I was reading about Schengen visa requirements and have stumbled upon the following text in the Biometric Requirement Schengen Visa:
As of November 2, 2015 it is required that applicants for a Schengen visa type C ( Duration less than 90 days) will need to provide biometric data (fingerprints) when submitting an application. The biometric data of persons applying for a Schengen visa will be stored in a new Visa Information System (VIS).
...
Exemptions from the obligation of fingerprinting are provided for the following categories of applicants only:
- Children under 12,
- Persons for whom the collection of fingerprints is physically impossible;
- Sovereigns and other senior members of a royal family, Heads of State and members of the national Governments (with their official delegations and spouses) if they travel for official purposes.
I can think of some reasons for the first category and can surely understand the reason for the second one. But why do royal family and members of national governments are not required to take fingerprints? Is it some sort of national security issue or just simplified process?