Alcohol regulations in Poland

Licences needed

Entry into the Register of Distilled Spirit Beverage Production or Bottling (rejestr działalności w zakresie wyrobu lub rozlewu wyrobów spirytusowych) and an Excise Tax Warehouse Authorization (skład podatkowy)

Authority

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MRiRW) and National Revenue Administration (Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa - KAS)

Documents

CEIDG/KRS corporate excerpt, production and storage premises technical specifications, GUM-certified metering equipment verification, sanitary approval from Sanepid, clean judicial record (KRK) for company directors, excise bond/security proposal

Fees

PLN 11,610 for spirit drink production entry; PLN 5,805 for bottling-only registration; PLN 0 statutory fee for tax warehouse permit, subject to mandatory excise financial security

Time to obtain

1 to 3 months

Who can import

Companies registered in the EU with a valid EORI number, registered in the Central Register of Excise Entities (CRPA) as a tax warehouse keeper or registered consignee (zarejestrowany odbiorca), holding a wholesale alcohol permit if reselling

Licences or registrations

EORI, CRPA excise registration, Registered Consignee or Tax Warehouse permit, and Wholesale Licence for beverages >18% ABV (zezwolenie na obrót hurtowy napojami alkoholowymi)

Authority

National Revenue Administration (KAS) for customs and excise; Ministry of Economic Development and Technology (MRiT) for wholesale alcohol permits >18% ABV

Documents

Customs clearance docs (SAD), commercial invoice, bill of lading/CMR, proof of excise financial security, lease/title for warehouse, sanitary certificate, tax clearance certificate

Fees

Wholesale licence base fee of PLN 45,000 for up to 250,000 litres of spirits (>18% ABV), plus 0.4% per 100,000 litres above quota; EORI and CRPA registrations are free

Time to obtain

30 to 60 days

Required

no

Process

Poland does not require pre-market label approval or product registration (no COLA equivalent) for standard spirits complying with EU standards. Labels and composition are verified via post-market surveillance by IJHARS and Sanepid. Importers must apply to the competent Tax Office for the allocation and physical issuance of fiscal excise stamps (banderole) prior to customs release or commercial dispatch.

Authority

Agricultural and Food Quality Inspection (IJHARS), State Sanitary Inspection (Sanepid), and National Revenue Administration (KAS / Urząd Skarbowy for banderoles)

Documents and samples

Specimen artwork, technical specifications, and lab certificates retained by the FBO; banderole requisition orders submitted to the tax office with security deposit

Fees

No fee for label notification; banderole fiscal stamps cost approximately PLN 0.015 to PLN 0.03 per physical strip plus processing fees

Renewal

None for labels; periodic quota applications for excise stamps

Time to obtain

2 to 4 weeks for excise banderole processing

Spirits imported from non-EU countries require an EU-based Importer of Record, standard Single Administrative Document (SAD) customs declaration, commercial invoice, packing list, and Certificate of Origin (or EUR.1/preferential origin proof). Cross-border EU movements must utilize the Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS) under an electronic administrative document (e-AD) generating an Administrative Reference Code (ARC). Physical fiscal banderoles (paper tax strip stamps) must be affixed over closures before market release. Containers ≤300 ml must be constructed exclusively from glass or metal.

0% EU Common Customs Tariff (MFN duty) under HS code 2208 for whiskies (2208.30), rum (2208.40), gin (2208.50), and vodka (2208.60). Undenatured ethyl alcohol ≥80% ABV (HS 2207) is subject to EUR 19.20/hl.

Excise duty on ethyl alcohol: PLN 7,991 per hectolitre of 100% vol pure alcohol (scaled upward under multi-year fiscal indexations toward PLN 8,811–10,109/hl). Standard VAT: 23% applied to the cumulative customs value, import duty, and excise duty.

