Schengen Agreement

There are reports that rising immigration and fragile economic recovery in Europe will see reduction of political support for the Schengen Agreement, which eliminates border controls among member states. The Schengen Agreement will likely be reformed to make room for countries to tighten their border controls more frequently.

Friction between Schengen members and other countries will remain, as will tension within the bloc itself. The Schengen agreement, as the plan to do away with Europe's shared border controls later became known, was named after the small town (population: 4313) in Luxembourg near where a handful of European nations met on a riverboat in 1985.

While that agreement may not sound exciting, what it resulted in was virtually unprecedented in its ambition. There are now 26 different countries within the Schengen area. In total, a whopping 400 million people can travel freely in an area that spans more than 4 million square kilometres.

For many Europeans, the Schengen zone has a remarkable symbolic power: Remember, not so long ago this was a continent that was physically divided by walls, says The Sydney Morning Herald.

Countries in the Schengen Area have eliminated internal border controls with the other Schengen members and strengthened external border controls with non-Schengen states. Twenty-two of the twenty-eight European Union (EU) member states participate in the Schengen Area.

Of the six EU members that do not form part of the Schengen Area, four – Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Romania – are legally obliged and wish to join the area, while the other two – Ireland and the United Kingdom – maintain opt-outs. All four European Free Trade Association (EFTA) member states – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland – have signed the Schengen Agreement, even though they are outside the EU.

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