For inspection, officers of the Customs and Tax Service from the Lower Silesian Customs and Tax Office in Wrocław selected a tarp-covered van. The vehicle was stopped at the border crossing in Kudowa-Słone.

While checking the cargo area, the officers found 22,606 stuffed toys. Among them were toys depicting, among other things, popular characters from animated films.

According to the Lower Silesian KAS, some of the goods infringed intellectual property rights. The secured products were also made of low-quality materials and did not have the required certificates.

The lack of required instructions in Polish and failure to meet technical standards were also a problem.

The toys were intended for vending machines

The van driver and passenger were questioned. According to their statements, the goods had previously been purchased at a Vietnamese shopping centre in Prague.

The stuffed toys were then to be sold as toys offered through vending machines.

The total value of the seized goods was estimated at more than PLN 1.1 million.

KAS: such products may pose a threat

In the case of toys, protecting intellectual property rights is not the only important issue; the safety of their users is also crucial. Products that do not meet the requirements applicable in the European Union may pose a threat to consumers’ health and lives.

That is why, during border inspections, officers check, among other things, product labelling, documentation, certificates and declarations of conformity.

If there is a reasonable suspicion that the goods do not meet the required standards, they may be seized and transferred to the relevant market surveillance authorities for further inspection.

In this case, seizing the products at the border meant that they did not enter further distribution or sale.

More than 8 million toys inspected in 2025

The scale of such inspections is much greater. The Lower Silesian KAS reminds us that in 2025, the National Revenue Administration inspected approximately 8.2 million toys.

According to the data provided, approximately 8.1 million of them did not meet safety requirements.

The services emphasise that effective inspections are possible thanks to cooperation with market surveillance authorities, other services and entities holding intellectual property rights.

Possible consequences

The case of the seized stuffed toys may also have criminal consequences. If it is confirmed that, in order to introduce the goods into circulation, the perpetrator marked them with a counterfeit trademark or traded in such goods, they may be held liable under provisions concerning trademark protection.

Depending on the circumstances, the penalties may include a fine, restriction of liberty or imprisonment for up to two years. In the case of goods of considerable value, the law provides for more severe liability—up to five years’ imprisonment.