What is MiCA: the EU crypto regulation and what it changed in Poland

MiCA is the EU regulation on markets in crypto-assets (Markets in Crypto-Assets, Regulation 2023/1114). It is directly applicable in every EU country and has applied since 30 December 2024. After 1 July 2026, only companies with a valid MiCA authorisation may provide crypto services in Poland. No Polish company holds such an authorisation: Poland still has no law that designates a supervisor. The MiCA ban is aimed at those who provide crypto services, not at their clients. However, clients of unauthorised providers do not benefit from MiCA safeguards, and the Tax Administration Chamber in Katowice says such companies should be treated as high-risk.

What MiCA means in plain English

The MiCA Regulation was adopted on 31 May 2023. The stablecoin rules have applied since 30 June 2024, the rest since 30 December 2024. It applies in the same way in every EU country and does not need to be copied into national law.

MiCA covers anyone who issues or offers crypto-assets, seeks their admission to trading or provides crypto services in the EU. Crypto services include, for example:

• holding crypto for clients;
• running a trading platform (an exchange);
• exchanging crypto for money or for other crypto;
• executing and passing on client orders;
• providing advice and portfolio management;
• transferring crypto on a client's behalf.

The regulation splits crypto-assets into three types. E-money tokens purport to keep a stable value linked to one official currency, such as the US dollar. Asset-referenced tokens purport to keep a stable value by referencing another value, right or basket of currencies. Everything else falls into the third group, for example bitcoin and utility tokens.

MiCA does not cover unique tokens (NFTs), or crypto-assets that are financial instruments, deposits or money (other than e-money tokens), among some other exclusions.

How it worked in Poland before MiCA

Before MiCA, crypto exchange offices in Poland worked under the Anti-Money Laundering Act. To operate, a business had to be entered in the register of virtual currency activity. To be entered, the business owner or the company's managers had to have no conviction for the intentional offences listed in the Act and had to show knowledge or experience: a course or a year of work in the field. Operating without an entry carried a fine of up to 100,000 zł.

The register is kept by the director of the Tax Administration Chamber in Katowice. The director states that they are not a MiCA supervisor and cannot grant MiCA authorisations. An entry in the register is not a MiCA authorisation. After 1 July 2026, it does not entitle a business to operate, in Poland or abroad.

What changed on 1 July 2026

MiCA gave companies a transitional period. A company that lawfully provided crypto services before 30 December 2024 could carry on until 1 July 2026, or until a decision on its application for authorisation, whichever came first. An EU country could choose not to apply this period or to shorten it if it concluded that its previous rules were less strict than MiCA.

In Poland, the transitional period ended on 1 July 2026. According to UKNF, it cannot be extended by law or by a KNF decision. After that date, Polish companies cannot operate under the transitional period until they obtain an authorisation. After 1 July 2026, only companies with a valid MiCA authorisation may provide crypto services.

If a provider has not obtained an authorisation or has announced it is closing, it should let clients withdraw their assets and tell them what to do next. Some offline networks have stopped exchanging crypto. FlyingAtom suspended crypto exchange in its offices and bitcoin ATMs from 1 July 2026 and chose to seek a licence in another EU country. The Kanga network of exchange offices discontinued its service because of MiCA. To The Moon suspended its services from 1 July, and Wymienbitcoina.pl stopped exchanging crypto.

Why Poland has no MiCA authorisations of its own

Poland has no law that applies MiCA. As KNF stated on 23 June 2026, no Polish authority has therefore been designated as the MiCA supervisor so far, except for supervising issuers of e-money tokens. According to UKNF, authorisations can be granted in Poland only once a law designates such an authority.

The Sejm has passed a crypto-asset market act three times, and the President vetoed it each time:

• first act: vetoed on 1 December 2025; on 5 December, the Sejm failed to pass it again, with 243 votes in favour and 192 against;
• second act: vetoed on 12 February 2026; on 17 April, the Sejm failed to pass it again, with 243 votes in favour, 191 against and 3 abstentions;
• third act: passed by the Sejm on 15 May 2026, with no Senate amendments; vetoed on 11 June 2026; on 4 September, the Sejm failed to pass it again, with 241 votes in favour, 198 against and 3 abstentions.

