Ukrainian woman Daria Lomakina told about an unusual check at the Polish border at Krakow airport. According to her, a border guard was looking through photographs on her phone to obtain confirmation of her trip to Tenerife, and passport control lasted about 20 minutes. Daria reported this on Instagram.
Check at Krakow airport: what the Ukrainian woman said
Daria now lives in Ireland. She told about the case during a trip to Poland on Instagram. The woman claims that at passport control she had to show her phone gallery as proof that she had vacationed in Tenerife.
“I had to show the gallery, that is, evidence, proof, that we were in Tenerife,” the Ukrainian woman said.
What unsettled her most was that among the photographs were personal pictures. According to Daria, the border guard was scrolling through the gallery, so she was worried that he would see photographs she did not want to show to strangers.
The woman noted that it was the first time she had encountered such a procedure. At the same time, the report cited does not contain an explanation from the Polish Border Guard regarding the grounds for and conduct of this particular check.
The story drew attention to what documents for a trip should be prepared in advance. Tickets, accommodation bookings and confirmation of the route can help answer questions about the purpose of travel. However, they do not rule out an additional check.
Phone checks at the border: what travelers should know
Checking documents and accessing personal data on a phone are different actions. The very fact of going through passport control does not mean unlimited access to photographs and messages. The lawfulness of a specific request depends on its grounds, the procedure applied and the circumstances.
Polish law provides border guards with the authority to carry out additional checks, in particular where there is reasonable suspicion of an offense. At the same time, it is impossible to establish from the passenger's account alone whether such grounds existed and whether officers followed the established procedure.
If you are asked to show the contents of your phone, you can clarify the legal basis, purpose and scope of the check. If the issue is confirming your route, it is worth offering to show a specific ticket or booking. This will help to understand exactly what information needs to be provided.
If you disagree with an officer's actions, you can file a complaint with the Polish Border Guard. To describe the case, it is important to keep the date, time, place of the check and information about exactly what was requested and viewed.
It is also worth distinguishing between external and internal checks in Schengen. Ireland is not part of the Schengen area, so flights between it and Poland involve a border check. However, Daria's exact route is not specified in the account cited.