Schengan

[Lelly0109]

I've googled this but have so many conflicting answers I'm not sure who is right and who isn't! Travel agent had never heard of schengan days so no help there either 😭 I'm doing a Norwegian fjords cruise from Southampton which runs over 7 nights... 2 nights onboard then 4 days in various Norwegian ports and another night at sea before returning to Southampton. I run very close to my 90 day limit on schengan allowance so need to know how many days this will use? Is it just from the first port of call in Norway to the last one (5 days) or the full length of the cruise which is 8 days. 8 days puts me right on my 90 day limit so I really need to know for certain. I'm hoping someone has a tried and tested answer for me 😁 Many thanks! 

[Mark_T]

I'm not sure there is a definitive clear answer as it is really determined by the stamps in your passport, if any...

 

If your passport is stamped in and out of the Schengen zone that determines the count of the days, but most cruises like your do not actually get the passports stamped, and in that case it is theoretically the entire length of the cruise that counts...

 

Keep in mind it is 90 days out of a rolling 180 days, not sure if that helps you at all...

[RICHARD@SEA]

I looked into this recently as I am planning an extended stay in Europe - land & cruise ...staying in the 90 day limit I found that the total cruise days / portion is added to your limit.  Therefore all 7 days of your Norway cruise is counted against you Schengen limit.  

Some countries are more restrictive than others in counting but I wouldn't mess around w customs officials.

 

Everything is tech driven today - stamp or no stamp all they have to do is look in a computer to see where you've travelled.

[RICHARD@SEA]

PS

 

In this day & age if your TA doesn't know the ins & outs of Schengen, find a TA that is more knowledgeable.  So much for the TRAVEL "Professional"

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

1 hour ago, RICHARD@SEA said:

I looked into this recently as I am planning an extended stay in Europe - land & cruise ...staying in the 90 day limit I found that the total cruise days / portion is added to your limit.  Therefore all 7 days of your Norway cruise is counted against you Schengen limit.  

Some countries are more restrictive than others in counting but I wouldn't mess around w customs officials.

 

Everything is tech driven today - stamp or no stamp all they have to do is look in a computer to see where you've travelled.

 

 

What was your source, please?  I ask because this contradicts the answers that I received last year when researching.  The collective hive mind either here or on Reddit (I forget) said that the days before Norway or first EU port didn't count but that the days after until first non EU port did.

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

2 hours ago, Mark_T said:

I'm not sure there is a definitive clear answer as it is really determined by the stamps in your passport, if any...

 

If your passport is stamped in and out of the Schengen zone that determines the count of the days, but most cruises like your do not actually get the passports stamped, and in that case it is theoretically the entire length of the cruise that counts...

 

Keep in mind it is 90 days out of a rolling 180 days, not sure if that helps you at all...

 

UK no longer stamps US passports at all.  I begged an officer last year because I was on the edge of 90 days and wanted no questions ask upon re-entry to EU and they would not do it. 

 

I should clarify that I was concerned because one is never actually stamped in and out of EU on most cruises.  

Edited July 17, 2023 by Steeler Nation At Sea

[RICHARD@SEA]

4 minutes ago, Steeler Nation At Sea said:

 

 

What was your source, please?  I ask because this contradicts the answers that I received last year when researching.  The collective hive mind either here or on Reddit (I forget) said that the days before Norway or first EU port didn't count but that the days after until first non EU port did.

I asked the US Embassy in NY - I rarely trust info on these boards as few are experts on these important matters.... reviews / opinions are one thing....law is another.

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

20 minutes ago, RICHARD@SEA said:

I asked the US Embassy in NY - I rarely trust info on these boards as few are experts on these important matters.... reviews / opinions are one thing....law is another.

If you still have a copy of the email, I'd love to see that and file it with my notes for future reference.  Thanks so much.

 

Collectively, the info obtained here and elsewhere can be quite accurate once you sort fact and toss opinion. Certainly more accurate than many call centers provide!

 

 

 

Edited July 17, 2023 by Steeler Nation At Sea

[Mark_T]

53 minutes ago, Steeler Nation At Sea said:

 

UK no longer stamps US passports at all.  I begged an officer last year because I was on the edge of 90 days and wanted no questions ask upon re-entry to EU and they would not do it. 

 

I should clarify that I was concerned because one is never actually stamped in and out of EU on most cruises.  

