In the early hours of 17 November, Poland officially reopened two strategic road border crossings with Belarus—Kuźnica Białostocka–Bruzgi and Bobrowniki–Berestovitsa—ending more than three years of closure for regular passenger traffic and eight months of complete shutdown for freight. The decision follows a ministerial regulation signed on 14 November and a final security assessment completed over the weekend. At midnight, the first private cars and EU-registered trucks rolled through the lanes, greeted by reinforced Border Guard patrols and upgraded surveillance equipment.
The crossings were originally sealed in 2021 amid a spike in irregular migration that Warsaw blamed on a “hybrid operation” orchestrated by Minsk. Subsequent closures in September 2025, triggered by the Russia-Belarus “Zapad 2025” military exercises and repeated drone incursions into Polish airspace, deepened economic pain for businesses on both sides of the frontier. Local chambers of commerce estimate the shutdown inflated logistics costs by up to 40 percent for hauliers moving goods between the Baltic ports, Finland and Central Europe. Re-routing via Lithuania and Latvia also lengthened delivery times and created bottlenecks at the Polish-German border.
![Poland Reopens Kuźnica and Bobrowniki Border Crossings with Belarus]()
Under the new traffic regime, Kuźnica will initially handle only light passenger vehicles, while Bobrowniki is open to cars, buses and freight trucks registered in the EU, EFTA and Switzerland. Belarus-registered heavy goods vehicles remain barred, reflecting Warsaw’s continued sanctions policy against Minsk. Operating hours have been set at 06:00–22:00 for at least the first week as officials calibrate newly installed thermal-imaging cameras, automated vehicle classifiers and license-plate recognition systems. According to the Interior Ministry, these technologies, combined with a 186-kilometre steel barrier erected in 2022, have maintained “98 percent border integrity.”
For business-travel and corporate mobility managers the reopening is a welcome relief. Manufacturers in Podlaskie province can once again send staff across the border for equipment servicing and quality audits without detouring hundreds of kilometres. EU-origin freight will move faster thanks to a newly created “green channel” that allows pre-cleared trucks to bypass most cargo inspections. Nevertheless, companies are advised to brief travellers on tightened document-checking: Border Guard units have announced random vehicle searches within a 10-kilometre perimeter and require proof of accommodation and insurance from non-Polish nationals.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk stressed that the measure is “driven by local economic interests, not political negotiations with Minsk,” but warned it could be reversed if migration pressure resurfaces. The government is already studying whether to reopen two smaller crossings at Połowce and Szymanki in December. For now, the partial thaw restores a vital artery for trade and mobility in north-eastern Poland and signals cautious confidence in the country’s fortified frontier.
The crossings were originally sealed in 2021 amid a spike in irregular migration that Warsaw blamed on a “hybrid operation” orchestrated by Minsk. Subsequent closures in September 2025, triggered by the Russia-Belarus “Zapad 2025” military exercises and repeated drone incursions into Polish airspace, deepened economic pain for businesses on both sides of the frontier. Local chambers of commerce estimate the shutdown inflated logistics costs by up to 40 percent for hauliers moving goods between the Baltic ports, Finland and Central Europe. Re-routing via Lithuania and Latvia also lengthened delivery times and created bottlenecks at the Polish-German border.
Under the new traffic regime, Kuźnica will initially handle only light passenger vehicles, while Bobrowniki is open to cars, buses and freight trucks registered in the EU, EFTA and Switzerland. Belarus-registered heavy goods vehicles remain barred, reflecting Warsaw’s continued sanctions policy against Minsk. Operating hours have been set at 06:00–22:00 for at least the first week as officials calibrate newly installed thermal-imaging cameras, automated vehicle classifiers and license-plate recognition systems. According to the Interior Ministry, these technologies, combined with a 186-kilometre steel barrier erected in 2022, have maintained “98 percent border integrity.”
For business-travel and corporate mobility managers the reopening is a welcome relief. Manufacturers in Podlaskie province can once again send staff across the border for equipment servicing and quality audits without detouring hundreds of kilometres. EU-origin freight will move faster thanks to a newly created “green channel” that allows pre-cleared trucks to bypass most cargo inspections. Nevertheless, companies are advised to brief travellers on tightened document-checking: Border Guard units have announced random vehicle searches within a 10-kilometre perimeter and require proof of accommodation and insurance from non-Polish nationals.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk stressed that the measure is “driven by local economic interests, not political negotiations with Minsk,” but warned it could be reversed if migration pressure resurfaces. The government is already studying whether to reopen two smaller crossings at Połowce and Szymanki in December. For now, the partial thaw restores a vital artery for trade and mobility in north-eastern Poland and signals cautious confidence in the country’s fortified frontier.
