Do you know third country nationals, can even travel visa free to several countries outside of Schengen area, using your multiple entry Schengen visa or residence permit issued by Schengen states. Schengen residence permits are used in ID card format, must always be used with your passport during your travel.
General Conditions for third country nationals
The border police will check the following before your entry, by land, sea or air,
-Valid passport (travel document)
– Schengen visa (multiple entry) or Residence permit
– Must have hotel or place of stay confirmation.
– Justification for the purpose and specifics of your stay (including proof of sufficient financial means)
– Proof of return or onward ticket.
The EU has a common set of visa rules which apply to short stays (that is up to 90 days in any 180-day period) and for transit through international transit areas of airports in the Schengen area. The European Commission recommends travellers that your passport should be valid for at least 3 months after the date you intend to leave the EU and it must have been issued within the last 10 years. A passport issued within the previous 10 years and valid for at least three months after the intended date of departure from the Schengen area.
Note: Single entry Schengen visas not valid for travels outside Schengen. (reentry not allowed) or
Schengen
The Schengen area is made up of 27 European countries: 23 EU countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden as well as 4 non-EU countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Collectively these countries make up the Schengen area.
Beyond Schengen Area
Here are list of visa free countries where you can travel outside schengen borders, with official references quoted below.
1.Andorra
No visa of any type is required to enter Andorra. Our country, however, has a very special geographical location in Europe. Andorra neither belongs to the European Union nor is in the Schengen Area.
https://visitandorra.com/
2.Albania
Foreign citizens who have a valid, multiple-entry Schengen visa, which has been previously used in one of the Schengen states, or foreign citizens who have a valid permit of stay in one of the Schengen states.
https://punetejashtme.gov.al/en/regjimi-i-vizave-per-te-huajt/
3.Bulgaria
Bulgaria is joining schengen from March 1, 2024 on air and sea borders.
As of 21 of April, 2023, holders of the following comprehensively listed documents have the right to enter and reside in the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria without the need to hold a Bulgarian visa type “C” for transit residence or planned stay:
1 „Uniform visa” with the meaning of Art. 2, par. 3 of the Visa Code, valid for two or multiple entries, and after the visa has been used in a country fully applies the Schengen acquis;
2 „Long-stay visa” in regarding with Art. 18 of the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement and after the visa has been used in the country that issued the visa;
3 “Residence permit” in accordance with Art. 2, par. 16 of Regulation (EU) 2016/399 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on a Union Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code);
4 “Visa with limited territorial validity” in accordance with Art. 25, par. 3 of the Visa Code, valid for two or multiple entries, and after the visa has been used in a country fully applies the Schengen acquis;
https://www.mfa.bg/en/services-travel/consular-services/travel-bulgaria/visa-bulgaria
4.Bosnia and Herzegovina
Nationals of the countries having a visa-free regime with BiH may enter BiH with their passports without obligation to obtain a visa for entry, exit, transit and stay on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina provided they hold a valid multiple entry Schengen visa or a visa of a EU country or an appropriate residence permit in a Schengen or EU country. These provisions apply only if a holder of a Schengen visa/EU country visa or of appropriate residence permit in the Schengen area or EU country, arrives to Bosnia and Herzegovina from:
– the Schengen area;
– a Member State of the European Union;
– a country having signed a readmission agreement with BiH, which has entered into force.
In this case, a total stay in BiH cannot exceed 90 days within the 180-day period, starting from the date of first entry, provided that one uninterrupted stay in BiH cannot be longer than 15 days and within a period of validity of the visa or residence permit issued by a Schengen or EU country.
http://www.msb.gov.ba/inf_za_strance/default.aspx?id=14555&langTag=en-US
5.Cyprus
Holders of valid double or multiple entry Schengen visa or Bulgarian, Croatian and Romanian national visa, as well as residence permits issued by Schengen Member States or by Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania, are not required to hold a short-stay visa to enter the Republic of Cyprus for a time period that does not exceed 90 days in any 180 day period. This provision doesn’t apply to Citizens of Turkey and Azerbaijan who have to follow the regular visa issuance procedure.
