Brussels, 8 October 2024
Today, the Commission published two new Eurobarometer surveys which show increased citizen and business appreciation of the Schengen area, compared to the previous survey in 2018.
Citizens consider reinforcing cooperation within the Schengen area (63%) as the main priority for the EU to strengthen the area until 2030. The Eurobarometer survey on businesses’ attitudes towards the Schengen area reveals that 68% of companies in the EU are aware of the Schengen area. 83% of companies agree that Schengen is good for business and 81% recognise it as one of the EU’s main achievements. When asked about the benefits of being in the Schengen area, one third of businesses said that it decreases costs due to the absence of internal border controls.
The Commission adopted last year a Recommendation for increased cooperation between Member States in the Schengen area, and continues to work closely with Member States together with the Schengen Coordinator to address these matters. For more information, see the State of Schengen report 2024.
Source – EU Commission