EU Expands Grounds to Suspend Visa-Free Travel for Third Countries

The European Union (EU) is introducing tougher rules that will make it easier to suspend visa-free travel agreements with countries outside the EU. These changes are meant to help the EU respond more quickly to threats such as security concerns, human rights violations, or misuse of investor citizenship schemes—also known as “golden passports.”

Currently, citizens of 61 non-EU countries, including Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, and several Western Balkan nations, can travel to the EU without a visa for up to 90 days within any 180-day period. But under the new rules, the EU will have more power to temporarily or permanently stop this visa-free access if certain issues arise.

Key Reasons the EU Can Now Suspend Visa-Free Access

Here are the key reasons the EU can suspend visa-free access:

Security threats: A sharp rise in crimes or risks tied to a country’s citizens.
Human rights violations: If a government is found to be seriously breaching international law or human rights.
Golden passport schemes: If a country offers citizenship through investments to people with no real connection to that country, it could raise security concerns.
Misuse of asylum: A large increase in asylum requests from a country that mostly gets rejected may lead to action. An asylum recognition rate will now be considered low if it falls below the new threshold of 20%.
Diplomatic pressure using migrants: If a country is seen as using migrants to destabilise or pressure EU states.
Not following EU visa rules: If a country’s own visa policy allows irregular migration into the EU, especially through bordering countries.

.@EUCouncil and @europarl_EN settled on an update of the mechanism that allows the EU to suspend visa-free travel for those exempt from applying for a visa when travelling to #Schengen area.

This ammended law will help 🇪🇺better react to abuse of visa-free travel. pic.twitter.com/CdaHPU5hZO
— Polish presidency of the Council of the EU (@POLAND25EU) June 17, 2025

What Does This Mean for Travellers?

If your country is found to be violating any of the conditions, you could lose visa-free access to the EU. This means you’d have to apply for a visa before travelling—even for short stays.

The EU will use a step-by-step process: starting with a temporary suspension (now up to 12 months from 9 months, extendable to 24), while working with the country to fix the issues. The purpose of the suspension phase is to give the European Commission time to engage with the third country and work toward resolving the issues that triggered the suspension. If nothing changes, the visa-free status could be cancelled permanently.

For the first time, the EU is also targeting government officials. If they are linked to the violations, they could be blocked from using diplomatic or service passports to travel freely in the EU.

The EU wants to make sure that countries benefiting from visa-free access stick to shared values like human rights, the rule of law, and fair migration rules. Officials say the updated rules will help protect EU citizens and make the system fairer and more secure.

The changes are expected to be formally approved in the coming weeks and will come into force later in 2025.

What are your thoughts on this issue? Talk to us in the comment section below. Or if you need more advice on the above, contact us for further travel & immigration advice.

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Charlie

Travel and Immigration Writer and Client Relationship Manager at IaM (Immigration and Migration)

Charlie is IaM’s resident Travel & Immigration Writer and Client Relationship Manager. They craft clear, engaging guides that demystify complex visa and migration rules - and then personally supports each client through every step of their journey.

Over the past 6+ years, with IaM, and working in the travel and immigration sector, Charlie has authored 200+ in-depth guides on Schengen, UK visas & other destinations they have relocated 1,000+ families safely through the system. A Clockwork Practitioner, Charlie also works hard to streamline operations and adheres to the mantra "Task Clients Well".

When they’re not translating policy into plain English, you’ll find them scouting new destinations, collecting local stories, and mastering a new language to better serve our global community.