Poland work permit for a truck driver in 2026: which route fits your passport

A non-EU truck driver needs one of four Polish routes in 2026: a work permit, an employer declaration, the Ukrainian notification procedure, or a CUKR residence card, and the passport decides which one applies. The paperwork also got more expensive on 2025-12-01, when the permit fee for stays over 3 months rose from 100 PLN to 400 PLN ( Infor, 2025-11-27 ). This guide covers the Poland work permit for a truck driver in 2026 by nationality, with a fee table, the driver attestation, licence and Code 95 questions, border registration under the EU Entry/Exit System, and scam red flags.

The readers here are drivers from Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, India, Pakistan, and the Philippines, plus the Polish carriers that hire them. Where an official source could not be confirmed, the text says so instead of guessing. Rules for this group changed on 2025-12-01 (fees), 2026-03-05 (Ukrainian residence and employment), and 2026-07-30 (EU temporary protection extension), so treat every date below as an anchor and check the issuing office before you file.

Which Polish work route applies to a truck driver in 2026?

Most non-EU nationals need a work permit (zezwolenie na pracę, type A), and Indian, Pakistani, and Filipino citizens do not appear on the declaration list in the sources reviewed. Citizens of a short list of countries can be hired on an employer declaration instead, and Ukrainians follow separate rules. The table is built from sources dated 2025-11-27 to 2026-05-04. Confirm each row on UdSC and praca.gov.pl before you rely on it.

Sources: Grant Thornton Poland, 2025-12-01 , Infor (2025-11-27), DLA Piper, 2026-04-01 , UdSC (2026-05-04).

Georgia is the row that catches people out. Georgian citizens lost the simplified declaration route on 2025-12-01, and only declarations registered before that date remain valid (Grant Thornton). A recruiter quoting a pre-December process for a Georgian driver is working from old rules.

Under the general rules, employers carry two notification duties. They must tell the labour office within 7 days when a foreigner starts work, and within 14 days if the foreigner does not start (Grant Thornton). For the broader picture of non-EU driver jobs across the continent, see the guide to non-EU truck driver jobs in Europe .

How do you apply for a Polish work permit as a truck driver, and what does it cost?

Work permit applications have been filed only electronically through praca.gov.pl since 2025-06-01, and paper applications are no longer processed (Grant Thornton). The permit is tied to a Polish employer, so the practical advice for a driver is to ask the employer for the application reference instead of paying anyone to obtain a slot. The fee schedule changed on 2025-12-01 under a ministerial regulation of 2025-11-20, and cases already pending keep the old rules (Infor).

Sources: Infor (2025-11-27), Grant Thornton (2025-12-01), UdSC (2026-05-04).

A worked example shows the effect. A Polish carrier that hires five Moldovan drivers on declarations now pays 2,000 PLN in declaration fees (5 x 400 PLN). Under the old 100 PLN fee the same five declarations cost 500 PLN. The same carrier hiring one Indian driver on a 12-month contract pays 400 PLN for the permit, where the pre-December fee was 100 PLN.

Two points are deliberately left open. This guide gives no processing time, because no dated official figure was available, so ask the employer's adviser for the current office timeline. It also does not say whether a labour-market test applies to your case: the sources reviewed were silent or vague, so check praca.gov.pl or the Act of 2025-03-20 on admitting foreigners to work.

What changed for Ukrainian drivers after the special act phase-out in March 2026?

Ukrainians with temporary protection can still work, but the rules moved on 2026-03-05, and the EU extended the protection itself to 2028-03-04. Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/1912 was adopted on 2026-07-30 and extends temporary protection by one year. Do not read the date 2027-03-04 as the end of protection: UdSC lists it only as the closing date for CUKR applications, on a page dated 2026-05-04 that predates the extension.

The special act did not end cleanly. According to DLA Piper (2026-04-01), new rules took effect on 2026-03-05, notifications filed up to that date stay valid on current terms, and new notifications for Ukrainians without temporary protection are possible until 2029-03-05, after which general rules apply. Under the simplified procedure the employer notifies the labour office within 7 days.

Three conditions matter to a driver in practice:

• PESEL UKR identity check. Holders whose identity was confirmed only by declaration had to show a valid travel document at the gmina by 2026-08-31 or lose status (DLA Piper). That deadline has passed, so confirm your status is intact.
• The 30-day absence rule. Leaving Poland for more than 30 days ends temporary protection (DLA Piper). The sources do not say how this treats work trips, so ask before planning long rotations abroad.
• The CUKR card. It is a residence card marked "formerly holder of temporary protection", valid for 3 years, with full labour-market access and no work permit needed. Applications run from 2026-05-04 to 2027-03-04, online only through MOS ( UdSC ).

CUKR eligibility requires a PESEL UKR on 2025-06-04, a current PESEL UKR at application and at issue, and at least 365 days of uninterrupted UKR status. The fee is 340 PLN plus 100 PLN, uncollected cards are invalidated after 60 days, and leaving Poland for over 6 months loses the permit. Time on the card counts toward EU long-term resident status. Whether Poland has moved the CUKR deadline after the EU extension is not confirmed, so check the UdSC page before you plan around 2027-03-04.

What is the driver attestation (świadectwo kierowcy) and who applies for it?

