The European Union Council and Parliament have agreed to update the rules that may trigger the suspension of visa-free travel for third countries to the Schengen Area.
The changes were approved today, June 17, 2025, and it means that more countries risk having visa exemption revoked under the new rules, Schengen.News reports.
With this amended law, the EU will be better placed to react to situations where visa-free travel is being abused or works against the interests of the EU.
The Council and the Parliament agreed to add a number of other reasons for visa-free suspension to the existing grounds.
One of the main reasons that may trigger the visa exemption suspension is the lack of alignment of a country’s visa-free regime with the EU’s visa policy. The lack of visa policy alignment is considered to lead to increased irregular migration, and for this reason, unified rules are seen as necessary.
Third countries that operate investor citizenship schemes and offer citizenship in exchange for investments also risk having the visa-free travel agreement suspended if they do not meet all the criteria before granting citizenship to foreign nationals.
In addition to the above-mentioned, the Parliament explained that countries that represent hybrid threats and those with a deterioration in the EU’s external relations also risk having the visa exemption mechanism suspended.
EU Council & Parliament Want to Increase Duration of Visa Suspension From Current 9 to 12 Months
Regarding the period of visa-free travel suspension, the EU Council and Parliament said that they want to extend it from the current nine for 12 months.
The Council and the EP want the duration of the temporary suspension of the visa exemption to increase from the current period of nine months to 12 months. This initial period can be extended by a further 24 months.
The temporary suspension period allows the EU Commission to engage in talks with the third country concerned so that they can find a solution for the reasons that led to the circumstances.
However, if it is concluded that the third country is not addressing the reasons, the EU can decide to permanently revoke the visa-free travel regime.
The new legislation will also include thresholds for some of the suspension grounds, which will lead to more clarity on when the suspension will take effect and make the mechanism more effective.
The agreement reached between the Council and Parliament is provisional and it need to be approved by both institutions before it gets adopted.