The Schengen 90/180 rule, with three worked examples (and the math)

US, UK, Canadian, and most other visa-exempt passport holders can stay in the Schengen Area for up to 90 days within any rolling 180-day period. The word that trips everyone up is rolling. Your allowance isn't recalculated on January 1, and it doesn't reset when you fly home.

The math, in one sentence

On any day you enter Schengen, the border officer subtracts 180 days from today and counts how many of those days you spent inside Schengen. If that number is 90+, you're refused entry.

Example 1: A simple two-week trip

You fly to Paris on June 1 and home on June 15. 15 days against your 90 (arrival and departure days both count, even partial). You can return for another 75 days within the next 180.

Example 2: The multi-country misstep

Trip 1: 60 days in France (Jan 1 – Mar 1).
Trip 2: You want 30 days in Italy starting April 1. Look back 180 days from April 1 — to October 4 of the previous year. All 60 France days still count. You have 30 left, so April 1 – April 30 works exactly.
Trip 3: You want 14 days starting June 1. Look back to December 4 — catches 57 of your France days plus all 30 Italy days = 87 used. You can only stay 3 days. Wait until July 1. By then, the early France days drop out of the 180-day window and you regain capacity.

Example 3: The digital-nomad mistake

Sarah does 3 weeks in Lisbon, 3 weeks in Barcelona, 3 weeks in Berlin, then flies to Tbilisi for a month, then comes back for "a couple weeks in Italy". She's used 63 days in Schengen, then 30 days in Georgia (which is non-Schengen — they don't count). On her Italy entry, the look-back covers her entire trip — she has 27 days left, not 90. The Georgia trip gave her a break, but it didn't reset anything.

What countries count?

All 29 Schengen countries. Notably this includes Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein (in Schengen but not EU), and the recent additions Bulgaria, Romania, and Croatia. It does not include Ireland, Cyprus, the UK, the Balkans (Albania, Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia), Turkey, or any country outside Europe.

Use a calculator

The math is doable but error-prone. Use the EU's official Schengen calculator at ec.europa.eu, or our free planning calculator which also shows you the earliest re-entry date.

Want to stay longer?

You need a national-level long-stay (D) visa from a specific country — Spain's Non-Lucrative Visa, France's Long Séjour, Portugal's D7. Apply from inside the US, before you go. Each has income, insurance, and sometimes language requirements. Once you hold a D visa, the 90/180 rule doesn't apply to that country (but still applies to other Schengen countries you visit).