New France-Germany border checks to begin from next week

Germany is to begin checks on people entering the country at a number of land border crossings including those with France from next week. 

It is part of wider plans to tackle illegal and irregular immigration into the country, said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser.

The checks will start from September 16 at border crossings with France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Denmark, effectively ending the usual passport-free Schengen area arrangements between Germany and these countries.

They are already in place at crossings with Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Switzerland, meaning all land borders to enter Germany will be affected by such policies.

Checks between France and Germany will last for six months, with the possibility to be renewed for longer.

The border checks will follow standard procedures, the German Interior Ministry announced in a press release. 

An EU-nationality passport will gain you entry, or a non-EU passport with a residency card or visa issued by an EU country, or a non-EU passport that has been stamped when entering the EU within the limits of the 90/180 days rule. 

Targeted checks on certain individuals will be backed up by random checks on people crossing the border.

The German government is also considering a set of rule changes that would allow the country to reject migrants at these borders, added the Interior Minister, but plans remain confidential as of now, and may be illegal under EU rules.

Border checks are legal, but controversial

Countries in the Schengen Area (most of the EU bar Cyprus and Ireland) have freedom of movement between them as a core tenet of the bloc, meaning internal borders are open and free-flowing.

EU rules state however that countries can introduce border checks as a last resort to protect internal stability or public safety. 

For example, during the Covid pandemic, many countries shut their borders and temporarily restricted freedom of movement.

This time, however, the ruling German government (a coalition of centre-left and centrist parties) are introducing the checks due to the rise of the far-right in the country, where the Alternativ für Deutschland (AfD) recently won its first state-wide election.

It hopes the tougher measures will prevent voters from turning out for the far-right, and diminish attacks against the current government, who are accused of being ‘soft’ on immigration. 

There has also been several terrorist attacks in the country in recent months, including a stabbing spree that killed three people in Solingen, perpetrated by a person from Syria.

Both the ruling SPD party, and the conservative CDU – formerly fronted by Angela Merkel, who led Germany as Chancellor between 2005 and 2021 – have faced internal criticism for letting in large numbers of migrants. 

The latter party let in over a million migrants fleeing the civil war in Syria, as well as many Afghans. The current ruling party took in more than a million Ukrainians at the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022. 

Plans to reject migrants at the border may be more difficult to implement however, and could fall foul of EU rules. 

In addition, neighbouring countries – already feeling strained by the reintroduction of checks at what are usually open borders – may not take kindly to the propositions. 

Austria’s government has already announced it would not take in any migrants rejected at the German border, potentially leaving migrants in no man’s land. 

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