Discounts on railway and public transport for students - rules and validity of the ID card

Discounts on railway and public transport

One of the most important benefits for students is travel discounts. People under 26 years of age can benefit from a 51% discount on train tickets. In public transport, the statutory discount is 50%.

The scope and rules for using local discounts may vary depending on the city and carrier. Before purchasing a ticket, it is worth checking the regulations of a specific transport network.

Students can also count on discounts offered by private entities, including: cinemas, museums, bookstores, sports facilities, restaurants and companies providing digital services. However, these are not statutory reliefs, so their availability and amount depend on the offer of a given company.

The validity of the ID card matters

To benefit from the discounts, your ID card must be valid. Universities confirm its validity in accordance with applicable regulations and their own organization of the academic year.

As a rule, the document becomes invalid after graduation, removal from the student list or suspension of student rights. An exception applies to first-cycle graduates: their ID card is valid until October 31 of the year of graduation. This solution allows, among others: retain the right to discounts in the period between the completion of bachelor's or engineering studies and the commencement of second-cycle studies.

Check the rules before traveling

When using discounted tickets, you must have a valid ID card with you. During the inspection, the lack of it may mean the need to pay an additional fee, even if the passenger actually has the status of a student.

Detailed rules for railway discounts are published by the Office of Rail Transport. Regulations regarding the validity of the ID card result from the regulations on studies, available, among others, in the ISAP legal acts database.

The document confirms status, but not identity

A student ID is a document confirming your student status. However, it is not an identity document. Therefore, it cannot be used, for example, instead of an ID card during a police check or in situations requiring formal confirmation of data and age.

Nowadays, the document is in electronic form - it is equipped with a chip and contains basic student data, his photo and information about the university. There is also an mLegitymacja studencka (student ID card) available in the mObywatel application, if the university allows its issuance.