Commission report shows Schengen area continues to be resilient and ready for future challenges

The Commission published its fifth State of the Schengen report, reviewing developments in the Schengen area over the past year and setting priorities for the year ahead. The Schengen area continues to demonstrate resilience, underpinned by collective efforts at both EU and national level.

The Schengen area is one of the European Union's most tangible and valued achievements, enabling a more than 450 million EU citizens to travel, work, study and live freely across borders while supporting trade, tourism and freedom of movement of goods vital to the European economy, alongside strong cooperation to protect the Union's external borders.

The 2026 State of Schengen Report highlights significant achievements during the past year. These include a better protected external border and a decrease of 26% in illegal border crossings in 2025 compared to 2024. Joint efforts also resulted in more effective returns of persons without a right to stay in the EU, with a 28% return rate in 2025 – the highest return rate in the past 10 years. A key milestone for external border protection was the full launch of the Entry/Exit System (EES) in April 2026, delivering on a stronger, more digitalised Schengen area. Already in the first 6 months of operation, Member States registered over 66 million entries and exits and 32 000 persons, who had no right to enter the EU, were refused. The Commission also adopted the EU's first-ever Visa Strategy in January 2026.

At the same time, the report showed that challenges remain requiring actions at EU level and by Schengen States. This is particularly important in the context of today's geopolitical environment which calls for reinforced collective responsibility to ensure that the Schengen area remains secure, united and resilient.

The priorities for the fifth Schengen cycle (2026-2027) will focus on consolidating achievements, addressing remaining gaps, and enhancing preparedness to meet current and future challenges.

The Commission invites the Schengen Council to discuss the 2026 State of Schengen report and adopt the 2026-2027 priorities at the Justice and Home Affairs Council in June.

More information is available in our press release.