Timeline of Schengen enlargement

As of May 2025, 29 countries were full members of the Schengen area, where checks at their internal borders with other Schengen states are abolished (see Figure 3):
• Germany, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands signed the Schengen Convention on 19 June 1990; checks at the internal borders of these five Member States were abolished on 26 March 1995.
• Italy acceded to the Schengen Convention on 27 November 1990; checks at the internal borders with Italy were abolished in October 1997.
• Portugal acceded to the Schengen Convention on 26 June 1991; checks at the internal borders with Portugal were abolished in March 1995.
• Spain acceded to the Schengen Convention on 26 June 1991; checks at the internal borders with Spain were abolished in March 1995.
• Greece acceded to the Schengen Convention on 6 November 1992; checks at the internal borders with Greece were abolished in January 2000.
• Austria acceded to the Schengen Convention on 28 April 1995; checks at the internal borders with Austria were abolished in December 1997.
• Denmark acceded to the Schengen Convention on 19 December 1996; checks at the internal borders with Denmark were abolished in March 2001.
• Finland acceded to the Schengen Convention on 19 December 1996; checks at the internal borders with Finland were abolished in March 2001.
• Sweden acceded to the Schengen Convention on 19 December 1996; checks at the internal borders with Sweden were abolished in March 2001.
• Iceland and Norway signed the agreement on their association with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis in May 1999; checks at the internal borders with Iceland and Norway were abolished in March 2001.
• Switzerland signed the agreement on its association with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis on 26 October 2004; checks at the internal borders with Switzerland were abolished in December 2008.
• Czechia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia acceded to the EU on 1 May 2004; checks at the internal borders with these countries were abolished in December 2007.
• Liechtenstein signed the Protocol with the EU and the Swiss Confederation on the accession to the Agreement between the EU and the Swiss Confederation on the Swiss Confederation’s association with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis on 28 February 2008; checks at the internal borders with Liechtenstein were abolished in December 2011.
• Croatia acceded to the EU on 1 July 2013; checks at the internal borders with Croatia were abolished in 2023 (January – land and sea borders; March – air borders).
• Bulgaria and Romania acceded to the EU on 1 January 2017; checks at the internal borders with Bulgaria and Romania were abolished in March 2024 (air and sea borders) and January 2025 (land borders).