Warsaw’s Nadwiślański Border Guard (NwOSG) and city traffic police carried out a surprise joint inspection on 16 July at two of the capital’s busiest mobility hubs—the area in front of Warszawa Centralna rail station and the forecourt of Chopin Airport. Officers stopped a number of cars working for smartphone ride-hailing apps and discovered two drivers—citizens of Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan—who had overstayed their visas and were continuing to provide passenger transport services without the right to live or work in Poland. Both men were taken into administrative custody and, after accelerated proceedings, received return orders together with two-year Schengen-wide re-entry bans. Their vehicles were impounded for further tax and insurance checks, and the platform operator has been asked to provide information on its driver-vetting procedures. The incident underscores how Poland’s Border Guard is expanding inland spot-checks that used to be confined mainly to border crossings. For multinational companies that rely on app-based mobility solutions for visiting staff, the operation is a reminder to verify that subcontracted drivers are fully compliant with immigration and labour rules. Legal experts note that the case illustrates a wider EU trend: platforms can be held co-responsible for facilitating unregulated work and may face fines if they fail to ensure drivers’ legal status. Companies arranging transfers for business travellers should therefore keep an auditable record of the compliance measures taken by their transport providers. Practical takeaway: travel managers should brief employees that they may be asked for ID during random checks even deep inside the country and should keep valid travel documents on them at all times.
