How to Get a Monthly Public Transport Pass in Warsaw as a Foreigner
The essentials: Get a Warszawska Karta Miejska (WKM) at a ZTM passenger point or online, then encode a 30-day ticket: 110 zł in zone 1, 180 zł for zones 1+2 (98 zł if you pay PIT in Warsaw). It gives unlimited rides from validation until 23:59 of day 30.
The monthly pass: what you are buying
Warsaw's public transport - metro, trams, buses and urban SKM trains - runs on tickets from ZTM, branded publicly as Warszawski Transport Publiczny (WTP). For anyone commuting, the long-term pass is the core product: one payment, unlimited rides on every day and night line, from the moment you validate the ticket until 23:59 of its final day. A 30-day pass is not tied to a calendar month - it starts whenever you first validate it, so you lose nothing by activating mid-month.
Foreigners buy exactly the same passes as Poles, at the same prices. The only extra step is the card the ticket lives on.
Current prices from the official tariff
Per the WTP long-term ticket price list (wtp.waw.pl), the standard personal ("imienny") passes cost:
- 30-day, zone 1: 110 zł (55 zł reduced fare)
- 30-day, zones 1+2: 180 zł (90 zł reduced)
- 90-day, zone 1: 280 zł (140 zł reduced)
- 90-day, zones 1+2: 460 zł (230 zł reduced)
Two important variants:
- Bilet Warszawiaka: if you settle your PIT income tax in Warsaw, the 30-day pass for both zones drops to 98 zł (49 zł reduced) and the 90-day to 250 zł - the city's reward for paying local tax. Once you file taxes in Warsaw, this is the best deal in the system.
- Bearer pass ("na okaziciela"): a 30-day zones 1+2 pass at 230 zł that is not tied to a named person - useful if a visitor or family member will share it, though most residents save more with a personal card.
Reduced fares ("ulgowy") are half price and apply to defined groups such as students under 26 with a valid student card; check the current entitlement list before assuming you qualify.
*Data source: Warszawski Transport Publiczny, "Bilety długookresowe" tariff (wtp.waw.pl), checked 21 October 2026.*
What the pass actually covers
One pass, one network. Per the WTP tariff, the 30- and 90-day tickets entitle you to an unlimited number of rides on all day and night lines - that means both metro lines, the full tram network, every day bus and the N-prefixed night buses that radiate from the centre after midnight. Warsaw's night network is genuinely useful: night buses run every 30 to 60 minutes on main arteries, and the pass covers them with no surcharge.
The long-term tickets are also valid in the "Wspólny bilet ZTM-KM-WKD" common-ticket offer, which on designated routes lets the same pass work on Koleje Mazowieckie (KM) suburban trains and the WKD light rail within their Warsaw sections - handy if your trip mixes metro and a city-bound train. SKM city trains inside Warsaw accept ZTM tickets as well. The practical upshot: for getting around Warsaw itself, the monthly pass is close to a universal key.
Zones: do you need zone 2?
Zone 1 covers the whole city of Warsaw proper - every district inside the city limits, both metro lines, and Chopin Airport. Zone 2 wraps the suburban ring (towns like Piaseczno, Pruszków, Legionowo, Marki). If you live and work in Warsaw, zone 1 is enough; you only need 1+2 if your commute crosses the city boundary. The price difference on a 30-day pass is 70 zł, so it is worth checking where the line you use actually crosses zones.
The break-even math
Single fares from the same official tariff: a 20-minute ticket costs 3.40 zł and a 75-minute zone-1 ticket (transfers allowed) costs 4.40 zł. At 4.40 zł a ride, the 110 zł monthly pass breaks even at about 25 rides a month - roughly one round trip on three days a week. Any regular commuter clears that easily, and the pass also removes the mental overhead of buying and validating tickets on every trip. Pets and luggage travel free, by the way.
