Schengen zone: Sofia city follows the rules

Europe without borders – actually the Schengen zone means much more than that and this is the reason why all those countries including Bulgaria with its capital Sofia are so eager to enter. In fact, Bulgarian citizens can travel freely. Even so, since the country is not a member of the Schengen zone, they have no rights to work and study without additional permission. The European Union countries have signed an agreement in 2007, according to which the transitional period for entering the Schengen zone is the end of 2013. After that, Bulgarians will have the right to settle permanently in other countries of the European Union in case they have a job or are enlisted in a University. This however is currently not valid. Sofia is still outside the Schengen zone and will remain there for an indefinite period of time.

An interesting fact to be mentioned is that Bulgaria is already part of the Schengen area and became such as it entered the European Union in year 2007. Even so, the citizens in the country have been blocked from free movement. Bulgaria has increased the border checks with its neighboring countries that are not members of the European Union. Besides, the country is also using the Schengen Information System, which allows for police authorities in the European Union to track down the entries and exits of the country. Sofia also has marked great success in preventing traffic of people, smuggling and drug related crimes. Currently, the country has border controls and this will not change before Bulgaria is accepted in the Schengen zone.