Poland Temporarily Halts Traffic at Two Belarus Border Crossings

In an overnight notice published on the official Border Guard portal granica.gov.pl, Polish authorities announced a temporary suspension of all traffic through the Połowce and Sławatycze road crossings on the frontier with Belarus as of 19:00 on 21 July 2026. The advisory, which lists the crossings in grey as “ruch zawieszony” (traffic suspended), comes amid heightened security concerns on the eastern flank of the European Union. According to the notice, passenger cars, buses and trucks will be redirected to the nearest open checkpoints—principally Koroszczyn/Kukuryki for freight and Terespol for passenger traffic. Estimated wait-times at the open sites have already risen to two hours for cars as logistics operators scramble to re-route consignments bound for and from the Belarusian and Russian markets. While the Border Guard did not specify the duration of the measure, officials in Białystok and Lublin customs districts told local media that the closure is “preventive” and linked to intelligence reports of a possible spike in irregular migration attempts facilitated by Belarusian services. Since 2021 Poland has relied on ad-hoc suspensions and a 407-kilometre steel barrier to stem what it calls “state-orchestrated migration pressure.” For exporters, the timing is awkward: July is peak season for agri-food traffic. Companies shipping perishable goods must now factor in extra transit time or absorb the cost of routing via the Kuźnica crossing in Podlaskie, where veterinary inspection capacity is limited. Freight forwarder Kuehne + Nagel estimates additional costs of €250–€400 per truckload and warns of possible contract penalties if delivery windows are missed. Business-travel planners should advise travellers to Belarus to fly via Vilnius or Kyiv, or to enter by rail from Lithuania. Employers with posted workers on rotation cycles should review Schengen-stay calculations; an unexpected over-stay caused by the closure could trigger a re-entry ban. HR teams are also reminded that the restrictions do not affect holders of Polish humanitarian visas (category D-21), who may continue to exit Poland at any open border point.