How to save toll costs in poland!

In our neighboring country, poland, there are fees for the use of some roads. This article shows you how the toll system works in poland, which roads it applies to, and how you can save money when paying the tolls.

Is there a toll or a vignette in poland?

There is no vignette. Poland collects tolls for its roads through the so-called "distance-based toll" system. Unlike a vignette, you only pay for the distance you actually drive.

In return, however, this fee must be paid each time the toll road is used, while a vignette gives a certain right of use for the duration of the vignette.

How much is the toll in poland?

The toll in poland depends on whether the freeway is privately or publicly financed. The following table sheds some light on the different toll rates:¹⁺²⁺³⁺⁴

How to pay the toll in poland?

All toll roads in poland are always interrupted by toll booths, so you won’t have the problem of accidentally driving onto a toll road as you would with a vignette.

As the freeways in poland are either publicly operated or run by private companies, how to pay varies.⁵ one thing in common:

on all freeways you can pay in cash or with EC- / credit card. When paying cash in EUR, only bills are accepted, but the change is issued in PLN. But this should only be an emergency solution for you, because you will most likely get a bad exchange rate.

On the A1 freeway you can also pay with "ambergo". This works as follows:⁶

1. Download the amberone, skycash or autopay app
2. Register your vehicle and deposit a credit card
3. When you drive through a toll station on the A1, your license plate is automatically checked, the barrier goes up and the toll amount is debited

It works similarly on the A4 freeway at the two toll stations myslowice and balice:⁷

1. Download the app autopay, skycash or IKO
2. leave your vehicle and payment details
3. Drive slowly to the barrier of the toll stations, where your license plate will be scanned and the toll will be debited automatically

On the publicly financed parts of the A2 and A4 freeways, electronic payment is also possible via the viatoll system. This will be available on 30. September replaced by e-toll.⁸

From the 1.12.in 2021 electronic payment will be obligatory on public highways, manual payment with cash or credit card will then no longer be accepted.⁹

In order to drive on the toll roads, you will need either an on-board unit (OBU), an external tracking device or – probably the most convenient option for visitors to Poland – the e-toll PL app.¹⁰

To be able to pay the toll with it, you must proceed as follows:¹¹

1. Download the e-TOLL PL APP from the playstore or app store
2. Internet customer account (IKK) on etoll.Gov.Pl set up, for this purpose documents such as an identity card and the registration documents are required
3. Connect the business ID of the app with the IKK
4. Specify that the vehicle will be monitored via the e-toll PL app and whether prepaid, or postpaid billing is to be used
5. Load credit on the app, either as cash deposit for postpaid or settlement for prepaid
6. To pay the polish toll, simply open the app at the beginning of the journey and tap on "end journey" at the end of the journey, the amount will be calculated and deducted automatically

Can you pay the toll in poland with euro??

Yes, it is possible to pay the toll in poland with euro. Either you can choose to pay cash in EUR, but you will only get back PLN, or you can choose EUR as currency at the card terminal. However, the exchange rates are set by the company itself and are usually disadvantageous for you.

Here it is worth paying directly in PLN, preferably with a card that uses the average exchange rate for currency conversions. The wise debit card offers this function. You always get the exchange rate as google would show it and pay only a minimal exchange fee.

Penalty for violating the toll in poland

In general, it is almost impossible to avoid the toll in poland, as you have to pass a toll station in order to use the toll roads. The only way you can be fined is if you drive a vehicle with a trailer.

If the combination weighs more than 3.5 tons, but you do not specify this, a fine of 500 PLN (approx. 110 EUR) may be imposed.¹²

Where do tolls apply in poland??

The road sections on which tolls are charged for cars in poland are easy to identify:

• The entire A1 freeway from gdansk to gorzyczki
• Parts of the A2 freeway between świecko and strykow
• Parts of the A4 freeway between katowice and krakow and bielany wrocławskie – sośnica

Pro tip: how to save money when paying in poland

The euro is often accepted for payments in neighboring poland, especially in cities near the border, but in most cases the exchange rates include a surcharge and you pay more. It is better to pay directly in Polish złoty PLN.

The wise multi-currency account is ideal for this purpose. You can open this account for free and if necessary you can also apply for a debit card for a one-time fee of 8 EUR. With the account you can hold money in over 50 currencies, including EUR and PLN.

If you change credits from one currency to another, the average exchange rate is always used, the fair exchange rate without markup. For the exchange of money itself, there is only a small fee, which is far below the market average.

same applies for payments with debit card. if you have a credit in the currency in which you pay, it will be used first. Otherwise, the money will be exchanged from an available credit at the mean exchange rate.

Conclusion

Like other countries, poland finances its roads through tolls. The toll is paid at toll stations, either in cash, by card, app or other electronic payment system. You can also pay in EUR, but this is often impractical because it is either more expensive or you get PLN as change afterwards.

For a convenient and cheap payment of bills in poland, the wise multi-currency account with the debit card is suitable. This way you always get a fair exchange rate without any surcharge and pay only minimal fees.

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