Legal Eye: The long road to Schengen

It has been a long road for Poland and the other new European Union Member States to meet the Schengen requirements. For us travelers, the wait is almost over.

Schengen defined

A Europe without internal borders is a part of the vision of a united Europe. The Schengen Agreement sets out three main areas of common policy within the Schengen area: police cooperation; common border controls; and visa policy. While the most visible effect of Poland's joining the Schengen area will be the removal of border checkpoints when travelling, for example, from Warsaw to Paris, it involves all aspects of border controls - from visas to police jurisdiction and exchange of information.

Fortunately for travelers, the removal of internal border controls within the European Union is politically more palatable in Poland than that of, for example, removing Polish currency barriers by adopting the euro. However, Poland has had to surmount a number of obstacles.

The Schengen timeline

Upon Poland's accession to the European Union, it declared its interest in removing internal borders by joining the Schengen Agreement. As is often the case in the information age, the real hurdle was technology. Poland needed to participate in the existing Schengen systems for information exchange and visas. In mid-2006, Poland confirmed its program to commence work on the technical and organizational aspects of joining the Schengen area, including bringing the Polish component of the Schengen Information System online. 

As a final step, Poland confirmed its readiness through the adoption of the Law of August 24, 2007 on the participation of the Republic of Poland in the Schengen Information System and Visa Information System. Of course, the EU Council had the final say in allowing Poland to become a full participant in the Schengen area, but we know the results of that vote. As of December 21, there will be no more internal borders when traveling from Poland into the Schengen area by land. Intra-European airport transfers will be sped up at the end of March 2008.

Police

Although less visible than the ease in travelling, full Schengen participation grants the various national police forces additional authority. As part of the no-internal-borders policy, Polish police may, for example, pursue a suspect over the German border.

Relations with neighbors

With Poland's role as a bridge to the East, full Schengen participation raises issues. Visitors from Ukraine, for example, will no longer apply for a Polish visa, but will need to obtain a single (and more expensive) European Union visa. This is not a new issue. Increased barriers on Poland's eastern borders were also a concern at the time of Poland's accession to the EU.

Temporary reinstatement

Entry to the Schengen zone does not mean that border checkpoints have been abolished forever. In fact, even the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs points out that Poland's border checkpoints can be reinstated in times of special need, such as in the event of a terrorist threat or, on a much happier note, potentially for additional security of the Euro 2012 soccer championships. l

Judith Gliniecki is Of Counsel to Wierzbowski Eversheds, judith.gliniecki@wierzbowski.pl