Moving from Poland to Georgia (2026): Complete Guide

Poland to Georgia is a Baltic-to-Caucasus corridor that spans an EU member state and a non-EU country with one of the more liberal residence and customs regimes in the region. On the Polish side you are closing out an EU registration and running an export declaration; on the Georgian side you are clearing customs, possibly a residence-permit application, and — if you bring pets or a car — a separate set of veterinary and vehicle rules. This guide is written for a Polish resident (Polish national or long-term resident of Poland) relocating household goods, pets and possibly a vehicle to Georgia, and closes with a short note on the reverse move.

Key takeaways

• Poland charges no export duty on household goods leaving the EU, but shipments generally still need an export customs declaration through the AES/ECS2 system on PUESC; simplified oral or "by conduct" declarations exist mainly for non-commercial personal baggage, while goods of a commercial nature above €1,000 in value or 1,000 kg net weight always need a full written/electronic declaration (podatki.gov.pl).
• If you move abroad for longer than 6 months (or permanently), Polish law requires you to report your departure ("zgłoszenie wyjazdu za granicę"), which deregisters you from your Polish address record (gov.pl, Powroty.gov.pl).
• Losing Polish tax residency (unlimited tax obligation) is not automatic just because you leave — it depends on your 183-day presence and "centre of vital interests" test, and you should notify your local tax office once your residency has actually changed (Ministry of Finance, gov.pl).
• EU/Polish citizens can enter Georgia visa-free and stay up to 365 days without applying for anything in advance; a residence permit — issued through the Public Service Development Agency (SDA), an LEPL under Georgia’s Ministry of Justice — is generally what you need to be able to declare goods as a permanent resident (sda.gov.ge).
• Georgia’s duty/VAT-free personal-import allowance depends on the entry channel: non-food goods up to GEL 500 and 30 kg once per 30 calendar days at land/sea border points, up to GEL 3,000 and 30 kg by air, or GEL 300 and 30 kg by post; separately, goods declared when you register permanent residence (household items, furniture — not vehicles, excise goods or food) are handled under a different provision of Georgia’s Tax Code (Georgia Revenue Service, rs.ge).
• Dogs, cats and ferrets need a microchip, a valid rabies vaccination and a veterinary/health certificate to enter Georgia; Georgia’s National Food Agency does not require a rabies antibody titre test, but confirm the current vaccination timing window with them before you travel (National Food Agency of Georgia). Leaving the EU, Poland’s veterinary service requires an official health certificate for the destination country (Główny Inspektorat Weterynarii).
• If a car is leaving Poland permanently, it needs to be deregistered ("wyrejestrowanie pojazdu") at the office handling registrations for its last registered address, using the gov.pl process (gov.pl); confirm the current notification deadline with that office, as Polish traffic law ties it to the date the vehicle stops being used in Poland.
• Carrying €10,000 or more in cash (or equivalent, including bearer instruments) across the EU’s external border — which Poland’s non-EU crossings are — must be declared in writing to Polish customs/Border Guard (granica.gov.pl); on entry to Georgia, cash and securities above GEL 30,000 must likewise be declared (rs.ge brochure).

1. How your Georgian immigration status determines customs treatment

Georgia’s customs relief for incoming household goods is tied directly to your immigration status, not to your nationality. As an EU/Polish citizen you can cross the border and stay in Georgia for up to 365 days without a visa and without any advance registration (geoconsul.gov.ge — Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia). That status alone, however, is a visitor status: it does not, by itself, unlock the separate declaration route Georgia provides for people who move their permanent residence to the country.

To be treated as entering "for permanent residence" for customs purposes, you generally need the relevant document confirming residence, issued through Georgia’s Ministry of Justice system — in practice this means a residence permit or registration handled by the Public Service Development Agency (SDA), which processes applications online or through Public Service Halls, with standard processing quoted at 10, 20 or 30 calendar days depending on the service tier you choose and pay for (sda.gov.ge). Practically: decide your legal basis for staying in Georgia (visa-free stay, residence permit application, or another status) before your shipment arrives, and confirm with a licensed Georgian customs broker or the Revenue Service how your specific goods will be assessed, because the customs officer will ask for your residence documentation when your shipment is declared.

