Europe

The Schengen Area is an area comprising 26 European states that have officially abolished passport and all other types of border control at their mutual borders. The name Schengen comes from Schengen in Luxembourg, where the agreement was signed.

The area mostly functions as a single jurisdiction for international travel purposes, with a common visa policy.

Although most of the Schengen countries are in the European Union you should not confuse the Schengen Area with the EU.

The 26 Schengen countries are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Starting on Jan. 1, 2021, American citizens will have to register online, through the new European Travel Information and Authorization System, to enter any of the 26 Schengen-area countries, plus four countries currently in the process of joining the area, regardless of the duration of their visit or the number of countries visited. The European Council adopted the policy in September 2018. 

If you are a US citizen with a US passport traveling to the Schengen countries for tourism or business, you will not need a visa as long as you spend 90 days or less in these countries. Under this agreement, you can enter the Schengen area as long as your stay does not exceed 90 days within a 6 month period.

• US Passport
• As a US citizen, you will need to make sure that the validity of your passport extends 90 days after your initial arrival in the Schengen area.
• Proof of funds
• You may need to bring documentation that shows that you have sufficient finances to support your entire stay in the region
• Purpose of travel
• You may need to provide a reason – and documentation that can support this -for your travel to the region
• You may also need to show additional entry documents depending on the countries you will be traveling to. Be sure to investigate each destination country and any additional paperwork required

When you arrive in a Schengen member country, you will still need to show your passport and go through customs. At this external border, if approved entry, you will receive a stamp with the date indicating your arrival into the country. Once admitted, you will have free access to move within the Schengen region as long as you do not spend more than 90 days within a 180-day period.

Your passport will be stamped when you leave the Schengen region and you will need to wait another 90 days before you can apply again without a visa.

The following countries do require International Driver’s Permits in conjunction with a valid United States’ driver’s licenses: Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Greece, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Italy, Slovenia, and Spain; again, you might not even be asked for the IDP in these countries, but technically you’re required to have one or risk being fined.

There have been some tourists that have been denied cars in Italy because they did not have it.