MartyConnelly
martyconnelly at shaw.ca
Fri Mar 14 14:32:00 CST 2003
It was an agreement set up in 1985 between France Germany and BeneLux countries to close down border posts and allow free travel, no customs checks and immigration, don't know about residency. It has been expanded to other EU countries like Spain. In the small border town Schengen in Luxembourg in 1985, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg entered into a cooperation agreement to realize the free movement of persons. This was to be achieved by abolishing checks of persons at the borders of these countries. In addition, they decided to strengthen checks at the external borders and to initiate far-reaching police cooperation, on landing your name goes in the SIS (Police & Interpol) database. The Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement, which contains provisions on practical measures to implement the Schengen Agreement entered into force in 1995. When a Member State fully applies the Schengen Convention and has removed its border controls in relation to other Schengen states, that country is an operative member. Which countries participate in Schengen cooperation? Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Italy and Austria. Ireland and the United Kingdom participate in certain parts of Schengen with cooperation only and they will continue to carry out checks on persons at borders. Come to think of it last time I was Ireland they had customs at Northern Ireland border and roving police checkpoints 50 miles further south. Maybe it was just the "Troubles". Some other countries are due to sigon in near future like Czech republic and Slovakia. Under the Schengen rules you must verify your identity when staying at a hotel, boarding-house or camping ground in a Schengen state. The type of identity document you will be required to present varies and is decided by each country. This may mean you need to have your passport with you. US and Canada dont need visas for short stays under 90 days in Schengen countries, but if say you land in Paris and travel on to Switzerland (non-schengen) you need an air transit visa from France, if say the arrival and the departure takes place in 2 different airports (Paris-Roissy and Paris-Orly), so it is wise to check ahead with consulate or really trust your travel agent. I carry two passports EU and Canadian so I don't bother with this a lot. You can get an EU passport in certain EU states if your paternal grandfather was born there. I just went through the rigamarole of renewing my EU passport this week, 10 years ago I paid 20 pounds now it's $165 CDN. sheesh.... Mark Whittinghill wrote: >What is Shengen States? Does that mean the European Union or is it >something else? Just curious. > > >Mark Whittinghill >Symphony Information Services >Minneapolis, Minnesota >Email: mark at symphonyinfo.com >Phone: 612-333-1311 >----- Original Message ----- >From: "Shamil Salakhetdinov" <shamil at smsconsulting.spb.ru> >To: <accessd at databaseadvisors.com> >Sent: Friday, March 14, 2003 12:17 PM >Subject: Re: [AccessD] OT: "Chevaux de frise" of free world... > > > > >>Hi All, >> >>We made it! - I've got Visum to Netherlands (Shengen States) for myself >> >> >and > > >>my two kids for twenty days today! I fly to Amsterdam on 20 March 2003. I >>plan to visit also Hamburg, Ghent, Brugge, Brussels, Paris etc. I go back >>home on 03 of April 2003. >> >>Without your great moral support and hints of Marty I would have not had >>Visum today... >>And of course Onno van Shelven who is not on the list these days but who I >>contact from time to time with was the main helping hand - he helped me to >>define a concept and then edit/augment a letter, which I wrote and sent to >>the Consul and which made this incredible bombing effect and holed >>bureaucracy wall... >> >>Well, I had to pay second time for their services and I didn't hear any >>words of excuses or something like that but all that doesn't matter when >>what was almost impossible on Monday becomes a reality on Friday... >> >>THNX a lot again to everybody, >>Have nice weekend, >>Shamil :) >> >> >> > > >_______________________________________________ >AccessD mailing list >AccessD at databaseadvisors.com >http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd >Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com > > >