Schengen Agreement
Encyclopedia
The Schengen Agreement is a treaty
signed on 14 June 1985 near the town of Schengen in Luxembourg
, between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community
. It was supplemented by the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement 5 years later. Together these treaties created Europe's borderless Schengen Area
, which operates very much like a single state for international travel with external border controls for travellers travelling in and out of the area, but with no internal border controls.
The Schengen Agreements and the rules adopted under them were, for the EU members of the Agreement, entirely separate from the EU structures
until the 1997 Amsterdam Treaty
, which incorporated them into the mainstream of European Union law
. The borderless zone created by the Schengen Agreements, the Schengen Area
, currently consists of 25 European countries, covering a population of over 400 million people and an area of 4,312,099 square kilometers (1,664,911 sq mi).
Before 1914, it was possible to travel from Paris
to Saint Petersburg
without a passport
. When the First World War
came to an end, the practice of issuing passports and performing routine passport controls at national frontiers remained and became the norm in Europe until the implementation of the Schengen Area
in 1985.
There were of course several exceptions. After the secession of the Irish Free State
from the United Kingdom
in 1922, both countries passed laws that treated the other country as part of its own territory for immigration purposes. This Common Travel Area
still exists today, albeit in a much more limited fashion.
In 1944, the governments-in-exile of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg (Benelux
) signed an agreement to eliminate border controls between themselves; this agreement was put into force in 1948. Similarly, the Nordic Passport Union
was created in 1952 to permit free travel amongst the Nordic countries
of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden and some of their associated territories. Both of these areas have largely been subsumed within the Schengen Area.
The Schengen Agreement was signed on 14 June 1985 on the river-boat Princess Marie-Astrid in the middle of the river Moselle where the territories of France, Germany and Luxembourg meet. The original signatories were Belgium
, France
, Luxembourg
, the Netherlands
, and West Germany
. As Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg formed the "borderless Benelux" (s.a.), the agreement was in a way signed at the border triangle of all original signatories. It was created independently of the European Union, in part owing to the lack of consensus amongst EU members over whether or not the EU had the competence to abolish border controls, and in part because those ready to implement the idea did not wish to wait for others (back then there was no Enhanced co-operation
mechanism). The Agreement initially only provided for the replacement of passport checks with visual surveillance of private vehicles, which would be able to cross borders without stopping albeit at reduced speed.
In 1990, before the Schengen Agreement had been implemented, the same five states signed a Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement. It was this Convention that created the Schengen Area through the complete abolition of border controls between Schengen states, common rules on visas,
and police and judicial cooperation.
The Schengen Agreement along with its implementing Convention was implemented in 1995 only for some signatories, but just over two years later during the Amsterdam Intergovernmental Conference, all European Union
member states except the United Kingdom and Ireland, and two non-member states Norway
and Iceland
(part of the Nordic Passport Union
along with EU members Denmark
, Finland
, and Sweden
) had signed the Schengen Agreement. It was during those negotiations, which led to Amsterdam Treaty
, that the incorporation of the so-called Schengen-Acquis into the main body of European Union law was agreed along with opt-outs for Ireland
and the United Kingdom
, which were to remain outside of the Schengen Area
.
Now that the Schengen Agreement is part of the acquis communautaire, the Agreement has, for its EU members, lost the status of a treaty, which could only be amended according to its terms; instead, its amendments are made according to that legislative procedure of the EU that covers the rules to be amended as defined in the EU treaties
. Ratification by the former agreement signatory states is not required for altering or repealing some or all of the former Schengen-Acquis. Legal acts setting out the conditions for entry into the Schengen Area are now enacted by majority vote in the legislative bodies of the European Union
. New EU member states do not sign the Schengen Agreement as such; instead, they are bound to implement the Schengen rules as part of the pre-existing body of EU law, which every new entrant is required to accept.
This led to the result that the Schengen States that are not EU members have few formally binding options to influence the shaping and evolution of the Schengen rules; their options are effectively reduced to agreeing, or withdrawing from the agreement. Similarly to the European Economic Area
practice, consultations with the affected countries are conducted informally, prior to the adoption of particular new legislation. [source missing]
In 2006 the directive on the right to move freely (2004/38/EC)
was implemented, meaning that passportless travel is allowed in the entire European Union, if having a national identity card from an EU country. For some a passport is necessary anyway, since not all countries issue such cards for their citizens, and because Sweden requires a passport when travelling from that country to EU countries outside Schengen.
