Polish flag · law update
Poland’s new yacht registration law (UD305): what changes for foreign owners
Last updated: 11 November 2026 · Status: bill, not yet law · Based on the committee text (Sejm print no. 3220)
Notify me about changesWhere the bill stands
- 28 Jul 2026 – the Council of Ministers adopts the government bill (UD305). KPRM
- 29 Jul 2026 – the bill reaches the Sejm as print no. 2995. Sejm
- 3 Sep 2026 – first reading in the Maritime Economy Committee.
- 22 Oct 2026 – the committee adopts the bill with amendments; report = print no. 3220. Sejm
- Next – second and third reading in the Sejm, the Senate, the President’s signature, publication. Progress of the bill
What would change
Pre-registration survey (art. 4a)
Yachts that are not Polish-owned must pass a survey by the recognised organisation authorised by the Polish maritime administration (today the Polish Register of Shipping, PRS) before registration and before a change of owner that makes them non-Polish-owned. Yachts with a CE declaration may be surveyed remotely.
Data confirmation every 5 years (art. 10a)
The owner files a confirmation between 90 and 30 days before every fifth anniversary of the registration. Without it the registration document is suspended, and sailing on a suspended document is forbidden and fined.
Deletion from the register (art. 10b, 10c, 11)
Yachts not subject to compulsory registration are deleted if the owner does not fix a suspension within 6 months. An authority may also request deletion if the owner does not answer an official summons sent to the Polish address for service within the set time (at least 7 days).
Polish address for service and contacts (art. 6)
An address for service in Poland for every owner, co-owner and operator is already required today (art. 6 sec. 1 pt 2 a of the current Act). The bill keeps it and adds, for yachts that are not Polish-owned, the operator’s e-mail and phone number. We offer this address at our office near Warsaw (see “Address in Poland”).
Temporary certificate: 60 days, no sailing (art. 9)
The certificate issued after filing would be valid for at most 60 days and would not allow sailing until the yacht is entered in the register.
Possible bans for some nationalities (art. 4)
The government may ban registering or keeping in the register yachts owned or co-owned by citizens or companies of named non-EU/EEA countries, for foreign-policy, defence or security reasons.
Electronic filing (art. 5a)
Applications for yachts that need the survey must be filed electronically in REJA24, with identity confirmed by the Polish electronic ID / trusted profile or a qualified electronic signature. A representative (pełnomocnik) may file.
Free online check (art. 15)
Anyone could check online whether a yacht is in the register and whether her registration document is valid.
Yachts already registered: deadlines for the first confirmation
Existing entries stay valid, but every owner must file a first confirmation within the period below, counted from the day the law applies (art. 4 of the bill). Owners of yachts that are not Polish-owned must also pass the pre-registration survey and attach its result.
| Yacht registered | Deadline after the law applies |
|---|---|
| Registered until 31 Dec 2021 | 3 months |
| 1 Jan 2022 – 28 Feb 2023 | 6 months |
| 1 Mar 2023 – 31 Aug 2023 | 9 months |
| 1 Sep 2023 – 29 Feb 2024 | 12 months |
| 1 Mar 2024 – 31 Aug 2024 | 15 months |
| 1 Sep 2024 – 28 Feb 2025 | 18 months |
| 1 Mar 2025 – 28 Feb 2026 | 21 months |
| Later registrations | 24 months |
Proposed fees (draft regulation)
Fees will be set later by a regulation of the minister; the figures below come from the draft attached to the government bill and may change.
| Fee | Today | Polish-owned (≤15 m / 15–24 m) | Not subject to compulsory registration (≤15 m / 15–24 m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration | PLN 80 | PLN 200 / 400 | PLN 2,000 / 3,000 |
| 5-year confirmation | — | PLN 100 / 200 | PLN 1,000 / 1,500 |
| Pre-registration survey | — | not required | set by the surveyor, capped by law (estimate in the bill: about PLN 1,000) |
Our services under the new law
Confirmation of register data
Polish-owned yacht
€149
Confirmation + survey arranged
Yacht not Polish-owned
€299
Official fees: not set yet. The amounts will be set by a regulation after the law is passed; the figures above in “Proposed fees” come from the draft and can change. Confirmations are available when the law applies – subscribe below and we will tell you when to act.
