Poland will send traffic tickets from traffic cameras to owners of cars with Ukrainian license plates
17 August 15:24
Cars with Ukrainian license plates will no longer be effectively “invisible” to Polish speed cameras. According to the Polish publication Forsal, citing Czesław Mróček, Poland’s Deputy Minister of the Interior and Administration, a Polish-Ukrainian agreement came into effect in June 2026, creating the legal framework for data exchange and the identification of vehicle owners whose violations were recorded by cameras.
At the same time, the Polish Ministry of Infrastructure has prepared a large-scale reform of the automated traffic enforcement system. It provides for the creation of a registry of violations for foreign vehicles, the verification of outstanding fines during traffic stops or when crossing the border, and administrative fines of up to 7,500 zlotys for ignoring notifications from CANARD.
However, these changes are at different stages of implementation. Data exchange with Ukraine already has a legal basis, while the new registry and increased fines are not yet in effect.
[Komersant] has compiled all the information currently available.
What Has Already Changed for Vehicles with Ukrainian License Plates
In December 2025, Poland and Ukraine signed an agreement in Lviv on cooperation in combating crime and offenses. The Polish parliament ratified the document in the spring of 2026, and it entered into force in June.
As the Polish publication Forsal explains, the agreement allows the competent authorities of both countries to exchange information to identify individuals involved in offenses. This also applies to data on vehicle owners whose violations were recorded by Polish speed cameras or average speed monitoring systems.
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This does not mean that Poland has unlimited direct access to all Ukrainian vehicle registries. Polish law enforcement agencies have been provided with a legal channel through which they can submit requests and receive the necessary information from the Ukrainian side free of charge.
How Many Violations Were Recorded Involving Ukrainian Vehicles
In 2025, Polish speed cameras and average speed monitoring systems recorded over 1.3 million violations. Approximately 120,000 cases involved vehicles registered outside the European Union.
Vehicles with Ukrainian license plates constituted the largest group—with over 77,200 violations. By comparison, approximately 7,400 violations were recorded for vehicles registered in Belarus, and 218 for those registered in Russia.
At the same time, throughout 2025, drivers from non-EU countries were issued only 3,443 fines. Approximately 2,500 of these were issued to Ukrainian citizens.
The main problem was the inability to quickly identify the vehicle’s owner and their address. Speed cameras could recognize the license plate, but Polish authorities did not always have the information needed to send notifications.
Poland Is Preparing a Central Registry of Violations
The next step is to create a Central Registry of Violations. This is provided for in draft law UD263, which the Polish Ministry of Infrastructure has submitted for public consultation.
The plan is to include in the registry foreign-registered vehicles on which violations were committed and recorded by cameras.
The following authorities are required to check vehicles against the registry during traffic stops:
- the Polish police;
- the Motor Vehicle Inspection Authority;
- the Border Guard;
- the Customs and Tax Service.
If an outstanding violation is found on a foreign vehicle, the driver will be asked to accept a fine or pay an administrative fee. If the driver refuses, the vehicle may be towed to a special impound lot.
During border control, the vehicle may be denied entry into or exit from Poland until the debt is paid off. This procedure is described in the explanatory memorandum to the Polish bill.
It is important to note that this system is not yet in effect. The bill must go through the entire legislative process, and its provisions may change.
When the owner will face an administrative fee
Under the bill, after a violation is recorded, the owner or authorized user of the vehicle will receive a notification from GITD CANARD.
They will be able to:
- accept the fine;
- refuse to accept it and refer the case for review;
- submit a signed statement from the person who was driving;
- confirm that the vehicle was sold prior to the violation;
- report the car as stolen;
- prove that the violation occurred under circumstances of extreme necessity.
If the owner does not respond to the notice within 30 days, the bill provides for an automatic obligation to pay an administrative fee.
What amounts are being proposed?
The proposed amounts depend on the type of violation and the extent to which the speed limit was exceeded.
| Violation | Administrative Fee |
| Speeding up to 30 km/h | 1,500 zlotys |
| Speeding by 31–40 km/h | 2,400 zlotys |
| Speeding by 41–50 km/h | 3,000 zlotys |
| Exceeding the speed limit by 51–60 km/h | 4,500 zlotys |
| Speeding by 61–70 km/h | 6,000 zlotys |
| Exceeding the speed limit by more than 71 km/h | 7,500 zlotys |
| Running a red light | 3,000 zloty |
| Failure to obey a signal at a railroad crossing | 6,000 zlotys |
This is not a new schedule of standard fines for speeding. Fines ranging from 1,500 to 7,500 zlotys are planned to be imposed on vehicle owners who fail to respond appropriately to a notice of a violation recorded by a camera.
Payment of the administrative fee will close the case without penalty points being assessed. If the vehicle owner pays the fee within the timeframe specified in the bill, the amount may be reduced by 20%.
When the new penalties may take effect
As Interia notes, the reform, in its current form, is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2028.
Therefore, it is now necessary to distinguish between two mechanisms:
- the exchange of information between Ukraine and Poland already has a legal basis;
- the registry of foreign vehicles, administrative fees, and debt verification at the border remain in the draft stage for now.
Separately, starting September 4, 2026, Poland will centralize the transfer of information regarding violations, penalty points, and fine payments to its driver registry. This is an internal Polish record-keeping system that should not be confused with the planned Central Registry of Violations for foreign vehicles.
What Ukrainian Drivers Need to Know
If a Polish camera records a violation, you can no longer rely solely on your Ukrainian license plates. Thanks to an intergovernmental agreement, Polish authorities can request the information needed to identify the vehicle’s owner.
At the same time, a fine of 7,500 zlotys is not automatically issued for every photo captured by a camera. This is the maximum amount of the proposed administrative fee, which may be imposed after the new system is launched and only under conditions specified by law.
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