The UK isn't part of the Schengen group, so UK stamps are not that helpful for EU travel anyway unfortunately.

 

As mentioned above though, you can be sure that the details of any cruise that visited a Schengen country will have been recorded.

 

So that just means that every time you do get a Schengen entry stamp you really do need to make sure you get an exit stamp as well, or things can get messy unless you are leaving on a cruise...

Edited July 17, 2023 by Mark_T

[KforKitty]

If it helps, on our recent NCL Norway cruise which departed Southampton, the Immigration Service came on board and checked and stamped all passports of cruisers who were leaving at Tromso, the end of the cruise (so not returning to UK).  The entry stamps was not back-dated to the beginning of the cruise, or even first entry into Norway, but the actual date of presentation.  Therefore I have an entry stamp and an exit stamp only 5 days apart on a 12 day cruise.

 

However as your cruise starts and end in the UK this may not be required.

 

Catherine

[Lelly0109]

Thanks for all the replies... Still a bit of a mixed bunch! 😂 I should have said I'm a UK resident on a UK passport. I'm so close to my limits next year that think I need to find an official source.... Just not completely sure where to try first... 

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

1 hour ago, Mark_T said:

The UK isn't part of the Schengen group, so UK stamps are not that helpful for EU travel anyway unfortunately.

 

As mentioned above though, you can be sure that the details of any cruise that visited a Schengen country will have been recorded.

 

So that just means that every time you do get a Schengen entry stamp you really do need to make sure you get an exit stamp as well, or things can get messy unless you are leaving on a cruise...

You're misunderstanding or I wasn't very clear.  I didn't get stamped leaving EU on a cruise to the UK.  I wanted a UK entry stamp to prove I had left Schengen zone for my next return as I was cutting it close. The UK officer to whom I was required to present my passport explained they don't stamp US passports, yet they were stamping others.   It didn't end up mattering as no one questioned it upon reentry or final exit.

Edited July 17, 2023 by Steeler Nation At Sea

[Mark_T]

1 minute ago, Steeler Nation At Sea said:

You're misunderstanding.  I didn't get stamped leaving EU on a cruise.  I wanted a UK entry stamp to prove I had left for my next return.

I assume you didn't have a problem upon your return though?

 

As long as you are leaving on a cruise it should all be correctly recorded, but I can understand why you would want a backstop with a UK stamp.

 

The more risky situation occurs where you are using one of the many small European airports, where they are still not really set up to properly deal with a mixture of Schengen and non-Schengen residents exiting the country, my wife almost missed her exit stamp in Sicily that way...

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

3 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

I assume you didn't have a problem upon your return though?

 

As long as you are leaving on a cruise it should all be correctly recorded, but I can understand why you would want a backstop with a UK stamp.

 

The more risky situation occurs where you are using one of the many small European airports, where they are still not really set up to properly deal with a mixture of Schengen and non-Schengen residents exiting the country, my wife almost missed her exit stamp in Sicily that way...

 

Yes, all was fine in the end and I edited my post to say that.

 

I've definitely missed stamps in the past and have only become more attuned to the hazards of that since Brexit and reading some of the stories about Brits denied entry for stamp problems. Plus, I only retired a year ago so never really came close to 90 days to have to worry about it before. 

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

6 hours ago, RICHARD@SEA said:

PS

 

In this day & age if your TA doesn't know the ins & outs of Schengen, find a TA that is more knowledgeable.  So much for the TRAVEL "Professional"

I've met fellow  American cruisers who were in Europe for extended stays and tours before and after multiple cruises in a 6 month period who were completely unaware.  Was concerned for them, but, once informed they counted and were okay, they said.

Edited July 17, 2023 by Steeler Nation At Sea

[Lelly0109]

Just for information, I contacted MSC directly via Facebook messenger and their response was

'you will have to count from your first docking in Norway...' 

[Steeler Nation At Sea]

4 hours ago, Lelly0109 said:

Just for information, I contacted MSC directly via Facebook messenger and their response was

'you will have to count from your first docking in Norway...' 

 

This is how I've understood it to work, not from the entire cruise departure date as reported earlier in this thread.  And all your days at sea after Norway count until you dock in UK again.

 

Being only 2 days difference in your case, I hope you're able to just count from Southhampton for assurance.

Edited August 11, 2023 by Steeler Nation At Sea