brendawatson

We are heading to Europe from the US for a +90 day extended vacation but do not have tourist visas. Our plan is to fly from France to the UK before having been in France for 90 days, get a UK passport stamp, stay for a few days and then head back to France where we won't stay longer than 90 days on the return. Should we be OK when we try to leave France since we won't have been there for longer than 90 days since arriving from the UK? Thanks in advance for advice/comments.

Cowboy1968

Once you enter the Schengen zone for the first time, two clocks start running.
Clock 1 is counting 180 days continously.
Clock 2 counts the days you spend in the Schengen zone, and which must not exceed 90 days in that 180 day period.
Leaving the Schengen zone for a few days does not stop clock 1 from counting.

The possibility to stay 90 days without a visa actually means that within a 180 day period you can stay 90 days.

Examples:
France 70 days, UK 5 Days, France again 5 days = OK
France 80 days, UK 5 days, France again 10 days = NOT OK
France 90 days, UK 90 days, France again 90 days = OK

Once you wish to stay longer than 90 days in a Schengen agreement member state, the regulations of the respective member state come into effect. So you should inquire at the French embassy about your options.

janisj

The short answer: There isn't a 'work around'. The Schengen 90-day clock doesn't re-set when you leave and go to the UK.

So I'd plan on 90 days <u>total</u> in France/Schengen . . .

yiassas

This has been covered many times, there is no way to 'cheat' the system & the penalties can be harsh (varies country to country).
The only way to spend more than 90 days in France is to leave France for 90 days for the UK (or any other non-Schengen country)

norween

<<<The only way to spend more than 90 days in France is to leave France for 90 days for the UK (or any other non-Schengen country)>>>

Or to get a long term visa for France