[FOSDEM] non-profit status, waiving visa fees

[Wouter Verhelst]

On Tue, Dec 22, 2015 at 08:22:43AM +0100, Daniel Pocock wrote:
> Apparently the visa fees are waived for people under 25 who travel to an
> event organised by a non-profit organisation
> 
> Is FOSDEM incorporated as a non-profit entity and could this be added to
> the About page and also the FAQ info about visas?

Yes, FOSDEM is organized by a VZW ("vereniging zonder winstoogmerk", the
dutch form of ASBL, which is a format of legal person explicitly made for
non-profit purposes).

See also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Association_without_lucrative_purpose

(FOSDEM is not an ivzw, though)

> http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/china/travel_to_eu/visa/index_en.htm
> 
> It says there is an exemption from the visa fee for "representatives of
> non-profit organisations aged 25 years or less participating in
> seminars, conferences, sports, cultural or educational events organised
> by non-profit organisations.".

A *representative* of a non-profit organisation is not the same thing as
a conference organized *by* a non-profit organisation.

It could still help if the person involved is indeed a representative of
something that would qualify, but it's not something for every random
person.

-- 
It is easy to love a country that is famous for chocolate and beer

  -- Barack Obama, speaking in Brussels, Belgium, 2014-03-26