Poland extends land border checks with Germany and Lithuania through Oct. 1

Border checks extended through Oct. 1

Poland prolonged temporary land border controls with Germany and Lithuania for another six months, with the measures now scheduled to run until Oct. 1, 2026. The Polish Interior Ministry first reintroduced the checks in July 2025, citing irregular migration and people-smuggling routed through Belarus and the Baltic corridor.

The controls operate under Schengen Borders Code provisions covering temporary internal checks during serious threats to public policy. Polish Border Guard officers run spot inspections at roughly 50 checkpoints on the German frontier and 13 on the Lithuanian frontier, including road, rail and river crossings. Major crossings include Świecko, Olszyna and Kołbaskowo on the German side, plus Budzisko and Ogrodniki on the Lithuanian side.

Who gets stopped

Anyone crossing by car, bus, train or on foot can be flagged for a check, regardless of nationality. That includes EU citizens, third-country nationals with Schengen visas, cross-border commuters and freight drivers. Inspections aren't systematic, though, so not every vehicle gets pulled.

Freight traffic has taken the biggest hit, with some crossings reporting waits of an hour or more for trucks. For individual travelers, the practical change is the loss of frictionless Schengen movement at these specific borders, not new visa rules or entry bans.

What to carry and expect

Travelers should budget extra time at peak hours and have documents ready:

• Valid travel document: national ID card or passport for EU/EEA/Swiss citizens; passport plus any required Schengen visa or residence permit for others.
• Vehicle paperwork: registration and insurance if driving a personal car or camper.
• Status proof: residence permit or registration from the main EU country of stay, for expats and nomads based elsewhere in Schengen.

There's no fee for crossing. Long-distance bus and rail operators may build delays into schedules because of Border Guard activity at or near the frontier. Travelers with valid documents who are lawfully in Schengen should be waved through after the check.

The European Commission tracks all member-state notifications of reintroduced internal controls and Poland's repeated six-month extensions follow the renewable pattern allowed under Schengen rules. Germany and several other Schengen states currently run similar internal checks.

Read our full Poland guide for the complete picture or browse more nomad news for related travel alerts.