Entry ban into the countries of the Schengen zone and the European Union from March 17 due to coronavirus
European states have made a decision and closed their borders to citizens of all other countries that are not part of the Schengen area and the European Union for 30 days. In the future, the entry restriction may be extended. French President Emmanuel Macron announced this after an emergency meeting with all representatives of the European Union late in the evening of March 16, the website rbc.ru reports.
At the moment, the following European countries of the Schengen zone have completely banned the entry of foreigners into their country: Italy, Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta, Cyprus, Slovakia, Denmark, Poland, Austria, Slovenia.
Germany has closed its land borders with neighboring countries.
Thus, those people who left for Europe before March 17 will not be able to move freely within the Schengen area and travel to these countries.
They are introducing border controls, so it will not be possible to enter them from another Schengen country in March 2021.
Also, from March 16, flights from Russia to all countries of the Schengen zone and the EU were limited and cancelled, except for flights from Moscow to the capitals of these states. Now only EU citizens can use them.
The legislative framework
The current legislation applied when crossing European borders is interpreted ambiguously. The confusion concerns the prescribed rules regarding the first entry into the Schengen zone.
There are rules for entry into the Schengen zone, which state that you can visit all countries if you have a valid open visa. And there is a recommendation on where to apply for a visa, which mentions the rule of first entry and the main country of residence.
Some are confident in the “collusion” of travel agencies, which, intimidating travelers with difficulties in obtaining a visa, interpret this rule to their advantage. Others see regulations as an adequate practice to control the flow of people across borders.
Entry to Schengen is regulated by Article 5 of the EU Visa Code. The official EU website contains answers to frequently asked questions about obtaining a Schengen visa and entering European countries in Russian, where there is also no clear answer.
More information about the new rules for staying in Schengen countries in 2021 can be found by following this link.
What are the designations on a Schengen visa?
According to the document, when choosing a diplomatic mission or visa center of the country where the visa application will be sent, the following must be taken into account:
- Purpose of travel (country).
- The place where the border will be crossed.
- Travel dates (if you plan to travel to several countries).
These rules are formal in nature and do not create any problems for tourists. The main thing is not to try to break them on purpose.
An article in the visa code dictates the rules for accepting visa documents. In this case, a specific country is provided:
- The only one that is planned to be visited.
- The state where the foreigner plans to stay longer during the first trip.
- Through which it is planned to enter the Schengen territory, if it is difficult to determine the main country of residence.
If you are planning a tour of all European countries for several days, then a visa can be issued at the representative office of the first entry country. Otherwise, according to the rules, the visa must be issued by the country where the longest stay will be.
You can learn about the types of Schengen visas by following this link.
In the latter case, the main thing is not to abuse the hospitality of some countries. There are cases when tourists apply for a visa to the most friendly country, including Greece, Spain, Finland, Italy, France.
And then they go on a trip to other countries, forgetting to visit the one where the visa was issued.
For example, difficulties may arise when applying for Schengen visa to the following countries:
- Switzerland.
- Austria.
- Denmark.
- Germany.
In these cases, tourists apply for a French visa and go, for example, not only to Paris, but also to Germany for a couple of days. It is necessary to correctly calculate the time of stay in a particular place. Those traveling by car should be especially careful about the timing.
A tourist must immediately fly to France if, when filling out the form, it is indicated as the country of first entry. However, a traveler may prefer not to fly, but to travel by car and, on the way to France, will transit several European countries at once until he gets to his final destination.
In this case, clarifying questions from the border guards are not excluded. It is important to answer them correctly, in this case there will be no questions or violations. Since, in fact, France remains the main country of travel (although the first entry was made into another country).
Schengen countries on the map
The map below clearly shows visa relationships with tourists from European countries. It will be convenient when preparing for a trip.
Have a nice trip!
About the author: Ekaterina
On the pages of my blog you will find information about the places I have been, secrets and life hacks of independent travel.
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Questions from border guards at the border
To avoid misunderstandings at the border, a tourist who wants to get into the wrong Schengen country where the visa was issued must stock up on arguments. A declaration of a dream to visit Paris and a trip to the capital for 1-2 days at the French border with a Czech visa can be valid. However, migration services of different countries may treat similar arguments without understanding.
You can be allowed to enter the country only after documentary confirmation of your words. These could be plane or train tickets to a country that has issued a Schengen visa, or a hotel reservation.
