The Schengen 90/180 rule for Canadian citizens

The basics for Canadians

• Short stays only: tourism, family visits, business meetings. Working or studying for longer needs a visa or permit from the country concerned.
• Passport: issued within the last 10 years and valid at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave (Schengen Borders Code, Article 6).
• EES: fingerprints and photo on your first entry since the system started; after that your days are counted automatically.
• ETIAS: no start date yet, nothing to apply for.

Snowbirds and long trips

Canadians who winter in southern Europe face the same limit as everyone else: 90 days, then the old days must drop out of the window before you come back. Plan the whole season in the calculator, including your spring and autumn trips, before booking flights.

The Government of Canada's travel advice pages give the entry requirements per country; check the page for each country you visit.

How to count your days

On every day you are in the Schengen area, count the days you spent there in that day and the 179 days before it. The total must never go above 90. Entry and exit days both count, and days in all 29 countries are added together. The 90180.app calculator does this for every day of every trip, including trips you are only planning, and tells you your latest exit date.

Before you travel, you can confirm with the EU's official EES tool, which uses your border record. It does not include stays that began before 10 April 2026.