalities). It would take a lot of time and require many technical adjustments. From our point of view, it is not reasonable to develop existing N.SIS because in Poland (as in other new Member States) it was built as a temporary solution in the framework of SISone4ALL project (Central Node of SISone4ALL).

As for now, any of the presented scenario did not proposed to upgrade the N.SIS, but to adjust C.SIS to SIS II requirements. The idea was to use NS-SIS (SIS II) for each scenario.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

In the case of a need to upgrade the N.SIS, a new Call For Tender is required. Period of time needed for a new Call of tender depends on the public procurement rule – it can take a few months. If the technical changes would be only «cosmetics» then it could be done even in the range of the N.SIS maintenance contract.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

There is no such a financial forecast, because there is no information about the range of possible changes in N.SIS. If the changes in N.SIS would be «cosmetics» then it could be done even in the range of maintenance contract, in other case, the financial impact must be calculated on the basis of information concerning the scope of changes.

We want to stress once again that currently each of presented scenarios assumes as a purpose the use of NS-SIS (SIS II) both for SIS II continuation and SIS 1+R evolution (alternative scenario).

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

The question is not clear – both systems are used for different purposes (VIS will be used for granting or refusing the visa) and use different technical solutions. In Poland, at the national level, N.SIS (Central Node of SISone4ALL) is separated from National VIS which is still under development. Both mentioned central systems gather queries and CUD operations from eligible institutional users (e.g. Border Guard, the Police, consular posts) and send them to C.SIS and CS-VIS. Both systems are built on separate hardware and software platforms.

At the border points level, SIS and VIS systems will be used by the Border Guard (BG). The query system will be implemented in a single IT system of the BG. The implementation of the way how queries will be processed in the system will depend on the BG. However, even if the BG system has possibility to send single query to both of systems (SIS and VIS), at the national level, both N.SIS (SIS 1+) and N.VIS will be functionally and technically separated from each other.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

The range of problems would depend on range of changes in N.SIS. We want to stress once again that currently each of presented alternative scenarios assumes as a purpose the use of NS-SIS (SIS II) to connect to the C.SIS upgraded to SIS II requirements (functionalities). The approach concerning not to make changes in NS-SIS in Member States (MS), but to develop a new C.SIS upgraded to SIS II requirements is much better solution. Such an approach would cause less changes in technical infrastructure of MS.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

As we mentioned in point 7 and 9, we do not see any positive impact in case of N.SIS upgrade.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

Polish act of law on SIS is independent of the SIS version, so the upgrade of N.SIS to SIS II functionalities will not cause any problems. However, any changes of SIS II legal basis brought in at the EU level, may cause some problems connected with implementation to the national law which could take some time.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

At the national level, network is just a service. Thus, it does not make any difference if the service was provided by sTESTA or by any other network. From practical and financial point of view, much better solution is to use sTESTA, but the question is, if it could be used for alternative scenario (SIS 1+R evolution), because sTESTA was projected for SIS II (it has some additional services dedicated for SIS II).

An alternative option would be to use the newSISNET, but the contract for that has been signed for limited time and there is no clear statement if it could be used for the purpose of the alternative scenario.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

We don’t use support from national contractor (s), except for SIB (Steria Benelux). Development and integration in our national system has been done by our own development team, so there have been no direct costs of the development.

With every new version of the ICD we meet some technical problems concerning the implementation of the new version. Additional problem is the work load of the national team.

We are going to sign a maintenance contract for 2 years (just for communication interface – SIB).

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Since we are using SISone4ALL application provided by PT, it is not possible to upgrade it by ourselves.

As regards SIS 1+, we have maintenance agreement just for Oracle DB. So far, we didn’t foresee any financial resources for possible CFT.

We think usage of s-Testa would be wise in case of the implementation of the alternative scenario based on SIS 1+ otherwise there would be huge sink costs.

Before to answer in detail to the questions, AT would like to make some general remarks:

In the Austrian SIS II project there is a clear distinction between the national application(s) responsible for manipulating (Insert, update, delete and query) the SIS data and the communication program required to exchange the SIS data with the central system.

Since both parts of the project follow different planning and the specifications of SIS II were not stable, it was since the beginning foreseen to let the national programs interact with either SIS I or SIS II. Therefore national applications will soon be in state to store the new categories such as containers, boats etc while it will not be possible to store them in the SIS. Such records remain simply in the national database until the new SIS II central system becomes operational. Only than these records will be submitted to the central system and broadcasted to the Member States.