*Data source: Warszawski Transport Publiczny, "Ceny i rodzaje biletów" (wtp.waw.pl), checked 21 October 2026.*
Step one: the Warszawska Karta Miejska (WKM)
Personal long-term tickets are encoded on the Warszawska Karta Miejska - a personalized card with your name and photo, issued by ZTM. The WKM page on wtp.waw.pl lists three application routes:
1. Online, through the electronic Passenger Service Point (e-POP) or the Moja Warszawa city e-services portal with a trusted profile (profil zaufany). 2. In person, at any ZTM Passenger Service Point (Punkt Obsługi Pasażerów) - the staffed booths at major metro stations and transit hubs. 3. At the district Residents' Service Office (Wydział Obsługi Mieszkańców) for your dzielnica.
What you need: a photo (portrait orientation, plain light background, no head covering, taken within the last 6 months; online uploads need JPG/PNG at minimum 200x259 pixels, up to 8 MB), your full name, and your PESEL - or simply your date of birth if you do not have one, which the form explicitly provides for foreign nationals. Applying in person you do not even need a paper photo: you take it on your phone at the counter via a QR code. The card itself is then a permanent carrier - every month you just encode a fresh ticket onto it.
*Data source: Warszawski Transport Publiczny, "Warszawska Karta Miejska" (wtp.waw.pl), checked 21 October 2026.*
Step two: encode and validate
With the card in hand, buy the 30- or 90-day ticket at the red-and-yellow ticket machines (they have an English interface and take cards), at a Passenger Service Point, or through mobile ticket apps, and encode it onto the WKM. Remember the one rule that catches newcomers: the pass must be validated. Touch the card to a validator on the vehicle (or the metro gate) on your first ride - the 30 or 90 days count from that moment. After validation, you ride freely; inspectors accept the encoded card without any printout.
A few habits worth building:
- Buy before you board. Ticket inspections are part of daily life on Warsaw transport, and "I just arrived" is not an accepted explanation.
- Validate on day one of use, not day one of purchase - the clock starts at validation, so you can buy ahead.
- Carry the card even for "one quick stop" - plain-clothes and uniformed inspectors work the metro, trams and buses daily, and a pass left at home counts as no ticket.
- Mind the zone boundary on suburban trips - if your ride crosses into zone 2 on a zone-1 pass, buy a boundary extension before boarding rather than arguing with an inspector later.
- Keep the card topped up a few days early if you rely on it daily; encoding a new ticket takes a minute at any machine.
If you are here short-term
Not staying a month? The tariff also has 1-day and 3-day short-term tickets and a weekend ticket that often beats buying singles for a visitor's itinerary. And if you will only ride occasionally, pay-as-you-go with a bank card at the yellow validators or in the ticket apps works fine - the monthly pass only wins once you commute regularly. Many newcomers mix the two: singles for the first settling-in weeks, then a WKM and a 30-day pass once work and routine begin.
Practical tips from week one
1. Get the WKM on your first free afternoon - the in-person route at a metro-station POP takes minutes and needs no PESEL. 2. Choose zone 1 unless you know otherwise - it covers the entire city including the airport. 3. File your PIT in Warsaw when the time comes - the Bilet Warszawiaka cuts the monthly pass to 98 zł. 4. Photograph your WKM number so a lost card can be blocked and its ticket reissued. 5. Validate every new ticket once, then forget about tickets for a month.
Frequently asked questions
How much is a monthly transport pass in Warsaw?
110 zł for zone 1 (the whole city) or 180 zł for zones 1+2, at the normal fare; reduced fares are half price. A 90-day pass is 280 zł or 460 zł respectively. If you pay PIT tax in Warsaw, the Bilet Warszawiaka covers both zones for 98 zł a month.
Do foreigners need a PESEL to get the Warsaw travel card?
No. The WKM application form explicitly lets foreign nationals provide their date of birth instead of a PESEL number. You also need your name and a compliant photo.
Where do I apply for the Warszawska Karta Miejska?
Online via the e-POP passenger portal or the Moja Warszawa portal with a trusted profile, in person at any ZTM Passenger Service Point (including metro-station booths), or at your district's Residents' Service Office.
When does the 30-day ticket start counting?
At first validation - touch the card to a validator on board or at the metro gate. The ticket then runs until 23:59 of the thirtieth day, regardless of when you bought it. * Photos: "Biletomat ZTM Warszawa" by Walking Poland Group (CC BY-SA 2.0) and "Tram station Dolna Street, Warsaw, 2025" by Wistula (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons.
