--- description: Denmark has stepped up its border controls with Germany on the heels of Sweden’s move to tighten security due to an influx of refugees. title: Denmark and Sweden Tighten Border Controls Amid Migrant Crisis image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a1d72d501a05aff/6988775a3c1639371345b64c/sweden-border-check.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Denmark](/tag/denmark/) ## Denmark Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Denmark and Sweden Tighten Border Controls Amid Migrant Crisis  by [Melissa Chan](/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 4, 2016 12:39 PM CUT  A temporary fence is erected between domestic and international tracks at Hyllie train station in southern Malmo, Sweden, on Jan. 3, 2016, to ease border control preventing illegal migrants to enter Sweden. A temporary fence is erected between domestic and international tracks at Hyllie train station in southern Malmo, Sweden, on Jan. 3, 2016, to ease border control preventing illegal migrants to enter Sweden.JOHAN NILSSON/TT/AFP/Getty Images  by [Melissa Chan](/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 4, 2016 12:39 PM CUT Denmark on Monday [stepped up its border controls with Germany](http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2016-01-04/sweden-introduces-new-border-checks-to-stem-migrant-flow "undefined") on the heels of Sweden’s move to tighten security due to an influx of refugees. Travelers coming from Germany will have to undergo spot checks, though the new measures weren’t expected to affect “ordinary” Danes and Germans crossing the border, Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmusssen said, according to the Associated Press. “We are introducing temporary border controls, but in a balanced way,” Loekke Rasmussen said. “If the European Union cannot protect the external border you will see more and more countries forced to introduce temporary border controls.” The crackdown comes as Sweden introduced new ID checks for all passengers entering the country by train, bus or ferry after 160,000 people applied for asylum in the country last year, the AP reports. Danish Transport Minister Hans Christian Schmidt called the move sad and “extremely annoying,” [according to the BBC](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35218921 "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4165884/denmark-sweden-border/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4165884/denmark-sweden-border/"},"headline":"Denmark and Sweden Tighten Border Controls Amid Migrant Crisis","datePublished":"2016-01-04T12:39:33.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T09:02:40.091Z","description":"Sweden first introduced new ID checks for all passengers entering the country","url":"https://time.com/4165884/denmark-sweden-border/","keywords":["Denmark","sweden"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a1d72d501a05aff/6988775a3c1639371345b64c/sweden-border-check.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2a1d72d501a05aff/6988775a3c1639371345b64c/sweden-border-check.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"SWEDEN-BORDER-CONTROL","caption":"A temporary fence is erected between domestic and international tracks at Hyllie train station in southern Malmo, Sweden, on Jan. 3, 2016, to ease border control preventing illegal migrants to enter Sweden.","creditText":"JOHAN NILSSON/TT/AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/denmark/","name":"Denmark"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4165884/denmark-sweden-border/","name":"Denmark and Sweden Tighten Border Controls Amid Migrant Crisis"}}]}] ```