Warsaw introduces a nighttime ban on alcohol sales. They will start with two districts
Warsaw at night (photo by depositphotos)

On Thursday, members of the Warsaw City Council voted to ban the nighttime sale of alcohol in two districts of the Polish capital: The city center and Prague-Pulnoś (artistic district). About reports Business Insider.

The overwhelming decision means that alcoholic beverages will not be sold in stores and gas stations in these areas from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Most likely, the new rules will come into force on November 1, after publication in the official Gazette of the Mazovian Voivodeship.

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Similar restrictions have already been imposed in other Polish cities, such as Poznan, Katowice, and Krakow. In many cases, restrictions were first introduced in certain districts and only then extended to entire cities.

Earlier, Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski said that the restrictions on alcohol sales would be extended to the whole of Warsaw, but from July 2026.

Along with the restriction on alcohol sales, additional police patrols are to appear, and the city will collect data on how the new rules affect security.

According to the Polish Institute of Economics (PIE), the social costs of alcohol consumption in Poland are more than twice as high as the budget revenues from excise taxes.

Deputy Director of PIE Andrzej Kubisiak emphasizedthe report says that alcohol in Poland remains "relatively cheap and easily accessible".

"There are no serious restrictions on stores that have licenses to sell alcohol. However, there is a successful experience of limiting the trading hours – for example, in Germany, the ban on night sales reduced the number of hospitalizations of young people after drinking alcohol by 9%," he explained.

Similar measures are in place in other EU countries such as Lithuania, Italy, Spain, and Slovenia.

  • In May, it became known that Saudi Arabia for the first time since 1952 abolishes the ban on alcohol. The innovation, which is part of the preparations for Expo 2030 and the 2034 FIFA World Cup, will come into force in 2026 and will apply to tourist areas.