The SIRENE application is already able to cope with both SIS 1+R evolution or SIS II.

Therefore the discussed alternative scenario for SIS II will affect the communication part of the Austrian system only.

For AT the term to the N-SIS and N-SIS II in this questionnaire refer only to the communication part.

AT has chosen to use the STERIA Interconnection Box (SIB) to interact with the SIS II.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N-SIS?

YES, currently the main contractor is the same, having different subcontractors for SIS I and SIS II.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N-SIS II) and if yes can inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

Due to the situation in the central project the SIB could never demonstrate that it works properly according to the specifications of SIS II. We have to constantly update the SIB to the various versions of the ICD.

Have you paid national contractor for N-SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

The main contractor is partly paid. The works carried out so far for integrating the SIB with the national system is paid. The SIB as such, since the full functionality could not have been demonstrated, was paid only 50%.

How many years does your N-SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

There is no maintenance contract for the SIB yet. Therefore there are no financial consequences when the alternate scenario would be chosen.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N-SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

The hardware of the communication part of the N-SIS was recently upgraded. So it is able to handle the updated communication layer of a modified SIS I+RE.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N-SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

Yes, the existing maintenance contract can be used.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N-SIS)?

No, it is not needed.

Will your existing system (N-SIS) cooperate with N-VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

The national application for foreigners will be used for the communication with the N-VIS. In case the SIB would be replaced it has no impact on the VIS project.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N-SIS upgrade? Please describe.

No, there are no negative impacts. The national application will handle all the data foreseen in the legal base independently which central system (SIS II or SIS I+RE) is used.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N-SIS upgrade? Please describe.

The positive aspects are that a stable and proven system solution would be used. Depending on the necessary adaptations coming from the technical specification of SIS 1+R evolution also the SIB could be considered to be used as the communication interface.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N-SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

No, the development of the new functions can be carried out in the existing legal framework (SIC) and the operation will be carried out, after the successful migration, in the framework of the SIS II legal base.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

Negotiations with the Commission should be carried out to check for the possibility to use s-TESTA for the SIS 1+R evolution scenario. From technical point of view the basic infrastructure (network lines) can be reused. However the management and monitoring need to be adapted to the existing procedures together with the C-SIS.

At this moment we are in the contracting phase of implementation of NISA (National Information System of Alerts) compatible with SIS II. So we don’t know yet who the contractor is. This

project is financed by the Schengen Facility.

 We have another project financed by Schengen Facility for the National Copy of SIS II. We appreciate that we will launch the call for tender by mid of April.

 In order to comply with the provisions of the Romania accession calendar, there must be found an alternative solution for the connection to SIS 1 + instead of connection to SIS II. This issue is under

discussion at our political level in order to find a feasible technical solution and finance source for this.

"Will your existing system (N.SIS) cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will need separate query mechanism in each system?" We had foreseen to have separate query mechanism for both N.SIS and N.VIS systems.

Bulgaria would like to make some general remarks before answering the questions:

Bulgarian National Schengen Information System (N.SIS II) is designed to include the following as integral components: the Automated Information System for the questing activities of the MoI (QUEST AIS), the National Interface for connection to SIS II (NI.SIS II) and the system SIRENE workflow. The »system design» stage of the N.SIS II was completed at the end of 2008, implemented by our own development team.There is a clear distinction between the functionality of these components:

QUEST AIS provides the functions for processing (insert, update, delete and query) the SIS data, in compliance with the standards of the Schengen Information System (SIS 1+). QUEST AIS was completely established and put into operation in July 2005. Nowadays the development of the scope of information (boats, aircrafts, containers and other data on existing objects) and the functions of QUEST AIS is performed in compliance with the requirements on the legal framework of the EU on SIS II and the latest version of technical specifications on the establishment of SIS II (ICD ver.2.5.3), incl. create/update of the national alerts.

NI.SIS II will provide the functions for the national alerts exchange (insert/ update/ delete) between N.SIS II (namely, its components QUEST AIS and SIRENE workflow) and central component of SIS II (C.SIS II), also for a copy of the database of SIS II (national copy) maintenance, according to the SIS II technical specification (ICD current ver. 2.5.3). Bulgaria has chosen to use specialized software - Interconnection Box (Steria Interconnection Box) for the establishment of the NI.SIS II;

The system SIRENE workflow will provide technical procedures for automated consultation and co-operation between the SIRENE bureaux and SIS II (via N.SIS II).

