Eurostar passengers hoping to travel through to Amsterdam or Rotterdam on 6–7 January were told to re-route after the high-speed operator cut its Netherlands leg because of packed snow and iced-over points north of Antwerp. Trains from London and Paris are running only as far as Brussels-South (Midi), effectively turning the Belgian capital into an impromptu transfer hub.
Eurostar’s disruption page lists multiple cancellations, including services 9044 and 9051, and advises customers “not to come to the station” unless their train is confirmed. Passengers may re-book within 60 days or claim a refund; holders of non-flex tickets receive e-vouchers. NMBS/SNCB and Thalys are honouring Eurostar tickets between Brussels and Paris, but Dutch operator NS has suspended most intercity services beyond Breda.
For corporates the fallout is immediate: sales teams linking UK, Belgian and Dutch offices face missed meetings, and relocations timed to coincide with the post-holiday lull are on hold. Employers must remember that days spent unexpectedly in Belgium count towards the Schengen 90/180 limit for third-country nationals. HR teams should therefore log extra stay days and adjust future travel calendars to avoid an over-stay.
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During disruptions like these, services such as VisaHQ can simplify the compliance puzzle. Their Brussels-focused portal (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) lets travellers and HR teams check real-time visa requirements, track Schengen-day balances and order supporting documents, giving companies an audit trail if border officials query overstays. Having a single dashboard for the UK, Belgium and onward Dutch legs can prevent last-minute scrambles when weather forces unexpected layovers.
Immigration advisers add that Eurostar’s partial shutdown exposes a blind spot in many compliance programmes: travellers often cross the UK-Schengen border with no entry stamp. Companies should keep boarding-pass archives to prove time spent outside Schengen when calculating allowances. Eurostar says normal service will resume “as soon as conditions permit,” but weather models show sub-zero nights in the Netherlands until at least 9 January.
Longer-term, experts argue that the incident strengthens the case for de-icing facilities at Amsterdam Centraal before Eurostar’s planned frequency expansion in 2028. Belgian rail officials, meanwhile, praised Brussels-South staff for handling the 40 percent passenger surge without major congestion.
Eurostar’s disruption page lists multiple cancellations, including services 9044 and 9051, and advises customers “not to come to the station” unless their train is confirmed. Passengers may re-book within 60 days or claim a refund; holders of non-flex tickets receive e-vouchers. NMBS/SNCB and Thalys are honouring Eurostar tickets between Brussels and Paris, but Dutch operator NS has suspended most intercity services beyond Breda.
For corporates the fallout is immediate: sales teams linking UK, Belgian and Dutch offices face missed meetings, and relocations timed to coincide with the post-holiday lull are on hold. Employers must remember that days spent unexpectedly in Belgium count towards the Schengen 90/180 limit for third-country nationals. HR teams should therefore log extra stay days and adjust future travel calendars to avoid an over-stay.
During disruptions like these, services such as VisaHQ can simplify the compliance puzzle. Their Brussels-focused portal (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) lets travellers and HR teams check real-time visa requirements, track Schengen-day balances and order supporting documents, giving companies an audit trail if border officials query overstays. Having a single dashboard for the UK, Belgium and onward Dutch legs can prevent last-minute scrambles when weather forces unexpected layovers.
Immigration advisers add that Eurostar’s partial shutdown exposes a blind spot in many compliance programmes: travellers often cross the UK-Schengen border with no entry stamp. Companies should keep boarding-pass archives to prove time spent outside Schengen when calculating allowances. Eurostar says normal service will resume “as soon as conditions permit,” but weather models show sub-zero nights in the Netherlands until at least 9 January.
Longer-term, experts argue that the incident strengthens the case for de-icing facilities at Amsterdam Centraal before Eurostar’s planned frequency expansion in 2028. Belgian rail officials, meanwhile, praised Brussels-South staff for handling the 40 percent passenger surge without major congestion.
