European Union/Schengen Area: Bulgaria, Romania to Fully Join Schengen Area in January 2025
December 16, 2024
At a Glance
- The European Council has confirmed that effective January 1, 2025, Bulgaria and Romania will fully join Europe’s Schengen Area, with border checks for land-based travel from other Schengen Area countries to cease at that time.
- Travel between Bulgaria, Romania and other Schengen Area countries will become easier and quicker, as affected travelers will no longer be subject to border control inspections in any way.
- In March 2024, border checks ceased for air- or sea-based travel between Bulgaria, Romania and other Schengen Area countries.
The situation
The European Council has confirmed that effective January 1, 2025, Bulgaria and Romania will fully join the Schengen Area, with border checks for land-based travel from other Schengen Area countries to cease at that time.
Impact
- Quicker travel. Travel between Bulgaria, Romania and Schengen Area countries will become easier and quicker, as affected travelers will no longer be subject to border control inspections in any way; whereas currently such land-based travel is subject to border checks.
- Economic impact. Streamlined land-based travel is likely to provide economic benefits, including reduced logistics-related costs for businesses as well as increased tourism.
Background
- Partial entry. In March 2024, border checks ceased for air- or sea-based travel between Bulgaria, Romania and other Schengen Area countries. Land border checks will remain in place until December 31, 2024.
- Temporary border checks. Schengen Area countries can introduce temporary border checks for specific reasons, such as serious threats to public policy or internal security. Over the last decade, several European countries have implemented, and regularly extended, such border checks.
Looking ahead
- Implementation date. All internal Schengen border checks with these two countries will be ceased on January 1, 2025. There will not be transitional measures.
- Entry/Exit System. The full integration of Bulgaria and Romania into the Schengen Area will simplify the roll out of the European Union’s Entry/Exit System, as Bulgaria and Romania will no longer be subject to the more complex provisions applicable to countries which only partially implement Schengen rules.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].
