MEPs discuss accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen area
The passport-free travel area should be extended to include Bulgaria and Romania as soon as possible, MEPs are set to say.
In the debate with the Commission and Council on Wednesday afternoon, MEPs are expected to call for the Schengen passport-free travel area to be completed swiftly by extending it to all EU member states who wish to participate. MEPs will also discuss the current state of the Schengen area, and recent proposals to reform its rules and governance.
Background
Currently, all EU member states except Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Ireland and Romania are part of the Schengen area. MEPs have called for Bulgaria and Romania to be fully admitted into Schengen on multiple occasions, for example in the 2018 resolution on the topic, the 2020 resolution on the state of Schengen in the context of the pandemic, and the 2021 report on the functioning of the passport-free travel area.
Debate: Wednesday, 5 October
Procedure: Council and Commission statements