Poland extends temporary border controls with Germany and Lithuania until 4 April 2026

The Polish Ministry of the Interior and Administration (MSWiA) has issued a new regulation formally prolonging the temporary re-introduction of Schengen-internal border checks on Poland’s land frontiers with Germany and Lithuania for a further six-month period, now set to expire on 4 April 2026. The measure, signed by Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński and published at 06:05 on 27 March 2026, is a direct response to continued pressure from organised people-smuggling networks operating along the so-called Baltic–Poland–Western Europe migration corridor. Under the extension, spot checks will continue at selected road crossings and along green-border stretches. According to Border Guard statistics cited in the regulation, almost 25,000 irregular-entry attempts were recorded on the Polish-Belarusian border in the first eight months of 2025, with 478 illegal crossings from Lithuania into Poland and 247 interceptions on the German frontier linked to the same route. Authorities say that closing these internal “back doors” is essential while pressure on the external border with Belarus remains high. For business travellers and corporate mobility managers the decision means that identity and vehicle checks—re-introduced in October 2025—will remain a fact of life when entering or leaving Poland by road or rail via Germany or Lithuania. Although the Schengen Borders Code allows such controls only in exceptional situations, Warsaw argues that the current migratory threat justifies the prolongation. Companies moving goods or personnel across these frontiers should therefore continue to plan for potential delays, ensure that employees carry passports or national ID cards, and build additional buffer time into travel schedules. In practice, controls are being carried out on the German side mainly at Świecko, Olszyna and Kołbaskowo crossings, and on the Lithuanian side at Budzisko and Ogrodniki. They consist of random spot checks rather than systematic stamping, but carriers report wait times ranging from 15 minutes for passenger cars to over an hour for trucks at peak periods.



For corporate mobility teams looking for practical support, VisaHQ can help streamline compliance: the company’s Poland page (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) provides real-time information on document requirements and lets travellers arrange visas or travel authorisations online, reducing the risk of hold-ups when these temporary controls are in force.

HR teams should brief assignees that holding a Polish residence card (karta pobytu) does not exempt them from presenting a valid travel document on request. Looking ahead, the regulation’s six-month horizon suggests that Warsaw intends to keep reviewing the measure every spring and autumn, in line with EU rules that limit internal border checks to renewable half-year blocks. Any easing will depend on developments on the Belarus border and on EU-level negotiations over the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Multinational companies with large intra-EU commuter populations should monitor further MSWiA communiqués and be prepared to adjust duty-of-care policies accordingly.