TL;DR: Bulgaria and Romania joined Schengen fully on 1 January 2025. Once ETIAS launches (no official date yet; reports point to 2027), visa-free travellers such as Americans, Canadians and Australians will need an ETIAS to visit either country. It costs €20, lasts three years, and your days there now count under the shared Schengen 90/180 limit. You cannot apply yet.

For years, Bulgaria and Romania sat in an odd halfway house: EU members, but outside Schengen, with passport queues at their borders. That ended in 2025. If you want the broader context, our guide to qué es ETIAS y el Lista completa de países ETIAS cover the whole zone. This article zooms in on the two newest members.

Do you need ETIAS for Bulgaria and Romania?

You need ETIAS for Bulgaria and Romania if you hold a passport from a visa-exempt non-EU country and plan to travel once ETIAS launches. That covers US, UK, Canadian, Australian and dozens of other nationalities. EU and EEA citizens are exempt, as are holders of a valid Schengen residence permit or long-stay visa.

Because both countries are now inside Schengen, they belong to the 30 states covered by ETIAS (Páginas ETIAS de la Comisión Europea, accessed 8 July 2026). A single authorisation works for both, and for the rest of the zone. Confirm your nationality first: our guides for Ciudadanos estadounidenses y Ciudadanos del Reino Unido lay out each case, and the lista de nacionalidades elegibles shows who qualifies for visa-free travel in the first place.

Worth stressing: ETIAS is not a visa and not a reaction to the accession. It is a pre-travel check that every visa-exempt visitor to the zone will complete, whether they land in Sofia, Bucharest or Berlin. The accession simply means Bulgaria and Romania now fall inside that single system rather than running their own entry rules on the side.

What changed: Bulgaria and Romania joined Schengen

Bulgaria and Romania lifted air and sea border checks on 31 March 2024, then removed land-border controls on 1 January 2025, completing their entry into Schengen. That makes them the newest full members of the zone and pulls them squarely under the ETIAS rules once the system launches.

The change was a long time coming. Both joined the EU back in 2007, then waited more than 17 years for full free movement (EU Home Affairs sobre la zona de Schengen, accessed 8 July 2026). Croatia had already joined in January 2023, so the 2025 step left Cyprus and Ireland as the only EU countries still outside the zone.

What does that mean on the ground? At Sofia and Bucharest airports, flights from other Schengen countries now arrive without passport control, the same as a flight from Madrid to Amsterdam. Land crossings from Hungary or Greece no longer stop for checks. The practical upshot for non-EU visitors is simple: once ETIAS is live you clear one check before you travel, then move freely once you are inside.

Not keen on wrestling with the online form when it opens? You can apply directly on the official EU portal for €20, or let our team check and submit your answers for you. Both routes lead to the same authorisation.

How the shared 90/180 day count now works

Now that Bulgaria and Romania are inside Schengen, your time there counts against the same 90-days-in-180 limit as France, Germany or Spain. This differs from before 31 March 2024, when each country ran a separate count. Plan a long Balkan trip carefully so you do not overstay the shared allowance.

Consejo profesional: Say you spend 40 days touring Romania and Bulgaria in spring, then want three weeks in Italy that autumn. All of it now draws from the same 90-day pot. Keep a running total from your first Schengen entry, not per country.

Our guide to the Regla de los 90/180 días walks through the maths with examples, and the ETIAS versus Schengen guide explains where the borders sit. Touring wider? The Balkans route guide maps a sensible itinerary.

Cost, validity and how to apply for ETIAS

ETIAS costs €20 and covers both Bulgaria and Romania on one application, valid for three years or until your passport expires. Under-18s and over-70s pay nothing. Applying online will take 10 to 20 minutes, with most approvals arriving within minutes of payment.

1. Espera al lanzamiento. El portal no está en directo y la UE aún no ha anunciado una fecha de lanzamiento — consulta nuestro guía de fecha de lanzamiento. Ningún sitio genuino acepta solicitudes aún.
2. Prepara tu pasaporte. Un pasaporte biométrico válido para el viaje, más el documentos que necesitarás.
3. Rellena el formulario. Datos del pasaporte, tu primer país de entrada, y preguntas sobre antecedentes y seguridad (antecedentes penales, zonas de conflicto, órdenes de expulsión anteriores) (quién debe solicitar, Comisión Europea, accedido 8 julio 2026).
4. Paga €20. La tarifa fue fijada por la Comisión en julio de 2025 (anuncio de tarifa). Los menores y los solicitantes de mayor edad están exentos.
5. Vigila tu bandeja de entrada. La aprobación es generalmente instantánea; algunos casos tardan hasta 30 días. Haz seguimiento a uno lento a través del cronograma de aprobación.

