The Federal Council in Switzerland has announced that it will now be implementing a significant decision to improve relations with Romania and Bulgaria.
In line with this, the country aims to facilitate travel and make it easier for visitors from the two locations to visit.
Consequently, the Swiss government has revealed that it will no longer be checking passports at its airports for people traveling in from Romania and Bulgaria.
However, the decision to drop passport checks will not be implemented right away. The tentative date for this rule to come into place is the 31st of March 2024.
New decision
The move from the Swiss Federal Council is going to follow the decision of the EU to lift maritime and air border controls that it currently has with Romania and Bulgaria.
This will mean that passengers traveling between Switzerland and the two countries will no longer have to undergo passport checks when they arrive at Swiss airports.
The Federal Council of Switzerland held a meeting on the 24th of January to give its approval to the proposal presented by the relevant authorities.
The adoption of this new rule is all set to boost the travel and tourism sector in Switzerland and make it easier for people from Romania and Bulgaria to gain entry into the country.
Migration
With concerns being raised regarding a significant increase in migration, the council took to assuring the public that this was not going to happen.
It presented the example of Croatia, which recently joined the Schengen Area at the beginning of the previous year, stating that it does not expect people to migrate.
The Federal Council took to stressing the fact that it would still be enforcing its existing measures to keep a close eye on cross-border and irregular migration.
It went on to say that it is unlikely that people would use the lack of passport checks to migrate to the country, stating that preventive measures have already been considered beforehand.
Consequently, the Federal Council further reiterated that it would be actively combatting crime and illegal migration like it normally does.
Border controls
The decision regarding internal border control at the maritime and air borders with Romania and Bulgaria was taken by the Council of the EU on the 30th of December.
The land border controls between Switzerland and the two countries will remain in place as of now. however, the EU has expressed that it is looking into the possibility of removing these in the future as well.
The EU Council further revealed that the date for the Schengen accession by land of Romania and Bulgaria will be decided after the 31st of March 2024.
Since 2011, the EU Commission has been expressing its willingness to include the two countries into its fold and allow them to join the Schengen Area.
In addition, it has taken to reiterate their readiness throughout the last decade. Thus, at the end of the previous year, the Council decided it was time for the ninth enlargement.
As a result, Romania and Bulgaria were to be added to the borderless area.
