EU justice and interior ministers have agreed on Romania and Bulgaria's fully joining Europe's Schengen visa-free travel area from January 1.
The decision, announced on December 12 by the European Council, comes nearly 18 years after the two southeast European countries became members of the bloc and 15 years since they fulfilled the technical criteria for entering the Schengen Area.
"It is a historic moment to finally welcome Bulgaria and Romania," said Hungarian Interior Minister Sandor Pinter, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the move in a message on X.
"Fully in Schengen -- where you belong," von der Leyen wrote.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola congratulated the two countries, saying they had "worked hard and long" to achieve membership.
"It’s done. It’s decided. It’s deserved. Romania & Bulgaria will fully join Schengen on 1 January 2025," Metsola wrote on X. "A stronger Schengen signifies a safer & more united Europe."
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis hailed the decision, which he said "had been expected for too long" by Romanians and Bulgarians.
"I have good news today," Iohannis said in a video message on December 12.
"We can finally enjoy a well-deserved right obtained in a legitimate way," Iohannis said.
He also took a swipe at Romania's Moscow-friendly far-right parties that had made substantial gains in the December 1 parliamentary polls, saying that "those who blame the European Union for their discontent do not want the best for Romania."
Romanian Justice Minister Catalin Predoiu told journalists that for the first six months, random checks would still be performed based on risk assessment.
The agreement also foresees the joint deployment of border guards to the Bulgarian-Turkish border.
The move comes after Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner earlier this week announced that Vienna was finally dropping its opposition to the two countries' joining the 29-member zone, which encompasses more than 450 million people and covers 4,6 million square kilometers.
Romania and Bulgaria were partially admitted into Schengen on March 31, when air and sea border controls were dropped, but Vienna continued its veto on the two countries' being allowed to scrap land-border checks over fears that more illegal migrants could reach Austria.
Your browser doesn’t support HTML5
'Historic Moment:' Romanians, Bulgarians Hail Eased Schengen Travel
Karner said on December 9 that Vienna's decision to lift its veto was based on a significant drop of migrant arrivals in Austria via Bulgaria and Romania.
Romania and Bulgaria's fully joining Schengen comes after Croatia became the most recent member in January 2023.
Despite Bucharest and Sofia's meeting the technical criteria for membership since 2010, their admission into Schengen was opposed constantly by Austria and the Netherlands, but the latter eventually dropped its veto, leaving only Vienna in opposition.
Both Romania and Bulgaria constantly argued that the decision to keep them on the outside was purely political.
Eliminating border controls is expected to further boost the two countries' economies as trucks won't have to wait for days in kilometers-long lines at the border, which substantially increased the cost of transported goods.
The measure has also long been anticipated by the diasporas of both countries, whose members have been spending long hours at the border during the summer and winter holiday seasons.
With Romania and Bulgaria's full accession, 25 of the 27 EU countries will be full Schengen members. Two EU countries -- Cyprus and Ireland are not members.
Non-EU members Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland have also joined the free-travel agreement, which was initially signed in June 1985 in the small Luxembourg village of Schengen by five countries -- Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.
In recent years, several countries, including Germany, reintroduced random border checks with neighboring EU countries intended to fight illegal migration and people smuggling.