You can track the progress of each act on the Sejm website.

Who can provide crypto services in Poland now

A company authorised under MiCA in one EU country can also operate in other EU countries. To do so, it notifies its regulator which countries and services it plans to cover. According to UKNF, such companies may operate in Poland after 1 July 2026 as well, and they do not need an office in Poland.

On 24 September 2026, companies in the ESMA register with Poland on their list of countries included Payward Europe Solutions (Kraken, Ireland), Coinbase Luxembourg, Revolut Digital Assets (Europe) (Cyprus), Bybit EU (Austria), OKX Europe (Malta), XTB Limited (Cyprus) and Bitstamp Europe (Luxembourg). Binance is not in the register. The register is updated once a week, so check a provider yourself before you use it.

What MiCA gives you as a client

A MiCA-authorised company must hold safeguards, such as its own funds or an insurance policy, of at least a minimum capital amount: from €50,000 to €150,000 depending on its services. For crypto exchange and custody it is €125,000. The company must:

• act honestly and in the client's best interests;
• give clear information and warn about risks;
• safeguard clients' crypto, including if the company goes insolvent, and not use it for its own account;
• place clients' money with a bank or central bank by the end of the next business day;
• handle complaints free of charge under a published procedure.

The Tax Administration Chamber in Katowice states that MiCA-authorised companies have been positively assessed by supervisors for compliance with client protection rules. It notes that companies without an authorisation should be treated as high-risk. Their clients may have less legal protection and a higher risk of losing access to their assets. The Chamber also points out that crypto held with any crypto provider is not guaranteed by the state, unlike bank deposits.

ESMA invites clients to check whether their provider is authorised under MiCA. If it is not, ESMA advises acting promptly, including moving crypto to an authorised provider or to your own wallet. Clients of unauthorised providers do not benefit from MiCA safeguards, including protection of their assets.

What MiCA means for USDT

Tether states that USDT is pegged one-to-one to the US dollar. Under the MiCA definition, USDT therefore falls within e-money tokens. Such a token can be offered to the public in the EU by an issuer authorised as a credit institution or an electronic money institution that has notified its white paper to the regulator and published it, and by others only with the issuer's written consent. On 24 September 2026, the e-money token file of the ESMA register listed USDC from Circle, but no entries for Tether or USDT.

ESMA expects crypto providers in the EU to stop offering clients stablecoins whose issuer is not authorised in the EU, including exchanging them for money or other crypto, where this amounts to an offer to the public. Holding and transferring such tokens remains possible.

How to check a provider in the ESMA register

The ESMA register is a public list of MiCA-authorised companies. It consists of five CSV files and is updated once a week. To check a company:

• open the MiCA page on the ESMA website and download the "Crypto-asset service providers" file;
• find the company's row by its legal name;
• check that Poland (PL) is among the countries where the company intends to provide services;
• check that the authorisation withdrawal date field is empty.

If a provider does not name its company, or the company is not in the register, you cannot confirm that it has a MiCA authorisation. To spot scams, see our article How to avoid scams when exchanging crypto.

What changes next

From 10 July 2027, the EU Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR) will apply directly in every EU country. For one-off transactions, crypto providers will have to identify clients and verify their identity regardless of the amount, and carry out full checks from €1,000. Linked transactions will be added together. Crypto providers will be banned from keeping anonymous crypto accounts. The limits that apply today are covered in the article on the crypto exchange limit without KYC.

Poland's crypto-asset market act has not yet been passed. On 8 September 2026, the President submitted a new bill to the Sejm. As of 24 September, it had no print number yet: it had been sent for opinions to the Sejm's offices and outside bodies, including KNF and NBP. No date has been set for the act to be passed.

Frequently asked questions

Information as of 28 September 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.