Long-term EU travel--Schengen and any other advice!

Being married to a citizen of an EU country does make a difference regarding other EU countries, irrespective of whether that country is in Schengen or not - see http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/entry-exit/non-eu-family/ for details.

As he is non resident you would may still need to get a visa for long term visits but the process is much more trivial and automatic, being little more than proving you are married. All the requirements such as showing itineraries etc are no longer needed. In extremis you can do this at the border as the linked info states, although that could waste a lot of time.

If you got a Polish passport then there will be no need for any other applications, although staying over 90 days in any one country is likely to result in local registration etc in that country as for any EU national. You may in that case need to prove you are living on your own funds.

In the countries that are part of the Schengen agreement, you can stay for a total of 90 days out of every 180 days. This map is helpful to see which countries are included. In England you can stay for up to 6 months as a tourist. Ireland is 90 days. Other countries have different limits regarding how long you can stay so you'll need to check each of them. Many people will choose to spend time in countries outside of the Schengen zone such as Croatia, Turkey and places in north Africa to spread out their time. For a 12 month stay you will need to plan how much time you'll spend in each place fairly carefully.
I have no idea about citizenship of Ireland and Poland and the advantages that would give spouses of passport holders - the consulate for each of these countries would be the best place to start.

Of course the Schengen Area rules apply, but if your husband has an Irish passport, and even better if you have an Polish passport as well, that is a different set of rules to those that apply to citizens from outside EU/Schengen.

EU/Schengen citizens (which includes Irish and Polish citizens) have a legal right to visit, stay and work in any EU country for as long as they like. The 90-day rule only applies to non-EU "foreigners". An EU passport (Irish, Polish and many more) will not be stamped on entry to or exit from the EU or the Schengen Area, because there is no time limit to your stay. Immigration are not legally allowed to stop you!

If you do not manage to get your Polish passport, you will still be able to accompany your husband as a dependent of an EU citizen, but expect a bit of paperwork. For the boring set of rules, see here and here.

Sorry Frank II and Anita, you are wrong, the 90-day rule ONLY APPLIES TO NON EU/SCHENGEN CITIZENS. It does not apply to Irish citizens.

Thanks for all responses.
I must say I do like Chris' answer the best and I do hope he is correct! It seems to make sense.
Obtaining a Polish passport via grandparents citizenship is not easy, nor inexpensive. Does anyone know if I would be able to work legally in the EU if my husband has his Irish passport?

Ellen, yes, as a dependent of an EU citizen you can live in any EU country with your husband, and work there. You would both have to register as residents when you arrived, with some extra paperwork for yourself as a "non-EU dependent". The exact paperwork would be different for each country.
You would then get a resident permit for yourself. If this was a Schengen country (not all EU countries are in Schengen), this permit would allow you to visit all other Schengen countries (ignoring the 90-day rule), but not work there.

But, if you get your Polish passport, you are an EU citizen, same as your husband, and you would then have as many rights as he has.

One disadvantage, once you are legally a resident of a country, you have to pay their taxes, including income tax.

Let us not forget that if you and or your husband hold US citizenship and become employed in an EU country, you are responsible for paying taxes to both the EU country and to the IRS in the USA. The US is the only country in the world that requires its citizens to pay US taxes even though they are working in a foreign firm.

I looked into the Polish passport question a few years ago. Where my father was born was, at the time of his birth, a part of Poland. The bottom line was that one had to demonstrate the intention to live in Poland in order to gain citizenship.

... per Rosalyns comment, my understanding was that getting Polish passport could require many months and significant legal fees (in the multiple $1000s)

Thanks everyone for your input!
I'm very grateful my sweet mother in law was born in Ireland...her son's Irish citizenship will come in very handy!

Regarding taxes should that questions come up.

.....requires its citizens to pay US taxes even though they are working in a foreign firm. .....

That is frequently stated but needs a little context. You are not double taxed. Any foreign tax paid on earned income can be taken as a credit against the US tax due. It is a bit complicated. Since the foreign tax is often larger than the US, there is seldom any tax due. Also required to pay SS since you probably would like to draw SS at a later day. Now, you can get around all of that by just giving up your citizenship.

Kimberly said The US is the only country in the world that requires its citizens to pay US taxes even though they are working in a foreign firm.

From the IRS:
If you meet certain requirements, you may qualify for the foreign earned income and foreign housing exclusions and the foreign housing deduction.
If you are a U.S. citizen or a resident alien of the United States and you live abroad, you are taxed on your worldwide income. However, you may qualify to exclude from income up to an amount of your foreign earnings that is adjusted annually for inflation ($91,500 for 2010, $92,900 for 2011, $95,100 for 2012, and $97,600 for 2013). In addition, you can exclude or deduct certain foreign housing amounts.

There are a number of questions you have to consider in qualifying which you can see here on the IRS site. That said, getting a job in Europe is difficult even with a visa.

Chris F - I was speaking to the question from a non-EU perspective because neither one of them currently has a European passport. As things stand those are the rules they will need to travel under unless things change.

The USA is not quite the only country in the world to tax the foreign income of non-resident citizens - the other is Eritrea, although they tax at a special low rate and not the rate for residents.

The USA does however require a tax returned to be filed even to demonstrate no tax liability.

There are also a number of individual states in the US that require you to pay state income tax if you are an expat.

My husband is in the process of obtaining his Irish citizenship (his
Mom was born there). Once he has an Irish passport, will the rules of Schengen still apply to him? To me?

As an Irish citizen he will also be an EU citizen and as such the Schengen agreement is not relevant, he is fully entitled to move freely through out the Union, seek employment, establish a business etc... However unless he decides take up residence in the EU it has no impact on your status.

If Hubby has Irish passport, will me having Polish have any real benefits?

Yes because without it your status remains the same. If you hold a Polish passport, then you would also be an EU citizen with the same status as an Irish citizen

Does anyone know if I would be able to work legally in the EU if my husband has his Irish passport?

No your husband's status as an EU citizen does not entitle you to work in the EU. If your husband was to take up permanent residence in the EU, he could then apply for a family reunification visa, which if granted would then entitle you to seek work in the EU. If however you held a Polish passport, then you be free to do as you wish as well.

One thing you should keep in mind though is that in taking up an EU passport, you effectively give up your American citizenship while in Europe and as a result you would not for example be entitled to seek US consular services nor would they be granted access to you should you encounter legal difficulties.