The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGS) reported bumper-to-bumper queues at several checkpoints leading into Poland on 27 May, with some 170 cars waiting at Shehyni–Medyka and 50 at Krakivets–Korczowa. Officials advised travellers to divert to less-used crossings such as Nyzhankovychi or Ugryniv and to anticipate waits of up to eight hours.
![Long vehicle queues at Polish–Ukrainian border as holiday traffic peaks]()
For travellers who prefer to have all documentation iron-clad before they reach the checkpoint, VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) can streamline visa, work-permit and invitation-letter formalities online. The service provides up-to-date requirements, digital application guides and courier pickup, reducing the risk of last-minute paperwork issues that can add precious minutes to EES processing.
The congestion coincided with Ascension Day holidays in parts of Europe and a surge in seasonal labour travel. Polish customs sources blamed the bottlenecks on the new digital Entry/Exit System (EES), which lengthens first-time biometric enrolment for third-country nationals by several minutes per vehicle. Logistics operators moving time-sensitive cargo from Ukraine to EU markets face knock-on effects, including missed ferry slots at Gdańsk and Gdynia. Several transport associations have renewed calls for a freight-only lane at Shehyni and extended opening hours at rail-freight terminals to absorb overflow. Companies relocating Ukrainian staff to Poland should schedule arrivals outside evening peaks and ensure that travellers carry printed accommodation confirmations, which Polish border officers have started requesting to speed up data entry into EES.
For travellers who prefer to have all documentation iron-clad before they reach the checkpoint, VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) can streamline visa, work-permit and invitation-letter formalities online. The service provides up-to-date requirements, digital application guides and courier pickup, reducing the risk of last-minute paperwork issues that can add precious minutes to EES processing.
The congestion coincided with Ascension Day holidays in parts of Europe and a surge in seasonal labour travel. Polish customs sources blamed the bottlenecks on the new digital Entry/Exit System (EES), which lengthens first-time biometric enrolment for third-country nationals by several minutes per vehicle. Logistics operators moving time-sensitive cargo from Ukraine to EU markets face knock-on effects, including missed ferry slots at Gdańsk and Gdynia. Several transport associations have renewed calls for a freight-only lane at Shehyni and extended opening hours at rail-freight terminals to absorb overflow. Companies relocating Ukrainian staff to Poland should schedule arrivals outside evening peaks and ensure that travellers carry printed accommodation confirmations, which Polish border officers have started requesting to speed up data entry into EES.
