Bulgaria and Romania became full Schengen members on 1 January, extending the 29-member area and ending a 13-year waiting period, according to Euractiv.
The enlargement officially took place at midnight (22:00 GMT) on 1 January, with ceremonies held at border posts. Earlier, Romania and Bulgaria, both members of the European Union since 2007, were partially included in the Schengen area in March, cancelling border controls at ports and airports.
Austria threatened to veto full accession due to migration concerns, but withdrew its protest after the three countries reached an agreement on a “border protection package.” The Schengen area will now include 25 of the EU’s 27 members, as well as Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
The new agreement provides for the joint deployment of guards on the Bulgarian-Turkish border and temporary control at land border posts for six months. Analysts estimated that joining the area would boost the gross domestic product (GDP) of Romania and Bulgaria by at least one percentage point.
Leaders on both sides called the expansion “historic.” Truck drivers also cheered the news, but Bulgaria’s dire road and railway infrastructure could limit the success of joining the area.
