The 90/180-day rule explained: how long you can stay in Europe

Q: Are there exceptions?

- Visa stickers: if your Schengen visa allows fewer than 90 days, the shorter period on the sticker applies (calculator page). - Brazil: the EU–Brazil visa waiver keeps an older rule, 3 months in 6 months from first entry (user manual; Commission border-crossing page). - Old bilateral agreements: some countries' pre-Schengen visa waivers with, for example, the US, Canada or New Zealand may allow extra time in that specific country. Applying them is up to each state (CISA Article 20(2), per the user manual). Unconfirmed: which Schengen countries currently honour bilateral visa-waiver extensions, and for how long. There's no central EU list. Ask that country's embassy in writing before relying on it.

Q: How is the rule enforced now?

Since 10 April 2026 the Entry/Exit System (EES) records every entry and exit electronically instead of stamping passports (Commission border-crossing page). The official check how long you can stay tool reads your EES record and shows the days you have left. It ignores time spent in Schengen before 10 April 2026, so count older trips yourself. The calculator is only an aid: border guards make the final decision (user manual).

Q: Does ETIAS change the 90 days?

No. You need ETIAS valid for the entire stay, but you can't use it to stay longer than 90 days in 180. If you want to study for more than 90 days you need a student visa, and to work you need a work visa (FAQ). Planning a long trip? Compare travel insurance for Europe (affiliate link, optional, unrelated to ETIAS). Want it on one page? ETIAS & EES Europe travel checklist ($7, optional). ETIAS itself is EUR 20 only on the official EU site.

By Aaron Houston · Last checked 2026-10-27 against official EU sources

Some links on this page are affiliate links; we may earn a commission at no cost to you. They are for optional travel products only, never for ETIAS itself. Disclosure.

Status as of 2026-10-27: ETIAS is not in operation and no applications are being collected. The EU says it will announce the start date "several months prior to its launch." The 90/180-day rule applies now, with or without ETIAS.

Short answer: visa-free visitors can stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period in the Schengen area. Every day in any Schengen country counts toward one shared total. ETIAS, once it starts, won't give you extra days. It only lets you travel within this limit (official ETIAS FAQ).

Source: official ETIAS FAQ, European Commission short-stay calculator and its user manual, last checked 2026-10-27.

How does the rolling 180-day window work?

It's not a calendar half-year, and the count doesn't reset on 1 January. For each day you plan to be in the Schengen area, look back over the 180 days ending on that day. If you were there more than 90 of those days, you're over the limit (European Commission short-stay calculator).

Two counting rules catch people out (>calculator user manual):

Your entry day counts as day one and your exit day counts as the last day, even if you're there only a few hours.
An uninterrupted 90 days outside the Schengen area gives you a fresh allowance of up to 90 days.

Worked example

Illustration (our dates, official rules): You're in Schengen from 1 March to 30 April 2027. That's 61 days, counting both the arrival and departure days.

If you return on	You can stay until	Why
15 June 2027	13 July 2027 (29 days)	61 + 29 = 90 days within the window
30 July 2027	Up to 90 days	You've been out for 90 days in a row

Check your own dates with the Commission calculator's "planning" mode, which reports "Possible stay until" a date.

Which countries count toward the 90 days?

The 29 Schengen countries share one counter. They are 25 EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland (calculator page). Time in these places doesn't count:

Cyprus is an ETIAS country but is counted separately. The FAQ's example: 30 days in Malta and Greece, then up to 90 days in Cyprus, then another 60 days in the other European countries (FAQ).
Ireland isn't in Schengen and isn't an ETIAS country.
Days in the UK don't count (>user manual).
Days spent under a residence permit or long-stay (D) visa aren't counted as short-stay days (calculator page).

Are there exceptions?

Visa stickers: if your Schengen visa allows fewer than 90 days, the shorter period on the sticker applies (calculator page).
Brazil: the EU–Brazil visa waiver keeps an older rule, 3 months in 6 months from first entry (>user manual; Commission border-crossing page).
Old bilateral agreements: some countries' pre-Schengen visa waivers with, for example, the US, Canada or New Zealand may allow extra time in that specific country. Applying them is up to each state (CISA Article 20(2), per the user manual).

Unconfirmed: which Schengen countries currently honour bilateral visa-waiver extensions, and for how long. There's no central EU list. Ask that country's embassy in writing before relying on it.

How is the rule enforced now?

Since 10 April 2026 the Entry/Exit System (EES) records every entry and exit electronically instead of stamping passports (Commission border-crossing page). The official check how long you can stay tool reads your EES record and shows the days you have left. It ignores time spent in Schengen before 10 April 2026, so count older trips yourself. The calculator is only an aid: border guards make the final decision (>user manual).

What happens if I overstay?

EES flags overstayers automatically. The official EES pages say an overstay can lead to an entry ban, normally up to 5 years, recorded in the Schengen Information System. If you overstayed for a reason like a hospital stay, your record can be corrected with credible evidence (official: How does the EES work). See what happens at the EES border check.

Does ETIAS change the 90 days?

No. You need ETIAS valid for the entire stay, but you can't use it to stay longer than 90 days in 180. If you want to study for more than 90 days you need a student visa, and to work you need a work visa (FAQ).

Want it on one page? ETIAS & EES Europe travel checklist ($7, optional). ETIAS itself is EUR 20 only on the official EU site.

Sources

Keep going: This page is part of our main guide to who needs ETIAS, which walks through every decision in order. Related questions: EES at the border: what happens and How long does ETIAS take and how long is it valid. Ready to act? See ETIAS requirements.