Dutch vacationers, who plan to travel to their destinations by car, may be subjected to border checks in Germany and other countries, the Dagblad van het Noorden reports. Germany has put the measure in place in an attempt to reduce illegal migration and arms smuggling due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. A number of other European countries, including Austria, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, have, similarly, strengthened border control despite being members of the Schengen passport-free zone.
Normally, people and goods move freely inside the zone, without border checks. However, under Schengen rules, any one of the 26 states that are part of the zone can strengthen border control for security or public health reasons as they deem necessary.
Non Schengen compliant border control at Frankfurt (Oder) https://t.co/woBlDvi3u9
— Jon Worth (@jonworth) June 24, 2022
Currently, Austria conducts checks at border crossings with Hungary and Slovakia; Denmark – at the ferry terminals linking it with Germany and Sweden (and possibly elsewhere); Germany at the border with Austria; Norway at all ferry terminals. Sweden, which says it is facing “serious threat to public order and internal security,” has reintroduced border controls at airports, road crossings with other countries, and other entry points.
The European Court of Justice handed down a ruling last month that could force countries to justify why they are reintroducing the border measures. Under the current regulations, it said, border controls “cannot exceed a maximum total duration of six months.”