It should however be clear that in both the SIS 1+R alternative and SIS II we will use the N.SIS II solution. Therefore the discussed alternative scenario for SIS II will affect the NI.SIS II and SIRENE workflow components of the Bulgarian system.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

We don’t use support from contractor(s), except for providing the technical equipment, system software and specialized software - Interconnection Box (SIB). The tender procedure for supply of the above mentioned resources for software development of the N.SIS II (incl. SIB) was launched by the end of February 2009 in the framework of the financing under the Schengen Facility. In the same way is provided the financing for the delivery of the all technical equipment, system and specialized software necessary for N.SIS II exploitation. The preparation of the technical specifications to a forthcoming tender procedures (latest in the end of the 2009) is ongoing.

The application software development of the N.SIS II components and its integration is under implementation by our own development team, so there are no direct costs of these activities.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

We consider as an open issue that the technical specifications on the establishment of SIS II (DTS/ICD) are not yet finalized, as far as this is related with our N.SIS II applications development.

The project is 40% complete.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

The tender procedure for supply of all technical equipment, system and specialized software (SIB) necessary for N.SIS II software development and exploitation has to be launched by the end of 2009 in accordance with the requirement of the Schengen Facility Instrument.

• How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

No contracts are involved. The impact of cancellation of SIS II needs detailed analysis and additional information about the alternative solution.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

At the moment Bulgaria is not participating in SIS 1+.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

Yes, our contractor is responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

There are no open issues.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

We have not paid for the national contractor the whole amount of Money. The remaining amount is about 25% of total payment.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

Maintenance interventions are covered in the contract framework. We do not have any special maintenance agreement so far.

Existing system (SIS 1+R)

Can your national SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

Our national system was originally designed according to SISII specification. It has been integrated to SISone4all after decision was made that new MS would be connected to SIS1+. In case that evolution of SIS I+R system would be chosen as alternative scenario we plan to use largely N.SISII solution.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

We will continue in the existing contract framework and we do not expecting new CFT. But we need to amend it by new modules.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

No.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

Yes, we use integrated solution which covers searching on both mentioned systems and also for more other systems (central query engine).

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

We do not expect any significant problems. (see answer on Q1 in this section)

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

There are no advantages. (see answer on Q1 in this section)

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

We do not expect any serious legal issues.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

Yes, we plan to use s-TESTA.

N.SIS II Implementation Agreement

Is your national contractor responsible for both SIS II and N.SIS?

Yes, our national contractor is responsible for both NS.SIS and N.SIS.

Are there any open issues (not Formal Tests included) concerning National SIS II Systems (N.SIS II) and if yes can you inform us about the percentage of coverage in terms of the whole project?

As updates are done continuously at central level (CS.SIS) the national systems have to evolve, too. This dependency explains why it is impossible to inform you now about a percentage of coverage.

Have you paid national contractor for N.SIS II or not? If not, what is the remaining amount (%) of total payment?

The contractor was paid for all the deliverables which were validated by Luxembourg. After the political decision of the ministers in June 2009, a new contract will be signed taking into account the technical impact of the decision.

How many years does your N.SIS II Maintenance Agreement cover? Is there any financial impact in case of SIS II project cancellation?

Luxembourg has no maintenance contract for SISII, as the SISII project is still in the development phase.

Existing System (SIS 1+R)

Can your National SIS 1 (N.SIS) system be upgraded in order to embody some of SIS II functionalities?

Yes, our national system N.SIS can be upgraded.

In case of a possible upgrade at your N.SIS can you continue the existing maintenance agreement or do you need a new Call for Tender? How much time do you need for a New Call for Tender in this case?

Yes, we can continue the existing maintenance agreement.

Is there any national financial forecast for a possible Call for Tender regarding the existing System (N.SIS)?

No, we do not envision a call for tender.

Will your existing system (N.SIS), cooperate with N.VIS (especially in border points) or will you need separate query mechanism in each system?

Yes, the N.SIS will cooperate with N.VIS.

Are there any other problems or negative impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

No, we do not expect any negative impact.

Are there any advantages or positive impacts in case of N.SIS upgrade? Please describe.

Yes, as the system is stable and reliable.

Do you believe that the implementation of an alternative scenario on the existing N.SIS enriched with SIS II functionalities will create serious legal issues?

No, we do not expect serious legal issues.

What about s-TESTA network and its hardware? Do you intend to use it in order to support the alternative scenario? If not is there any study about the usage of one so expensive feature?

s-TESTA could be used if the SIS network is managed and monitored by the central SIS.