Schengen Area

Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov announced Bulgaria's significant milestone in entering the Schengen area during the government's year-end meeting. Denkov's statement followed Romania's Prime Minister's declaration that both Bulgaria and Romania would join Schengen via air and sea borders starting March 2024.

Romania and Bulgaria are poised to enter the Schengen zone via air and sea borders in March 2024, as announced by the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Quoting the BTA, the Ministry affirms that a political consensus was recently reached with Austria and Bulgaria, aiming to extend Schengen territories to include Romania and Bulgaria through air and sea access.

Romania and Bulgaria have reached an agreement with Austria to join the European Schengen area of free movement by sea and air in March 2024, the Romanian government said Wednesday.

"After 13 years, Romania is finally going to join Schengen! We have a political agreement on this," Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu wrote on Facebook.

Romanian media outlets have recently erupted with news of a significant development: the official removal of the Netherlands' veto that had been impeding Bulgaria's access to the Schengen area.

Bulgaria's Minister of the Interior, Kalin Stoyanov, has underlined the ongoing discussions aimed at securing Austria's decision concerning Bulgaria's Schengen membership. With the recent approval from the Dutch parliament for Bulgaria's full inclusion in the Schengen area, the focus is now on Austria.

Anton Zlatanov, the director of Bulgaria's Border Police, addressed Austria's requirements for Bulgaria's entry into Schengen, calling them potentially political rather than professional. In an interview with жTV, Zlatanov expressed uncertainty regarding the stipulations put forth by Austria and highlighted the lack of concrete professional arguments against Bulgaria's entry into Schengen.

After a night of intense debates in the Netherlands Parliament, Bulgaria's full entry into the Schengen zone has received the green light, as reported by recent developments.

Bulgarian Member of the European Parliament (MEP), Andrey Novakov, embarked on a bold nighttime truck journey to spotlight the prolonged wait times faced by Bulgarian carriers at borders. His mission serves as a protest against Bulgaria's exclusion from the Schengen area, shedding light on the detrimental impact on carriers due to this exclusion.

Hungary will lift its objection to Bulgaria joining Europe's passport-free Schengen zone after the Bulgarian parliament formally confirms its scrapping of an extra tax on Russian gas shipments, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has said.

"I was informed by my Bulgarian colleague that yesterday the Bulgarian parliament scrapped this law," Szijjarto said in a video on his Facebook page.

Hungary is set to retract its opposition to Bulgaria's entry into the Schengen zone following Bulgaria's official abolition of an additional tax on Russian gas shipments. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto confirmed this development on December 19, citing an update from his Bulgarian counterpart.