Schengen space Information and news about Schengen countries

Travelers flying between the nine new Schengen countries and to the rest of the Schengen space countries do not have to show their passport from this Sunday.

Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta and Slovenia have joined Schengen Space on last December, allowing them to stop border controls.

This measure had been extended to airports only on March 30th, when the semester flight schedule is updated.

Schengen space includes 22 countries within the European Union, plus Norway and Iceland, including 400 million inhabitants.

The European Union's ten new members will join the the borderless Schengen zone in 2007, according to the Justice and Interior ministers from the European Union.

These members must use Schengen standards at customs and border points in order to join the other fifteen members (EU minus UK and Ireland, plus Norway and Iceland). Those who meet the criteria will be able to integrate into Schengen system in 2007. Land borders are scheduled to be opened in December 31, 2007 and sea and air borders checks will be lifted by the latest in March 2008. In mid-2007 the European Commission will evaluate if their borders are meeting the required standards.

Countries that joined the European Union in 2004 won't be able to join the Schengen zone as planned in April 2007.

Supported by Unisys and Microsoft, the Schengen Information System II (SIS II) will be delayed for technical reasons. SIS is a database that stores all travelers' entry and exit data in the Schengen zone.

Read a complete article about this subject on heise online.