[2][3] The country is committed by treaty to join in the future, but its participation was complicated due to its prevailing geopolitical situation since the invasion and occupation of Northern Cyprus by Turkey since 1974.

Moreover, the territories of four microstates – Andorra,[4] Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City – are de facto included in the Schengen Area due to their small size and difficulty of maintaining active border controls.

Denmark maintains an opt-out from the wider AFSJ policy area, but has adopted the Schengen acquis on an intergovernmental basis, however with an exemption for the autonomous territories of Greenland and Faroe Islands.

However, before fully implementing the Schengen rules, the state must have its preparedness assessed in four areas: air borders, visas, police cooperation, and personal data protection.

The freedom of movement provisions of the EU apply, but each territory operates its own visa regime for non-European Economic Area (EEA), non-Swiss nationals.

The six territories have a separate visa system from the European part of the Netherlands and people travelling between these islands and the Schengen Area are subjected to full border checks, with a passport being required even for EU/Schengen citizens, including Dutch (national ID cards are not accepted).

Since 2011, the Norwegian government has imposed systematic border checks on individuals wishing to enter and leave Svalbard, requiring a passport or national identity card for non-Norwegian citizens.

Typical border controls would not be suitable in Vatican City, due to its small size, high number of pedestrian visitors and unique position as an enclave within Rome.

In contrast, while Ireland initially submitted a request to participate in the Schengen acquis in 2002, which was approved by the Council of the European Union,[128] that decision took nearly eighteen years to be put into effect.

[136] EORI numbers are an official link to a specific registered address of a business concerned with arranging the export, import or movement of goods across the EU.

[138] Thus, road, rail and air passengers no longer have their identity checked by border guards when travelling between Schengen countries, although security controls by carriers are still permissible.

Although the European Commission may issue an opinion about the necessity and proportionality of introducing temporary controls at internal borders, it cannot veto or override such a decision if it is taken by a member state.

[177] On 25 July 2011, in delivering the European Commission's final assessment on the measures taken by Italy and France, the Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said, "from a formal point of view steps taken by Italian and French authorities have been in compliance with EU law.

[180] In December 2015, Sweden passed a temporary law that allows the government to oblige all transport companies to check that their passengers carry valid photographic identification.

[186][187][188][189][190][191] The deputy leader of the Swiss Ticino League, Lorenzo Quadri, criticised the decision: "It is alarming that the dogma of wide-open borders is considered a priority.

"[192] United States President Donald Trump said the European Union had "failed to take the same precautions and restrict travel from China and other hot spots" as the U.S. had implemented.

[193] Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš stated in early March that "European countries cannot ban the entry of Italian citizens within the Schengen Area.

"[194] After Slovakia, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Poland in mid-March announced complete closure of their national borders, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that "Certain controls may be justified, but general travel bans are not seen as being the most effective by the World Health Organization.

In addition, citizens of Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Turkey should be permitted entry to the European Union and the Schengen Area if they are stranded abroad in order to facilitate repatriation to their country of origin.

For example, on 4 April 2020, French Border Police refused entry to a group of EU and British citizens who arrived in Marseille Provence Airport on a private jet from the UK, with the intention of staying in a holiday villa in Cannes.

[201][202] On 8 April 2020, the European Commission invited EU and Schengen member states to extend the restriction on the entry of third-country nationals for non-essential travel for a further period of 30 days until 15 May 2020.

In order to alleviate the long queues, the systematic checking of travel documents of those with the right of free movement against relevant databases was temporarily suspended from the evening of Friday 7 April 2017 until the end of the weekend.

[237] In July 2017, Greece submitted a request to suspend the systematic checking of travel documents of those with the right of free movement against relevant databases for a further period of 18 months, due to 'infrastructure shortcomings and increased traffic at 12 airports across the country'.

This approach has also been adopted in Italy, where eligible users of eGates include holders of Australian, Canadian, Israeli, Japanese, New Zealand, Singaporean, South Korean, United States and Vatican biometric passports.

Regulation (EU) 2017/2226 envisages the establishment of an Entry-Exit System (EES) which will record third-country nationals' entries and exits when they cross the external borders of the Schengen Area in a central database, replacing passport stamps.

[309] Successful applicants who have been granted international protection by a Schengen member state are issued residence permits which are valid for at least three years and renewable, whilst applicants granted subsidiary protection by a Schengen member state are issued residence permits valid for at least 1-year and renewable, unless there are compelling reasons relating to national security or public order.

As a result, for example, New Zealand citizens are permitted to stay for up to 90 days in each of the Schengen countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland) which had already concluded bilateral visa exemption agreements with the New Zealand Government prior to the Convention entering into force without the need to apply for long-stay visas, but if travelling to other Schengen countries the 90 days in a 180-day period time limit applies.

[348] Visa liberalisation negotiations between the EU and the Western Balkans (excluding Kosovo) were launched in the first half of 2008, and ended in 2009 (for Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia) and 2010 (for Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina).

[352] To counter the potentially aggravating effects of the abolition of border controls on undocumented immigration and cross-border crime, the Schengen acquis contains compensatory police and judicial measures.

[356] The Schengen Agreement also allows police officers from one participating state to follow suspects across borders both in hot pursuit[357] and to continue observation operations, and for enhanced mutual assistance in criminal matters.