The complete accession of Romania to the Schengen Area from January 1 was agreed upon in Brussels, in the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Union (COREPER), prime minister Marcel Ciolacu announced on November 27, in a post on his Facebook page.

President Klaus Iohannis also welcomed the approval of the EU ambassadors of Romania's full accession to Schengen, starting on January 1, 2025.

"An important moment today for Romania! The EU ambassadors agreed to full accession to Schengen and with land borders, starting from January 1, 2025," the head of state wrote on Wednesday on the X platform.

The JHA Council is expected to formalize in December this long-awaited decision, legitimately, by all Romanian citizens, president Iohannis also said.

Un moment important azi pentru România 🇷🇴! Ambasadorii UE 🇪🇺 au agreat aderarea completă la Schengen şi cu frontierele terestre, începând cu 1 ianuarie 2025. Consiliul JAI din decembrie va formaliza această decizie mult așteptată, în mod legitim, de toți cetățenii români.

— Klaus Iohannis (@KlausIohannis) November 27, 2024

On November 26, numerous members of the European Parliament called for a favorable decision by the Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) during the upcoming December 12-13 meeting regarding the full accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Area.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Roberto Pangiarella/Dreamstime.com)