Poland’s bankomat fees will increase significantly starting February 2026, with users of independent operators like Euronet and Planet Cash most affected.
ATM withdrawal fee increases starting February 2026
February 2026 will go down in Polish banking history as the moment of departure from predictable rates for physical cash access. The previous model, where card operators charged flat fees for each ATM withdrawal (e.g., 1.30 zł for Visa), is being replaced by a hybrid mechanism. The new rules combine a fixed base of 1.20 zł with a percentage-based fee depending on withdrawal amount. Mastercard set this additional fee at 0.18%, while Visa set it at 0.17%. This seemingly minor technical correction actually upends the profitability of cash transactions in Poland.
Users of independent operators like Euronet and Planet Cash will be most affected
The scale of increases is best illustrated by numbers that are alarming for the banking sector. For a 1,000 zł withdrawal from an ATM, the transaction cost for a bank issuing a Mastercard will increase from approximately 1.70 zł to nearly 3 zł. For Visa cards, the jump is even more dramatic – from 1.30 zł to 2.90 zł. This represents a 50-100% increase in operational costs, an unprecedented move. Financial institutions, facing the need to cover these billion-dollar differences nationally, will certainly not bear this burden themselves but will pass it on to customers by updating fee tables.
Bankomats are disappearing from Polish streets
This phenomenon is part of a broader, worrying trend of shrinking cash infrastructure in Poland. Rising energy, service, and cash transportation costs are already causing ATMs to disappear from smaller towns. The decisions made by Visa and Mastercard could paradoxically accelerate this process. Although machine owners will receive higher compensation per transaction, the drastic fee increase for customers may discourage cash use. The decrease in transaction volume will make maintaining many locations simply unprofitable, deepening the phenomenon of “ATM deserts.”
Experts have no illusions: 2026 marks the beginning of the end of the era of universal and free cash access
Banks, forced by new Mastercard and Visa regulations, will promote cashless payments even more aggressively than before. For older people or those lacking digital skills, for whom the ATM is their only window to the financial world, this change will have not only economic but also social dimensions. Cash is slowly becoming an exclusive commodity, for which possession and distribution will require us to pay a high market price.