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
signed on 14 June 1985 near the town of Schengen in Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
, between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
. It was supplemented by the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement 5 years later. Together these treaties created Europe's borderless Schengen Area
Schengen Area
The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
, which operates very much like a single state for international travel with external border controls for travellers travelling in and out of the area, but with no internal border controls.
The Schengen Agreements and the rules adopted under them were, for the EU members of the Agreement, entirely separate from the EU structures
Institutions of the European Union
The European Union is governed by seven institutions. Article 13 of Treaty on European Union lists them in the following order: the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European...
until the 1997 Amsterdam Treaty
Amsterdam Treaty
The Amsterdam Treaty, officially the Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty of the European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and certain related acts, was signed on 2 October 1997, and entered into force on 1 May 1999; it made substantial changes to the Maastricht Treaty,...
, which incorporated them into the mainstream of European Union law
European Union law
European Union law is a body of treaties and legislation, such as Regulations and Directives, which have direct effect or indirect effect on the laws of European Union member states. The three sources of European Union law are primary law, secondary law and supplementary law...
. The borderless zone created by the Schengen Agreements, the Schengen Area
Schengen Area
The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
, currently consists of 25 European countries, covering a population of over 400 million people and an area of 4,312,099 square kilometers (1,664,911 sq mi).
History
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
without a passport
Passport
A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth....
. When the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
came to an end, the practice of issuing passports and performing routine passport controls at national frontiers remained and became the norm in Europe until the implementation of the Schengen Area
Schengen Area
The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
in 1985.
There were of course several exceptions. After the secession of the Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
from the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1922, both countries passed laws that treated the other country as part of its own territory for immigration purposes. This Common Travel Area
Common Travel Area
The Common Travel Area is a passport-free zone that comprises the islands of Ireland, Great Britain, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. The area's internal borders are subject to minimal or non-existent border controls and can normally be crossed by Irish and British citizens with only...
still exists today, albeit in a much more limited fashion.
In 1944, the governments-in-exile of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg (Benelux
Benelux
The Benelux is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring countries, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. These countries are located in northwestern Europe between France and Germany...
) signed an agreement to eliminate border controls between themselves; this agreement was put into force in 1948. Similarly, the Nordic Passport Union
Nordic Passport Union
The Nordic Passport Union allows citizens of the Nordic countries: Denmark , Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Iceland to travel and reside in other Nordic countries without a passport or a residence permit.- Establishment :...
was created in 1952 to permit free travel amongst the Nordic countries
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden and some of their associated territories. Both of these areas have largely been subsumed within the Schengen Area.
The Schengen Agreement was signed on 14 June 1985 on the river-boat Princess Marie-Astrid in the middle of the river Moselle where the territories of France, Germany and Luxembourg meet. The original signatories were Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. As Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg formed the "borderless Benelux" (s.a.), the agreement was in a way signed at the border triangle of all original signatories. It was created independently of the European Union, in part owing to the lack of consensus amongst EU members over whether or not the EU had the competence to abolish border controls, and in part because those ready to implement the idea did not wish to wait for others (back then there was no Enhanced co-operation
Enhanced co-operation
In the European Union , enhanced cooperation is a procedure where a minimum of nine EU member states are allowed to establish advanced integration or cooperation in an area within EU structures but without the other members being involved...
mechanism). The Agreement initially only provided for the replacement of passport checks with visual surveillance of private vehicles, which would be able to cross borders without stopping albeit at reduced speed.
In 1990, before the Schengen Agreement had been implemented, the same five states signed a Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement. It was this Convention that created the Schengen Area through the complete abolition of border controls between Schengen states, common rules on visas,
and police and judicial cooperation.
The Schengen Agreement along with its implementing Convention was implemented in 1995 only for some signatories, but just over two years later during the Amsterdam Intergovernmental Conference, all European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
member states except the United Kingdom and Ireland, and two non-member states Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
(part of the Nordic Passport Union
Nordic Passport Union
The Nordic Passport Union allows citizens of the Nordic countries: Denmark , Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Iceland to travel and reside in other Nordic countries without a passport or a residence permit.- Establishment :...
along with EU members Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
) had signed the Schengen Agreement. It was during those negotiations, which led to Amsterdam Treaty
Amsterdam Treaty
The Amsterdam Treaty, officially the Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty of the European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and certain related acts, was signed on 2 October 1997, and entered into force on 1 May 1999; it made substantial changes to the Maastricht Treaty,...
