The rule comes from Article 6 of the Schengen Borders Code. It allows stays of no more than 90 days in any 180-day period, looking back over the 180 days before each day of the stay. British citizens can visit without a visa on that basis as tourists, to see family or friends, for business meetings or for short-term study.

How the days are counted

• Days in all 29 Schengen countries count together, however many countries a traveller visits.

• The day of entry counts as the first day of the stay and the day of exit as the last.

• GOV.UK’s method is to take the date of leaving on the next trip, count back 180 days, add the days already spent in the Schengen area in that window and then add the days of the coming trip. The total must not be more than 90.

• Time spent under a residence permit or long-stay visa does not count.

• Cyprus is not in the Schengen area and counts its own 90 days separately. The rules do not apply to Ireland.

• The FCDO says that since 15 July 2026, when the UK-EU agreement on Gibraltar began to apply provisionally, time spent in Gibraltar counts alongside time in the Schengen area.

Why it matters for travel businesses

Since 10 April 2026 the Entry/Exit System has worked out the days each traveller has left and flagged overstays. The EU’s online tool lets travellers check their remaining days. The EU says the tool does not count stays that began before 10 April 2026. Overstaying can lead to removal, fines or a ban on returning, depending on national rules. The rule applies to each traveller individually, so check the official source for each trip. Our guide to EES, ETIAS and the UK ETA has more.