A Polish citizen enters Ukraine without a visa for 90 days in any 180-day period, with a valid passport and a medical policy from an insurer licensed in Ukraine. In 2026 the land border is open around the clock, there have been no passenger flights since February 2022, and the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains its highest level of warning: "advises against all travel". This warning does not prohibit entry, but it does void Polish travel insurance.
Which documents are needed at the border?
| Document | Mandatory | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Passport | Yes | Valid for the whole stay. The ID card is not recognised, we explain why. |
| Medical insurance | Yes | From an insurer licensed by the National Bank of Ukraine, for the whole period of stay (Article 7 of the Ukrainian Insurance Act). Buy insurance from €3.56 for 3 days. |
| Funds | May be checked | The regulation refers to the equivalent of 20 Ukrainian minimum monthly wages per month of stay, calculated pro rata to the number of days. In practice a payment card and some cash are enough. |
| Purpose of travel | May be asked | A hotel booking, an invitation from family, a letter from an organisation or a contract. It is not a formal requirement, but it speeds up clearance. |
| Return ticket | No | Nobody asks for one; it makes no sense for overland travel. |
| Green Card (car) | Yes, for drivers | Polish third-party liability insurance does not work in Ukraine. Details in our guide to driving to Ukraine. |
Can you enter at all during the war?
Yes. Visa-free travel for EU citizens has been in place since 2005 and the war has not changed it. What has changed is how you get there: Ukrainian airspace is closed to civil flights, so the only way in is overland, most often from Poland. Every day several tens of thousands of people cross the Polish–Ukrainian border in both directions; Poles travel to visit family, on business, as volunteers, journalists and increasingly on matters related to reconstruction. Clearance of a foreign national on the Ukrainian side takes a few minutes if the documents are in order.
Which way: border crossings in 2026
- By car and bus: Medyka–Shehyni, Korczowa–Krakovets, Hrebenne–Rava-Ruska, Dorohusk–Yahodyn (all open 24 hours), as well as Zosin–Ustyluh, Dołhobyczów–Uhryniv, Budomierz–Hrushiv and Krościenko–Smilnytsia.
- On foot: only Medyka–Shehyni; on the Ukrainian side, marshrutka minibuses wait to take you to Lviv (approx. 70 km).
- By train: from Przemyśl to Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa, from Chełm to Kovel and Kyiv, from Warsaw via Rava-Ruska. Passport control takes place in the carriage or at the station in Przemyśl.
Waiting times are published on granica.gov.pl; in summer and before holidays cars queue for 2–5 hours at Medyka and Dorohusk, while trains are cleared in 30–90 minutes. A comparison of the crossings and current queues is in our guide to Poland–Ukraine border crossings.
What does the Polish Border Guard check, and what does the DPSU check?
- The Polish Border Guard (exit from Poland and the Schengen Area): passport, validity, no exit ban, and for children travelling without parents, possibly the consent. The Polish Customs and Tax Service may ask about cash above €10,000 and excise goods.
- The Ukrainian State Border Guard Service (DPSU): passport scan, database check, insurance policy (name, dates, insurer), a question about the purpose and place of stay, a dated entry stamp.
- Ukrainian Customs: declaration of cash from €10,000 (or the equivalent), medicines, electronics in commercial quantities, drones (which require a permit). What you cannot bring in is covered in our customs guide.
Dual Polish–Ukrainian citizenship: men, take note
Ukraine treats anyone holding Ukrainian citizenship as its own citizen, regardless of which passport they show. A man aged 18–60 who enters on a Ukrainian passport is subject to the martial-law exit restrictions and may be unable to leave without military documents (deferment, deregistration, certificate of unfitness). Entering on a Polish passport formally means being cleared as a foreign national, with the policy requirement, but the DPSU has access to the registers and may establish Ukrainian citizenship on exit. Since 28 August 2025 men aged 18–22 may leave Ukraine without restrictions; the rules for older age groups have not changed in 2026. If you hold both citizenships and have doubts, consult a Ukrainian consulate before the journey, not at the border.
Children and pets
Every child needs their own passport and their own insurance cover; they can be on the same policy you buy for yourself (up to 10 people). When travelling with one parent, carry the other parent's written consent with a copy of their ID card: Ukrainian border officers rarely ask foreign nationals for it, but the Polish Border Guard on exit sometimes does.
A dog or cat enters Ukraine with a microchip, a valid rabies vaccination and an EU pet passport. The problem is the return: Ukraine is not on the EU list of low-rabies-risk countries, so entry into Poland requires an antibody titre test carried out at least 30 days after vaccination and 3 months before the return. Have it done in Poland before you leave.
What does the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs warning mean?
Ukraine is at the fourth, highest level of Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs warnings: "advises against all travel", including to oblasts considered calmer. This is not a legal ban; no Pole breaks the law by entering Ukraine. The warning does, however, have three practical consequences:
- Polish travel insurance does not work. The general terms of almost all Polish insurers exclude countries covered by a fourth-level Ministry of Foreign Affairs warning and war-related losses. Details in our guide Polish travel insurance does not cover Ukraine.
- Consular assistance is limited. The Polish Embassy in Kyiv and the consulates in Lviv, Lutsk and Vinnytsia are open, but they do not organise individual evacuations or pay for treatment. Contact details are in our guide to the Polish Embassy in Kyiv.
- Employers and universities sending people to Ukraine usually require a separate policy with war risk and written consent.
Before you leave, register your trip in the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs' free Odyseusz system (odyseusz.msz.gov.pl): the consul then knows where you are and sends warnings by SMS. A safety assessment of individual regions is in our guide Is it safe to travel to Ukraine?.
Checklist for 2026
- A passport valid for longer than the planned stay.
- A EUROINS Ukraine policy on your phone: Basic (€3,000) from €3.56 or Extended (€30,000) from €5.75, both with war risk.
- A Green Card if you are driving; a Ukrzaliznytsia ticket if you are taking the train.
- Registration in Odyseusz and the Air Alert app.
- Cash in euros or złoty to exchange, a card that works abroad, a power bank.
- The curfew hours checked for your destination city.