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(4) All actions funded under the Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy (the ‘Instrument’), established by this Regulation, including those carried out in third countries, should be implemented in full compliance with the rights and principles enshrined in the Union acquis, and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (the ‘Charter’), and should be in line with the international obligations of the Union and the Member States arising from the international instruments to which they are party, in particular by ensuring compliance with the principles of non-discrimination and non-refoulement.

(5) The policy objective of the Instrument is to develop and implement strong and effective European integrated border management at the external borders, thereby contributing to ensuring a high level of internal security within the Union, while safeguarding the free movement of persons within it and fully respecting the relevant Union acquis and the international obligations of the Union and the Member States arising from the international instruments to which they are party.

(6) European integrated border management, as implemented by the European Border and Coast Guard, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/1896 of the European Parliament and of the Council , is a shared responsibility of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and the national authorities responsible for border management, including coast guards to the extent that they carry out border control tasks. It should contribute to facilitating legitimate border crossings, to preventing and detecting illegal immigration and cross-border crime and to effectively manage migratory flows.

(7) Facilitating legitimate travel, while preventing irregular migration and security risks, was identified as one the main objectives of the Union’s approach presented in the communication of the Commission of 23 September 2020 on a New Pact on Migration and Asylum.

(8) Financial support from the Union budget is indispensable for the implementation of European integrated border management to support Member States, acting in full respect of fundamental rights, in managing the crossing of the external borders efficiently and in addressing future challenges at those borders, which would contribute to addressing serious crime with a cross-border dimension.

(9) Member States should be provided with adequate Union financial support to promote the implementation of European integrated border management and to ensure that European integrated border management becomes an operational reality. European integrated border management consists of, inter alia, the following components laid down in Regulation (EU) 2019/1896: border control; search and rescue operations during border surveillance; risk analysis; cooperation between Member States, including support coordinated by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency; inter-agency cooperation, including the regular exchange of information; cooperation with third countries; technical and operational measures within the Schengen area which are related to border control and designed to address illegal immigration and to counter cross-border crime better; use of state-of-the-art technology; a quality control mechanism and solidarity mechanisms.

(10) The Instrument should be able to provide the necessary support to Member States for the implementation of common minimum standards for external border surveillance, in line with the respective competences of the Member States, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and the Commission.

(11) As the customs authorities of the Member States have been taking up an increasing number of responsibilities which often extend to the field of security and which take place at the external borders, it is important to foster inter-agency cooperation as a component of European integrated border management in line with Regulation (EU) 2019/1896. Complementarity in carrying out border control and customs control at the external borders needs to be ensured by providing adequate Union financial support to the Member States. Inter-agency cooperation will not only strengthen customs controls in order to combat all forms of trafficking but will also facilitate legitimate trade and travel and contribute to a secure and efficient customs union.

(12) It is therefore necessary to establish the successor fund to the 2014-2020 Internal Security Fund, established by Regulations (EU) No 513/2014 and (EU) No 515/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council, by setting up, inter alia, an Integrated Border Management Fund (the ‘Fund’).

(13) Due to the legal particularities of Title V TFEU and the different applicable legal bases regarding the policies on external borders and on customs control, it is not legally possible to establish the Fund as a single instrument.

(14) The Fund should therefore be established as a comprehensive framework for Union financial support in the field of border management and visa policy comprising the Instrument as well as the Instrument for Financial Support for Customs Control Equipment, established by Regulation (EU) 2021/1077 of the European Parliament and of the Council . That framework should be complemented by Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 of the European Parliament and of the Council , to which this Regulation should refer as regards rules on shared management.

(15) The Instrument should build on the results and investments of its predecessors, the External Borders Fund for the 2007-2013 period, established by Decision No 574/2007/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and the instrument for financial support for external borders and visa as part of the Internal Security Fund for the 2014-2020 period, established by Regulation (EU) No 515/2014, and should be extended to take into account new developments.

(16) To ensure uniform and high-quality external border control and to facilitate legitimate travel across the external borders, the Instrument should contribute to the development of European integrated border management that includes measures involving policy, law, systematic cooperation, burden sharing, the assessment of the situation and changing circumstances regarding crossing points for irregular migrants, personnel, equipment and technology, which may be taken at different levels by the competent authorities of the Member States and by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, acting in cooperation with other actors such as other Union bodies, offices and agencies, in particular the European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (eu-LISA), established by Regulation (EU) 2018/1726 of the European Parliament and of the Council , the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol), established by Regulation (EU) 2016/794 of the European Parliament and of the Council , and, where appropriate, third countries and international organisations.

(17) The Instrument should contribute to improving the efficiency of visa processing in terms of facilitating visa procedures for bona fide travellers and in terms of detecting and assessing security risks and irregular migration risks. In particular, the Instrument should deliver financial assistance to support the digitalisation of visa processing with the objective of providing fast, secure and client-friendly visa procedures for the benefit of both visa applicants and consulates. The Instrument should also serve to ensure wide coverage of consular services across the world. The uniform implementation and the modernisation of the common visa policy, as well as the measures stemming from Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council , should also be covered by the Instrument, as should assistance to Member States for the issuance of visas, including visas with limited territorial validity issued on humanitarian grounds, for reasons of national interest or because of international obligations in line with the Union acquis in relation to visas.

(19) With a view to improving the management of the external borders, to facilitating legitimate travel, to contributing to preventing and combating irregular border crossings, to implementing the common visa policy and to contributing to a high level of security within the area of freedom, security and justice of the Union, the Instrument should support the development of large-scale IT systems in accordance with Union law in the area of border management. It should also support the setting-up of interoperability, as established in Regulations (EU) 2019/817 and (EU) 2019/818 of the European Parliament and of the Council, in the Member States between Union information systems, namely the Entry/Exit System (EES), established by Regulation (EU) 2017/2226 of the European Parliament and of the Council , the Visa Information System (VIS), established by Regulation (EC) No 767/2008, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), established by Regulation (EU) 2018/1240 of the European Parliament and of the Council , Eurodac, established by Regulation (EU) No 603/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council , the Schengen Information System (SIS), established by Regulations (EU) 2018/1860 , (EU) 2018/1861 and (EU) 2018/1862 of the European Parliament and of the Council and the centralised system for the identification of Member States holding conviction information on third-country nationals and stateless persons (ECRIS-TCN), established by Regulation (EU) 2019/816 of the European Parliament and of the Council , in order for those Union information systems and their data to supplement each other. The Instrument should also contribute to the necessary developments at national level following the implementation of the interoperability components at central level, namely the European search portal (ESP), a shared biometric matching service (shared BMS), a common identity repository (CIR) and a multiple-identity detector (MID).