💡 The courier asks for a signature on a device or paper; if you are not at home he leaves a notice or hands it to neighbours, and sometimes redirects the parcel to a paczkomat (parcel locker).
💡 Sąsiad is neighbour; the courier may ask Czy mogę zostawić paczkę u sąsiadki?; you may agree or not: Tak, proszę or Nie, dziękuję, wrócę później.
💡 The courier often phones when he can't get into the building; say the floor and flat or intercom number; you can ask him to leave the parcel at the door.
💡 A courier leaves a parcel at your door only with your permission; otherwise he hands it to a neighbour or a pick-up point and leaves an awizo (notice) in your letterbox.
💡 Couriers ask you to sign with your finger on the screen of a device; the signature confirms receipt, so check first that the box is intact.
💡 If the tracking says "delivered" but there is no parcel, first ask the neighbours and check the place given in the tracking; then contact customer service with the tracking number.
💡 The SMS or app has a kod odbioru (pickup code) and a phone number; on the locker's screen you choose "Odbierz paczkę", enter the phone number and code, and the compartment opens. You must collect within a few days.
💡 At a pickup point (punkt odbioru, for example in a Żabka or at a petrol station) you show the kod odbioru on your phone and sometimes ID; the parcel waits a few days.
💡 If the compartment won't open, try again; then phone the infolinia (hotline) or write in the app: they often open it remotely.
💡 At an InPost paczkomat you collect the parcel with the QR code from the app or with the pick-up code from the SMS and your phone number: hold the code to the reader and wait for the compartment to open.
💡 At a pick-up point in a shop you show the code or notice and an ID; someone else can collect it for you only with your written authorisation and a copy of your ID.
💡 An awizo is a notice in the letterbox about a letter or parcel waiting at the post office; with it and ID they are handed out; storage lasts several days, then a second awizo.
💡 List zwykły is ordinary, list polecony registered, za potwierdzeniem odbioru with proof of delivery; a letter abroad needs a different stamp.
💡 A parcel outside the EU needs a customs declaration (deklaracja celna): content and value are stated; check the list of prohibited goods on the carrier's site.
💡 The price of a parcel depends on weight and size; you can buy a box and tape at the post office; the tracking number lets you follow the delivery online.
💡 On a parcel with fragile things you write or stick Uwaga, szkło (careful, glass); wrap every item in paper and fill the box.
💡 If the notice says the parcel was left with neighbours, knock and ask politely: Czy ktoś przyjął paczkę dla mnie?
💡 Bringing a neighbour a bar of chocolate or a small gift for help is a nice gesture; in Poland it is pleasant but not expected.
💡 Asking a neighbour to accept a parcel is normal; say roughly when it will come, thank them and collect it quickly; the courier leaves a notice in your letterbox saying who has the parcel.
💡 Online purchases can be returned within fourteen days without giving a reason (odstąpienie od umowy); the shop's email has an etykieta zwrotna (label) or a code for a locker.
💡 An etykieta zwrotna is the return label; look for it in the shop's email, in your account or on the carrier's website; nadać paczkę is to hand in a parcel for dispatch.
💡 Parcels from outside the EU are sometimes held up by customs: you may have to pay duty or tax (cło, VAT) and submit documents; the notice comes from the carrier or Poczta Polska.
💡 For online purchases there is a right of withdrawal within fourteen days (prawo odstąpienia); sending is usually free with the seller's label; the money is refunded once the seller has received the goods; keep the confirmation.
💡 After a return the seller usually refunds the money within fourteen days; keep your numer zamówienia (order number) and the posting confirmation at hand.
💡 If you get the wrong item, take a photo, write to the seller and ask for a return label: returning it is free when the seller made the mistake.