2. The Poland export side

Customs authority. Poland’s customs and tax administration is the Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa (KAS), acting through the Służba Celno-Skarbowa (Customs and Tax Service). All customs declarations, including exports leaving the EU customs territory, are filed electronically through KAS’s PUESC portal (Platforma Usług Elektronicznych Skarbowo-Celnych) (puesc.gov.pl).

Deregistration / leaving process. Polish residents who move abroad — permanently, or temporarily for more than 6 months — are legally required to report their departure ("zgłoszenie wyjazdu za granicę") to the local gmina/urząd, either in person or electronically. Reporting an intent to reside permanently abroad deregisters you from both permanent and temporary residence records; a temporary absence over 6 months only deregisters the temporary registration (gov.pl; Powroty.gov.pl).

Export declaration system and thresholds. Because Georgia is outside the EU customs union, your Polish removal shipment must clear a formal export procedure via the AES/ECS2 system (Automatyczny System Eksportu) on PUESC before it can leave EU customs territory (puesc.gov.pl). No export duty applies (the EU does not tax exports leaving its territory). Under EU customs rules referenced by Poland’s Ministry of Finance, a written/electronic export declaration is mandatory once goods are of a commercial nature and exceed €1,000 in value or 1,000 kg net weight; genuinely non-commercial personal baggage and effects can generally be reported orally or "by an act treated as a declaration" (podatki.gov.pl). In practice, a full household-goods removal is bulky enough, and mixed enough in origin and value, that movers file a standard electronic AES export declaration on your behalf rather than relying on the simplified oral route.

Tax-residency exit. Leaving Poland does not automatically end your Polish tax residency. Under the Polish personal income tax act you remain a resident with "unlimited tax obligation" (worldwide income taxed in Poland) if you keep your "centre of vital interests" in Poland or stay in Poland more than 183 days in the tax year. Once your residency has genuinely changed, notify your tax office and support the change with evidence such as a foreign tax-residency certificate; the Ministry of Finance’s guidance for people living abroad confirms that a taxpayer who is a tax resident of another country does not have to pay Polish tax on non-Polish income, and that the tax office can verify and, where relevant, correct residency status (Ministry of Finance / gov.pl).

Cash. If you’re carrying €10,000 or more (cash, bearer instruments, or equivalent) when you cross an EU external border out of Poland, EU Regulation 2018/1672 and Polish rules require you to submit a written declaration to the Border Guard / Customs and Tax Service (granica.gov.pl).

3. Ports and transit (freight-industry estimates, not official figures)

Poland’s main container gateway for an intercontinental household-goods shipment is the Port of Gdańsk, on the Baltic coast, with regular container shipping lines to the Baltic and North Sea and connections onward toward the Americas and Asia via transshipment; the Port of Gdynia nearby also handles significant container volumes (Port Gdańsk). There is no direct scheduled container service from the Baltic to Georgia’s Black Sea ports (Poti and Batumi); shipments typically move as a Baltic-origin container transshipped via a Mediterranean or Bosphorus-area hub, or move overland/intermodal via Central Europe and Turkey.

The following transit windows are Flyto’s own freight-industry estimates, not figures published by any port or customs authority, and vary with routing, carrier schedules and season:

• Sea freight, Gdańsk/Gdynia → Poti (via transshipment): roughly 5–8 weeks door-to-port, plus final delivery.
• Road/intermodal groupage, Poland → Tbilisi (via Turkey or the Caucasus land corridor): roughly 3–5 weeks, depending on consolidation and border crossings.
• Air freight, Warsaw → Tbilisi: typically 1–2 weeks including customs clearance, for smaller high-value shipments only.

4. The Georgia import side

Customs matters at the Georgian border are handled by the Georgia Revenue Service, under the Ministry of Finance, which publishes the personal-import exemption rules and an HS-code tariff lookup for individuals (rs.ge). General customs procedures (declarations, clearance, transit) are set out in the Customs Code of Georgia, while the specific duty, excise and VAT exemptions for goods carried by individuals are set out in Georgia’s Tax Code (Articles 168, 194 and 199) (matsne.gov.ge — Customs Code of Georgia).

