Who is Authorized to Enter Poland in November?

Poland's borders, which also constitute the EU's external borders, continue to institute restrictions for the purpose of COVID-19 prevention. This includes both restrictions on foreigners' entry into Poland and the obligation to undergo quarantine after crossing the border.

Only the following individuals may enter: 

• Polish citizens
• foreigners who are spouses or children of Polish citizens or who remain under the constant care of Polish citizens
• those in possession of a Pole's Card
• members of diplomatic missions, consular offices and representatives of international organizations and members of their families, as well as other persons crossing the border of the Republic of Poland on the basis of a diplomatic passport
• persons who have the right to permanent or temporary residence in Poland
• foreigners with the right to work in the territory of the Republic of Poland, i.e. foreigners entitled to work on the same terms as Polish citizens, possessing a work permit, certificate of entry for seasonal work, declaration on entrusting work to a foreigner on the territory of the Republic of Poland, who work in the territory of the Republic of Poland or who present documentation proving that they will begin working immediately after crossing the border
• foreigners who operate a means of transportion to transport people or goods, and whose journey takes place within the scope of professional activities related to the transport of goods or people
• drivers engaged in road transportion as part of international road transport or international intermodal transport traveling through the territory of the Republic of Poland by means other than the vehicle used for road transportion for the following reasons: in order to rest in the territory of the country of stay; after resting abroad as referred to above, and after resting from work in accordance with the Act related to drivers' on-duty time
• primary and secondary school students, those enrolled in postgraduate studies, specialist education and other forms of education, as well as doctoral students studying in Poland
• scientists engaged in research and development in Poland
• citizens of European Union Member States, European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA) Member States - those party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or the Swiss Confederation and their spouses and children who intend to travel through the territory of the Republic of Poland to their place of residence or stay
• foreigners with a permanent residence permit or a European Union long-term residence permit for the territory of other European Union Member States or a Member State of the European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA) - those party to the agreement on the European Economic Area or the Swiss Confederation and their spouses and children who intend to transit through the territory of the Republic of Poland to their place of residence or stay
• foreigners traveling on an aircraft within the scope of Article 2, Section 1 of the Act of July 3, 2002 - Aviation Law (Journal of Laws of 2019, items 1580 and 1495 and of 2020, items 284 and 1378) on an international flight, who are citizens of: Georgia, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, the Kingdom of Thailand, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of Tunisia, Australia or have the right to reside in the territory of these countries
• persons crossing the border of the Republic of Poland on the basis of a national visa for the purpose of repatriation, or a visa for the purpose of entering the territory of the Republic of Poland as a member of the immediate family of the repatriate
• foreigners whose arrival is related to participation in - as a competitor, member of the training staff, doctor, physiotherapist or judge - international sports competitions at the championship level, organized in the Republic of Poland by an international sports federation operating in Olympic or Paralympic sports or others recognized by The International Olympic Committee, or organized by an international sports organization with a continental range belonging to such a federation, as well as accredited journalists who prove to the Border Guard officer in a letter issued by the organizer of the competition or certified by the appropriate Polish sports association in the given sport their participation in the competition, the date, and the nature of participation
• foreigners crossing the border of the Republic of Poland on the basis of a visa issued for humanitarian reasons related to state interest or international obligations
• citizens of the Republic of Belarus crossing the border of the Republic of Poland on the basis of a visa issued for tourism purposes
• fishermen as defined by Art. 2, Section 9 of the Act of September 11, 2019 on work aboard fishing vessels (Journal of Laws item 2197) or seafarers as defined by Art. 2, Section 3 of the Maritime Labor Act of August 5, 2015 (Journal of Laws of 2020, item 1353), hereinafter referred to as the "Maritime Labor Act," including seafarers employed under the terms of Art. 46 or Art. 108 of the Maritime Labor Act, as well as: seamen or fishermen traveling to a port by means of transport such as a ship or others, in order to take up employment on a ship, or returning to their place of residence by means of transport such as a ship or others after termination of employment on a ship, which may transit through the territory of the Republic of Poland; persons performing work or providing services on ships or offshore extraction and drilling platforms on the basis of an agreement other than a seafarer employment contract
• foreigners who have obtained a visa in order to participate in the Poland. Business Harbor program

In particularly justified cases, the head officer of individual Border Guard facilities - after obtaining the consent of the Commander-in-Chief of the Border Guard - may allow a foreigner to enter the territory of the Republic of Poland.

