Iceland's Schengen Area situation
Since Iceland is part of the Schengen Area is it possible to travel there by plane from mainland Europe (Schengen Area country) without a passport?
The Schengen Area has abolished passport control between mutual border countries, which would lead me to believe that either every country borders Iceland (ie. you can travel to/from there passport free) or no country has a border with them (ie. there is no point in them being in the Schengen Area).
As there is no passport control between Schengen Area countries, could you fly from say Germany to Iceland with no passport check on arrival in Iceland? I'm assuming you still have to show your passport at security in your departure airport.
The reason I am curious about this is because I live in Ireland (not a Schengen Area country). Another question I have is why isn't Ireland in the Schengen Area, while Iceland is, seeing as neither country share a land border with a country in the Schengen Area?
Could it be because of Schengen Area visas? For example - is Iceland happy for American Schengen visa holders to travel there freely, while Ireland would rather have them apply for specific Irish visas?
Best Answer
To answer the question about why Ireland is not part of the Schengen Zone: The UK explicitly opted out of the Schengen Agreement. Ireland shares a land border with the UK (Northern Ireland) and there is strong political will for that border to be a soft border. As a result, Ireland has opted to form the “Common Travel Area” with the UK which is a collective Immigration zone that is distinct from the Schengen Zone.
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Answer 2
The main purpose of the Schengen rules is to let EU citizens drive across land borders without having to stop and show papers. The unified visa system is just a side effect of this goal. So there was an abolition of systematic passport controls but not an abolition of the requirement to carry passports and to show them to competent authorities upon demand.
Distinct from that are airline security checks, which apply to domestic flights as well. Airlines want to know whom they carry.
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