Everything about The Nordic Passport Union totally explained
The
Nordic Passport Union, created in
1954, and implemented on
May 1,
1958, allows
citizens of the
Nordic countries (
Denmark (
Faroe Islands included since
January 1,
1966;
Greenland not included),
Sweden,
Norway (
Svalbard,
Jan Mayen,
Bouvet Island and
Queen Maud's Land not included),
Finland and
Iceland (since
September 24,
1965)) to cross approved border districts without carrying and having their
passport checked. Other citizens can also travel between the Nordic countries' borders without having their passport checked, but still have to carry a passport or another kind of approved travel identification papers.
Since
1996, these countries have joined the larger
Schengen Agreement area, comprising 30 countries in
Europe.
From
March 25 2001, the Schengen
acquis fully applied to the five countries of the Nordic Passport Union (except for the
Faroe Islands, which remain outside the Schengen area).
Border checkpoints have been removed within the Schengen zone. There are some areas in the Nordic Passport Union that gives extra rights for Nordic citizens, not covered by Schengen, such as less paperwork if moving to a different Nordic country, and fewer requirements for
naturalisation of
citizenship. Within the Nordic area any Nordic ID card, (for example a
driving licence) is valid for Nordic citizens, because of the Nordic Passport Union, while a national
ID card or a passport is required in other Schengen countries. Most Scandinavian people don't own any Schengen approved national ID card, so they need a passport when visiting Schengen countries outside the Nordic area.
Before 2001, the principle was for land and ferry travel that there were full customs check when travelling from Denmark into the other countries. Passport wasn't supposed to be needed for Nordic citizens, but could be useful for those not speaking a Scandinavian language natively. Every car driver was asked about where they've been, and suspicious people were checked further. For land and ferry travel into Denmark and between Sweden/Norway/Finland there were much more relaxed customs and passport checks, often no check at all. For air travel there were full passport and customs check, even though verbally claiming Nordic citizenship with a Scandinavian language, plus showing the ticket for the intra-Nordic flight, or any Nordic ID card was usually enough to pass the passport check. Passengers travelling by public transport such as train or air were usually not interviewed.
From March 2001, the Schengen rules have given more relaxed customs checks from Denmark, and also no passport checks on airport, since intra-Schengen travellers are separated from the travellers from outside the Schengen area.
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