A Schengen visa is a visa issued by one of the countries that have signed the Schengen agreement. Currently, the wording “subject to EU Schengen law” is a little more correct, but in most cases people are still talking about the agreement. The emergence of a Schengen visa is directly related to the progress of work on the implementation of the provisions of the Schengen Agreement.
History of the Schengen Agreement
After the Second World War, the countries of Europe realized how important it would be to create a European Economic Union, which would allow the economy of each of the participating countries to develop without various obstacles. For this purpose, the European Economic Community was established, the main goal of which was named a common market for the sale of goods and services. The creation of society meant that over time, all steps would be taken to establish the so-called four freedoms of movement: goods, services, capital and people.
To this end, various economic measures were taken, the most significant of which was the establishment of the Customs Union in 1958, but the movement of people remained difficult for a long time. Citizens of European states did not need visas, but the presence of passport control forced people to make passports and waste time crossing borders.
This continued until June 14, 1985, on that very day the Schengen Agreement was signed. The event took place on a ship called "Princess Marie-Astrid" in the place where the borders of France, Germany (then FRG) and Luxembourg converged. It was signed by representatives of five countries: Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany. It was they who became the first parties to the Schengen Agreement. The document itself received this name, since the nearest village to the place of navigation of the vessel was called Schengen.
Initially, the Schengen Agreement meant that passport control would be replaced by surveillance of vehicles crossing the border, for which they were required to slow down when crossing checkpoints. Despite the signing, the agreement was not applied for a long time.
Application of the Schengen Agreement
The impetus for the final elimination of borders was given by the formation of the European Union, all citizens of which received the right to free movement within its member countries. The question arose of removing the internal borders in the EU altogether. The Convention on the Application of the Schengen Agreement was signed only in 1990. It was then that the decision was made to completely abolish permanent border controls, although selective controls are still acceptable. At the same time, it was decided to introduce Schengen visas, as a single visa space was to emerge.
It took another 5 years to put this decision into effect. The Schengen agreement came into force only on March 26, 1995, during which time Spain and Portugal managed to sign it.
Replacement of the Schengen Agreement with EU legislation
On 1st May 1999, the Schengen Agreement was revised and replaced by EU Schengen legislation. The so-called Amsterdam Treaty entered into force, to which some amendments were made. According to this agreement, the implementation of the Schengen Agreement was included in EU legislation, therefore the Schengen Agreement itself is now replaced by it.
All new EU member states no longer sign the Schengen Agreement, but they undertake to comply with EU legislation, which includes the Schengen rules.
