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The Schengen area, which is free of systematic controls at internal borders, comprises 22 EU Member States and four non-EU associated countries. While four other Member States – Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Romania – are bound by the Schengen body of EU law (acquis), internal border controls have not yet been lifted for them. Following a positive Schengen evaluation of Croatia, the Council has prepared a draft decision on the full application of the Schengen acquis in Croatia, and requested the ...

The Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT) held a workshop with the aim to get a better understanding about customs control practices in Member States and their possible improvements. This publication includes the full documentation of the workshop: programme, summary of the debate, background briefing, profiles of speakers and their presentations.

The Schengen area without internal borders has been under stress over the past decade owing to several successive crises, including the sudden arrival of large numbers of people across the EU's external borders, persistent threats to internal security, and the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Although according to the Schengen rules the reintroduction of border controls at internal borders should be a temporary and exceptional measure, several Member States have maintained internal border controls ...

The Commission demonstrates that the Schengen area has experienced considerable challenges in recent years and makes a convincing case for the need to act. It made an effort to substantiate the initiative and to consult widely. The IA is transparent about the lack of data, which results in a predominantly qualitative analysis. However, the presentation of options leaves, in fact, only the choice of the preferred option. Moreover, one would have expected a more in-depth assessment of impacts – a point ...

In December 2021, the European Commission presented a proposal to amend the Schengen Borders Code, which lays down the rules governing controls at the EU internal and external borders. While debates on the reform of Schengen have been going on for a while, recent challenges related to the coronavirus pandemic on the one hand, and attempts to instrumentalise migrants as a way to put pressure on the EU's external borders, on the other, have created new momentum for reform. The Commission's proposal ...

Given the continuation of the Covid-19 pandemic and of certain travel restrictions within the EU, the European Commission has proposed to extend the EU Digital Covid Certificate (EUDCC) regulations by one year, until 30 June 2023. The Commission also proposed some limited amendments to the regulations.

Attracting highly qualified immigrants to Europe has been one of the EU's key priorities for several years. However, up until now the EU has not been as successful as other OECD countries. This demand for workers is expected to increase due to the increasing shortage of certain skills and the aging of the EU's population. The proposed directive, which would replace the 2009 Blue Card Directive, increases the attractiveness of the EU highly skilled migration scheme by expanding its scope, lowering ...

This thematic briefing provides the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) with an overview of the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on EU transport workers and their working conditions, as well as policy recommendations to address the challenges emerging from the crisis.

The Covid-19 crisis has had a severe impact on free movement in the EU. To address this issue, on 17 March 2021 the Commission issued a proposal to establish a 'digital green certificate' – a common framework for issuing, verifying and accepting interoperable health certificates. The certificate would include proof of vaccination, Covid-19 test results, and/or information that the holder has recovered from being ill with Covid-19. The proposal has been given priority by the co-legislators with a ...

As a component of the Schengen Strategy that the European Commission intends to adopt in 2021, the revision of regulation (EU) No 1053/2013 will aim at making the Schengen Evaluation and Monitoring Mechanism more efficient, by revising current practices - for example, by shortening the adoption processes of the evaluation reports and recommendations, and ensuring a timely follow-up by Member States.