What you can do now
- Check that your yacht and your registration document show correctly in the official REJA24 verification service, and that the owner’s data and address in the register are up to date.
- Keep your registration document, ownership papers and CE declaration together – they are what a survey and a confirmation are based on.
- Make sure official letters can reach you at a Polish address for service. Under the bill an unanswered summons can lead to deletion. We are in Poland and offer an address for service at our office near Warsaw: letters scanned and e-mailed with an AI translation within 1 working day, €39/year.
- Do not plan to sail on a temporary certificate once the law is published.
- Radio licence and EPIRB are not changed by the bill – but check that your licence is valid and your EPIRB is registered at ULC with the Polish MMSI.
We follow every step of the bill, read the official texts and will tell our clients and subscribers what to do and when. When the law is passed we will help with the survey, the 5-year confirmation and the filings.
Frequently asked questions
›Is the new Polish yacht registration law (UD305) already in force?
No. It is a government bill. The parliamentary committee adopted it with amendments on 22 October 2026 (print no. 3220). It still needs the second and third reading in the Sejm, the Senate and the President’s signature. Most of it would apply 12 months after publication, a few parts after 14 days.
›Does it affect yachts that are already registered in Poland?
Yes, according to the bill. Every yacht registered before the law applies must file a first confirmation of her register data within 3 to 24 months, depending on the registration date. Yachts that are not Polish-owned must also pass the pre-registration survey and attach its result.
›Who has to pass the pre-registration survey?
Yachts that are not Polish-owned, i.e. not owned by Polish citizens or companies (or at least half Polish-owned with an operator based in Poland). The survey is done before registration, before a change of owner that makes the yacht non-Polish-owned, and for existing registrations at the first confirmation. Yachts with a CE declaration may be surveyed remotely.
›What happens if a foreign owner misses the deadline?
Not immediately. Nothing changes until the law applies: 12 months after it is published (art. 8; a few parts after 14 days). Existing registrations stay valid (art. 4 sec. 1). From the day the law applies, an owner of a yacht already in the register has 3 to 24 months, depending on the registration date, to file the first confirmation – and, for yachts that are not Polish-owned, the survey result. Only if that deadline is missed: for yachts not subject to compulsory registration (in practice: not Polish-owned) the registration document loses its validity and the yacht is deleted from the register, losing Polish nationality, without a suspension period (art. 4 sec. 7). Polish-owned yachts first get a suspension and 12 months to fix it (art. 4 sec. 4–5). So the earliest such deletion would be about 15 months after publication.
›Can I sail on the certificate of filing?
Today: the owner may use the certificate issued after filing until the registration document is issued (art. 9 sec. 2 of the Act), and many sailors already sail on the basis of this certificate – our founder has done so himself. Important: tell your insurer and make sure your insurance is valid. The bill would change this: the certificate would be valid for at most 60 days and would NOT allow sailing until the yacht is entered in the register. This part would apply 14 days after the law is published.
›How much will it cost?
Fees will be set later by a regulation. The draft attached to the bill proposes, for yachts not subject to compulsory registration, PLN 2,000 (up to 15 m) or PLN 3,000 (15–24 m) for registration instead of PLN 80 today, and PLN 1,000 / 1,500 for each 5-year confirmation. The survey fee is set by the surveying organisation, capped by law; the impact assessment estimates about PLN 1,000.
›Does the bill change the radio licence (MMSI) or EPIRB registration?
No. The bill amends the yacht registration act and the maritime safety act. Ship radio licences from UKE and EPIRB registration at the Civil Aviation Authority (ULC) are not changed by it.
Sources
- Sejm print no. 3220 – committee report with the amended text of the bill (22 Oct 2026).
- Sejm print no. 2995 – government bill with justification, impact assessment and draft fee regulation.
- Progress of the bill in the Sejm.
- Chancellery of the Prime Minister – adoption by the Council of Ministers, 28 Jul 2026.
This page explains a bill in plain language. It is not legal advice; the official Polish text prevails.
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