Germany’s Interior Ministry has notified Brussels that it will prolong temporary controls at all land borders — including the 370-km frontier with Switzerland — for another six months from mid-March. Speaking at the federal government’s press briefing on 16 February, ministry spokesman Maximilian Kaminski said the measure remains ‘an integral part’ of efforts to achieve a “migration turnaround” and will stay in place until a fully functioning EU external-border regime is in force.(bundesregierung.de)
Although random rather than systematic, the checks have already lengthened morning commutes for some of the 70 000 Swiss-based cross-border workers employed in Baden-Württemberg. The regional chamber of commerce estimates that a 10-minute delay per trip costs CHF 1.2 million in lost productivity every month. Logistics firms moving just-in-time components to Basel’s pharma cluster complain of missed delivery slots and higher overtime costs.
![Berlin Confirms Six-Month Extension of Border Checks — Commuter Headaches for Switzerland Continue]()
For travellers who now find themselves juggling additional documentation requirements or last-minute itinerary changes, specialised support can be invaluable. VisaHQ’s Swiss portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) offers up-to-date guidance on Schengen entry rules, application checklists and expedited courier options, helping both commuters and corporate mobility teams navigate the evolving border regime with less stress.
Swiss officials declined to criticise the decision publicly, but the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) reiterated that the re-introduced Schengen internal-border checks must stay ‘proportionate and limited in time’. Bern fears that extended controls could revive protectionist calls inside Switzerland to re-evaluate its own adherence to Schengen rules.
Global-mobility teams should alert employees with German work assignments to plan additional buffer time and carry both passports and Swiss residence cards, which German police increasingly request as proof of lawful status. Companies using shuttle buses may also need to revisit timetables to comply with daily and weekly rest-time rules for drivers.(bundesregierung.de)
Although random rather than systematic, the checks have already lengthened morning commutes for some of the 70 000 Swiss-based cross-border workers employed in Baden-Württemberg. The regional chamber of commerce estimates that a 10-minute delay per trip costs CHF 1.2 million in lost productivity every month. Logistics firms moving just-in-time components to Basel’s pharma cluster complain of missed delivery slots and higher overtime costs.
For travellers who now find themselves juggling additional documentation requirements or last-minute itinerary changes, specialised support can be invaluable. VisaHQ’s Swiss portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) offers up-to-date guidance on Schengen entry rules, application checklists and expedited courier options, helping both commuters and corporate mobility teams navigate the evolving border regime with less stress.
Swiss officials declined to criticise the decision publicly, but the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) reiterated that the re-introduced Schengen internal-border checks must stay ‘proportionate and limited in time’. Bern fears that extended controls could revive protectionist calls inside Switzerland to re-evaluate its own adherence to Schengen rules.
Global-mobility teams should alert employees with German work assignments to plan additional buffer time and carry both passports and Swiss residence cards, which German police increasingly request as proof of lawful status. Companies using shuttle buses may also need to revisit timetables to comply with daily and weekly rest-time rules for drivers.(bundesregierung.de)
