Do non-eu residents residing in Poland require Polish driving license?

Harry:

There is now no need to have a residence cards, although mine is still valid. Now we have to have residency certificates. Which basically means you have all the hassle (i.e. going to the office, queuing and filling in all the forms) but none of the benefits (i.e. having a nice plastic card with your photo and address on it so you don't need to remember to take your passport with you everytime you want to do something official).

JabwawThreads: 11 Posts: 53 Joined: Jan 16, 08	Jan 22, 08, 09:07 / #
I have a question to everybody, do a non-eu resident who already has got the driving license in his home country needs the polish driving license given in Poland?

Foreigner4Threads: 22 Posts: 1,975 Joined: Nov 18, 07	Jan 22, 08, 09:11 / #
have one from where you're from and do an in and out every 3 months (sucks) or get an accompanying international driver's permit to go with your regular licence (it expires when your licence expires but only lasts a year from issue). There are at least a couple threads already about it so do topic search on this website if you're curious for more (hope this doesn't come off as curt, but it's popped up too often as of late). Cheers

JabwawThreads: 11 Posts: 53 Joined: Jan 16, 08	Jan 22, 08, 09:17 / #
I think I'll go for international driver's permit atleast it will work :) anyway thanks for your reply,I'll go through the threads sometime :)))))) Cheers too :)

sami	May 8, 09, 10:57 / #
HELLO, YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR DRIVER LICENCE IN POLAND, YOU CAN DRIVE WITH YOUR DRIVER LICENCE FROM YOU COUTRY 6 MOUTHS , AFTER YOU HAVE TO ASK ABOUT A PPOLISH DRIVER LICENVCE IF YOU ARE STAYING IN POLAND WITH RESIDENCE CARTA, THANKS

HarryThreads: 62 Posts: 8,508 Joined: May 2, 07 [Suspended]	May 8, 09, 13:23 / #
sami: AFTER YOU HAVE TO ASK ABOUT A PPOLISH DRIVER LICENVCE IF YOU ARE STAYING IN POLAND WITH RESIDENCE CARTA, No you do not. I've been here for 14 years on residence cards and still drive with my British driving license. I've been stopped by the police several times and they were all perfectly fine with my British license.

Cardno85Threads: 33 Posts: 858 Joined: Jul 11, 08 MEMBER	May 8, 09, 14:08 / #
Harry: I've been here for 14 years on residence cards and still drive with my British driving license. I've been stopped by the police several times and they were all perfectly fine with my British license. It's an EU licence so it only isn't suitable in Poland once it has expired. Or so I thought. Why did you need a residence card though. I thought all the EU stuff had wiped that out for us?

HarryThreads: 62 Posts: 8,508 Joined: May 2, 07 [Suspended]	May 8, 09, 14:42 / #
Cardno85: It's an EU licence so it only isn't suitable in Poland once it has expired. Or so I thought. Why did you need a residence card though. I thought all the EU stuff had wiped that out for us? As far as I know you are only supposed to drive on your foreign license for a year, then get a Polish one. But as I leave Poland at least once a year, I'm completely legal driving on my British license. There is now no need to have a residence cards, although mine is still valid. Now we have to have residency certificates. Which basically means you have all the hassle (i.e. going to the office, queuing and filling in all the forms) but none of the benefits (i.e. having a nice plastic card with your photo and address on it so you don't need to remember to take your passport with you everytime you want to do something official).

delphiandomineThreads: 42 Posts: 9,954 Joined: Nov 25, 08 [Suspended]	May 8, 09, 18:15 / #
Harry: There is now no need to have a residence cards, although mine is still valid. Now we have to have residency certificates. Which basically means you have all the hassle (i.e. going to the office, queuing and filling in all the forms) but none of the benefits (i.e. having a nice plastic card with your photo and address on it so you don't need to remember to take your passport with you everytime you want to do something official). Any idea what they're issuing for people who have applied for the right of permanent stay after 5 years? I guess they just assume that the vast majority of the EU has national ID cards and the few that don't - tough.

HarryThreads: 62 Posts: 8,508 Joined: May 2, 07 [Suspended]	May 8, 09, 18:20 / #
delphiandomine: I guess they just assume that the vast majority of the EU has national ID cards and the few that don't - tough. I'd imagine that you are right.

