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What most people don't get is the true purpose of theEdited: The Schengen area:

#No delaystreaty was mostly for the benefit of EU citizens crossing internal borders, and it lets them (and others) cross internal borders without systematic controls.

To make that happenthis feasible, there should be no or few controls forit was necessary to create an anyoneunified system on thosefor short-stay visa and visa-free entry. This does not mean that everybody within the Schengen area is allowed to cross internal borders at will, because it is a bit pointless to show an ID cardor to provecross them without any documents in all cases. But it was deemed that you do not have to show a passportthe potential for abuse was acceptable for the convenience of the citizens, who can now drive through the smaller countries without once halting their cars.

  • It is not true that anyone within the Schengen area is allowed to cross any internal border. But generally, those cases are few enough, and unimportant enough, that this is not routinely controlled.
  • A visitor with a national long-stay visa may only visit the other Schengen states for 90 out of 180 days.
  • A visitor with a short-stay visa may be restricted to only part of the Schengen area.
  • A refugee may be under even more restrictions where he can stay.
  • It is not true that you can cross internal borders without documents. You have to bring them, even if there is no border checkpoint, and present them to the authorities on demand. (Details on who can ask where are covered by national law.)

In exceptional cases,The reintroduction of internal controls may be reintroduced. That doesmeans possible delays at the internal borders (for EU citizens and visitors alike), and increased administrative overhead for those EU citizens whose countries did not change who can travel whererequire IDs before. Internal controls in any waydon't abolish the unified visa system. It does not even change, just the requirements which documents one must carry. All it changes isfrequency of checks along the likelihood that those documents will be checkedway.

What most people don't get is the true purpose of the Schengen area:

#No delays for EU citizens crossing internal borders.

To make that happen, there should be no or few controls for anyone on those internal borders, because it is a bit pointless to show an ID card to prove that you do not have to show a passport.

  • It is not true that anyone within the Schengen area is allowed to cross any internal border. But generally, those cases are few enough, and unimportant enough, that this is not routinely controlled.
  • A visitor with a national long-stay visa may only visit the other Schengen states for 90 out of 180 days.
  • A visitor with a short-stay visa may be restricted to only part of the Schengen area.
  • A refugee may be under even more restrictions where he can stay.
  • It is not true that you can cross internal borders without documents. You have to bring them, even if there is no border checkpoint, and present them to the authorities on demand. (Details on who can ask where are covered by national law.)

In exceptional cases, controls may be reintroduced. That does not change who can travel where in any way. It does not even change the requirements which documents one must carry. All it changes is the likelihood that those documents will be checked.

Edited: The Schengen treaty was mostly for the benefit of EU citizens, and it lets them (and others) cross internal borders without systematic controls.

To make this feasible, it was necessary to create an unified system for short-stay visa and visa-free entry. This does not mean that everybody within the Schengen area is allowed to cross internal borders at will, or to cross them without any documents in all cases. But it was deemed that the potential for abuse was acceptable for the convenience of the citizens, who can now drive through the smaller countries without once halting their cars.

The reintroduction of internal controls means possible delays at the internal borders (for EU citizens and visitors alike), and increased administrative overhead for those EU citizens whose countries did not require IDs before. Internal controls don't abolish the unified visa system, just the frequency of checks along the way.

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o.m.
o.m.
  • 37.3k
  • 2
  • 63
  • 108

What most people don't get is the true purpose of the Schengen area:

#No delays for EU citizens crossing internal borders.

To make that happen, there should be no or few controls for anyone on those internal borders, because it is a bit pointless to show an ID card to prove that you do not have to show a passport.

  • It is not true that anyone within the Schengen area is allowed to cross any internal border. But generally, those cases are few enough, and unimportant enough, that this is not routinely controlled.
  • A visitor with a national long-stay visa may only visit the other Schengen states for 90 out of 180 days.
  • A visitor with a short-stay visa may be restricted to only part of the Schengen area.
  • A refugee may be under even more restrictions where he can stay.
  • It is not true that you can cross internal borders without documents. You have to bring them, even if there is no border checkpoint, and present them to the authorities on demand. (Details on who can ask where are covered by national law.)

In exceptional cases, controls may be reintroduced. That does not change who can travel where in any way. It does not even change the requirements which documents one must carry. All it changes is the likelihood that those documents will be checked.