Sold via licensed private retail stores, supermarkets, dedicated liquor shops, and on-premises licensed bars/restaurants. No state retail monopoly. Retail permits are granted by the local municipal executive (Wójt, Burmistrz, or Prezydent Miasta) categorized by strength (Type C: >18% ABV). Statutory base municipal permit fee is PLN 2,100 (raising to PLN 4,200 under 2026/2027 amendments). Municipal councils have statutory authority to introduce nighttime bans on off-premise sales.

restricted

Mandatory particulars in Polish pursuant to EU Regulation 1169/2011 and Regulation (EU) 2019/787: legal sales denomination, actual alcoholic strength (% vol), nominal volume, EU producer/bottler/importer details, lot identification number ('L'), allergen declarations (e.g., sulfites, nuts). Affixing of an official Polish fiscal excise stamp (banderola) over the closure is legally compulsory before release into circulation. Mandatory health warnings addressing pregnancy, underage drinking, and driving have been enacted with transitional phase-in.

Distilled spirits advertising and promotion are strictly prohibited in public media, TV, radio, print, cinema, digital platforms, and outdoor billboards (Article 13^1 of the Act on Upbringing in Sobriety). Public promotions and influencer campaigns on social media are heavily prosecuted by authorities with criminal fines up to PLN 500,000–1,000,000 and potential imprisonment. Spirits advertising is only permissible inside designated physical points of sale (liquor stores, bars, specialized trade venues).

Directly governed by EU Regulation 2019/787: Vodka min 37.5% ABV; Polish Vodka / Polska Wódka (PGI) must be made exclusively from traditional Polish rye, wheat, barley, oats, triticale, or potatoes with all distillation/bottling performed in Poland; Whisky/Whiskey min 40.0% ABV aged min 3 years in wooden casks ≤700L; Rum min 37.5% ABV distilled from sugarcane juice/molasses; Gin min 37.5% ABV; Brandy min 36.0% ABV; Neutral ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin min 96.0% ABV.

No dry counties or regions. However, municipal councils can enact local nighttime bans on off-premise alcohol sales (prohibicja nocna) between 22:00 and 06:00, implemented across over 200 municipalities including Warsaw, Kraków, Poznań, and Wrocław. A nationwide baseline off-premise sales prohibition between 22:00 and 06:00 was passed by parliament in October 2026. Sales remain permanently barred in educational facilities, student dorms, mass sports events, and healthcare centers.

• Annual statutory indexation of alcohol excise duty schedules, raising spirits taxation toward PLN 8,811–10,109 per hl of 100% pure alcohol.
• Banning of 'alkotubki' (spirits sold in soft pouches/tubes resembling children's purees), accompanied by a statutory mandate requiring containers ≤300 ml to be exclusively made of glass or metal.
• Parliamentary passage in October 2026 of sweeping Sobriety Act amendments establishing a nationwide off-premise nighttime sales ban (22:00–06:00), doubling municipal sales permit fees, introducing mandatory statutory frameworks for online sales with e-ID age verification and a 24-hour delivery waiting period, expanding the total advertising ban to beer, and introducing mandatory pregnancy and drink-driving health warnings.

Poland possesses a large, resilient, and premium-oriented spirits market with sustained consumer demand for Scotch and Irish whiskies, American bourbon, premium gin, and aged rum. Exporters of differentiated, premium bottled spirits can capitalize on strong off-premise and specialized retail channels, provided they partner with established licensed importers capable of navigating banderole compliance and strict marketing bans.

• Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa (KAS) / Ministerstwo Finansów
• Ministerstwo Rolnictwa i Rozwoju Wsi (MRiRW)
• Ministerstwo Rozwoju i Technologii (MRiT)
• Główny Inspektorat Jakości Handlowej Artykułów Rolno-Spożywczych (IJHARS)
• Krajowe Centrum Przeciwdziałania Uzależnieniom (KCPU)

1. Ministry of Finance (Ministerstwo Finansów) - Excise Duty Rates
2. EasyClearance - Alcohol Importation and Customs Duty in Poland
3. Notes from Poland - Sejm approves sweeping anti-alcohol bill
4. CMS Law-Now - Poland amends Sobriety Act: nighttime sales, advertising, and distance sales
5. US TTB - International Affairs Resources: Poland Requirements