Netherlands begins internal border controls with Germany and Belgium.
Today, the Netherlands begins internal border controls with Germany and Belgium.Internal land border controls between the Netherlands and its two Schengen neighbors, Belgium and Germany, will take effect today, December 9, 2024.
For six months, the Netherlands’ borders with Belgium and Germany will continue to be controlled. However, there won’t be any significant changes for those crossing the border during this time because Schengen will only be subject to routine checks on random cars. news articles.
When the decision to implement internal border checks was made back in November, Dutch Migration Minister Marjolein Faber stated that the goal of the measure was to combat irregular migration.
The Minister added that the Netherlands hopes to stop people smuggling in a “concrete way” by implementing border controls.
However, some have voiced doubts about the effect of this measure, given that the government has not expanded the capabilities of border police.
The majority of the Netherlands’ borders with Belgium and Germany will be unguarded.
Over 800 border crossings exist between the Netherlands and Germany and Belgium. The Dutch authorities are unable to place more officers at each of these crossings due to the sheer volume of people.
Another 50 officers have been assigned to border crossings, according to Marvel, the Marechaussee’s trade union. This implies that even with checks in place, the majority of border crossings between the Netherlands and its two Schengen neighbors will not be manned.
According to NL Times, the Marechaussee will keep using mobile checkpoints to randomly inspect passengers in cars. This implies that neither boom gates nor traffic stops will be used.
It has been suggested that travelers bring their travel documents with them to ensure that they do not experience any difficulties when crossing the border.
The German border police stated that they plan to cooperate with their counterparts to assist the Dutch officer in expediting the procedure at border crossings.
The German police claimed that by cooperating, they would be able to expedite returns and improve the likelihood of stopping people who don’t follow the entry requirements from entering.
In addition to the aforementioned, the German police stated that bilateral cooperation with the Dutch counterpart could also be expanded to non-stationary controls, contingent on the degree of flexibility in terms of time and location.
