Schengen visa: Travel to Bulgaria and Romania could get easier by 2025

Good news for travellers! Bulgaria and Romania are one step away from full membership in the Schengen Area, the European Union’s borderless travel zone. The announcement came on Friday, with Hungary revealing that a decision is expected at a meeting of EU interior ministers on 12 December 2025. If approved, the two countries could officially join the Schengen Area by January 2025.

 

What is the Schengen visa?

 

The Schengen visa allows travellers to enter the Schengen Area, a group of European countries with no internal border checks. This makes travel between member states seamless and eliminates the need for separate visas for each country.

 

Currently, the Schengen Area includes 29 countries, 25 of which are EU member states. These are:  

- Belgium  

- Croatia  

- Czech Republic  

- Denmark  

- Germany  

- Estonia  

- Greece  

- Spain  

- France  

- Italy  

- Latvia  

- Lithuania  

- Luxembourg  

- Hungary  

- Malta  

- Netherlands  

- Austria  

- Poland  

- Portugal  

- Romania  

- Slovenia  

- Slovakia  

- Finland  

- Sweden  

 

Non-EU members Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland are also part of the Schengen Area.

 

What changed for Bulgaria and Romania?

 

Romania and Bulgaria, both EU and Nato members, partly joined Schengen in March 2024 after securing an agreement with Austria, which had previously opposed their membership due to concerns over illegal immigration. Since then, the two countries have worked towards full membership.

 

Hungarian interior minister Sandor Pinter confirmed this progress in a media statement, saying, “We are... one step closer to Bulgaria and Romania becoming full members of Schengen.” He made the remarks following discussions with Romanian, Bulgarian, and Austrian officials.

 

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson welcomed the development, with Johansson stating that Romania and Bulgaria “fully belong” to the Schengen Area. She called it a step forward for the citizens of these countries and the wider region.

 

How will this affect travellers?

 

If the proposal is approved, Schengen visa holders will be able to visit Bulgaria and Romania without additional border checks. This expansion will offer more travel opportunities and ease cross-border movement for both tourists and businesses.

 

Benefits for Indian travellers

 

Indian nationals, in particular, stand to benefit from these changes. The European Commission announced a cascade regime for Indian nationals in April 2024, which allows multi-year validity for travellers with an established travel history.

 

Under a multi-year visa regime, Indian citizens are eligible for longer-term visas:  

< A two-year visa after using two visas in the past three years  

< A five-year visa following the two-year visa, subject to passport validity  

 

Schengen visa is quite popular among Indian travellers. According to a report by the EU, in 2023, 966,687 Indian nationals applied for a Schengen visa, which was a 43% increase from 2022. This made India the third largest applicant country for Schengen visas, behind China and Turkey.

 

However, the visa rejection rate for Indian applications stood at 15.70 per cent.

 

What is the Schengen visa fee?

 

Applying for a Schengen visa involves a standard fee structure:  

Adults (13 years and older): €80 (approximately Rs 7,000)

Children (6-12 years): €40 (approximately Rs 3,500)

Children under 6: no fee