© Edm
For Bulgaria and Romania, the costs of not being full members of the Schengen area are counted in billions of euros. The transport and tourism sectors of both countries are most affected and checks at land borders create huge barriers for Romanian and Bulgarian companies, restricting their competitiveness and preventing them from fully reaping the benefits of the single market
Non-full membership in the Schengen area costs Bulgaria more than EUR 834 million per year. Romania loses EUR 2.32 billion in annual revenues from not participating fully in Europe’s border-free regime, with losses for its transport operators amounting to another 90 million annually due to delays at the country’s land borders.
The figures were presented at the conference “The cost of non-membership of Schengen for the Single Market – impact on Bulgaria and Romania”, which took place in Sofia, Bulgaria on 24 September. The event was jointly organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA).
‘We marked the 30th anniversary of the European internal market last year. However, data from business organisations in Europe show that 60% of all barriers which were established 20 years ago still remain’, affirmed Maryia Mincheva, member of the EESC’s Employers’ Group and Vice-President of the BIA, who is currently preparing the EESC opinion on the topic.
‘Our businesses still have yet to benefit from all the privileges of the single market. Now they are paying a high price, as their competitiveness is restricted because of the non-Schengen status of our country,’ Ms Mincheva stressed.
Bulgaria and Romania are among the four out of 27 EU Member States that are not part of the Schengen area. The other two are islands – Cyprus and Ireland.
‘Romania and Bulgaria should be full members of Schengen. The security issue is of primary relevance and we can tackle it only via full Schengen integration,’ said BIA president Dobri Mitev, opening the conference.
‘Full membership in the Schengen area is also relevant in a broader economic context for EU economic resilience and security, and the war in Ukraine makes full Schengen membership even more important for the stability of the region. Trust is key,’ said Călin Ile, Vice-President of Concordia.
| EXORBITANT COSTS OF ENDLESS QUEUES AT LAND BORDERS
The participants at the event listed many problems that both Bulgaria and Romania have to grapple with due to customs controls at their land borders with other EU Member States.
Checks at the two countries’ land borders cause daily delays and queues, with waiting times ranging from 20 to over 200 minutes and with truck drivers sometimes spending more than five days trying to cross to another country. Truck queues can be over 30 km long.
This can lead to deterioration of goods and result in financial losses for both exporters and importers. As a consequence, these costs are ultimately passed on to consumers, contributing to the increase in prices of goods. It also negatively affects drivers who are often forced to spend days at parking lots with poor sanitary conditions.
‘With 80 to 85% of Bulgaria’s trade turnover with the EU passing through land borders, delays due to customs processing cause significant costs. For example, a 24-hour delay of a truck at the border can cost between EUR 786 and 2 322 depending on the type of goods carried,’ said Emil Angelov, Chief Executive Officer and Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Bulgarian Glavbolgarstroy Holding.
‘Waiting at the Romanian and Hungarian border in 2023 cost EUR 2.5 billion, and in 2020-2021 it was EUR 2.4 billion,’ said Deputy Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Operators of Romania (UNTRR) Romeo Medan. ‘Thousands of trucks are crossing the border. They are all waiting in queues and, given the EU’s ambitious goals under the Green Deal, this represents a serious obstacle. The social dimensions are also huge – drivers wait for days to go home without food, without water. The status of non-members of the Schengen area accumulates costs along the supply chain and reduces competitiveness.’
Mr Angelov highlighted the many missed economic opportunities for Bulgaria caused by the non-Schengen status, which are most visible in tourism and foreign direct investments. ‘Full integration of both Bulgaria and Romania would lead to an annual increase in their GDP of between 0.5% and 1%.’
Mr Angelov also affirmed that social implications should not be underestimated as Bulgarians and Romanians may sometimes feel like second-class citizens of the EU for not enjoying the same rights. These feelings can in fact be used in what he called ‘the weaponisation of social media and the disinformation war’.
| ENVIROMENTAL GOALS JEOPARDISED, TOURISM SECTOR SUFFERS
The implementation of the EU’s Green Deal, which aims to achieve a carbon-free Europe by 2050, is also put into question.
Ms Mincheva stressed that the pollution caused by heavy border traffic is equivalent to the yearly emissions from the electricity consumption of about 28 000 EU households. In fact, annual border carbon emissions resulting from the remaining border controls at the Hungary-Romania, Romania-Bulgaria and Bulgaria-Greece borders amount to over 46 000 tCO2/year.
Other sectors, such as tourism, are also paying the price. Prolonged border controls between Bulgaria and Romania, and with neighbouring Schengen area countries such as Greece and Hungary, create significant time constraints for travellers. This represents a problem not only for tourism itself, but for regional development too. Furthermore, the non-Schengen status of Bulgaria and Romania has repercussions for the construction, agriculture and service industries since seasonal and cross-border workers face difficulties when crossing the border for work.
| BENEFITS FOR THE EU
The full integration of Bulgaria and Romania into the Schengen area can strengthen the EU’s internal cohesion, enhance competitiveness and investments, and uphold the fundamental principles of free movement and solidarity that underpin the European project. Removing land border controls will facilitate the availability of transportation options and increase the opportunities for cross-border labour mobility, thereby also boosting the opportunities for higher productivity and economic output in the relevant cross-border regions.
‘Attempts to enter Schengen have been going on for more than 10 years. We have fulfilled all the technical criteria mentioned in the Council’s decision and we think that this is the right moment to take the next step […] This is the right time to clearly say that by strengthening countries at the periphery, the economic development of the entire EU will accelerate – this is not just our regional issue,’ Ms Mincheva concluded.
And at EU level, an important announcement was made by the head of the European Commission Representation in Bulgaria, Yordanka Chobanova: on 10 October, the Commission and the Hungarian presidency will propose to the Council to lift the land border control for Bulgaria and Romania.
| BACKGROUND
Since their accession to the EU, Bulgaria and Romania have been progressively implementing the Schengen legal framework. In 2011, the European Commission assessed that both countries were ready to join the Schengen area, based on their compliance with the necessary conditions for membership.
On 31 March 2024 – following the unanimous decision reached by the Council of the EU with Bulgaria and Romania on 30 December 2023 – internal air and maritime border controls in both countries were lifted, however, checks at internal land borders were maintained, and a definite date for their removal has not yet been established. Bulgaria’s and Romania’s full entry into the Schengen zone was blocked by Austria, which feared an increase of illegal immigration.
