Transfer of Residence from the USA and Canada to Poland — Duty, VAT and Excise

The rules are the same as for a move from the UK

The legal basis for relief from import duty is Council Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009, which uses the notion of a third country — a country outside the customs territory of the European Union. For the purposes of that regulation, the United States, Canada, Australia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom all fall into the same category. The Polish Ministry of Finance states the core condition plainly: the person must have resided outside the European Union continuously for at least twelve months.

What differs between the North American and the British route is logistics, not law: sea freight instead of road transport, a larger consignment shipped in one go, wooden crates subject to the ISPM 15 standard, and no preferential origin arrangement to fall back on for goods that do not qualify for the relief.

Three separate tracks: duty, VAT and excise

One procedural detail saves a wasted trip: for imports from a third country (Article 112) the evidence goes to the head of the customs and fiscal office. Article 110, which most online sources describe, covers imports from an EU country and does not apply to a move from the United States or Canada.

Four conditions that must all be met

1. Twelve months of residence outside the EU, continuously, before the transfer.
2. Six months of possession and use — for each item separately. The item must have been owned and used at the previous place of residence for at least six months before the person ceased to live there.
3. The same intended use at the new place of residence.
4. Import within twelve months of establishing residence in Poland — counted from settling in Poland, not from leaving the United States.

After clearance, a further condition applies: the goods must not be disposed of for twelve months from the date they are released for free circulation. Breaching it triggers liability for the import duty. Disposal is read broadly and covers hire, loan and any transfer of the goods for another person's use, not only sale.

A container may be split into several consignments

Apart from special cases, personal property may be released for free circulation in several separate consignments within twelve months of establishing residence in the customs territory of the Union. In practice this means you do not have to fit everything into one container and one date — but each consignment is a separate declaration relying on the same relief, so the complete inventory with values has to exist before the first shipment rather than being added to along the way.

Shipping the container before the actual move is possible, but the customs authority may require a guarantee until the transfer of residence has actually taken place. That is worth settling before the freight is paid for.

Cars in the container

The regulation sets no limit of one car per person. The test is different: neither the nature nor the quantity of the goods may indicate importation for commercial purposes, and this is assessed against the needs of the household. Each vehicle must separately meet the six-month possession and use condition, a car bought for the return journey does not qualify at all, and the twelve-month restriction on disposal applies to every one of them.

Where the transfer-of-residence relief does not apply, Polish excise duty on passenger cars is charged at 18.6% for engines above 2000 cm³, 9.3% for petrol-electric hybrids between 2000 and 3500 cm³, 1.55% for hybrids up to 2000 cm³ and 3.1% otherwise. Vehicle registration in Poland is a separate route and does not affect customs clearance itself.

What the relief does not cover

Excluded are alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, commercial means of transport and professional equipment other than portable instruments. Four further points regularly catch people moving from North America:

• Cash. Carrying cash of EUR 10,000 or more into the EU must be declared. The threshold applies per person, and the definition covers bearer cheques and money orders, coins with at least 90% gold content, bullion with at least 99.5% gold content and non-personalised prepaid cards. The declaration itself is free and may be filed electronically through the PUESC portal before crossing the border.
• Medicines. Up to five smallest packages may be brought in for personal treatment. Medicines containing narcotic or psychotropic substances require a certificate from the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspector, which has to be arranged in advance.
• CITES items. A rosewood guitar, an old piano, ivory jewellery, furniture made of protected timber or a hunting trophy may all require documents. Musical instruments have their own Musical Instrument Certificate, valid for up to three years and reusable.
• Garden and house plants — a phytosanitary matter rather than a customs one, with restrictions on growing medium and soil.

Where the container is cleared

Clearance may take place at the port of arrival or, under customs seal, at an inland office closer to the new address. The choice has to be made before the vessel arrives, because it determines how long the container sits in port at the consignee's expense. Wooden crates, pallets and cases must comply with ISPM 15 — treated and marked — which is worth confirming with the shipper before loading.

Inventory and documents

The claim is made with the customs declaration, together with an inventory in two copies. The authority may expect evidence of residence outside the EU for at least twelve months (tenancy and employment contracts, utility bills, tax returns) and evidence of possession and use for at least six months (purchase invoices, repair bills, vehicle registration documents). If you sold a property before leaving, the deed of sale is often the single strongest piece of evidence that the centre of your life has moved.

Sources

• Council Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 setting up a Community system of reliefs from customs duty — Articles 3–11.
• Polish Ministry of Finance / National Revenue Administration, "Mienie przesiedlenia — zwolnienie z cła", podatki.gov.pl.
• Polish VAT Act of 11 March 2004 — Articles 47 and 81.
• Polish Excise Duty Act — Article 112.
• powroty.gov.pl — transfer of residence and importing a car from outside the EU.
• Regulation (EU) 2018/1672 on controls on cash entering or leaving the Union.
• Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 865/2006 (CITES).