The European Council approved the accession of Croatia to the Schengen area from January 1, 2023.
This is stated in the official account of the Czech Presidency of the European Council.
"The Schengen zone is expanding for the first time in more than a decade thanks to the Czech presidency. Ministers approved Croatiaʼs membership from January 1, 2023!" — says the message.
At the same time, the publication Digi24 reports that the EU Council refused to approve the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen zone. European Commissioner for Internal Affairs Ylva Johansson said she was disappointed by such a decision, but added that the European Commission would continue to work on ensuring that these countries still join Schengen as soon as possible.
- In mid-November, the European Commission officially recommended that Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia join the Schengen area. This means that internal borders between these countries within the European Union will disappear.
- Later, the Dutch government announced that it would block Bulgariaʼs entry into the Schengen zone, but Romania and Croatia would be given the "green light".