How to Export to Poland in 2026: 23% VAT, Article 33a Import VAT, EORI

Duty and import VAT: rates and base

Poland applies the EU's common customs tariff, so find the duty rate in TARIC under the 10-digit code, with any preferential rate for goods with valid proof of origin. Duty is charged on the customs value, normally the price paid plus freight and insurance up to the point where the goods enter the EU (Union Customs Code, Article 71). As in the rest of the EU, the import VAT base is the customs value plus duties and other taxes due on import, plus incidental costs up to the place of destination.

Import VAT follows the Polish rates: 23% is the standard rate for most goods, 8% applies to goods such as pharmaceutical products, and 5% to books and journals, unprocessed food and basic food. Example with an assumed duty rate of 4%:

• Customs value, the price plus freight and insurance to the EU border: EUR 10,000.
• Duty at 4%: EUR 400.
• Transport from the point of entry to the buyer in Poland, not in the customs value: EUR 200.
• Import VAT base: 10,000 + 400 + 200 = EUR 10,600; import VAT at 23%: EUR 2,438.
• Paid at import: EUR 2,838, or only the EUR 400 duty if the importer settles import VAT in its VAT return under article 33a.

Settling import VAT in the VAT return (article 33a)

Article 33a of the Polish VAT Act lets a taxpayer registered as an active VAT taxpayer account for import VAT in its VAT return instead of paying it at customs when its customs declarations are made through a direct or indirect customs representative. The representative condition does not apply to businesses holding an authorisation for customs simplifications or authorised economic operator (AEO) status. The importer submits to the head of the customs and tax office competent for its seat a confirmation of its active VAT registration and certificates or statements that it has no tax arrears; simpler documentation has applied since 1 July 2020.

For an exporter, this means a Polish buyer that is an active VAT taxpayer and uses a customs agent can avoid paying import VAT at the border. If you sell DDP and act as importer yourself, you need a Polish VAT registration to use it; take Polish VAT advice first (see Triplicate's note on postponed import VAT in Europe).

EORI and consumer parcels

Polish EORI numbers are obtained through the PUESC customs and tax portal: a company not yet registered there uses the service to register its company data, and a registered company updates its details. Only a Polish company, or a company from a non-EU country that has not yet been given an EORI in another EU country, can obtain a Polish EORI; a company that already has an EU EORI uses that number on PUESC. A seller outside the EU usually needs none if the Polish buyer or its customs agent declares the goods (see Triplicate's note on EORI numbers).

Sales to Polish consumers follow the EU rules: for consignments up to EUR 150, VAT can be collected through IOSS or by the marketplace, and from 1 July 2026 to 1 July 2028 distance sales in these consignments pay a customs duty of EUR 3 per item (see Triplicate's guide to exporting to the EU).