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I plan to travel to Scotland, Greece, and Portugal in the spring. This year, I already made a trip to Italy in the fall. I want to confirm I will not be breaking the Schengen 90/180 day rule in my travels.

In October 2022 I entered Italy for 9 days.

This first 180 day block including Schengen travel was October 9-April 7. In it I will be in Greece from March 2-April 7.

In February, I will visit Scotland (non-Schengen) for 6 days. Is any UK-specific visa, unrelated to the Schengen 90-day allowance, required?

In March, I will travel to Greece. The next 180 day block with Schengen zone travel is March 2-August 29.

• Feb 24-March 2 in Scotland • Thursday March 2-Friday April 7 in Greece (37 days) • April 8-16 in Croatia or Ireland (out of Schengen zone) • Monday April 17-Tuesday June 6 in Greece & Portugal (51 days)

Do you need to leave the Schengen zone in order for the 180 days to reset?

  • We have several questions on the 90/180 rules, with a calculator into which you enter your dates. And for that visa question we would need your nationality but we also have a general question in which we tell you how to find out for yourself. – Willeke Nov 18 '22 at 18:40
  • What is your nationality? Do you hold a Schengen visa? Scotland is still part of the United Kingdom and the UK rules apply. The exact requirements depend on your nationality and other personal circumstances and may be found on the offical UK government website: https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa. – xngtng Nov 18 '22 at 18:46
  • There is no more 180-day clock counting from the date of entry. The new rules are explained in https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/13183/how-does-the-schengen-90-180-rule-work and the EU has a calculator for you https://ec.europa.eu/assets/home/visa-calculator/calculator.htm?lang=en – xngtng Nov 18 '22 at 18:47
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    Croatia is likely to have joined Schengen by the time of your travel! – xngtng Nov 18 '22 at 18:48
  • I am a US national. –  Nov 18 '22 at 19:01
  • My main concern was not with adding the dates as I know the dates beginning in March sum to less than 90, but if my October Italy trip would impact my travels to Greece and Portugal in the spring. –  Nov 18 '22 at 19:02
  • Have you read the answer to the linked question on 90/180 rule? The 180-day period applies retrospectively, i.e. counted back from the date you leave the Schengen area. The calculator is provided by the EU with the consideration of 90/180 rule. You can put all your entry and exit dates there and it will tell you whether you would be in violation of the short stay allowance. – xngtng Nov 18 '22 at 19:34

2 Answers2

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In February I will visit Scotland (non-Schengen) for 6 days. Is any visa required?

Without knowing you citizenship, no answer can be given.
As a US citizen, you do not require a visa for the United Kingdom. Upon entering a leave to enter of 6 months is generally granted. This is independent of any previous stay in the Schengen Area. The time spent in the United Kingdom (or the Republic of Ireland) does not effect the time you may stay in the Schengen Area.

I’m worried you need to leave the Schengen zone in order for the 180 days to reset. Is this the case?

No, the 180 days is not reset by just leaving the Schengen Area. The full calendar days outside the Schengen Area do not count towards the 90 days allowed within the previous 180 days.

Assuming I have read your text correctly: when leaving on the 2023-06-06, you will have spent 88 days of the previous 180 days (starting 2022-12-08) in the Schengen Area. The 9 days in Italy expired on the 2023-04-16 and therefore do not count.

  • 2022-10-09/10-18: 9 days Italy
    • 2023-04-16 the 9 days will expire
  • 2023-03-02/04-07: 37 days Greece
    • the 9 days in Italy have not expired
      • 37+9=46 days that have not expired
        • 44 days left
  • 2023-04-17/06-06: 51 days Greece & Portugal
    • the 9 days in Italy have expired
    • the 37 days in Greece have not expired
      • 51+37=88 days that have not expired
        • 2 days left

Should Croatia become part of the Schengen Area on the 2023-01-01, the 9 days there must also be counted. You would then have to shorten your stay by 7 days.

Mark Johnson
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    This is the most detailed and thoughtful answer I could have asked for! Thank you so much. –  Nov 18 '22 at 21:23
  • Nice, having to do math AND check whether Croatia changes its status. As nice as it is for Schengen-Nationals, what a mess for outsiders – Hobbamok Nov 19 '22 at 12:30
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    @Hobbamok Every system has its downsides. With others systems, where the immigration officer decides how long you can stay (which may be less than what you planned for) or refuses an second entry alltogeather, is more difficult to plan. – Mark Johnson Nov 19 '22 at 12:56
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    @MarkJohnson totally agree. While it does require some mental effort, you can just sit down (or ask online) calculate it all out and KNOW that you're good as long as you stick to the pre-calculated days for exit and entry – Hobbamok Nov 19 '22 at 12:59
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Whenever you have been outside the Schengen area for more than 90 days, you have the full 90 days available on your return. Since you will be outside the Schengen area from October to March, which is more than 90 days, you will have 90 days available when you enter in March.

phoog
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