, that the incorporation of the so-called Schengen-Acquis into the main body of European Union law was agreed along with opt-outs for Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, which were to remain outside of the Schengen Area
Schengen Area
The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
.
Now that the Schengen Agreement is part of the acquis communautaire, the Agreement has, for its EU members, lost the status of a treaty, which could only be amended according to its terms; instead, its amendments are made according to that legislative procedure of the EU that covers the rules to be amended as defined in the EU treaties
Treaties of the European Union
The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties between the European Union member states which sets out the EU's constitutional basis. They establish the various EU institutions together with their remit, procedures and objectives...
. Ratification by the former agreement signatory states is not required for altering or repealing some or all of the former Schengen-Acquis. Legal acts setting out the conditions for entry into the Schengen Area are now enacted by majority vote in the legislative bodies of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. New EU member states do not sign the Schengen Agreement as such; instead, they are bound to implement the Schengen rules as part of the pre-existing body of EU law, which every new entrant is required to accept.
This led to the result that the Schengen States that are not EU members have few formally binding options to influence the shaping and evolution of the Schengen rules; their options are effectively reduced to agreeing, or withdrawing from the agreement. Similarly to the European Economic Area
European Economic Area
The European Economic Area was established on 1 January 1994 following an agreement between the member states of the European Free Trade Association and the European Community, later the European Union . Specifically, it allows Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway to participate in the EU's Internal...
practice, consultations with the affected countries are conducted informally, prior to the adoption of particular new legislation. [source missing]
In 2006 the directive on the right to move freely (2004/38/EC)
Directive 2004/38/EC on the right to move and reside freely
The Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the right of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States...
was implemented, meaning that passportless travel is allowed in the entire European Union, if having a national identity card from an EU country. For some a passport is necessary anyway, since not all countries issue such cards for their citizens, and because Sweden requires a passport when travelling from that country to EU countries outside Schengen.
See also
- Central America-4 Border Control AgreementCentral America-4 Border Control AgreementThe Central America-4 Border Control Agreement was a treaty signed in June 2006 between the Central American nations of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, establishing the free movement across borders between the four signatory states of its citizens without any restrictions or checks...
- Enhanced co-operationEnhanced co-operationIn the European Union , enhanced cooperation is a procedure where a minimum of nine EU member states are allowed to establish advanced integration or cooperation in an area within EU structures but without the other members being involved...
- European Union lawEuropean Union lawEuropean Union law is a body of treaties and legislation, such as Regulations and Directives, which have direct effect or indirect effect on the laws of European Union member states. The three sources of European Union law are primary law, secondary law and supplementary law...
- Four Freedoms (European Union)Four Freedoms (European Union)The European Union's Internal Market seeks to guarantee the free movement of goods, capital, services, and people – the EU's four freedoms – within the EU's 27 member states.The Internal Market is intended to be conducive to increased competition, increased specialisation, larger...
- Prüm ConventionPrüm ConventionThe Prüm Convention is a treaty which was signed on 27 May 2005 by Germany, Spain, France, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Austria, and Belgium in the town of Prüm in Germany...
- Schengen AreaSchengen AreaThe Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
- Schengen Information SystemSchengen Information SystemThe Schengen Information System , is a governmental database used by European countries to maintain and distribute information on individuals and pieces of property of interest. The intended uses of this system are for national security, border control and law enforcement purposes...
External links
- Agreement between the Governments of the States of the Benelux Economic Union, the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Republic on the gradual abolition of checks at their common borders - The Schengen Agreement
- Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement of 14 June 1985 between the Governments of the States of the Benelux Economic Union, the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Republic on the gradual abolition of checks at their common borders - Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement
- Schengen – eurotopics
- The Schengen area – European NAvigatorEuropean NAvigatorEuropean NAvigator was the former name of the digital library on the history of European integration and related institutions. The research project is now online at www.cvce.eu, a website dedicated to European integration studies....
- The Schengen Acquis – EUR-LexEUR-LexEUR-Lex is a service providing legal texts of the European Union on its official website europa.eu. Replacing the earlier service CELEX, EUR-Lex provides direct free access to European Union law. The system makes it possible to consult the Official Journal of the European Union and it includes...