Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Bulgaria and Romania should be in Schengen by end of 2023, European Parliament says

Photo: EPA/BGNES

In a resolution adopted on Wednesday with 526 votes in favour, 57 votes against, and 42 abstaining, Parliament stresses that both countries have already fulfilled the necessary requirements to be admitted into Schengen. 

MEPs regret the Council’s decision of 8 December 2022 to reject their membership “without presenting any legal justification related to accession criteria”. A larger Schengen area without border controls would make the EU stronger, say MEPs, noting that all member states have the right to join Schengen once they are ready. The fact that Romania and Bulgaria are still outside the visa-free travel area burdens the businesses and populations of the two countries socially and economically, according to Parliament.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Employment in Bulgaria is among the highest in the EU, but over 1 million people are unemployed

As of December 31, 2024, there were 3,765,000 people of working age, or 58.5% of the country's population. Men are 1,970,000, and women - 1,795,000. This was announced by the Deputy Chair of the National Statistical Institute (NSI)..

published on 10/22/25 10:46 AM

President Radev thanks South Africa for lifting short-term visas for Bulgarians

President Rumen Radev has sent a letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa expressing his gratitude for the decision of the Republic of South Africa to lift visa requirements for short-term stays for Bulgarian citizens. Radev..

published on 10/22/25 10:23 AM

GERB-SDS and DPS-New Beginning agree on full cabinet mandate

At a meeting in parliament in the presence of the party leaderships, the GERB-SDS coalition and the DPS-New Beginning party agreed on a full mandate to govern and fulfil the commitments for Bulgaria’s Euro-Atlantic orientation. This..

published on 10/22/25 9:53 AM