 The following individuals do not need to quarantine after crossing the external borders of the EU as part of their professional duties:

• aircraft crews
• seafarers, fishermen and other crew members of sea and inland waterway vessels, as well as ship servicemen and inspectors of the maritime administration or organizations recognized to carry out inspections, https://www.gov.pl/web/gospodarkamorska/nowe-zasady-kwarantanny-dla-czlonkow-zalog-rybakow-i-serwisantow
• persons performing work or providing services on ships or offshore mining and drilling platforms
• persons engaged in work in Poland or a neighboring country related to the preparation or implementation of investments in accordance with the act on investments in the regasification terminal for liquefied natural gas in Świnoujście, strategic investments in the field of transmission networks in accordance with the act on the preparation and implementation of strategic investments in transmission networks or strategic investments in the oil sector in accordance with the act on the preparation and implementation of strategic investments in the oil sector
• drivers engaged in road transportion as part of international road transport or international intermodal transport in accordance with the Act related to drivers' on-duty time, https://www.gov.pl/web/infrastruktura/zasady-przewozu-osob-w-publicznym-transporcie-zbiorowym-oraz-zwolnienia-z-obowiazku-kwarantanny-kierowcow-zawodowych-w-transporcie-miedzynarodowym
• train crews and other employees necessary to perform freight services as part of international rail transport, performing their professional duties in Poland or a neighboring country on the basis of a list provided by the carrier
• drivers performing road transport of motor vehicles or vehicle combinations with a permissible total weight not exceeding 3.5 tons in road transport of goods and non-profit road transport of goods
• drivers performing road transport with vehicles intended for the transport of more than 7 but not more than 9 persons, including the driver, in the commercial international road transport of persons 

In addition, the following are exempt from quarantine after crossing the Polish border:

• Polish citizens and foreigners who are spouses or children of Polish citizens or remain under the constant care of Polish citizens
• those studying in Poland and their accompanying guardians who cross the border for the purpose of study 
• primary and secondary school students, those enrolled in postgraduate programs and specialist education, as well as doctoral students studying in Poland and scientists conducting research and development in Poland
• soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland or allied forces, officers of the Police, Border Guard, Customs and Tax Service, State Fire Service and State Protection Service, and inspectors of the Road Transport Inspection performing official tasks
• members of diplomatic missions, consular posts and representatives of international organizations and their family members, as well as other persons crossing the border on the basis of a diplomatic passport
• maritime administration inspectors
• persons who work on a farm located on both sides of the border
• EU, EEA or Swiss citizens, and their spouses and children
• foreigners holding a permanent residence permit or authorization for long-term residency in the European Union for the purpose of traveling through the territory of Poland to the territory of other Member States of the European Union, a Member State of the European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA) - parties to the agreement on the European Economic Area or the Swiss Confederation, and their spouses and children, to travel through the territory of the Republic of Poland to their place of residence or stay
• persons sailing in recreational vessels between ports located in EU Member States, EFTA Member States - parties to the EEA Agreement without calling at ports of third countries
• persons engaged in work abroad related to the protection of Polish cultural heritage abroad, including conservation, inventory and research work, carried out as part of projects financed by a minister responsible for culture and protection of national heritage, or funds from state cultural institutions organized by said minister
• aircraft passengers within the scope of Article 2, Section 1 of the Act of July 3, 2002 on Aviation Law, on board an international flight departing from an airport located within the territory of a country not enumerated in the by air traffic bans specified in Article 119, Section 2 of the Act of July 3, 2002 on Aviation Law, with the exception of passengers on board an international flight from an airport located within the territory of the Republic of Belarus, Ukraine or the Russian Federation
• persons participating as a competitor, member of a training staff, doctor, physiotherapist or referee, in international sports competitions organized within the territory of the Republic of Poland by an international sports federation engaged in Olympic or Paralympic sports or another sport recognized by the International Olympic Committee, or organized by an international sports organization with continental range belonging to such a federation or Polish sports association, as well as by accredited journalists.

We encourage you to contact the Border Guard directly:

https://www.strazgraniczna.pl/pl/cudzniemcy/covid-epidemia-koronawi

+ 48 22 500 40 00 (Monday-Friday: 8:15 AM - 4:15 PM).