Schengen is the name of a small Luxembourg village at the geographical meeting-point of Germany, the Benelux countries and France, where the Schengen agreement was signed in 1985 and the Schengen Convention was born in 1990.

However, Schengen is above all a body of EU law with two main features that enable greater freedom of movement for persons, while at the same time introducing the compensatory measures needed to maintain and reinforce the level of security.

Checks on persons at the internal borders of the signatory states will be abolished and common external borders established.

Entry conditions and the conditions for crossing external borders will be harmonised, along with the policy on issuing visas. By way of measures to compensate for the abolition of border controls, police and judicial cooperation have been strengthened, in particular by the introduction of rights of cross-border surveillance.

The Schengen acquis has been accompanied by the introduction of a Schengen Information System (SIS), an IT mechanism aimed at supplying information on certain categories of persons and property. It is a sophisticated database that can be used by national border-control and other customs and police control authorities, as well as the judicial authorities of the Schengen states, to exchange information on certain categories of persons and property.

Why enter?

Schengen will make it easier for people to move around by abolishing internal border checks. They can travel freely in the Schengen area, which makes for economic, regional and cultural dynamism within Europe and especially the border areas.

Any foreign visitor can travel to all Schengen States on a single visa. At the same time, Schengen cooperation aims to protect people and their property through increased co-operation between police forces, customs authorities and external border control authorities of all member states. These new forms of co-operation have been introduced to offset any risk of a security deficit connected with the abolition of internal borders.

Which states?

Up until the most recent enlargement, 13 EU member states have been participating fully in the Schengen acquis (Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden) together with Norway and Iceland.

Nine new member states (Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia and the Czech Republic) have carried out a large number of changes to allow easier movement of persons: road, air and sea infrastructures have been adapted; new national networks have been successfully connected to the SIS; and standards to ensure the protection of people's data have been introduced.

The decision to extend the Schengen area was taken following a detailed assessment, lasting two years.

Bulgaria, Cyprus, Romania and Switzerland are expected to play a full part in the Schengen acquis in the years to come. Ireland will be able to participate in Schengen on the same terms as the UK, whenever it wishes.

Malta and Schengen

Malta's preparations were co-ordinated by a group of experts from the Home Affairs Ministry and the Foreign Ministry. Malta had to put its house in order particularly at the airport and seaport.

Malta International Airport invested Lm1.5 million to build a new wing to cater for the arrival and departure of Schengen passengers and the same had to be done at the sea passenger terminal in Valletta.

A new section had to be created at the Police Headquarters, called the Sirene Unit, which will administer the Schengen Information System and coordinate with other area member states. This section will include 40 police officers working round the clock.

Another change will affect Malta's overseas missions, which will now have to start issuing visas on behalf of all EU member states. The consulate in Moscow had to be relocated at it was not up to Schengen standards.

A collaboration agreement was signed between Malta, Austria and Italy stipulating that the latter two countries start issuing visas on Malta's behalf in places where the island is not physically present. Malta was assessed many times by the EU before it was given the green light.

Information flows

In Europe, the SIS is the most important common database on the maintenance of public security and management of external border controls. It is one of the most important measures to have been taken concerning the control of borders, the issue of visas and residence permits and the fight against crime in order to compensate for the abolition of internal border controls.

The SIS gives the national police, border-surveillance and visa-issuing authorities permanent access to the latest information on persons who are wanted, missing or banned from residence and also on lost and stolen property. For example, 1.8 million alerts of stolen motor vehicles had been made by the end of October.

The SIS has been in operation since 1995. It is supplied with data by the member states through national networks connected to a central system. In view of the progress made in the field of information technology over the past decade, it has been deemed necessary to develop a new system (SIS II) with more advanced functions and based on cutting-edge technologies, such as the inclusion of biometric data.

A brief history

1985: The Benelux States, Germany and France sign an agreement on the gradual abolition of checks at their common borders.

1990: The Schengen Convention is signed, implementing the Schengen Agreement of 1985.

1990-1992: Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece sign the Schengen Convention.

1995: The Schengen Convention comes into force, abolishing checks at the internal borders of the signatory states and creating a single external border where entry checks for the Schengen area are carried out in accordance with a single set of rules. Compensatory measures (such as a common visa policy, improved police and judicial cooperation and the Schengen Information System) are put in place.

Austria signs the Schengen Convention.

1996: Denmark, Finland and Sweden sign the Schengen Convention. Although they are not in the EU, Iceland and Norway sign the Convention by virtue of prior agreements between the Nordic countries on the abolition of border controls.

1997-1998: Internal border controls are abolished at the borders with Austria and Italy.

1999: The Amsterdam Treaty comes into force. The Schengen acquis is integrated into the EU by means of a Protocol, which also specifies that the UK and Ireland may take part in all or some of the Schengen arrangements.

2000: Controls are abolished at the internal borders with Greece.

2002: Ireland's application for partial participation in Schengen is approved.

2004: Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia join the EU and partly apply the Schengen provisions.

2004: Switzerland signs an agreement on its association with Schengen.

2004: The UK starts implementing some of the Schengen provisions.

2006: Liechtenstein initials a protocol on its accession to the Swiss association agreement.

2007: Bulgaria and Romania accede to the EU and partly apply the Schengen provisions.

End 2007/beginning 2008: Target date for the abolition of internal border controls at the borders of states which joined the EU in 2004, except Cyprus.