Your specific data protection rights deriving from the Schengen acquis
The Schengen Area is an area without internal borders, within which EU citizens and many non-EU nationals staying legally in the EU can freely circulate without being subjected to border checks. Since 1985, it has gradually grown and encompasses almost all EU Member States and a few associated non-EU countries. Those States are known as the Schengen countries.
While having abolished their internal borders, Schengen countries have tightened controls at their common external border on the basis of common rules to ensure the security of those living or travelling within the Schengen Area. This common set of rules is applicable to all Schengen countries and is also known as the Schengen acquis. The cooperation amongst Schengen countries is supported by a number of information-sharing mechanisms, also known as EU large-scale IT systems.
These EU-large scale IT systems contain a vast amount of personal data of non-EU nationals as well as EU citizens. In order to adequately protect the personal data in these systems, the Schengen acquis foresees a number of specific rules on the protection of personal data. Details regarding the specifics on data protection can be found on the pages of the specific systems:
- The Visa Information System (VIS) allows Schengen countries to exchange visa data, in particular data on decisions relating to short-stay visa applications.
- The Schengen Information System (SIS) allows Schengen countries to exchange data on suspected criminals, on people who may not have the right to enter into or stay in the EU, on missing persons and on stolen, misappropriated or lost property.
- Eurodac facilitates the application of the Dublin III Regulation EU 604/2013 setting out the process to determine the Member State responsible for examining an application for asylum by providing the means to compare fingerprints of asylum applicants and irregular migrants.
More information on the Schengen area can be found on the website of the European Commission.