Emergency Calls, Complaints

Ambulance: 104
Fire Department: 105
Police: 107
International emergency call centre: 112
The above phone numbers can be called free of charge.
Hungarian Automobile Club's Emergency Phone: 188

Telephone

Country Code for Hungary: 36. City Code for Budapest: 1. Domestic long-distance call prefix: 06
International calling prefix: 00

The public phones work with 10, 20, 50 and 100 HUF coins or with phone-cards available at hotels, post offices, petrol stations, newsagents, kiosks and street vendors. The minimum charge for a call is 20 HUF.

Information on Frontier Crossing

Between the EU countries, Norway and Iceland the citizens of the member states, Norway and Iceland are not required to have a passport.
National identity card is needed for entry into Hungary for citizens of Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finnland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Passport is required for entering Hungary for citizens from Denmark, United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland, Latvia, Norway and Sweden.
Citizens of the following European countries are required to have visa to enter Hungary: Albania, Belorussia, Macedonia, Moldavia, Russia, Serbia, Montenegro, Turkey, Ukraine.
For the travel of children they need either their own passport or their own ID card or in the lack of them they need to be registered in one of their parents' passport.

Health Issues

Immunisation: not a requirement for entering Hungary. Persons diagnosed with an infectious disease are not permitted to enter the country.
Medication: Products containing narcotic substances can only enter with the special permission of the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
Medication prescribed abroad can be purchased in pharmacies at full market price. Only a limited selection of over-the-counter drugs are available in Hungary.
Emergency and ambulance services are free of charge in cases requiring immediate medical attention.

Shopping

In general, shops are open from Monday to Friday, from 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m., on Saturday from 9.00 a. m. to 1.00 p. m. Stores do not close for lunch.
Food stores and shopping malls are open from Monday to Friday from 7.00 a. m. to 7.00 p.m., on Saturdays from 7.00 a.m. to 2.00 p.m. Large shopping centres, entertainment complexes and some private stores open on Sundays as well or are open for 24 hours.

Tax-Free Shopping

The total sum of the bill (VAT included) must be at least 50,000 HUF. Ask the shop assistant for a detailed VAT invoice, VAT-refund form and a "Tax - Free" envelope. Attach the official receipt or the credit card receipt to the documents. Have all documents stamped by Hungarian Customs before leaving Hungary. VAT reimbursement is not possible without a Hungarian customs stamp!

Post Offices, Post Office ATM ("Postamat") Service

Post offices are usually open from Monday to Friday, from 8-18h.
There are two post offices next to the two central railway stations in Budapest that are open from Monday to Saturday, from 7 to 21h. Over 3200 post offices across Hungary provide cash withdrawal services for those with bank or credit cards.