Schengen Agreement

Participating states must not carry out systematic checks at internal borders, apply common rules for external borders and short-stay visas, and share data through the Schengen Information System. Temporary internal border controls are allowed for serious threats within time limits set by the Schengen Borders Code, amended in 2024. The Entry/Exit System for non-EU travelers began October 12, 2025. Schengen does not remove customs or VAT formalities, which follow EU customs union rules.

Schengen lets trucks and vans cross internal European borders without stopping, which is why one EU fulfillment center can serve several countries with next-day delivery. When states reintroduce temporary checks, as Germany did at all its land borders from September 2024, drivers face queues that disrupt line-haul schedules. Operators should note that Schengen covers people, not goods: shipments to non-EU Schengen members such as Switzerland and Norway still need customs declarations.

• EU Single Market1993 · Goods cross EU internal borders without customs checks

• Treaty of Rome1957, in force 1958 · 1957 treaty founding the EEC and its customs union
• Union Customs Code (UCC)2013, applied 2016 · EU's core customs law for imports, exports and transit
• EU Mobility Package I2020 · EU rules on driver rest, cabotage and posted drivers

1. European Commission: Schengen area home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
2. Regulation (EU) 2016/399, Schengen Borders Code (EUR-Lex) eur-lex.europa.eu