Schengen 90/180 Day Rule - Schengen Rules Made Easy

Sarah has found a way to use the 90/180 day Schengen stay rule to her advantage. She explains how she used the 90/180 rule to travel to the Schengen Area for 132 days.

Schengen 90180 Day Rule

Hi, my name is Sarah, and since I can remember, all I ever wanted to do was travel the world (and I mean all of it).

At the age of 14, my parents bought me this enormous world map for my birthday.

You see, my parents knew I was obsessed with discovering what was out there. I used to bore them with questions about different countries, their cultures, what it's like there and just traveling in general.

So, when I got that gigantic world map for my birthday, all I would do was stare at it endlessly, dreaming about what all those lines and shapes contained within them. Since then, I started planning my ultimate world adventure...

As the years went by, my parents used to ask me what I wanted for my Birthday, Christmas, and so on. My answer would always be the same "Help me make my dreams a reality," I said. But, of course, what I was actually asking for, was that they would save money for my travel adventure one day - but in a cute and innocent way.

I should mention that I was fortunate enough to travel to numerous Schengen Countries during this time. This allowed me to apply for a multiple-entry visa (it's important for later).

Once I turned 21, I had a relatively large amount of savings, but I knew to create the ultimate experience, I had to save a little bit more! So even while studying, I took 2 jobs. One at the university and one as a waitress.

After graduating at 23, I had what I believed was enough money to create the ultimate travel experience without sparing any expense...

Once I decided to finally start my ultimate trip, I headed back to my parent's home, where I grew up. I distinctly remember rushing through our hallway, up the stairs, and straight into my old room.

There I stood and gazed at that enormous world map my parents got me way back then.

Everything was still there! The pictures I used to cut out of magazines, little sticky notes of what I wanted to see in each country, and of course, the classic red string that stretched from one colorful pin to the next.

After examining my huge map, I decided I would use it as a guideline for where I'd be traveling first, second, and so on. I mean, little me had the same dream as big me.

My first destination would be Greece, specifically Athens, sacred to Athena, the goddess of wisdom... high pitched excited noises

Deciding which country to visit first made the whole experience so surreal! I was officially taking the first step to this dream I had created ever since I was a little girl. Finally, after so many years, the opportunity has arrived!

So I started writing down the second country I would visit, then the third, and the fourth, and so on, until I had a nice long list. For those who want to know, my list included the following:

These were the first 12 countries I chose. I didn't want to get too ahead of myself. However, I noticed that many of the countries I wanted to visit were in Europe, specifically the Schengen Area. Also, I know that my Schengen Visa would only allow me to stay in the Schengen Zone for a maximum of 90 days per 180-day period. "90 days! That's not enough time!" I yelled. That meant that I would only be able to visit each Schengen Member State (Greece, Portugal, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland) for a total amount of 12 days per country. For me, this seemed like an impossible task.

I needed at least 25 days for Greece, 15 days for Italy, 12 days in France, 20 days in Portugal, 20 days in Spain, 20 days in Austria, and another 20 days in Switzerland. So if you added the number of days I wanted to spend in the Schengen Zone, you get a total of 132 days! And that was me trying to cut my trip short. Of course, I would never be able to do it with 1 Schengen Visa... or would I?

This is actually the reason why I decided to share my story...

The thing is, I've been researching visas since the day I could read and understand big words! Furthermore, I understood the basic concept of the 90/180-day rule applied to the Schengen Visa. Back then, I was a determined little lady. So, I knew I could think of something...

First, let's explain how the Schengen Visa works. So, when you apply for a Schengen Visa, no matter the Schengen Member State, your visa will be valid for 90 days per 180 days. This means that you may only spend 90 days within the Schengen Area, no more than that. If you overstay, you risk deportation or getting yourself banned from the Schengen Zone.

It's worth noting that some countries are covered by a Schengen Visa waiver. Citizens from these countries don't need to apply for a visitor visa or any type of visa as long as the purpose of their visit is for tourism. However, the 90-day limit still applies to these countries. So, for example, US citizens enjoy visa-free travel, but they can't overstay the 90-day period. The same 90-day per 6-month period applies.

It's possible to extend your Schengen Visa an additional period of time beyond the 90-day Schengen limit. However, if your intended trip exceeds 90 days, you'll need to apply for some sort of long-stay visa, like a temporary residence permit.

Non-EU citizens who don't enjoy visa-free travel (like me) need to apply for a Schengen Visa to visit the following EU countries that form part of the Schengen Area:

Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Please check out our Schengen Visa Guide for detailed information on the Schengen Visa application process.

Ok, now you know the basics. Now, you need to understand how the 90/180-day rule works. Many people think that the 90 days is counted continuously, even after you leave the Schengen Area. Meaning if you visit Spain for 30 days and leave, the counter still ticks on until it reaches 90 days. So effectively, that means your visa wouldn't be valid anymore.

Well, that's not exactly how it works. On the first day, you enter any Schengen Member State, your 90 days start. Then, as soon as you leave on your last day in the Schengen Area, your counter stops.

1. You travel to Spain for 10 days. Your 90 days start on the date of entry.

2. You then travel from Spain to Portugal for 15 days.

3. After Portugal, you travel back to your home country.

You have now spent a total of 25 days in the Schengen Area out of the 90 days you're allowed to visit. Meaning you still have 65 days left.

You May Need An Extra Thinking Cap For This Part

You now only know the first part of the rule, the 90 days. Now, you need to understand the 180-day part of the rule. Here is where things get a little confusing. The 180 days are counted backwards from the date you arrive and depart from the Schengen Area. Meaning each time you enter or leave a Schengen Country, a new 180-day period will be calculated.

My plan was to spend 132 days in the Schengen Area within 1 year. How I did this was to divide my year into a few sections. Difficult, but not impossible...

Sarah Bright

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Schengen 90/180 Day Rule - Schengen Rules Made Easy