Para los números en detalle, consulta nuestro guía de costos y formas de pago. ¿Te preocupa que tu pasaporte venza durante el período? El guía de validez lo cubre.

Consejos prácticos para un viaje a Bulgaria y Rumania

Un viaje conjunto por Bulgaria y Rumania es fácil de combinar ahora que las fronteras internas están abiertas. Solicita ETIAS con anticipación, cuenta tus días Schengen desde la primera entrada y contrata un seguro de viaje por separado, ya que la autorización no cubre atención médica.

• Una autorización, dos países: no necesitas un ETIAS separado para cada uno. Una aprobación de €20 cubre Sofía, Bucarest y más allá.
• Viajes por tierra: los puentes del Danubio entre los dos ahora están libres de controles, por lo que un autobús de Bucarest a Sofía ya no se detiene para verificar pasaportes.
• Brecha de seguro: ETIAS no es cobertura de salud. Consulta nuestro guía de seguros antes de hacer su reserva.
• Recordatorio de requisitos: ¿no estás seguro de lo que necesitas? El guía de requisitos enumera todas las condiciones.
• Temporada alta: Las playas del Mar Negro en agosto y Transilvania en otoño atraen multitudes. Solicita ETIAS una o dos semanas antes para que una solicitud marcada nunca interrumpa un viaje reservado.

Un punto más para quien haya viajado aquí antes de 2024: los antiguos sellos de pasaporte separados desaparecieron. Un sello de entrada rumano ya no aparece separado de tu registro Schengen, por lo que el único conteo 90/180 es el único reloj que importa ahora. Contarlo mal es el error más fácil de cometer en un largo tour regional.

¿Prefieres no rellenar el formulario tú mismo? Podemos revisar y enviar tu solicitud, algo que los viajeros de más edad suelen decir que elimina la preocupación sobre las preguntas de seguridad. Somos un servicio de asistencia independiente, no un organismo gubernamental — solicitar directamente en el portal oficial de la UE siempre es una opción.

Preguntas frecuentes

Do I need ETIAS for Bulgaria and Romania as a US citizen?

Yes. Once ETIAS launches (no official date yet), US citizens and other visa-exempt travellers need an ETIAS to visit Bulgaria or Romania. One €20 application covers both, lasts three years, and takes minutes online.

When did Bulgaria and Romania join Schengen?

They lifted air and sea checks on 31 March 2024 and land-border checks on 1 January 2025. That completed full Schengen membership, roughly 17 years after both joined the EU in 2007.

Does one ETIAS cover both countries?

Yes. A single ETIAS covers Bulgaria, Romania and every other country in the zone. You do not apply separately for each. One approval, valid up to three years, works for the whole area.

Do my days in Bulgaria count towards the Schengen 90-day limit?

Yes, now that both are full Schengen members. Time in Bulgaria and Romania draws from the same 90-days-in-180 allowance as the rest of the zone. Keep one running total.

¿Puedo solicitar ya el ETIAS?

No. The portal has not opened. No launch date has been announced yet; the EU has dropped its earlier last-quarter-of-2026 target. Sites claiming to take applications today are not legitimate, so wait for the official europa.eu launch.

How much does ETIAS cost for children?

Nothing. Applicants under 18 and over 70 are exempt from the €20 fee. They still need their own approved ETIAS tied to a valid passport before crossing the border.

Is Croatia also covered by ETIAS?

Sí. Croacia se unió a Schengen en enero de 2023 y también figura en la lista de ETIAS. Si tu viaje combina Croacia con Bulgaria o Rumania, una sola autorización cubre todo.

Anna Reinholt es Editora de Documentación de Viajes en europe-visa.eu y ha escrito sobre documentos de viaje europeos desde 2017. Esta guía fue verificada contra fuentes oficiales de la UE antes de su publicación.

Última actualización: 2026-07-08 — verificado contra fuentes oficiales de la UE.

The post ETIAS for Bulgaria and Romania 2026: Do You Need It? appeared first on ETIAS - Travel to Europe.