All American Citizens can enter Poland with a valid Passport (must be valid at least 12 months past date of entry). Visa not required for stay up to 90 days. Visitors must register at hotel or with local authorities within 48 hours after arrival.
Embassy of the Republic of Poland (Consular Division)
His Excellency Robert Kupiecki, Ambassador
2224 Wyoming Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
(202-232-4517) (FAX 202-328-6271)
National Holiday: Constitution Day, May 3.
Consulate General:
1530 Lakeshore Dr.
Chicago, IL 60610
(312-337-8166)
12400 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 555
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310-442-8500)
233 Madison Ave.
New York, NY 10016
(212-889-8360).
The Embassy Internet home page.
Ask to have a stamp put in your passport when you arrive (standard practice at the airport, but not at the border). You'll not only have a cool stamp to show your friends but can also easily prove how long you've been here. If you overstay your welcome, they won't fine you but will require that you get a visa before they let you out of Poland.
Legally and duty-free, you can bring in all sorts of things. If you are over 18, you can bring in alcohol (0.5 L of the hard stuff, 2 L of wine, or 2 L of beer) and 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars, or 250g of tobacco. You can bring in prescription meds - in the quantity required for the personal use of the traveller, gifts, and personal items and perfumes: not more than 50 ml and eau de cologne: not more than 250 ml. The last includes the normal electronic equipment one might have if traveling for pleasure (cell phone, still and video cameras, laptop, accompanying peripherals, etc.). It also includes jewelry, walk mans, or binoculars. The only catch is that you've got to take all that stuff with you when you go. The traveller may use the exemption from import duties within the quantitative allowance not more often than once a month.
The total value of goods, other than those mentioned above, carried in the personal luggage of the traveller, cannot exceed the amount equal to 175 EUROS, and in case the traveller is under 15 year old - 90 EUROS. This value allowance does not concern returned goods (which earlier had been exported from the Polish customs territory by a traveller having a permanent residence within the Polish customs territory) nor items imported by a traveller (having no permanent residence within the territory of the Republic of Poland and arriving temporarily into the Polish customs territory) with the intent of their re-exportation.
You can also bring in money, as much as you'd like, which you need to declare upon entry. Never fear: no one will check if the amount is correct; this is just another empty ritual to appease the governmental bureaugods.
You cannot bring in any materials which threaten the natural environment, or pornography, or illegal drugs.
You might get charged import fees on souvenirs that cost over 100 USD at a going rate of 10%. If you bring in items that cost over 300 USD, then you've got to pay according to a sliding scale. Just how much it slides can be learned by contacting the Customs Hotline at (48 22) 694 31 94.
What can I take home?
The big no-no is art created before 9 May 1945. If your newest purchase was created after VE Day, then you can prove it with a receipt from the store or a certifying document from a National Museum (almost every major city has got one; you need the Department of Art Certification). Otherwise, you can take out items costing less than 100 USD without trouble, and those costing more with a permit from the customs office (which means a fee).
As for less durable souvenirs, you can leave Poland with the same amounts of alcohol and tobacco as listed above, provided you're of age.
You are not supposed to take any Polish currency out of Poland with you when you leave, nor more foreign currency than you brought in. But again, these things are rarely checked and everyone knows what nice souvenirs foreign coins can be.
The lines are long and slow during the summer, the weekends, and along the eastern border. Long can mean up to 10 kilometers and slow can mean waiting more than 2 days.
What time is it?
When you arrive, note the time. Poland runs on GMT plus 1 hour. So, you lose 1 hour coming from the Germany.
Poland counts time on a 24 hour clock, and the week starts on Monday. So 1 PM is 1300, 2 PM is 1400, and so on. If confused, just subtract 2 from the second digit to quickly calculate what hour is it (e.g. 1500 - 2 is 3 PM).
Do I need shots?
No, you don't any shots.