The driver attestation is a document issued by the Chief Inspectorate of Road Transport (GITD) on a carrier's request, under Art. 32b of the Polish Road Transport Act. It covers international carriage, cabotage (a foreign carrier's right to run domestic transport inside another country), and cross-trade, and it is not issued to EU, EEA, or Swiss nationals ( Trans.info, 2022-06-29 ). The carrier applies, not the driver.

The same source lists the attachments: a copy of the community licence, an employment certificate or compliance statement, proof of legal residence, passport and licence copies, proof of ZUS social insurance, and Code 95 or a driver qualification card for vehicles over 3.5 t. That article is from 2022, so treat the list as a starting point and cross-check against current GITD guidance.

The fee and decision time are not stated as fact here. Two sources found conflict on both the fee range and the time to a decision, and neither is an official GITD page. A carrier should take the figures from GITD directly and a driver should be wary of anyone who asks for a separate payment.

Can you drive in Poland on a non-EU licence, and is Code 95 required?

Generally yes until the exchange threshold is reached, but the exact period is unconfirmed. Validity depends on the licence type and your residence status, and the sources reviewed disagree on the exchange threshold. A ministry-linked report (MSWiA, via Prawo.pl) points to six months of stay before exchange for a Polish licence. Other portals say 185 days from registration. No primary source settled it, so ask the Polish licensing office that handles your address.

Code 95 is the EU driver qualification entry on the licence, based on the Driver CPC (the professional competence certificate for professional HGV drivers). For third-country drivers it appears in the attestation file, as noted above. Whether Poland requires you to hold a Polish-issued qualification, or accepts one from your home country, was not verified. The foundation for the qualification chain is in the guide on how to become a truck driver in Europe , and the periodic training that follows is a separate obligation.

What does the EU Entry/Exit System change for drivers entering Poland?

The EU Entry/Exit System (EES) registers non-EU travellers at each entry and exit, and Poland has applied it at all its border crossings since April 2026. The system recorded its first entries on 2025-10-12 in a phased start and reached full operation on 2026-04-09 ( Czech MFA ). Poland announced activation at all crossings on 2026-04-10 ( Polskie Radio, 2026-04-10 ), a one-day gap between the two sources, which this guide does not try to resolve.

EES records name, date of birth, nationality, a face image, and fingerprints. The reporting reviewed says nothing driver-specific, and no official figures on truck waiting times were found, so none are given here. If you cross at the Ukraine border, the current queue picture is covered in the post on Ukraine-Poland border truck queues .

How can you spot a fake driver job or a visa-selling scam?

Treat the following as general guidance, not statistics: no source in this guide measures scam prevalence. A real Polish employer files the paperwork itself, so the warning signs mostly involve a stranger asking for money before any employer is named.

• Payment for a "permit slot". The official fees are in the table above and go to the state. An agent selling guaranteed slots is a red flag.
• No named employer. Look the company up in CEIDG (sole traders) or KRS (registered companies) and ask which route it is using: permit, declaration, or notification.
• Payment for an attestation. The carrier requests it from GITD, so a driver should never pay a middleman for it.
• A guaranteed salary before any contract. Ask for the written contract and compare it with the route you were told.
• Pressure to travel first and sort paperwork after arrival. A work route should be clear before you leave.

Once the paperwork is clear, the next question is pay. The comparison in Poland vs Western Europe driver pay helps with that, and the Polish bans on weekend and holiday driving are explained in Poland truck driving ban times .

Frequently asked questions

Can a foreigner work as a truck driver in Poland?

Yes, through one of four routes: a work permit, an employer declaration for a short list of countries, the Ukrainian notification procedure, or a CUKR card. Which one applies depends on citizenship and status. Confirm the current rules with the employer and praca.gov.pl.

Do Ukrainians need a work permit in Poland in 2026?

Ukrainians with temporary protection work under the notification procedure, where the employer notifies the labour office within 7 days. A CUKR card gives full labour-market access without a work permit. Ukrainians without temporary protection can be notified until 2029-03-05, then general rules apply (DLA Piper, 2026-04-01).

How much does a work permit in Poland cost?

Since 2025-12-01 the fee is 200 PLN for a permit up to 3 months and 400 PLN for over 3 months, both up from 50 PLN and 100 PLN (Infor, 2025-11-27). The employer declaration also costs 400 PLN per foreigner. Pending cases keep the old fees.

What is the driver certificate (świadectwo kierowcy) in Poland?

It is a GITD-issued attestation for non-EU drivers on international carriage, cabotage, and cross-trade, requested by the carrier under Art. 32b of the Road Transport Act (Trans.info, 2022-06-29). Check GITD for the current fee, validity, and decision time, because sources conflict.

Do I need Code 95 to drive a truck in Poland as a non-EU citizen?

The attestation file lists Code 95 or a driver qualification card for vehicles over 3.5 t (Trans.info, 2022-06-29). Whether Poland accepts a qualification from your home country was not verified. Ask the carrier and the licensing office before you rely on a foreign document.

Can I drive in Poland with a Ukrainian driving licence?

The sources reviewed do not settle this, so no verified official rule is given here. They disagree on when a non-EU licence must be exchanged, with six months and 185 days both quoted. Confirm with the Polish licensing office before your stay passes the shorter threshold.

How long does a Polish work permit take?

No dated official processing time was available, so this guide gives none. The only timeline found in the sources was the 60-day CUKR card collection window. Ask the employer's adviser for the current office timeline.

Polish carriers and drivers who want to see current openings can browse driver and logistics jobs on Logifie.