I love to dream about all the places we’re going to go and often spend my free time looking up flights on Expedia. But we have had a passport mishap before where we found out our kids’ passports had expired just days before we left on a trip so we’ve been very careful about how we’ve booked trips since. This is why you also need to know about Schengen countries if you are booking a trip with a Canadian or US passport and also because there is supposed to be a new travel authorization for this area for 2023.
What are Schengen countries?
There are 26 Schengen countries: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
These countries are all part of a visa-free zone which makes it easy to travel freely once you are in this zone. But if you have a US or Canadian passport your passport can’t be more than 10 years old and needs to be valid 3 months after the end of your intended travel in the area.
And a new travel authorization will be required to enter the Schengen area at some point in 2023
We are hoping to visit Europe next year and I have been seeing news about a new travel authorization that we will need at some point in 2023 to visit the Schengen countries too. It’s an ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System) and it looks like it will cost 7 Euro for individuals between 18-70 years old so I’ll be following along with the ETIAS website too before I book any Europe tickets.
And it’s not just Schengen Countries
Schengen countries are not the only countries you need to check before you visit. There are other places that require even 6 months for your passport validity too. It’s probably a good idea just to google the visa and entry requirements for any place you are dreaming about before you book and check your passport too.
Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys. She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live. She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)