Schengen visa rules changing Feb 1st. Here's what you need to know!

The Schengen Area is a zone where 26 European countries have relaxed their internal borders to allow for the unrestricted movement of people. But don't confuse the area with the European Union (EU) as not all countries are in the EU and not all EU countries participate in the Schengen area. 

The following European countries are not part of the Schengen zone: Albania, Andora, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Georgia, Ireland, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, The United Kingdom and Vatican City. 

Currently, travelers from 104 countries and entities need to obtain a visa to enter the EU for stays up to three-months within the Schengen Zone. In 2018, 14.2 million people used their Schengen visa for traveling around Europe. It's a short-stay visa that allows you to travel to any members of the Schengen Area, for stays up to 90 days for tourism or business purposes. 

Shortly, the EU Visa Code, which is the set of rules that regulates application procedures, processing and issuance of short-stay visas to the European Union, will be updated and rolled out. The update is intended to make it easier for travelers to submit an application (electronic application forms in most countries), and now allows them to submit up to six months in advance. 

Additionally, fees are set to increase by a third, from 60 euros to 80 euros. Children too, will have to pay 40 euros instead of 35, as it is currently. 

Lastly, one of the other changes is that frequent travelers with a positive visa history will benefit from visas with lengthier validity.

All Schengen visa applicants lodging an application file from the first Sunday of February 2020 and on, will be subject to the new Schengen Visa Code.