Poland’s Ministry is proposing postal law changes in 2025, creating new obligations and costs for courier companies handling potentially dangerous goods.
Rationale for Proposed Changes
The impetus for the work was proposals from social stakeholders submitted within the government’s deregulation team in May 2025, calling for clear regulations on what operators can do when they only during delivery discover that the package contains dangerous goods.
This included the possibility of opening the package under commission, disposing of the cargo, and claiming from the sender the costs of securing and storing it.
Current Regulatory Gaps
The ministry emphasizes that today’s postal regulations do not address the transport of dangerous goods within the meaning of the ADR Act (the 1957 international convention regulating the road transport of such loads), which is why most operators simply do not undertake to transport such shipments.
The lack of authorization to check the contents of a package while maintaining postal confidentiality creates a risk of unknowingly violating the law by both the sender and the operator.