Add two nations to your bucket list the next time you are traveling by plane into the Schengen Area. You may now enter Romania and Bulgaria with your Schengen visa as they have formally become members of the Schengen Area.
Currently comprising 29 nations in continental Europe, the Schengen Area included 27 before the accession of Romania and Bulgaria. Travelers may visit these nations with a Schengen visa. On April 1, Bulgaria and Romania will start providing Schengen C visas to international visitors. Within 180 days, these visas allow for admission and a maximum 90-day stay in the region. Travelers holding visas granted by any of the two nations before April 1st are not permitted entry into the remaining Schengen region.
Travel between the two nations and between any country and any other nation in the Schengen region will not need passport checks for citizens of either nation. Due to an Austrian veto that restricts this new status to land and sea routes, ID checks at land borders will continue to exist for the time being. When visiting various Schengen countries, travelers from non-Schengen nations will still need to have their passports checked.