https://mfa.gov.cy/no-visa-requirement.html
6.Northern Cyprus
A valid Passport or National Identity Card. required from citizens of the European Union and Schengen Area Countries for travelling to the TRNC:
https://mfa.gov.ct.tr/consular-info/visa-regulations/
7.Georgia
Citizens of foreign countries who have a valid visa and/or residence permit of any of the countries indicated below can enter and stay in Georgia (without a Georgian visa) for a period of 180 days, for a period of 90 calendar days.
https://www.geoconsul.gov.ge/en/entering-georgia
8.Gibraltar
Nationals or citizens of Morocco, the People’s Republic of China, Mongolia or India who are holders of multiple entry Schengen visas with a minimum remaining validity of 7 days on the date of departure. Such persons are only allowed to enter Gibraltar for a maximum period of 21 days.
http://www.gibraltarborder.gi/visa
9.Kosovo
Citizens of countries to which the Republic of Kosovo applies a visa regime but who have a valid biometric residence permit issued by one of the Schengen Area countries, as well as holders of a valid multi-entry Schengen visa are exempted from the need to obtain Kosovo visa for entry, transit and stay in the territory of the Republic of Kosovo. Their stay within the territory of the Republic of Kosovo is limited to 15 days.
10.Montenegro
Nationals of states not listed above, with whom no international agreement on entering, residing in, or crossing the territory of Montenegro has been concluded, may enter the country, cross the territory, and reside in Montenegro on the basis of a valid travel document containing a visa. However, if holders of such passports hold a valid Schengen Visa, or a valid visa of the United States of America, or the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or Ireland, or a residence permit for those countries, may enter Montenegro, stay in Montenegro, or cross its territory for up to 30 days, and no longer than the expiry of the visa, if the visa expires in less than 30 days.
https://wapi.gov.me/download/5db6b27a-75ac-4086-9285-3e28cf2b55c0?version=1.0
11.Monaco
Foreign nationals wishing to stay in the Principality for less than three months require a passport, and in some cases a visa – which are necessary to enter French territory. a Schengen visa has been obtained, a visit to the Principality can be made with no additional formalities.
https://ambassade-en-france.gouv.mc/en/information-and-services/visiting-monaco
12.North Macedonia
Third-country nationals with temporary or permanent residence in an EU Member State or a country signatory of the Schengen Agreement may stay no longer than 15 (fifteen) days upon every entry into the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia as long as the total length of stay does not exceed 90 days in any 180-day period. Third-country nationals with multiple-entry Schengen visa (type C) valid for at least 5 (five) days beyond the intended stay in the Republic of North Macedonia may stay no longer than 15 (fifteen) days upon every entry into the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia as long as the total length of stay does not exceed 90 days in any 180-day period.
https://mfa.gov.mk/en/page/432/visa-requirements-for-entering-the-republic-of-north-macedonia
13.Romania
Romania is joining schengen from March 1, 2024 on air and sea borders.
Holders of Schengen visas with two or multiple entries, national visas or residence permits issued by Schengen Member States. Starting July 11, 2014, in keeping with the provisions of Decision No 565/2014/EU, Romania acknowledges as being equivalent to its own national visas, for transit and for stays up to 90 days per period of 180 days the following:
◦ The two or multiple entry short-stay visa issued by a Schengen member state;
◦ The limited territorial validity visa issued by a Schengen member state;
◦ The short-stay visa issued by Bulgaria, Cyprus or Croatia;
◦ The long-stay visa issued by a Schengen member state;
◦ The long-stay visa issued by Bulgaria, Cyprus or Croatia;
◦ The residence permit issued by a Schengen member state;
◦ The residence permit issued by Bulgaria, Cyprus or Croatia
◦ The long-term resident’s EC residence permit (the validity of which is of 5 years or more) issued by a member state of the European Union.
