Romania and Bulgaria joined the Schengen Area on January 1, 2025, ending land border checks with other Schengen countries — but it means one rule has to now be followed by Brits

Romania and Bulgaria have officially joined the Schengen Area as of January 1st, 2025, offering new opportunities for skilled workers

Storyline: Romania and Bulgaria have become full members of the European Union's border-free Schengen area on Wednesday after lifting land border controls. The expansion was officially introduced at midnight Wednesday and was marked by celebrations at some of the countries' border checkpoints.

Romania and Bulgaria scrapped land border controls to become full members of the European Union's Schengen free-travel area on Wednesday, joining an expanded bloc of countries whose residents can travel without passport checks.

Romania and Bulgaria fully joined the Schengen Area on Wednesday, allowing their citizens to <a target=_blank href=

Bulgaria and Romania are holding ceremonies to mark their full membership in Europe’s Schengen area, the culmination of years of negotiations by the Eastern European countries to join the ID check-free travel zone.

This expansion means that travellers can now move freely between Bulgaria, Romania, and the other 27 EU member states

Romania and Bulgaria scrapped land border controls to become full members of the European Union's Schengen free-travel area on Wednesday, joining an expanded bloc of countries whose residents can travel without passport checks.

Lifting of controls at land borders will remove bottlenecks that often kept trucks loaded with goods stuck at border

Romania and Bulgaria officially join the Schengen Area on 1 January 2025, removing border controls and ensuring free movement across the EU

The Bulgarian border