The Revenue Service’s official brochure for individuals sets out several distinct allowances, which do not collapse into one single figure:

• Land or sea border crossings: non-food goods up to GEL 500 and 30 kg, duty- and VAT-free, once every 30 calendar days (food products have their own GEL 500 / 30 kg per-day allowance).
• Air arrivals: a higher non-food allowance of up to GEL 3,000 and 30 kg.
• Postal imports: goods up to GEL 300 and 30 kg.
• Cash and securities: amounts of GEL 30,000 or more (or the currency equivalent) must be declared on entry or exit.

Separately, the brochure lists entering Georgia for permanent residence — confirmed by the relevant document issued through the Ministry of Justice system — as a category where you bring in goods not intended for economic activity (furniture, household items and similar personal effects) and must declare them; vehicles, excise goods (alcohol, tobacco) and foodstuffs are excluded from this route and assessed separately (rs.ge — Exemption of goods from duties and declaring). This is the route most Polish movers relocating permanently will use for the bulk of a household shipment, but because the exact duty treatment sits inside the Tax Code and can depend on your specific goods and residence status, always confirm the current figures and paperwork directly with rs.ge or with your mover’s Georgian customs broker before shipping — and, separately, note that Georgian citizens returning after 6+ months abroad have their own GEL 15,000 allowance under the same brochure, which is not the route a Polish citizen relocating to Georgia would use.

5. Pets: official rules on both ends

Leaving Poland (EU export). Poland’s Chief Veterinary Inspectorate (Główny Inspektorat Weterynarii, GIW) confirms that the entry rules for a companion animal into a non-EU ("third") country are set by that destination country, not by the EU or Poland — so you must check Georgia’s specific requirements, and GIW’s site provides country-by-country guidance and downloadable veterinary certificates for animals leaving the EU (wetgiw.gov.pl). In practice this means securing an official veterinary health certificate from an authorised vet shortly before departure, in addition to your pet’s existing EU pet passport/microchip records (wetgiw.gov.pl — świadectwa weterynaryjne).

Entering Georgia. Companion-animal imports are regulated by Georgia’s National Food Agency (NFA), under the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, which handles veterinary import control at the border (nfa.gov.ge). Dogs, cats and ferrets generally need: microchip identification, a valid rabies vaccination, and an official veterinary/health certificate; Georgia does not require a rabies antibody titre test for arriving pets. The permitted window between vaccination and travel is commonly cited as roughly 21 days to 11 months, but this kind of timing detail can change — confirm the current requirement directly with the NFA or an accredited vet before you book travel, and have your animal’s paperwork ready for inspection at the border.

6. Vehicles, money and things people forget

Vehicles. If you’re taking a car out of Poland permanently, it needs to be deregistered ("wyrejestrowanie pojazdu") with the office that handles registrations for its last registered address, using the gov.pl "Wyrejestruj pojazd" process and submitting proof it will be, or has been, registered abroad (gov.pl — Wyrejestruj pojazd); ask that office directly about the current notification deadline so you don’t miss it. On the Georgian side, importing a vehicle is a separate, non-trivial customs event: it is assessed for import duty, VAT and an engine-size/age-based excise tax, calculated by the Revenue Service on a case-by-case basis — get a firm quote from rs.ge‘s official tools or a licensed Georgian customs broker before committing to ship a car, as costs can exceed the vehicle’s value for older, larger-engined models.

Money. Beyond the €10,000 EU exit-declaration threshold and Georgia’s GEL 30,000 entry/exit declaration threshold noted above, ask your bank about SEPA/international transfer limits and reporting when moving significant funds to a Georgian bank account, and keep proof of the funds’ origin for both Polish and Georgian banks’ compliance checks.

Things people forget.

• Update your address with ZUS/NFZ and Polish pension/insurance providers before you lose your registered Polish address — deregistration affects some benefit entitlements.
• Georgia’s permanent-residence declaration route depends on timing: ship after, not before, your Georgian residence status is confirmed wherever possible.
• Keep your Polish export declaration (AES/MRN) together with your Georgian import paperwork; brokers in Georgia will ask for the EU export documents to support your inventory valuation.
• Start the SDA residence-permit application early if you want it — standard processing runs 10 to 30 calendar days depending on the service tier (sda.gov.ge).

