Barely hours after cancelling dozens of flights, Brussels Airport escalated its response by activating its internal ‘Code Snow’ protocol—an all-agency playbook designed for sub-zero operations. Federal Police installed mobile passport booths at remote stands after warning that biometric e-gates often malfunction in freezing temperatures. Twelve additional snow-plough teams were placed on standby airside, but for mobility planners the immediate headache moved inside the terminal. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
Airlines were instructed to add 30–45 minutes of de-icing to every turnaround. That margin pushes tight intra-Schengen connections into danger zones where passengers can drift into the wrong immigration channel. A misplaced queue can invalidate boarding passes and trigger full passport checks, potentially upsetting the 90/180-day calculation for frequent business travellers. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
Multinational employers have been urged to brief staff transiting Brussels this week: allow extra connection time, double-check gate signage and know how to count Schengen days. Travel-risk platforms are already updating Brussels’ published minimum-connection-time tables, and some corporate booking tools now flag “manual passport control possible” for flights departing remote stands. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
![‘Code Snow’ adds mobile passport booths and longer queues at Brussels Airport]()
If you are unsure how the extra stop at passport control might affect your Schengen allowance or transit visa needs, VisaHQ’s Belgium portal can calculate remaining days and fast-track any required documentation—handy when winter disruptions force last-minute itinerary changes. Explore their tools and expert support at https://www.visahq.com/belgium/.
Police unions settled their 2025 dispute over the deployment of Article 9 of the Schengen Borders Code, but today’s rapid deployment of mobile booths shows that resources can still be redeployed with little notice. Travel managers should therefore expect spot ID sweeps on flights carrying large numbers of third-country nationals in the coming days. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
If the mobile passport infrastructure performs well, airport authorities may make it a permanent feature of their winter-operations toolkit—forcing global mobility teams to revise connection policies and update employee communications annually. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
Airlines were instructed to add 30–45 minutes of de-icing to every turnaround. That margin pushes tight intra-Schengen connections into danger zones where passengers can drift into the wrong immigration channel. A misplaced queue can invalidate boarding passes and trigger full passport checks, potentially upsetting the 90/180-day calculation for frequent business travellers. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
Multinational employers have been urged to brief staff transiting Brussels this week: allow extra connection time, double-check gate signage and know how to count Schengen days. Travel-risk platforms are already updating Brussels’ published minimum-connection-time tables, and some corporate booking tools now flag “manual passport control possible” for flights departing remote stands. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
If you are unsure how the extra stop at passport control might affect your Schengen allowance or transit visa needs, VisaHQ’s Belgium portal can calculate remaining days and fast-track any required documentation—handy when winter disruptions force last-minute itinerary changes. Explore their tools and expert support at https://www.visahq.com/belgium/.
Police unions settled their 2025 dispute over the deployment of Article 9 of the Schengen Borders Code, but today’s rapid deployment of mobile booths shows that resources can still be redeployed with little notice. Travel managers should therefore expect spot ID sweeps on flights carrying large numbers of third-country nationals in the coming days. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
If the mobile passport infrastructure performs well, airport authorities may make it a permanent feature of their winter-operations toolkit—forcing global mobility teams to revise connection policies and update employee communications annually. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/be/code-snow-introduces-mobile-passport-booths-and-longer-queues-at-brussels-airport/))
