UK nationals that are currently in the Canary Islands or any other country in the Schengen area, are coming to the end of their 90 day permitted stay following the UK’s exit from Europe on January 1st of this year. Under the Schengen Area rules of stay for third-country citizens, non-EU citizens entering the territory under the visa-free regime can only stay for a maximum of 90 days, for every 180 days.
The 90/180 days rule may be confusing to many, in particular for Britons, who so far haven’t had to worry about how long they were staying in another EU or Schengen associated country, but those who overstay this period, intentionally or unintentionally, may face penalties, including deportation, fines, and entry bans, including second home owners, as no-one is exempt from the ruling.
The 90/180 days-of-stay rule explained:
Every third-country citizen travelling to the Schengen Area under the visa-free entry regime is permitted to stay for a period of a total of 90 days, in any 180 days. The 180-day period keeps rolling, thus, anytime a traveller wishes to enter the Schengen zone, they just have to count backwards the last 180 days, and see if they have been present in the Schengen Zone for more than 90 days throughout that period.
Often, travellers are confused by this rule and fail to calculate how long they are permitted to remain in the EU, or they believe that overstaying is not a big deal. Yet, overstaying has its consequences, which often may be quite harsh.