Reverse direction: moving from Georgia to Poland

Moving back inverts both processes. On the Georgian side, handle export formalities with the Georgia Revenue Service and close out any Georgian residence status. On the Polish (EU) side, since you’re now importing from a non-EU country, Poland’s "mienie przesiedleńcze" (resettlement goods) relief applies: goods are import-duty-free if they were owned and used at your Georgian residence for at least 6 months before you stopped living there, your residence in Georgia lasted at least 12 months, and the goods serve the same purpose in Poland — filed with KAS, with a 12-month restriction on selling, lending or transferring the relieved goods afterward without prior notice to the authorities (Powroty.gov.pl). A Georgian-registered vehicle is a fresh EU import subject to Poland’s own import/VAT rules, not a simple re-registration.

How Flyto handles your Poland to Georgia move

Flyto runs its own offices, warehouses, teams and vehicles across Northern, Central and Southern Europe, so the Polish collection, packing, storage and export-customs coordination on this move is handled in-house by people who do it daily. For the sea, road and air legs out of the EU and on to the Caucasus, we work through a carefully vetted network of freight and customs partners, and on the ground in Georgia we coordinate with trusted local partners for import clearance, delivery and, where needed, residence-related paperwork support — giving you one point of contact even though several specialists are involved along the route.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a visa to move to Georgia from Poland?
No — as an EU/Polish citizen you can enter and stay in Georgia visa-free for up to 365 days (geoconsul.gov.ge). If you intend to stay longer, or want your household goods declared under the permanent-residence route, apply for a residence permit through the SDA (sda.gov.ge).

Will I pay customs duty on my furniture and belongings entering Georgia?
It depends on the route. Ordinary personal-allowance limits are modest (for example GEL 500/30 kg every 30 days by land or sea). If you’re moving as a permanent resident, non-commercial personal effects (not vehicles, excise goods or food) are declared under a separate provision of Georgia’s Tax Code, subject to presenting your residence documentation — confirm the exact duty treatment with rs.ge or a Georgian customs broker before shipping (rs.ge).

Do I have to deregister anything in Poland before I leave?
Yes — report your departure abroad to your local registration office if you’re leaving for more than 6 months or permanently, which deregisters your Polish address record (gov.pl). Separately, notify your tax office once your tax residency has actually changed (gov.pl/finanse).

Can I bring my dog or cat to Georgia?
Yes, with a microchip, valid rabies vaccination and an official veterinary health certificate; Georgia’s National Food Agency does not require a rabies antibody titre test (nfa.gov.ge). You’ll also need an export health certificate from an authorised Polish vet before leaving the EU (wetgiw.gov.pl).

How long does sea freight take from Poland to Georgia?
There’s no direct scheduled Baltic–Black Sea container service, so shipments are typically transshipped via a Mediterranean or Bosphorus hub; Flyto’s industry estimate is roughly 5–8 weeks door-to-port. These are freight-industry planning estimates, not figures from any port or customs authority.

Should I ship or sell my car?
Vehicle import into Georgia carries import duty, VAT and an engine-size/age-based excise tax assessed case-by-case by the Georgia Revenue Service, and can be costly for older or larger-engined cars — get a specific calculation before deciding, and remember to formally deregister the vehicle in Poland if you do export it (gov.pl).

Sources

• Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa / Ministry of Finance — Zgłoszenie celne: informacje dla podróżnych
• PUESC (KAS) — Wywóz towarów (Eksport) / AES
• gov.pl — Zgłoś wyjazd za granicę
• Powroty.gov.pl — Zgłoszenie wyjazdu za granicę
• Powroty.gov.pl — Mienie przesiedleńcze
• Ministry of Finance / gov.pl — Informacja dla osób mieszkających poza granicami Polski dotycząca podatku PIT
• gov.pl — Wyrejestruj pojazd
• Straż Graniczna — granica.gov.pl: Przewóz przez granicę środków pieniężnych
• Główny Inspektorat Weterynarii — Podróż ze zwierzętami domowymi poza UE
• Główny Inspektorat Weterynarii — Świadectwa weterynaryjne dla zwierząt towarzyszących przemieszczanych do państw trzecich
• Port Gdańsk — About Port
• Georgia Revenue Service — Persons
• Georgia Revenue Service — Exemption of goods from duties and declaring (brochure)
• Legislative Herald of Georgia (Matsne) — Customs Code of Georgia
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia — geoconsul.gov.ge: visa-free travel
• Public Service Development Agency (SDA) — Migration/Residence Permits
• National Food Agency of Georgia — Veterinary Control