Who it applies to
Travelers from visa-exempt countries visiting the Schengen area for tourism, business, or family visits without a long-stay national visa or residence permit. It does not apply to people who hold a valid Schengen long-stay visa or residence permit in a member state, since their stay is governed by that permit instead.
How the days are counted
For any date you want to check, look back exactly 180 days (including that date) and add up every day you were physically present in the Schengen area during that window. The total must never exceed 90.
- Both the day of entry and the day of exit count as full days in the Schengen area.
- The 180-day window is rolling: it moves forward one day at a time, it is not reset on 1 January or on any fixed date.
- Days spent in different Schengen countries during separate trips all count toward the same 90-day total — the limit applies to the Schengen area as a whole, not per country.
- Compliance has to be checked for every day of a stay, not only on the day you enter or leave, since an earlier trip can still count against a later one if it falls inside the same 180-day window.
Worked example
Suppose you spent 30 days in France in January, another 30 days in Spain in March, and then plan a 31-day trip to Italy in May. If all three trips fall within the same rolling 180-day window ending on your last day in Italy, that's 30 + 30 + 31 = 91 days — one day over the limit. You would need to shorten the May trip by at least one day, or delay it, to stay compliant.
Common questions
Does the 90 days reset every year?
No. There is no fixed annual reset. Because the 180-day window is rolling, your allowance recalculates every single day based on the trailing 180 days, so a trip from last year can still affect how many days you have left today if it falls within the current window.
Do I need to count days in every Schengen country separately?
No. The 90/180 limit applies across the whole Schengen area combined, not per country. A day spent in Germany and a day spent in Portugal both count toward the same shared total.
Does a short trip home reset the count?
No. Leaving the Schengen area does not remove days you already spent there from the rolling window — those days still count until they fall outside the trailing 180-day period.
What happens if I overstay?
Overstaying the 90/180 limit can result in fines, deportation, an entry ban on future travel to the Schengen area, or complications with future visa applications. This tool is meant to help you plan ahead of time, not as legal advice for an overstay that has already happened.