Attention! The number of entries as well as the right of stay established as per the Schengen visas must not have been exhausted. The right of stay on the territory of Romania shall not exceed the right of stay granted a
14.San Marino
To reach the Republic of San Marino it is necessary to transit through the Schengen area. Therefore, visitors from States outside the Schengen area will have to hold the necessary authorisations for entry into and transit through the Schengen area before their departure. To obtain information on how to enter the Schengen area, travellers can contact the Embassies or Consulates of the Schengen States in their place of habitual residence. Foreigners must hold a stay permit or residence in order to stay in the territory of San Marino for periods exceeding 30 days. Foreigners intending to stay in the territory for a period exceeding 30 days are required, within the above time-limit, to personally submit an application for a stay permit to the Gendarmerie – Foreigners’ Office.
https://www.esteri.sm/pub1/EsteriSM/en/Servizi-per-utenza/Informazioni-per-chi-visita-SMR.html
15.Serbia
On October 30, 2014, the Government of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Decision on visa free entry to the Republic of Serbia for holders of all types of national passports, other than emergency travel documents and travel documents issued in accordance with international conventions, having a valid Schengen, UK and EU Member States’ visa, or visa of the United States of America, and for holders of foreign national passports having residence permit in the countries of the Schengen area, EU or the United States of America. On basis of this decision, the above-mentioned categories of foreign nationals may, without prior visa application, enter, transit and stay in the Republic of Serbia up to 90 days during a six-month period, and within validity of said visas or residence permits.
https://www.mfa.gov.rs/en/citizens/travel-serbia/visa-requirements
16.Sao Tome & Principe
If you hold a multiple-entry short-stay Schengen visa or an authorisation for temporary stay or residence permit for a Schengen country, you do not need a visa.
https://saotomeislands.com/evisa/do-i-need-a-visa-for-the-sao-tome-and-principe.html
17.Turkey (eVisa)
Citizens of countries who are allowed to enter Türkiye with their national ID’s in accordance with “European Agreement on Regulations governing the Movement of Persons between Member States of the Council of Europe. These passport holders of certain countrieswith a valid Schengen members or USA, UK, Ireland visa or residence permit may get their single entry e-Visas valid for one month e-Visas via the website www.evisa.gov.tr, provided that they meet certain conditions.
https://www.mfa.gov.tr/visa-information-for-foreigners.en.mfa
18.UAE
Applies to Indian citizens holding a normal passport and either a residence visa issued by the EU, can obtain a visa on arrival for a maximum stay of 14 days provided that the visas or the green card is valid for at least six months from the date of arrival into the UAE. Note: Passports must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of entry into the UAE.
19.Saudi Arabia (eVisa)
Schengen Visa or permanent residence permit holders can qualify for eVisa if the below conditions are met:
- Your visa must be a business or tourist visa.
- Your visa must have been used at least once and have an entry stamp from the issuing country (Digital entry stamp are not accepted).
- Your passport must be valid for a minimum of six months beyond the date of entry into Saudi.
https://www.visitsaudi.com/en/travel-regulations
20.EU Territories
The Schengen Area includes the Atlantic islands belonging to Spain and Portugal, such as the Canaries (Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, El Hierro and La Graciosa) and Madeira.
French Territories
The overseas territories of France are: Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Reunion, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Mayotte, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Wallis and Futuna, Saint Barthélemy, Saint Martin, Clipperton Island and the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. Have residence permit or a D-type long-stay visa valid issued by a French or other authority Schengen countries.
https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F10610?lang=en
Netherlands Territories
Caribbean parts of the Kingdom of Netherlands. The overseas territories of the Netherlands are: Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles (consisting of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Saint Eustatius and Saint Martin). If you hold a multiple-entry short-stay Schengen visa or residence permit for the Netherlands or another Schengen country, you do not need a visa.
https://www.netherlandsworldwide.nl/caribbean-visa/visa-needed-caribbean
Portugal Territories
The Portuguese territory includes two autonomous regions: the archipelagos of Madeira and Azores, in the Atlantic Ocean. No additional formalities are required beside a schengen visa or residence permit, as these territories officially part of schengen area.
Spain Territories
Iberian peninsula which is made of Canary Islands, the Balearic Islands, a few smaller islands and the cities of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa are also territories of Spain. Schengen visa or residence holders can also travel without a visa, as these territories officially part of schengen area.
Disclaimer: The visa requirement changes from time to time. Please double check the entry conditions from embassy or official websites before traveling.
