Austria blocked the full membership of Romania and Bulgaria in the Schengen area.
Today, Bulgaria and Romania are due to partially join the Schengen area of Europe-wide free movement. In the future, you can travel to Bulgaria and Romania by air and by sea without border checks.
At the land borders, border checks will remain in place, as Austria opposes the accession of Eastern European countries as full members of the Schengen area, fearing an increase in the number of asylum seekers. Romania and Bulgaria have hoped for full membership of the Schengen area.
With Bulgaria and Romania joining, the Schengen area will include 29 countries in the future.
Within the Schengen area, established in 1985, people can travel freely without internal border checks.