Taiwanese passport holders would be able to enter Romania and Bulgaria under streamlined rules when the countries officially join the Schengen Area in March, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
The two countries are to officially become part of the Schengen Area on March 31, said Eric Huang (黃鈞耀), director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of European Affairs.
Since Jan. 11, 2011, Taiwanese passport holders have not needed visas to enter the Schengen Area — currently comprising 23 EU member states, plus Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Norway — as a tourist or for business purposes.
Photo: Yang Yao-ju, Taipei Times
The maximum length of stay is 90 days within a six-month period.
Taiwanese passport holders can currently enter Romania and Bulgaria visa-free for up to 90 days within a 180-day period, but after March 31, time spent in the two countries are to be included in the Schengen zone’s 90-day limit within a 180-day period, Huang said.
The Schengen-Area expansion to include Romania and Bulgaria — which have been EU members since 2007 — would also come with more streamlined border control procedures, he said.
Starting on March 31, Taiwanese passport holders arriving in Romania or Bulgaria from other Schengen countries by air or sea would no longer have to present their passports upon arrival.
This exemption applies to individuals on flights, cruises and ferries, Huang said.
Travelers entering Romania and Bulgaria from Schengen countries by road, train or bus would still have to present identification documents, he said.
The regulations for land border crossings remain unconfirmed due to Austria’s veto, the EU said.
A decision has yet to be made to determine a date for the removal of land border controls, the European Council said on its Web site.
The two countries’ integration into the Schengen Area would facilitate unrestricted movement among member countries’ approximately 400 million citizens, the EU said.
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