Report as regards the reinforcement of checks against relevant databases at external borders introduced with Regulation (EU) 2017/458 amending Regulation (EU) 2016/399

Summary:

Report published by the European Commission on 24 May 2022, concerning the reinforcement of checks against relevant databases at external borders introduced with Regulation (EU) 2017/458 amending Regulation (EU) 2016/399.

Further information:

Regulation (EU) 2017/458 introduced amendments to Regulation (EU) 2016/399, which set out the so-called Schengen Borders Code (SBC). The amendments concerned Article 8 on Border checks on persons and strengthened checks for all persons entering the Schengen area without controls at internal borders.

This report provides an overview on the implementation and impact of introducing such checks on persons with the right of free movement under EU law, taking into account the outcomes of systematic security checks in the Schengen area, particularly regarding terrorist fighters. It also considers the overall costs for EU Member States and passengers, identifies challenges and shortcomings in the Regulation's implementation and analyses the impact of the newly introduced rules.

The document was due to the c0-legislators by April 2019. However, the Regulation allowed Member States to delay introduction of systematic checks at their air border for up to 24 months and some countries used this possibility. Therefore, at the time the report was sue the data available would have covered a period when only some Member States were already fulling applying the Regulation.

This Communication was adopted by the European Commission on 24 May 2022, and later included in the so-called Schengen package which also comprised other relevant reports. The report was discussed during the third Schengen Forum, which was held on 2 June 2022.

Official

European Commission: Press Release, 02/06/2022: Third Schengen Forum: setting the way forward https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_3445

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