The Netherlands will be enforcing controls on its land borders from December 9th.
The announcement was made on Monday by the Migration Ministry, headed by Minister Marjolein Faber from the far-right PVV party. The border checks will be happening along the country’s borders with Belgium and Germany – both of which are in the EU’s Schengen border-free zone. In October, Prime Minister Dick Schoof had already confirmed these plans and said they will be carried out by the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee, the police branch of the army. The controls will be similar to the spot-checks that are already in place in Germany.
The border controls are part of the plan to limit irregular migration, imposed by the right-wing coalition led by anti-Muslim nationalist Geert Wilders and his party the PVV. However, many parties, such as D66 and Volt are critical of the plans, as they believe it contradicts the EU agreements on open borders.
The border checks may increase travel delays. You can learn more about why and how these border controls will operate here.
