Schengen visa regulation amendments and passport validity
Pro-Link GLOBAL outline the amendments to regulations concerning the Schengen Borders Code.

What's changed?
Definition of authorized length of short-term stays
The Schengen Agreement had previously defined the maximum period of stay within the Schengen area in two ways:1. for visa waiver nationals, the maximum period of stay was limited to "three months during the six months following the date of first entry", and 2. for visa holders, the maximum period of stay was defined as "neither the length of a continuous visit nor the total length of successive visits exceeds three months in any half year, from the date of first entry". Additionally, the Schengen Borders Code referred to the allowed period of stay as "not exceeding three months per six-month period".After the Amendment was implemented, however, the Convention now defines the allowed stay for third-country nationals as:"90 days in any 180-day period".More specifically, the Amendment to the Schengen Borders Code itself now clarifies the meaning of this change even further, defining the allowed period of stay as:"a duration of no more than 90 days in any 180-day period, which entails considering the 180-day period preceding each day of stay".In other words, the 180 day period will now be measured on a rolling basis: the 180 days immediately "preceding each day of stay".Schengen visas: why the change?
The old, open-ended definition caused significant confusion and differing interpretations from frequent travelers, different countries, and even different border control officials within a country.For third-country nationals entering the Schengen area for the first time, or for multiple times within a first 180 day period the rules clearly defined how long they were allowed to stay (90 days in total). However, this definition was open to various interpretations for situations where a third-country national would be frequently traveling over a period longer than 180 days. For example:- Should subsequent 180 day periods start each half year calculated from the very first date of entry, or would a new 180 day period start the first date of entry after the previous 180 days has passed?
- Would it be allowed, for example, to stay for 5 days initially, then another 85 days just before the end of the 180 day period, and again for 90 days immediately after the end of the first 180 days (in the new 180 day period)?