An invitation from friends, excursion tickets or anything else indicating a planned visit to the country indicated on the visa is also suitable.
This is what a hotel reservation confirmation for a visa looks like
The border guard has the right to verify the financial viability of the tourist to visit European countries.
In practice, such a check is rarely carried out if the tourist is suspicious.
What you need to answer questions from border guards when crossing the border of the Schengen zone on a visa issued by another country is described in detail in this author's video.
Consequences of violating the established entry procedure
A violation of the first entry rule into Schengen, if border guards have allowed entry, will not entail any punishment in 2021.
According to diplomats, in the near future there may be difficulties in obtaining another multiple-entry visa in the country in which Schengen was opened, but they did not travel to it. Experts will count the number of trips to the country that opened Schengen.
You need to visit this country at least once so that in the future it will issue a multiple visa again and does not limit its validity.
The visa gives the tourist the right to move around the Schengen zone as convenient for him. But the main one during the first trip should be the country that allowed entry into the EU. This is the interpretation of the rules that most professionals adhere to when applying for a visa.
If entry into the main country is one-time, then it does not matter in which state the foreigner spent more time. No one will record this, and there are no tools for this.
For example, consulate employees will not be able to understand why, with an Austrian visa, the country of first entry is not Austria indicated several times. But there are only stamps for entry into other European countries, even if the road was in transit through other states. In this case, your next visa may be denied.
This is what an Italy visa refusal stamp looks like
First entry rule to Schengen
The rules of the Schengen Agreement do not and never have had such a clause according to which you are required to enter the country that issued this visa using a new multiple visa. The Visa Code defines a visa as: it is permission granted by a Schengen member state for transit through the territory or intended stay in the territory of member states for a total duration of not more than 90 days within a period of 180 days. That is, the country that issued the Schengen multiple visa gives permission to stay in the territory of other countries included in the Schengen zone.
Let's say you have a Spanish Schengen visa and your destination is Barcelona, but you are not flying directly, but with a transfer in Cologne. Then Germany will be the first country you enter - and the German border guard will not have any questions about why you ended up here, although another country issued your visa. Imagine that you are traveling to Barcelona by car - and then it is even more impossible to get to Spain without passing through almost the whole of Europe, and the first country in the Schengen zone will be Latvia, or Lithuania, or Poland.
Let's make a reservation that we are talking about a multiple-entry visa: a single-entry visa issued, for example, by Italy, gives the right to enter the Schengen zone only through Italy, and if you try to enter Belgium with it, you will have to give explanations to the border guards, who may not accept you. skip. However, a single-entry visa does not imply staying exclusively in one country - then you can freely travel throughout the Schengen area. Also, the concept of “country of first entry” works for transit visas of category C.
So you need to apply for a visa not at the consulate of the country through which you are going to enter Schengen, but at the one in which you are going to spend more of the days allotted by the visa. This observance of visa rules is really monitored, and if you requested a visa from Spain, entered through Spain, but spent your entire vacation in France, then next time you may not be given a visa - neither France nor Spain. Finland, through which many Russians travel to Europe, in addition to the number of days, also closely monitors the number of entries into the country. If at the time of submitting your application you do not yet know where you will spend more time, you must honestly indicate this in the application form. And then, if it is impossible to determine the country - the main destination, you need to indicate through which country you are going to enter Schengen.
December 16, 2013
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Length of stay
In 2021, you can stay in Schengen territory for a period not exceeding 90 days within 180 days. This applies to those who have a multiple-entry visa. However, some details made it a little more difficult for tourists with short-term visas for six months.
Previously, the required 180 days were counted from the moment the border was first crossed. This approach was abandoned in 2013. Now the half-year begins to count from the date of verification of the foreign passport with the visa affixed to it.
The countdown goes backwards. For example, during visa control at the border, a specialist checks whether the tourist has been in the European countries of the Schengen area over the past 6 months. If this is the case, the period of stay is deducted from the number of days allowed.
To simplify the calculation, a special visa calculator has been developed to calculate the length of stay in the Schengen countries.
Before the rule was abolished, a tourist could finish a half-year in January, and 180 days later begin a new half-year and have a three-month stay in Schengen.
If a tourist fails to stay there, they may be deported from the country, have their visa revoked, and be banned from entry for a maximum of 10 years.
Schengen visa cancellation stamp
A clear scheme for obtaining a multiple-entry visa
According to the new rules, a multiple-entry visa must be earned and, finally, according to a completely transparent progressive scheme:
