The completion of Romania's accession to the Schengen area means a significant reduction in waiting times at the border and, respectively, of logistics and transport costs, the stimulation of tourism and related services, so that we will become even more attractive for investors and we will strengthen our strategic position, the executive director of the Concordia Employers' Confederation, Radu Burnete said on Thursday.
"Today we have the official confirmation that, from January 1, 2025, Romania and Bulgaria are consolidating their integration into the Single Market by fully joining the Schengen Area, with land borders", according to a press release from the Confederation, sent to AGERPRES on Thursday.
This decision, also supported by the European business milieu through the Warsaw Declaration of the Presidents of BusinessEurope, reflects both the spirit of unity and what we hope will be a new impulse of the EU towards the growth and consolidation of competitiveness, for the benefit of its companies and citizens, the release reads.
"In practical terms, the completion of Romania's accession to the Schengen area means the significant reduction in waiting times at the border and respectively of logistics and transport costs, the stimulation of tourism and related services and, last but not least, streamlining regional supply chains at the Black Sea All these elements of cost and ease of doing business will make us even more attractive to investors and will strengthen us, at the same time, the strategic position", Radu Burnete said.
Concordia Employers' Confederation represents over 3,000 companies with Romanian and foreign capital from 17 essential industries that produce more than a quarter of Romania's GDP and employ over 350,000 employees.
The ministers of interior from the EU countries, gathered in the Council of Justice and Internal Affairs, decided to lift the controls on people at the internal land borders with and between Bulgaria and Romania starting from January 1, 2025, the Council of the European Union announced in a statement posted on consilium.europa.eu website.
"It is a historic moment to finally welcome Bulgaria and Romania as full Schengen members. Lifting controls on people at the internal land borders with and between these member states was a top priority for the Hungarian presidency (of the EU Council) and today we made it a reality. This step will be beneficial not only for Bulgarian and Romanian citizens, but also for the EU as a whole'', said Hungarian Interior Minister Sandor Pinter, after Thursday's decision.
Since their accession to the EU, Bulgaria and Romania have applied parts of the Schengen legal framework (the Schengen acquis), including those related to external border controls, police cooperation and the use of the Schengen Information System. On December 30, 2023, the Council adopted the decision to apply, from March 31, 2024, the remaining parts of the Schengen acquis and to lift the controls on people at the internal air and sea borders.
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