Do Schengen areas check US passports for the 90 visa eligibility?

[Fishhawk50]

We are looking into a TA from Rome back to Fort Lauderdale in late Nov 2023.  Presently, we are in France and going home to USA in two weeks.  We'll have 84 days in Schengen area by the time we leave to go home in October.  Wondering if we can fly to Rome and hop on a cruise with stops in Spain and Portugal, even though we will exceed the 90 days during the cruise?  Do the cruise lines track this Schengen timetable or would Spain and Portugal check before our cruise makes stops in their respective countries?  Thanks!

[hallasm]

If the 90-day limit is passed between departure from Rome and arrival at another Schengen port in Spain or Portugal, you have a problem. Days at sea between Schengen ports count towards the number of days - only when you leave a Schengen port does the clock stop.

If there are six days from arrival in Rome and the ship leaves the last Schengen port, it is OK. Also sea days between Schengen ports count.

 

Edited September 28, 2023 by hallasm

[Fishhawk50]

So I suppose the Cruise line and passport control at Fiumicino Airport in Italy will check that?  Thanks!

[mom says]

Your time within Schengen is kept in the border control system and if your final exit is after the 90 days you can expect a large fine and possibly being banned from re entry for 3 years or longer.

[Fishhawk50]

Do you know if the cruise line has to submit our passport information every time they dock in the Schengen port?  Probably so, I suspect. We normally get a year long visa but circumstances prevented us doing that this time.  A good price on a cruise doesn't seem to be worth the risk of being fined and banned for a period.  Heck, we have a house in France.  Oh, well!

[fruitmachine]

5 hours ago, mom says said:

Your time within Schengen is kept in the border control system and if your final exit is after the 90 days you can expect a large fine and possibly being banned from re entry for 3 years or longer.

I don't think there is any automated checking happening yet. 

 

EITAS needs the Entry/Exit System (EES) to work across all Schengen countries, and it's delays in this that's a key reason behind the EITAS delays.  EES is what will automate the checking.

 

But answering the OP's question, if you exceed the 90 days there is a risk, in particular when you next return to the Schengen area, that a border agent notices that you exceeded the period on your previous stay - and that they then deny you entry.  Their manual says that they should check for this!

 

You should check whether getting a visa for your November visit would solve the issue.

 

 

 

 

[SelectSys]

This is going to be an interesting subject going forward.  In looking at the consular pages for Spain and Italy, it seems that to stay longer than 90 days one must get a long term stay via in Schengen country.  With this visa in hand, it's necessary to obtain your long term visitors  resident card within 30 days of arriving in the country that provided the initial visa.   This probably won't be a big deal to me, but I can easily see how it could become an issue for some.  The recommendation on some of the web pages I read was to always leave a bit of a buffer in your available visa time to deal with logistical issues or problems in traveling.

 

Here is a link to the Schengen Visa Calculator:

https://ec.europa.eu/assets/home/visa-calculator/calculator.htm?lang=en

 

BTW - It's kind of interesting playing with the calculator as it looks at both the 90 day and 180 day windows to determine your available time in Europe.  Waiting one extra day changed my result from 57 to 90 days!  It's understandable from a rules perspective, but kind of crazy at the same time...