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Schengen countries are those that have signed a 1985 Schengen agreement abolishing border checks/controls and harmonizing provisions that allow a common visa to visit all participating countries. It means that passports will only be checked and stamped if arriving from or departing to a non-Schengen country.

Note that the term “Schengen countries” does not refer to all EU member states and includes non-EU countries.

Schengen visas allow travel within the entire Schengen zone, unless exceptions are noted. If you were granted a “national” visa, then you are only allowed passage to this specific country, not the entire zone.

*Article last updated August 15, 2010

Schengen countries

There are currently 25 Schengen countries, which include 22 EU countries and three non-EU countries.

Austria
Belgium
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France and Monaco
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland

* Although the UK and Ireland are not part of Schengen, these countries were granted policing and judicial authority in criminal matters.

As of 2010

Liechtenstein was scheduled to enter Schengen by November 2009 but implementation has been delayed to 2010 or later. Until then, its shared and formerly open border with Switzerland is manned 24 hours by Swiss border guards to ensure there are no immigration violations or breaches of security.

Cyprus was due to enter Schengen in March 2010 but is not yet a full member according to the official EU website. See, “To Which Countries Does Schengen Apply.”

As of 2011

Bulgaria
Romania

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http://bit.ly/Schengen