Importing From India to Poland

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Here's a number that surprised us. In FY2025-26 India shipped 43 million cotton T-shirts to Poland, worth US$70.26 million and up 18% on the year (TradeStat EIDB (opens in a new tab), HS 61091000, our query). That's more than it sent to Spain or Italy, and in the EU only Germany, the Netherlands and France took more.

So Poland isn't a side market for Indian apparel any more.

This page covers the Polish bits - import VAT and how to settle it in the return, the label, what Polish controls keep stopping and the choice between a Baltic port and a North Sea hub. One caveat. We haven't broken down who in Poland is buying, so we won't guess.

Last researched 28 September 2026 · Next review 24 October 2026 · Written by SourcingFrom

For duty, Poland follows the common EU tariff on the EU bloc page.

Import VAT and Settling It in the Return

Import VAT is charged at the Polish standard rate of 23% (Your Europe, VAT rates (opens in a new tab), checked by the Commission 13 July 2026). That's one of the higher rates in the EU, so cash flow is not a small detail here.

Under Article 33a of the Polish VAT Act, an active VAT payer can settle import VAT in the return for the period the import happened, instead of paying at the border. A small taxpayer filing quarterly can't use it for those imports (Biznes.gov.pl, how to account for VAT (opens in a new tab)). We read the government summary rather than the Act itself, so check the conditions with your accountant before you count on it.

Polish Labels and Diacritics

The textile label must be in Polish, and Polish fibre names carry diacritics (bawełna, not bawelna). Not every Indian label printer handles them.

Ask for a test print before the bulk run. It's a two-minute check that saves you a relabelling job in a Polish warehouse, which is no fun at all.

What Polish Border Controls Stop

Poland raised 106 EU food alerts on Indian goods between 2021 and September 2026, and 22 of them came in 2026 alone (our count of RASFF Window (opens in a new tab), to 23 September 2026). Two patterns stand out. Salmonella in sesame, including black sesame in September 2026 (RASFF 2026.8297 (opens in a new tab)), and banned substances in food supplements sold online. If you sell Indian supplements online into Poland then assume the Polish authority is watching that channel, because it clearly is. Test plans are on Quality control.

Ports, Gdańsk or a North Sea Hub

Customs is run by the National Revenue Administration (KAS) (opens in a new tab). Gdańsk and Gdynia are the Baltic container ports, and a large share of Polish imports from Asia also lands at Hamburg, Rotterdam or Antwerp and comes in by rail or road under transit.

So which do you pick? A Baltic call saves the overland leg, and a North Sea hub may sail more often. We found no India-Gdańsk service in the schedules we read, so we can't give you a Baltic transit time, but you can add the overland leg and transit paperwork to the Rotterdam figures on the EU bloc page and get the Baltic option quoted to compare.

Next Step

Buying apparel at Polish volumes? Start with the duty and product rules on the EU bloc page. Every other Indian deal is on India's trade agreements, and how certificates of origin work tells you what to ask your supplier for.