Wroclaw Boy	May 8, 09, 19:25 / #
Ive clocked up around 40,000 miles in Poland and I still got my British licence. Ive been pulled by the Police in Poland twice and never had a problem. Now the Germans and Austrians on the other hand are fcuking bastards, theyve had 180 Euros out of me over the past 4 months.

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	May 9, 09, 10:18 / #
Cardno85: Cardno85 yes - that is exactly my understanding. In fact I just found the section on the europa.eu website at http://ec.europa.eu/youreurope/nav/en/citizens/travelling/your-car/dri ving-license/index_en.html#286 If holders of driving licences changed residence or place of work from one Member State to another they used to have to exchange their licence within one year (Directive 80/1263/EEC). This obligation was abolished on 1 July 1996 and exchanging of driving licences has been voluntary since then.

ElsshaThreads: 1 Posts: 152 Joined: Jan 26, 09	May 14, 09, 06:17 / #
had I any idea how to drive stick i'd go your route... but since I rather ruin the instructor's clutch than my own, i might as well go for the test ^_~. I'm kinda worried about driving there, though, i've seen some scary stuff on PL roads... and I'm spoiled on the SoCal freeway system >_<

fred_chopin	May 8, 09, 19:26 / #
Wroclaw Boy: theyve had 180 Euros out of me over the past 4 months. A tad heavy on the noga, huh?

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	May 8, 09, 20:13 / #
Harry: As far as I know you are only supposed to drive on your foreign license for a year, then get a Polish one. I read up on this on the europa.eu website and I understood that there is no requirement (be it time or otherwise) to change your licence at all within EU member states. As long as your licence is still valid there is no problem. I am sure the situation is different for our non-EU friends though but I have no idea of the requirements.

delphiandomineThreads: 42 Posts: 9,954 Joined: Nov 25, 08 [Suspended]	May 8, 09, 23:23 / #
Wroclaw Boy: Now the Germans and Austrians on the other hand are fcuking bastards, theyve had 180 Euros out of me over the past 4 months. What did you do, did you commit some completely minor breach of obscure traffic law? :P

Cardno85Threads: 33 Posts: 858 Joined: Jul 11, 08 MEMBER	May 9, 09, 02:24 / #
Harry: As far as I know you are only supposed to drive on your foreign license for a year, then get a Polish one. But as I leave Poland at least once a year, I'm completely legal driving on my British license. That is true in most countries, however I am pretty sure (feel free to reign me on this one) that in the EU, any EU driving liscence is valid for the time it is valid for in it's home country.

JabwawThreads: 11 Posts: 53 Joined: Jan 16, 08	May 12, 09, 16:27 / #
ok guys, you all are talking about the validity of any other EU country's driving lic in Poland but the question remains the same what about the ppl who have driving lic from non-EU countries? any idea, any thoughts, any experience, any word-of-mouth?

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	May 13, 09, 08:33 / #
Jabwaw: who have driving lic from non-EU countries Well in the UK you can drive for one year before you have to take a British test: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/DrivingInGbOnAFor eignLicence/DG_4022561 I have no idea about Poland, I would imagine it to be something similar though.

HarryThreads: 62 Posts: 8,508 Joined: May 2, 07 [Suspended]	May 13, 09, 13:15 / #
benszymanski: I have no idea about Poland, I would imagine it to be something similar though. Before Poland joined the EU, I could only drive for six months on my British license. But leaving Poland reset the clock and I immediately got another six months.

EuroPeteThreads: 2 Posts: 8 Joined: Mar 14, 09	May 14, 09, 02:06 / #
I have been driving around Poland for a number of years now and I have never had any issues with my American license. Unlike some others I could mention: Wroclaw Boy: Ive been pulled by the Police in Poland twice and never had a problem. Now the Germans and Austrians on the other hand are fcuking bastards, theyve had 180 Euros out of me over the past 4 months. I have never been stopped so they do not yet know that I have no EU lic. Of course, if they ever stop me, I will pretend to be an ignorant tourist (which is easy for me since I am an American) and I am sure they will let me go.