Article 8f
1. Where the circumstances amounting to the relevant grounds for suspension set out in Article 8a(1) persist with regard to a third country whose nationals are covered by an implementing act adopted pursuant to Article 8e(1) or (5), the Commission shall adopt, at the latest two months before the expiry of the 12-month suspension period provided for by the implementing act, a delegated act in accordance with Article 10 in order to amend Annex II to temporarily suspend the application of that Annex for a period of 24 months for all nationals of that third country. 2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, where the implementing act referred to in Article 8e(1) or (5) covering the nationals of the third country concerned was adopted on the ground set out in Article 8a(1), point (g), as regards non-compliance with specific requirements on external relations or fundamental rights, or on the ground set out in Article 8a(1), point (h), the Commission may, by means of a delegated act as referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, temporarily suspend the application of Annex II for a period of 24 months for certain categories of nationals of that third country, designated in accordance with the principles laid down in Article 8e(3). 3. The amendment referred to in paragraph 1 shall be made by inserting a footnote next to the name of the third country concerned indicating that the exemption from the visa requirement is suspended with regard to that third country and specifying the period of the suspension and, where applicable, the designated categories of nationals of that third country to whom the suspension applies. The delegated act shall take effect from the end of the period of application of the relevant implementing act referred to in Article 8e(1) or (5). Article 8e(7) shall apply mutatis mutandis . 4. Without prejudice to Article 6 and the second subparagraph of paragraph 3 of this Article, during the period of suspension, the nationals of the third country covered by a delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article shall be required to be in possession of a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States. 5. Without prejudice to Article 8e(7), a Member State which, pursuant to Article 6, takes measures providing for new exceptions to the visa requirement for a category of nationals of the third country covered by a delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article shall communicate those measures in accordance with Article 12. 6. Before the end of the period of application of a delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 1, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and to the Council on the temporary application of the suspension of the exemption from the visa requirement, on the dialogue between the Commission and the third country concerned and on the measures taken to remedy the circumstances that led to the temporary suspension of the visa exemption. Reports as referred to in the first subparagraph may be accompanied by a legislative proposal to amend this Regulation in order to transfer the reference to the third country concerned from Annex II to Annex I. In that case, the Commission shall adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 10 in order to amend Annex II to extend the period of suspension of the exemption from the visa requirement set by the delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article until the entry into force of the amendment transferring the reference to the third country concerned to Annex I. That extension shall not exceed a period of 24 months. The footnote accompanying the reference shall be amended accordingly. Where, on the grounds of the persisting nature of the circumstances amounting to grounds for suspension set out in Article 8a(1), point (g), as regards non-compliance with specific requirements on external relations or fundamental rights, or of the circumstances amounting to grounds for suspension set out in Article 8a(1), point (h), a delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article was applied pursuant to paragraph 2 of this Article to nationals of a third country who hold diplomatic passports, service/official passports or special passports, the Commission may indicate in the report related to that delegated act that there is a need to adopt a further delegated act in order to extend the period of suspension by another period of 24 months. In that case, the first and second subparagraphs of this paragraph shall apply mutatis mutandis . 7. Where the circumstances that led to the temporary suspension of the exemption from the visa requirement are remedied before the end of the period of application of a delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 1 or 5 of this Article, the Commission shall adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 10 in order to amend Annex II to lift the temporary suspension.