Council agrees to lift air and maritime internal border controls with Bulgaria and Romania

EU member states have reached an agreement on removing air and maritime internal border controls with Bulgaria and Romania.

The decision has been taken by unanimity, following a written procedure.

I am very pleased that in 2024 air and maritime internal controls between Bulgaria and Romania and the other Schengen countries will become a thing of the past, after 12 years of negotiations. We are thus continuing to build an ever wider and stronger area of free movement.

Fernando Grande-Marlaska Gómez, Spanish Minister for the Interior

From 31 March 2024, there will no longer be checks on persons at EU internal air and maritime borders between Bulgaria and Romania and the other countries in the Schengen area. This date corresponds with the change of the winter/summer schedule set by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Following this first step, a further decision should be taken by the Council to establish a date for the lifting of checks at internal land borders.

Background

Since their accession to the EU, Bulgaria and Romania have applied parts of the Schengen legal framework (the Schengen acquis), including those related to the external border controls, police cooperation and the use of the Schengen Information System.

For the remaining parts of the Schengen acquis, which include the lifting of controls at internal borders and related measures, the Council decides unanimously on their application after it has been verified, in accordance with the applicable Schengen evaluation procedures, that they fulfil the necessary conditions.