Polish TV in the UK at a glance
- Free
- TVP Polonia, TVP’s channel for Poles abroad, streamed live worldwide on TVP VOD and polonia.tvp.pl
- Official apps in the UK store
- TVP VOD and TVP Sport (TVP), Player.pl (TVN), Polsat Box Go (Cyfrowy Polsat), Pilot WP (Wirtualna Polska)
- Since Brexit
- EU portability rules no longer cover the UK, so Polish subscriptions may show less here
- TV licence
- Needed in the UK to watch any channel live, including Polish channels
- Time difference
- Poland is 1 hour ahead of the UK all year
App listings checked on the UK App Store in September 2026. A listing doesn’t guarantee that every programme or live channel is available in the UK.
Legal ways to watch Polish TV in the UK
TVP Polonia: free, and made for you
TVP Polonia is Telewizja Polska’s channel for Poles living abroad. It carries news, current affairs, series and programmes about Polish communities around the world, and TVP streams it live on TVP VOD and on the TVP Polonia website for viewers anywhere. It’s the simplest legal starting point for Polish TV in the UK, and it costs nothing beyond your UK TV licence.
Polish broadcasters’ apps
The main Polish broadcasters publish official apps that are listed on the UK App Store:
| App | Publisher | What to expect in the UK |
|---|---|---|
| TVP VOD | TVP S.A. | TVP Polonia live worldwide, plus on-demand programmes; other channels and titles may be limited to Poland |
| TVP Sport | TVP S.A. | Sport news and clips; live events depend on the rights |
| Player.pl | TVN S.A. | TVN’s streaming service; check its rules for viewing from abroad |
| Polsat Box Go | Cyfrowy Polsat S.A. | Polsat’s streaming service; check its rules for viewing from abroad |
| Pilot WP | Wirtualna Polska | Online TV service; check which channels work outside Poland |
Check each service’s own information about viewing from abroad before you subscribe.
Why Polish subscriptions show less in the UK
Polish broadcasters buy most programmes, films and sport for Poland only. Inside the EU, the Portability Regulation lets subscribers keep using their home services while temporarily in another EU country. Two things limit that for the UK:
- It no longer applies to the UK. According to the UK government, the regulation stopped applying to UK–EEA travel on 1 January 2021 and has been revoked in UK law.
- It never covered living abroad. Even inside the EU, portability is for temporary stays, not for people who live in another country.
So a Polish subscription used in the UK may show a reduced catalogue or block live channels, and that’s the service following its licences, not a fault. Sellers promising “full Polish TV from home” in the UK for a small fee are usually unlicensed.
You still need a UK TV licence
According to TV Licensing, you need a UK licence to watch or record live TV on any channel, including channels from outside the UK, on any device. That includes watching TVP Polonia live. On-demand viewing (other than BBC iPlayer) doesn’t need one. See IPTV and the TV licence.
Setting up Polish channels in an IPTV player
- Guide times. Poland is one hour ahead of the UK all year. If a guide is exactly one hour out, set a time shift in the player; our EPG offset calculator explains which way. If the guide is empty, see EPG not loading.
- Polish characters. Letters such as ą, ę, ł, ś and ż should display correctly. If they appear as symbols, the playlist or guide file is saved in the wrong encoding; see editing an M3U playlist.
- Audio tracks. Some films carry several tracks, such as a Polish voice-over (lektor) and the original language. Switch tracks during playback in your player’s audio menu.
Before you pay for Polish channels
- Try TVP Polonia and the official apps first.
- Check who you’re paying, with a business name, terms and a refund policy.
- Be wary of packages with every Polish channel, including premium sport, for a few pounds a month. See is IPTV legal?.
More language guides: Romanian TV in the UK, Turkish TV in the UK and all languages.