The number of Schengen countries has increased to 29. Bulgaria and Romania are expected to start issuing Schengen visas from April.

Recently, news from the official website of the Schengen visa said that Bulgaria and Romania are expected to start issuing Schengen C visas from April 1, 2024, allowing entry into the region within 180 days and stay in the region for up to 90 days.

The EU Commission decided to lift air and sea border controls with Bulgaria and Romania in March, but Austria, out of concern for the state of the entire immigration system, expressed its veto over the land borders of Bulgaria and Romania joining the Schengen area, believing that land border controls are still necessary.

Although "land routes are blocked", the cancellation of sea and air border controls almost means that these two countries have partially joined the Schengen area. One Schengen visa will also become a reality in 29 Schengen countries.

-List of 29 Schengen countries (excluding Cyprus and Ireland)-

As early as 2011, the European Commission confirmed that Bulgaria and Romania were ready to join the Schengen area. After more than a decade, these two countries have been working hard to join the Schengen area and have been proving that they meet the necessary conditions.

Previously, the requirements for visas to Bulgaria and Romania in terms of visa materials and visa fees were almost the same as those for Schengen visas, which means that the materials are infinitely close, but visas issued by these two countries cannot enter the Schengen area, but Schengen visas can enter these two countries.

The official website of the Romanian Embassy has the following regulations on entering Romania with a Schengen visa

Since February 1, 2014, foreigners holding a double-entry visa or a unified visa with multiple entries issued by a Schengen country, a long-stay visa or a residence permit are allowed to enter Romania within a 180-day period for no more than 90 consecutive days of stay or multiple entries. Foreigners do not need to apply for a short-stay visa if the documents submitted are still valid and the number of entries and the duration of stay have not been exhausted. The time of stay in Romania cannot exceed the period allowed by the unified visa, long-stay visa or residence permit.

The Bulgarian Embassy's official website has the following regulations regarding entry into Bulgaria with a Schengen visa:

Visas issued by Bulgaria do not allow entry into the Schengen area.

People holding the following visas and permanent residence cards can enter Bulgaria without holding a Bulgarian C visa:

Schengen double-entry or multiple-entry C visas for Schengen countries that have been used less than once;

Long-term D visas for the issuing countries that have been used less than once;

Permanent residence cards for Schengen countries;

Schengen visas with limited territorial validity that have been used less than once (LTV);

Romania or Cyprus double-entry or multiple-entry C or D Romania or Cyprus visa that has been used less than once;

Croatia visa or permanent residence card issued before December 31, 2022, until its expiration date.

From April 1, this "curve entry" method will no longer exist.

Bulgaria has also opened visa application centers in 15 cities in China. The current business hours are from 9 am to 12 pm every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Romania has not yet opened a visa application center. Visa applications are still submitted to the visa department of its embassy or consulate. With Romania joining the Schengen area, I believe that with the increase in visa demand, the opening of a visa application center will also be put on the agenda.

About Schengen (Source Baidu Encyclopedia):

On June 14, 1985, five countries signed the Schengen Convention in Schengen, a small city in Luxembourg. The convention officially came into effect in July 1995. The member states of the Schengen Convention are also called "Schengen countries" or "Schengen Convention countries", and the member states as a whole are also called "Schengen area". The purpose of the Schengen Agreement is to eliminate border checkpoints between each other and coordinate border controls outside the Schengen area. People holding valid ID cards or visas from any member state can move freely within all member states.

Source: Fool Visa

Statement:

1. Some of the text and pictures in the article are from the Internet;

2. There is no necessary connection between the text and the picture, for readers' reference only;

3. If this article inadvertently infringes upon the legal rights of any party, it will be deleted upon notification.

4. We are committed to protecting the author's copyright and not infringing upon the legal rights of any party. Reprinting or quoting is only for the purpose of spreading more information. Some materials come from the Internet and their true source cannot be verified. If there is any infringement, please contact us to delete;