Car and driving licence in Poland: twelve months for the excise duty, thirty days for the registration
Your car comes along without excise duty if you meet five conditions at once, and you have twelve months after settling for that. But as soon as it stands in Poland, the registration must be lodged within thirty days — otherwise a 500 złoty fine. The driving licence is the easiest part: an EU licence doesn't need exchanging.
5 min read
Written and checked by Auke on , against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.
Your car can come to Poland without Polish excise duty, but watch two deadlines. Within the EU there is no customs, and yet with Poland the car is the step with the most clocks.
Whoever moves permanently registers their car in the new country of residence and pays the car taxes there. That is the European main rule. Poland adds two clocks, and they run against each other:
- twelve months to bring the car in excise-free;
- thirty days to register it once it is there.
The excise duty: five conditions, twelve months
Poland levies excise duty on passenger cars entering the country. That is 3.1% of the value up to an engine capacity of 2,000 cc, and 18.6% above that, with lower rates for hybrids.
Whoever moves can avoid it. The relocation car is exempt under article 110 of the excise act, provided five conditions hold at the same time.
- The car is intended for your own use.
- You used it yourself in the Netherlands for at least six months before your move.
- You can prove that to the Polish tax office, the urząd skarbowy.
- You don't sell, rent out or lend it for the first twelve months after it enters.
- It was bought in the Netherlands under the normal tax rules, and no exemption or tax refund was applied on departure.
On top of that, the car must come in within twelve months of your settling in Poland. The tax office then issues a certificate that the car is exempt from excise duty, and that certificate is exactly what the registration will ask of you.
If one condition fails, the exemption fails. Keep your registration certificate, insurance papers and proof of purchase: that is the proof for points 2 and 3.
Watch condition 5 if you claim bpm back. Whoever exports their car can get part of the bpm back in the Netherlands, if the car is registered in Poland within thirteen weeks of the RDW status 'Export'. Whether the Polish tax office sees such a refund as a 'tax refund on departure', the act doesn't say in so many words. Ask before you file both applications: 18.6% of the value of a car above 2,000 cc is not an amount to gamble with.
The registration: thirty days, since 2024
Then the second clock, and it is new. Since 1 January 2024 whoever brings a car from an EU country to Poland must lodge the registration application within thirty days of entry. That is in article 73aa of the road traffic act. There is a fine on it:
- 500 złoty if late;
- 1,000 złoty if more than a hundred and eighty days late.
After those thirty days, according to the government, you may no longer drive it on the road either.
So you have a year to decide whether the car comes along, and a month once it is there. Whoever comes with the car in summer "to have a look" is fined after thirty days.
What the registration requires, and what it costs
The registration runs through the transport department of the starostwo (the district authority) of your place of residence. In a city with district status that is the city hall, in Warsaw the office of your borough. For a used car from an EU country the government asks for:
- the application form;
- your Dutch registration certificate;
- proof of a valid roadworthiness test: a Polish test at an authorised inspection station, or a document from an EU country showing the test and its expiry date;
- proof of the excise exemption, or of the excise duty paid;
- the receipts for the fees.
Documents in a foreign language come with a sworn translation into Polish. Only the European registration certificate need not be translated, insofar as it contains the European codes.
Before the registration you take out the compulsory third-party liability insurance (OC). Without it the car may not be on the road.
| Item | Deadline or amount |
|---|---|
| Lodging the registration application | within 30 days of entry |
| Fine for a late application | 500 zł, after more than 180 days 1,000 zł |
| Registration certificate and registration stickers | 66.50 zł |
| Temporary permit | 13.50 zł |
| Number plates | 80 zł |
| Temporary registration | 30 days, extended by 14 days if needed |
On your first visit the official usually registers the car temporarily for thirty days straight away. You get a temporary permit and plates, so you can drive. The permanent registration follows within those thirty days. If that doesn't work out, you have the temporary registration extended by fourteen days.
The competent starostwo is that of your permanent or temporary place of residence. You establish that with the address registration. That is why it always comes first in this journey.
The driving licence: nothing to exchange
A valid driving licence from an EU country doesn't need exchanging in Poland; it simply remains valid. If you want to anyway, a Polish licence costs 100 złoty. The 185-day period applies to licences from outside the EU.
It only becomes a job when your Dutch licence expires. Then the RDW no longer renews it as long as you live in Poland. How that works, and why you'd better exchange before the expiry date, is in your driving licence in Poland.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 3 of 5 of the journey, step 3.2: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Poland or go straight to step 3.2 in the open plan.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Dziennik Ustaw 2026 item 412 — the Polish excise act, article 105 (rates) and 110 (the car when moving) — eli.gov.pl
- Samorząd.gov.pl — the thirty-day registration deadline and the fines — samorzad.gov.pl
- Gov.pl — registering a vehicle, from an EU country: documents, costs and the temporary registration — gov.pl
- Gov.pl — exchange your foreign driving licence for a Polish one — gov.pl
- Your Europe — registering your car in your new country of residence — europa.eu
- Dutch Tax Administration — bpm refund when you export a used vehicle (thirteen weeks) — belastingdienst.nl
Read on
- PolandThe move5 min
Renting in Poland: the deposit, the notarial contract and the signature for your address
In Poland a landlord may ask up to twelve months' rent as a deposit on an ordinary rental agreement, and up to six on a najem okazjonalny. That second contract comes with a notarial statement in which you consent to eviction. And without the owner's signature there is no address registration, so no PESEL.
Updated 26 September 2026
- PolandThe move4 min
Your pet to Poland: the passport is enough, the dog needs its jab every year
Within the EU your dog or cat travels to Poland with a chip, a valid rabies vaccination and the EU pet passport. But once you live in Poland, Polish law applies: a dog there must be vaccinated against rabies at least every twelve months, even if its vaccine lasts longer. And some municipalities charge a dog fee.
Updated 26 September 2026
- PolandThe move4 min
Your household goods to Poland: no customs, but three exceptions
Within the EU your household goods go to Poland without a customs declaration and without an inventory list. Three things fall outside that: the car, on which Poland levies excise duty unless you meet the moving exemption, alcohol and tobacco above the guideline values, and the animals, which have their own rules. What you do have to arrange, and in which order.
Updated 26 September 2026