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The '''Schengen Agreement''' (named after the village [[Schengen]], a village directly on the three border point of [[Germany]], [[Belgium]] and [[Luxembourg]], where it was signed), as far as travellers are concerned, basically dissolves borders control within all member countries. Once you have entered the Schengen area, you may travel freely within all border checks when travelling between member countries for 90 days in a six-month period without having to cross passport control points. If you are a citizen of one of these countries, you can travel within all member countries without any limits and without a passport. Therefore, the Schengen agreement extension will reveal to be an hassle for Non-[[European Union|EU]] passport holder, as the nearest border to cross and back (for a new 90 days) will be less reachable.
== Member States ==
28 European states have signed the agreement, including most European EU countries and three four non-EU countries ([[Iceland]], [[Liechtenstein]], [[Norway]], and [[Switzerland]]). [[Ireland]] and the [[United Kingdom]] did not sign the treaty. 24 26 of these countries have implemented the agreement so far.[[ImageFile:Schengen_map.png|500px|thumb|Schengen countries (blue) and , aspirants (green) and police and judicial cooperation only (red)]]
=== Current implementation ===
* [[ImageFile:Flag_Austria.png|20px]] [[Austria]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Belgium.png|20px]] [[Belgium]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Czech Republic.png|20px]] [[Czech Republic]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Denmark.png|20px]] [[Denmark]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Estonia.png|20px]] [[Estonia]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Finland.png|20px]] [[Finland]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_France.png|20px]] [[France]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Germany.png|20px]] [[Germany]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Greece.png|20px]] [[Greece]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Hungary.png|20px]] [[Hungary]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_IcelandFlag_Iceland.png|20px]] [[Iceland]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Italy.png|20px]] [[Italy]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Latvia.png|20px]] [[Latvia]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Liechtenstein.png|20px]] [[Liechtenstein]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Lithuania.png|20px]] [[Lithuania]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Luxembourg.png|20px]] [[Luxembourg]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Malta.png|20px]] [[Malta]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Netherlands.png|20px]] [[Netherlands]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Norway.png|20px]] [[Norway]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Poland.png|20px]] [[Poland]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Portugal.png|20px]] [[Portugal]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Slovakia.png|20px]] [[Slovakia]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Slovenia.png|20px]] [[Slovenia]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_Spain.png|20px]] [[Spain]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Sweden.png|20px]] [[Sweden]]* [[ImageFile:Flag_of_Switzerland.png|20px]] [[Switzerland]] Note that whilst [[Andorra]], [[Monaco]], [[San Marino]], and the [[Vatican City]] have not formally signed the Schengen Agreement, in practice there are no border checks when entering these countries from the Schengen Area. === Overstaying ==='''DON'T DO IT.'''This section only concerns visa-exempt individuals (although those with visas overstay, too, procedures might differ). Overstaying means you stay longer than 90 days within a 180 day period - it is irrelevant how many times you enter and exit, the officer will always count back 180 days and determine how many days you spent in the Schengen Area. Some countries are stricter than others - anecdotal evidence suggests Northern European countries, as well as Germany, Netherlands and countries with historically tight borders (ie. the former Communist countries) are stricter. The Netherlands, Germany and Poland are notorious. In general airports have less strict inspections than land borders. Southern European countries, such as Spain and Italy are much less strict and notorious for often not stamping Western passports (which they're legally required to). If it is found out that you have overstayed (this can be both on entry as well as exit - all Schengen countries have both entry and exit controls), the appropriate officials can issue a warning, fine or even deport you, depending on their mood, local laws and practices, as well the length of your overstay (a day or week over will most likely result in a warning, a month will get you a fine). Again, some are stricter, some not so much (see above). Fines range from 100 to 1000 euros. If deported, you'll be deported back to your home country (sometimes back to the country you just came from if this happens at entry) at your expense. You can also be given a five or ten year ban on traveling to Europe if you've overstayed. However, the system is very outdated - only Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain collect entries and exits electronically in a national database, but this data isn't shared with anyone else (ie. if you enter through Estonia and exit through Latvia, the Latvians won't see any electronic record, even though Estonia has it). Therefore, unless you '''both''' enter '''and''' exit through the same country in the list above, border officials' only source of information is the stamp in you passport. If in doubt, officials may ask for proof of entry, such as a plane/bus ticket, but you have no obligation to supply such information. There are proposals to introduce a single, shared electronic database for entries and exits in the mid-term (possibly by 2020 or later). Illegally exiting Schengen is virtually impossible due to a simple fact: most of the land (green) border is located between the EU and Russia/Belarus/Ukraine - the Soviet Union had extremely tight borders and to this day, most of these countries (Russia and Belarus especially) maintain a razor-wire fence on the border with the West with soldiers and sand lanes which indicate foot steps. Even if you could overcome these, getting away from the border region unnoticed is virtually impossible for a cheesy foreigner with a giant backpack. The Balkans (Hungary/Croatia, Slovenia/Croatia and Hungary/Serbia) used to be the weakest point of the Area (especially the Slovenian border), however after the events of 2015 (the Refugee Crisis), the border was greatly enhanced and now almost all of it is again cut off by razor-wire fences and patrols. Getting caught could land you with a huge fine if lucky, in jail if unlucky and shot if very unlucky, so don't do it. Common myths:*"Electronic stamps are saved on your biometric passport" - biometric chips only contain data about the bearer and officials of other countries CANNOT write information onto these chips, they can only read them*"Westerners get a free pass to stay longer" - they get more leeway, but not much and certainly not in Germany or any of the stricter countries*"Border officials will know from their computer how long you've stayed" - they WILL NOT, unless you BOTH enter AND exit via Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain *"You can get your visa-free stay extended by 30 days if you request it" - no such thing, in the Schengen Area you get 90 out of 180 days and that's it (unless you're from New Zealand, see above)*"You can just sneak out through a green border" - you can't, see above (razor-wire fences and such)*"You can legalize your overstay with the help of a lawyer" - a lawyer can only help reduce the risk of getting an entry ban for the future, you'll still have to pay the fine and leave the Schengen Area*"The SIS (Schengen Information System) tracks travelers' entries and exits" - the SIS is only a list of alerts about wanted/missing/undesirable people, not a list of all travelers - around 60% of all alerts are submitted by Germany.
=== Future implementation ===
* 2009Date unknown** [[ImageFile:Flag_of_CyprusFlag_Bulgaria.png|20px]] [[CyprusBulgaria]]* 2011* [[File:Flag_Romania.png|20px]] [[Romania]]** [[ImageFile:Flag_BulgariaFlag_Croatia.png|20px]] [[BulgariaCroatia]], once they get their borders in order (possibly never) ** [[ImageFile:Flag_RomaniaFlag_of_Cyprus.png|20px]] [[RomaniaCyprus]], dependent on resolution of Cyprus conflict
== External links ==
{{Wikipedia-link}}
{{IsIn|Europe}}
[[Category:Europe]]
[[de:Schengener Abkommen]]
[[fi:Schengenin sopimus]]
[[fr:Espace Schengen]]