What documents do I need to travel to Bulgaria and Romania?
Bulgaria and Romania are full Schengen members since 1 January 2025. You need a passport or EU ID card, and a Schengen visa if your nationality requires one.
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Entering Bulgaria and Romania - what you need
Both countries follow standard Schengen entry rules, so the checklist is the same one you would use for Greece or Hungary. If you booked your stay through trip1, keep the confirmation to hand as proof of accommodation.
- A passport issued within the last 10 years and valid for at least three months after you plan to leave the Schengen Area.
- EU, EEA and Swiss citizens can travel on a valid national ID card instead of a passport.
- A Schengen visa, if your nationality needs one. Bulgaria and Romania issue Schengen visas themselves and accept those issued by any other member state.
- Proof of accommodation and a return or onward ticket, which officers can ask for at any external Schengen border.
- Evidence of funds for your stay, plus travel insurance if you are applying for a visa rather than travelling visa-free.
Both countries are fully in Schengen now
This is the part that trips people up, because accession happened in two stages. Checks at airports and seaports were lifted on 31 March 2024, and for nine months land borders still had full passport control.
That gap closed on 1 January 2025, when the EU Council decision lifting land border controls took effect. Since then Bulgaria and Romania have been full Schengen members with no routine checks on any internal border.
So when driving from Greece into Bulgaria, across the Danube between Ruse and Giurgiu, or from Romania into Hungary, there are no systematic passport checks, but UK government advice says border guards may still check passports at land and river crossings into Bulgaria or Hungary, so keep yours to hand. Advice written before 2025 that describes queues at those posts is out of date.
Where border checks still happen
Full checks continue at the external edges of the zone. That means Bulgaria's borders with Turkey, Serbia and North Macedonia, and Romania's borders with Serbia, Ukraine and Moldova, along with flights arriving from outside Schengen.
Any Schengen country can also reintroduce checks on an internal border temporarily, and several have done so in recent years. Carry your passport or ID card even on a short hop between the two countries, because police can ask for it inland as well.
EES and ETIAS - where things stand
The EU Entry/Exit System became fully operational on 10 April 2026, and it applies in Bulgaria and Romania at external borders. Arriving from outside Schengen, a non-EU visitor has a facial image and fingerprints recorded on the first trip, and the system replaces the old passport stamp with a digital record.
Allow extra time at Sofia or Bucharest on a first arrival, since registration takes a few minutes. Later trips are quicker because the record already exists.
ETIAS is a different thing and it is not running. The EU says it is scheduled to start in the last quarter of 2026 and will announce the exact date several months in advance. Until then, visa-free travellers have nothing to apply for and nothing to pay. Sites offering to sell you one are not official.
Hotel check-in in Bulgaria and Romania
Hotels in both countries register guests with the authorities, so every adult in the room needs to show the passport or ID card they travelled on. The desk copies the details and hands the document straight back.
Your trip1 booking confirmation is what the front desk needs to find the reservation, and it is the document to show a border officer who asks where you are staying. Some hotels also ask for a card at check-in to hold a deposit for incidentals, which is their own policy rather than a payment method for the room.
Entering Bulgaria and Romania - FAQ
Yes. Romania and Bulgaria are full Schengen members. Checks at their airports and seaports ended on 31 March 2024, and the EU lifted controls at their internal land borders from 1 January 2025. A valid Schengen visa covers both countries, and there is no separate Romanian or Bulgarian national visa for short stays.
US, UK and other visa-exempt visitors can stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period. The count is shared across the whole Schengen Area, so days in Bulgaria, Greece or Hungary within the previous 180 days count too. Staying longer than that needs the right Romanian visa or residence permit.
Romania issues standard Schengen short-stay visas, and since 11 June 2024 the EU fee is 90 euros for adults and 45 euros for children aged 6 to 11. UK, US, Canadian and Australian citizens do not need a visa for short visits. If you do need one, confirm the current fee with the Romanian consulate or its visa centre when you apply.
Non-EU visitors need a passport issued less than 10 years before arrival and valid for at least 3 months after leaving the Schengen Area. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens can use a national ID card. Officers can ask for proof of accommodation, such as your trip1 booking confirmation, a return ticket and funds. First arrivals are registered in the EU Entry/Exit System.
The EU lifted systematic controls on this land border from 1 January 2025. Even so, UK government advice says border guards will check your passport if you cross land or river borders from Romania into Bulgaria or Hungary. Carry your passport or ID card on every crossing, including the Danube bridges, and expect to show it.
Not yet. ETIAS is not in operation, and the official ETIAS website says no applications are being collected. The EU will announce the start date several months before launch, and the planned fee is 20 euros. Until then visa-free travellers have nothing to apply for, and sites offering to sell an ETIAS are not official.