Montenegro: Fines Up to €30,000 at Serbia Border
Montenegro's government has proposed a border control law with biometric data, video surveillance, and fines up to €30,000. The change also affects Serbian travelers crossing toward the coast.
For the thousands of Serbian citizens who cross into Montenegro’s coastal region every year, especially in summer, the familiar routine at the border could soon look different. The Government of Montenegro has adopted a draft Law on Border Control and sent it to parliament under urgent procedure. The document introduces biometric checks, new databases, and significantly harsher penalties for violations at the crossing.
The biggest change compared to current practice is the checking of data from European databases. Alongside the usual document control, border police would in the future also check data from the Schengen Information System (SIS), the Visa Information System (VIS), and the Entry/Exit System (EES), the systems the European Union uses to monitor its external borders. For travelers from Serbia, this remains an announcement for now, not something they will face on their next crossing.
In the explanation accompanying the draft law, the Government of Montenegro specified that the new rules will not take effect on the same day as the law itself:
Application of certain provisions relating to EES, SIS and VIS will not begin automatically with the law’s entry into force. They will apply once Montenegro is operationally connected to those systems and authorized to use them.
In other words, checks through the European databases are waiting on Montenegro’s technical connection to those systems, a step that is part of a broader alignment of Montenegrin legislation with the Schengen Borders Code, within the country’s EU accession process.
The law also covers what will be felt at the crossing itself much sooner: automatic reading of travel documents and license plates, photographing and filming of passengers, taking fingerprints and other biometric data, and video surveillance of border crossings and the entire border line. During a detailed check, border police could compare the face photo from a travel document with biometric data taken on the spot.
What Changes for Travelers From Serbia
The draft separates entry and exit checks. On entry into Montenegro, officers would check the conditions for entry, the authenticity of the document, the electronic chip inside it, and the permitted length of stay. On exit, alongside identity, they would also check whether a traveler exceeded the permitted stay, including a check through EES, and whether the traveler, their vehicle, or their belongings pose a threat to security or public order.
At the same time, the government built in an escape valve for seasonal congestion at the most popular seaside crossings: when applying all prescribed procedures in full would significantly slow down or stop traffic, border police could apply a lighter control regime based on a risk assessment. For travelers who stand in line for hours every summer, this provision is meant to keep the new controls from becoming a cause of congestion themselves, though the draft does not specify how that risk assessment would actually work in practice.
The law also introduces a ban on unauthorized photography and filming in the border crossing area, along with an obligation for staff working there to wear a visible identification badge. It further provides for a national coordination center linked to the European EUROSUR system, as well as dedicated budget funding for cooperation with the Frontex agency.
Monetary fines are set for violations of the new rules. For legal entities, the fine ranges from €5,000 to €30,000, covering, among other things, unauthorized photography or filming at the crossing, failure to maintain border crossings properly, and obstruction of border control. For individuals, the fine ranges from €200 to €800, covering, among other things, moving or lingering outside the permitted area at the crossing and failing to comply with a police officer’s order.
The draft law is now in parliamentary procedure, and the government states in its explanation that implementation will not require additional budget funds, since the proposed solutions do not create new financial obligations for the state. If lawmakers accept the urgent procedure the government requested, the law would take effect on the eighth day after publication in Montenegro’s Official Gazette, though the actual date for now depends on how quickly the parliamentary debate moves.
