In recent days, stops and deportations of truck drivers from the Western Balkans have intensified at the German border, as Croatian customs officials have begun turning Serbian and other non‑EU carriers away for overstaying more than 90 days in the Schengen Zone. This has caused growing frustration among drivers and transport companies.
Drivers from countries including Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and North Macedonia have been denied entry and sent back because, under current rules, they cannot stay in the Schengen area longer than 90 days out of 180 days — a restriction that directly affects their ability to work normally across EU borders.
According to Srđan Tošić, former head of the Truck Drivers Association, the growing backlog and refusals could lead transport workers back to striking at major freight border crossings if the situation isn’t resolved. Tošić told Biznis Kurir that previous talks in Brussels yielded little progress and that officials appear unwilling to address carriers’ concerns seriously.
Meanwhile, Turkish drivers are not facing the same problems because Turkey maintains bilateral visa agreements with EU countries. Those agreements allow Turkish nationals to obtain Type C visas that permit stays of up to 90 days in any six months without the same penalties triggered by the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES). Because those visas already include biometric entries, Turkish drivers’ days are not counted against EES limits, easing their movement across borders.
In late January in Brussels, the European Commission presented a strategy proposing special visa arrangements for professional drivers to allow longer stays and uninterrupted cross‑border work. However, transport groups say that subsequent technical negotiations have stalled, and officials have essentially told drivers to fend for themselves, leaving the restrictive EES rules in force.
