Abolition of passport and border controls
Croatia will become the 27th member state to join the Schengen area on 1 January 2023. This means that passport and border controls will no longer apply when crossing the internal borders to the country.
Croatia, an EU member since 2013, will also introduce the common currency, the euro, at the turn of the year.
From January onwards, the Schengen area comprises 23 EU member states as well as Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
However, the EU member states could not agree on the Schengen accession of Romania and Bulgaria. The EU Commissioners are still trying to do so and hope that an accession of these countries can be agreed soon.
Source: EU Commission press release of 21.12.2022
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