France welcomes the agreement reached at the Council of the EU to authorize Romania's and Bulgaria's full, effective integration into the Schengen Area on 1 January 2025.
The decision, adopted unanimously by ministers of the European Union Member States during the Schengen Council on 11 December, will allow internal land-border checks with Romania and Bulgaria to be removed. Internal air- and maritime-border checks were removed in March 2024.
The Schengen Area guarantees the free movement of people. The Schengen Border Code reform adopted this year introduces new measures in the areas of security and police and judicial cooperation, with the aim of more effectively controlling internal movement within the European Union.