Overstaying Schengen residence permit outside of the issuing country [closed]

I have a student residence permit issued in one of the EU/Schengen countries. As fair as I understand, it allows me to stay without visa in any other Schengen country for up to 90 days in 180 day interval.

I want to ask if and how is this rule enforced and are there practically any possible consequences for overstaying the mentioned 90 days outside of the issuing country.

My situation is that I am currently doing a research internship in Switzerland, which officially lasts 85 days, and I am doing it without any Swiss visa/permit, since my original permit allows me to have such educational/working stays for up to 90 days. After the internship ends, I want to have a holiday and stay in various Schengen countries for up to 15 days in total.

I wonder if any authority can find out that I will be overstaying the 90 days limit. Since there are no border checks in the Schengen area, is that even possible? The only clue that I can think of are hotel bookings: I have a hotel booking in Switzerland for 85 days of my internship, and I will likely stay in a hotel/AirBnb during my trip. As far as I know, they are somehow obliged to check my passport and notify the authorities about my booking. So, strictly speaking, I will have a hotel booking for 100 days, which is more than what the rule allows. In reality, it can be that during my internship I made several short trips to the issuing country, with the total length of 10 days, without interrupting the hotel booking. So, the real length of my "outside" stay is less than 90 days, but that is hard to prove (I can maybe show some transportation tickets).

So I wonder what really happens when I book a hotel and show my passport/permit on registration. Do authorities somehow keep track of my stays? Is it somehow synchronized between different countries?

Did anybody ever have any experience with enforcement of that rule? It seems it is totally unrealistic for it to be enforced, but I guess if some authorities get really suspicious they can find it out, e.g. by requesting bank statements, bookings and checking locations.

Best Answer

Schengen trusts people who receive a national 'D' visa to abide by the rules. This is a necessary consequence of abolishing routine border checks for Schengen citizens.

There are also ways how your violation might caught. There are random checks at the borders which may lead to questions you cannot answer. Hotels (and similar institutions) in many Schengen countries are required to keep records, which may be cross-referenced at a later date if there is reason to do so. When you leave, a customs officer might notice receipts or other evidence. (Not likey that they'd look, but they can if they are getting suspicious.) You may break a leg and go to hospital. You may be a witness to a traffic accident and be asked to give testimony.

If you are caught, your credibility for future Schengen visa applications will be damaged.

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What happens if you overstay Schengen?

You could receive a fine, immediate deportation or even get banned from entering the Schengen Area for a period. It is also important to remember that the 90/180 day rule also applies to countries with a visa waiver agreement with the Schengen Area.

What happens if you overstay Schengen 90 days?

The Schengen law states that you can't stay in the Area for more than 90 days. If you do, you're subject to a fine and possibly deportation and being banned from re-entering the Schengen Area. How that rule is enforced, though, varies greatly from one country to another.

What happens if you stay more than 90 days in Europe?

A non-EU national who stays in the Schengen area beyond 90 days (without a residence permit or long-stay visa) is illegally present, which can result in a re-entry ban to the Schengen area.

Can I travel in Europe with expired residence permit?

The foreign national who possesses a residence permit that has expired, but who has applied on time for it to be renewed or converted, can leave Italian territory and return to his/her country of origin, even through an external border that is different to the point of departure from Italy.

Overstaying in the Schengen Zone - How to Extend Your Stay in Europe UPDATED

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