Schengen Under Threat: Germany’s New Border Controls Challenge EU Unity

Germany’s decision to tighten controls at all its land borders appears to be politically motivated, is hard to justify legally, strikes a major blow to Europe’s valued free movement, and may seriously challenge EU unity.

On Monday, Berlin announced that existing controls at its borders with Austria (since 2015), and more recently with Poland, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland, would expand next week to include France, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Denmark.

The move, according to Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, aims to curb migration and “protect against the acute dangers of Islamist terrorism and serious crime.”

This decision follows a deadly knife attack in Solingen last month, involving an asylum seeker, just days before crucial regional elections in eastern Germany, where the far-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party made significant gains.

Polling shows that migration is a top concern for voters in Brandenburg, which is holding elections in two weeks, and where Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s centre-left Social Democratic Party is expected to trail behind the far-right. His struggling coalition seems poised for a major defeat in next year’s federal elections.

“The government’s goal appears to be sending a symbolic message to Germans and potential migrants that the latter are no longer welcome here,” said Marcus Engler of the German Centre for Integration and Migration Research.

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Faeser mentioned that the new controls would allow for more direct turnbacks at the border but gave no further details. Officials in Brussels have voiced concern, describing the move as “transparent” and “clearly aimed at a domestic audience.”

Given Germany’s central role in the EU and its position as the bloc’s largest economy, the impact of the new controls, set to start on 16 September for an initial six-month period, may extend well beyond its own electorate.

The Schengen area, created in 1985, allows free movement between 25 EU countries and four non-EU nations, but temporary border checks can be imposed in emergencies. These have typically been justified by terror threats, major events, or public health crises.

However, European governments increasingly reintroduce border controls without clear justification, often in response to far-right pressure on immigration, even though immigration and asylum policy decisions are made nationally. Critics argue that targeting free movement is an easy way to make headlines about “taking back control of borders.”

In addition to Germany, Austria, Denmark, France, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Slovenia, and Finland have also reintroduced border checks, citing terrorism, wars in Ukraine and Gaza, migration pressures, and organized crime.

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The European Commission, which was informed of Germany’s plans on Monday, generally accepts these temporary controls but stresses they must be “necessary, proportionate,” and “strictly exceptional.” Despite concerns, observers expect the Commission to approve Berlin’s move, even though its primary motivation seems to be electoral rather than practical security needs.