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Danish border controls with Germany led to over 11,000 police charges

Denmark’s Southern Jutland Police issued 11,198 provisional charges during a five-and-a-half-year period between 2016 and 2021 as a result of controls on the border with Germany.

Published: 19 May 2023 15:53 CEST
Danish border controls with Germany led to over 11,000 police charges
The Danish border at Padborg, where police have conducted spot checks since 2016. Photo: Claus Fisker/Ritzau Scanpix

The numbers are evidence that checks on the border are needed, Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said in parliament.

There are “therefore also good reasons for us to continue controls on the Danish-German border,” he said.

Originally introduced as a temporary measure in January 2016 in response to the 2015 refugee crisis in Europe, Denmark has since continually renewed controls on its border with Germany under the rules of the Schengen Agreement.

It recently “reorganised” the border controls to reduce the number of spot checks on cars entering from Germany.

The checks have been criticised in the past for causing congestion and for being a symbolic measure with limited practical implications.

The 11,198 provisional charges are from figures provided by the regional police to Hummelgaard, who was responding to a parliamentary question from the Denmark Democrats party.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: What do the Danish words used in crime investigations mean?

A large number of the charges relate to passport rules and drug intoxication offences.

Newer figures for charges are not available due to a technical issue, but Hummelgaard argued that data from 2021 ad before remains relevant.

“I think most of all that it gives a picture of what types of police business we see at the border,” he said.

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TRANSPORT

Denmark confirms latest extension of Germany border controls

Denmark’s temporary controls on the border with Germany have again been extended for a new six-month term.

Published: 12 April 2024 14:34 CEST
Denmark confirms latest extension of Germany border controls

The latest extension to the border controls was confirmed by Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard in a ministry press statement on Friday.

The existing borders controls would have expired in May had they not been extended.

“The safety and security of Danes is a core priority for the government. It is the view of the government that the current level of threat makes it necessary to retain the temporary border controls with Germany,” Hummelgaard said in the statement.

Although technically a temporary measure, the Danish border controls have been extended many times and have been in place in some form since 2016.

Although Denmark’s border controls have been continually extended, they were relaxed in May last year.

The relaxed rules mean that fewer motorists are now stopped for checks at the border when entering Denmark from Germany, compared to early 2023 and before. Instead, border controls are made in line with police assessments on where they are most needed.

Denmark’s repeated decisions to extend the controls have however raised concerns in the EU, which has initiated a review of whether the measure is legal.

Under the rules of the Schengen agreement, countries can place temporary border controls under exceptional circumstances. After a six-month period, the temporary checks must be renewed. 

Denmark initially introduced border checks with Germany in early 2016, citing the refugee crisis of late 2015 as justification. It later referred to a more general “security and migration situation” as cause for continually extending the controls, pointing to what it said was a threat of organised crime and terrorism.

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