Removals to Poland from the UK
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Since Brexit, a move to Poland goes through customs — but used household goods still enter duty free if you meet two conditions. Here is how the relief works, what to prepare, and how the move is routed, in both directions.
Last updated: October 2026 · 4 min read
Written and fact-checked by the Removly editorial team · How we research prices
Do you pay customs moving to Poland after Brexit?
Not on qualifying household goods. Poland treats them as settler’s property —mienie przesiedleńcze — and lets them in free of duty when two conditions are met. You have lived outside the EU for at least 12 months without a break, and you owned and used the goods for at least six months before you left.
The goods don’t have to travel together. They can arrive in one load or several, as long as all of it comes within 12 months of you settling in Poland. Alcohol, tobacco, commercial vehicles and goods used for business are not covered.
What paperwork does Polish customs want?
An itemised inventory of everything in the move, with quantities and values, in two copies. Build it as you pack rather than afterwards — your removal firm’s packing list is a good starting point.
Customs also wants evidence for the two conditions. For the 12 months abroad, an employment contract, a certificate from the tax office or a year of paid bills will do. For the six months of use, receipts showing when you bought things. A car needs its registration document dated at least six months before the move.
The declaration is lodged at a Polish customs office, on paper or electronically. Once relief is granted, keep the goods for a year: lending, pledging, hiring out or selling them within 12 months without telling customs makes the duty payable.
Moving home to Poland after living in the UK
A large share of moves on this route are Poles going home after years in Britain. The customs rules are the same for you as for anyone — settler’s property relief turns on where you lived and how long you had the goods, not on your passport.
Two things are specific to returning citizens. You must register at your new address within 30 days of arriving. And the government’s returnees portal, powroty.gov.pl, collects the rest — tax, benefits, schools — in one place. We cover the move itself; for everything else, that portal is the place to start.
How do removals to Poland travel, and what can’t you pack?
By road, across the Channel by ferry or the Channel Tunnel and then the length of Germany. A part load shares the lorry with other moves and costs less, with a delivery window rather than a fixed day. A dedicated vehicle runs on your dates — worth it for a full house or a tight key handover.
Leave the meat and dairy behind. Since January 2021 products of animal origin from Great Britain — ham, sausage, cheese, milk — can’t enter the EU in personal belongings, and Poland applies the EU rule at its border.
We don’t publish a price for Poland: no source we could verify gives one, and volume and distance swing it widely. A survey of what you’re moving gives a fixed figure. Our European removals guide compares the wider continent.
Moving from Poland to the UK
The return direction has its own relief. Apply for Transfer of Residence relief on form ToR01 before you move — it is not granted after the goods arrive. You need to have lived outside the UK for 12 consecutive months, have owned the goods for at least six, and bring them in within 12 months of coming to live here.
The same exclusions apply as on the way out: alcohol, tobacco and commercial vehicles. If the UK home isn’t ready, short-term storage can hold everything until it is.
Removals to Poland: FAQs
Do I pay customs duty moving household goods to Poland after Brexit?
Not on qualifying settler’s property. You need to have lived outside the EU for at least 12 months, and to have owned and used the goods for at least six months before you left. The goods can arrive in one or several loads within 12 months of moving.
What paperwork does Polish customs want?
An itemised inventory of the goods with quantities and values, in two copies, plus evidence of your 12 months abroad — an employment contract, a tax certificate or a year of bills — and of when you bought the goods. The declaration is made on paper or electronically at a Polish customs office.
I am Polish and moving home after years in the UK. Does the relief apply to me?
Yes, if you meet the same conditions as anyone else: 12 months’ residence outside the EU and goods you have used for six months. Polish citizens also need to register at their new address within 30 days of arriving.
Can I take British food to Poland?
Not meat or dairy. Since January 2021, products of animal origin from Great Britain — ham, sausage, cheese, milk — cannot enter the EU in personal belongings. Empty the fridge and freezer before packing day.
Can I sell things soon after they arrive duty free?
Not straight away. For 12 months after relief is granted, goods cannot be lent, pledged, hired out or transferred to someone else without telling customs, or the duty becomes payable.
What about moving from Poland to the UK?
Claim Transfer of Residence relief on form ToR01 before you move. You need 12 consecutive months living outside the UK and goods you have had for at least six months, imported within 12 months of arriving.