A foreigner can legally work in Poland if several conditions are met. Above all:

• their stay in Poland must be legal (e.g., based on a residence card, visa);
• they must be entitled to perform work in Poland (e.g., based on a work permit).

It should be emphasized that performing work in Poland will be legal only if the foreigner’s stay is legal. In the case of a foreigner losing the right to legal stay or losing the right to perform work, this will mean the inability to legally perform work in Poland.

Possibility to take up employment based on the special act – premises regarding stay (in force from March 23, 2022):

A foreigner whose stay is considered legal under Article 2(1) of the Special Act, which states that if a Ukrainian citizen entered legally into the territory of the Republic of Poland in the period from February 24, 2022, to the date specified in the regulations issued pursuant to paragraph 3 and declares the intention to remain in the territory of the Republic of Poland, their stay in this territory is considered legal for a period of 18 months counting from February 24, 2022, or a foreigner who is a Ukrainian citizen legally staying in the territory of the Republic of Poland (e.g., visas, visa-free travel).

• For persons covered by the special act, a simplified employment procedure has been introduced – in this regard, it is sufficient to notify the labor office within 14 days from the date of employment of the Ukrainian citizen.
• Certain categories of persons qualifying for temporary protection, but who have not been covered by the above regulation, have the right to stay and work in Poland for 12 months without the need to obtain a work permit or register a declaration or notification to the District Labor Office.
• For persons who have not been covered by the special act or temporary protection, and who have applied for international protection, work in Poland will not be permitted during the first 6 months of this procedure.

Declaration on entrusting work to a foreigner in Poland

registered by District Labor Offices (simplified procedure, among others, for Ukrainian citizens).

Citizens of 6 countries – Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Moldova, enjoy facilitated access to the Polish labor market based on the so-called declaration.

Currently, for a period of 24 months, citizens of the above-mentioned countries can perform work without the need to obtain a work permit, provided they have a written declaration of the entity entrusting the performance of work registered with the appropriate district labor office and a written contract.

The waiting period for entering the declaration into the records is approximately 7 working days.

The employer is obliged to inform the district labor office about the foreigner taking up work or not taking up work within 7 days from the start date indicated in the declaration.

It should be noted that most district labor offices require the submission of a declaration in electronic form and do not accept paper applications.

Work permits – types

A – concerns a foreigner performing work in the territory of the Republic of Poland on the basis of a contract with an entity whose registered office or place of residence or branch, establishment, or other form of organized activity is located in the territory of the Republic of Poland;

B – concerns a foreigner performing work consisting of serving on the board of a legal entity entered in the register of entrepreneurs or being a capital company in organization, or managing the affairs of a limited partnership or limited joint-stock partnership as a general partner, or in connection with being granted a power of attorney for a period exceeding a total of 6 months within consecutive 12 months;

C – concerns a foreigner who performs work for a foreign employer and is delegated to the territory of the Republic of Poland for a period exceeding 30 days in a calendar year to a branch or establishment of a foreign entity or an entity related, within the meaning of the Act of July 26, 1991, on personal income tax (Journal of Laws of 2016, item 2032, as amended), with a foreign employer;

D – concerns a foreigner who performs work for a foreign employer who does not have a branch, establishment, or other form of organized activity in the territory of the Republic of Poland and is delegated to the territory of the Republic of Poland to provide a service of a temporary and occasional nature (export service);

E – concerns a foreigner who performs work for a foreign employer and is delegated to the territory of the Republic of Poland for a period exceeding 30 days within consecutive 6 months for a purpose other than that indicated in type B, C, D permits.

Type A permit – is the most frequently issued type of permit. Before applying for a type A permit, it is necessary to determine whether it is necessary to obtain the so-called mayor’s information about the local labor market (“labor market test”). The mayor’s information may also be required in the case of an application for a temporary residence and work permit.

Type S permit allows the employment of a foreigner for work in selected sectors of the economy (recognized as seasonal, e.g., tourism). The application for a seasonal work permit is submitted to the district labor office appropriate for the registered office or place of residence of the employer.

• Waiting period: approximately 1 – 3 months
• The employer who intends to employ a foreigner is a party to the proceedings for granting a work permit and it is the employer who submits the application for its issuance.
• It is possible to submit an application electronically.
• In the case of a foreigner who is to perform work in a regulated profession, apart from obtaining a work permit, they must meet additional requirements on which the possibility of performing a regulated profession or activity depends.

Temporary residence and work permit (the so-called Unified Permit) – Issued by Voivodeship Offices

• Obtaining this permit requires the personal appearance of the foreigner to submit fingerprints at the voivodeship office.
• Waiting period: approximately 6 – 12 months.
• Appropriate office: Voivodeship Office appropriate for the place of residence of the foreigner in Poland.
• Unlike a work permit, in the case of a unified permit, it is the foreigner who is a party to the proceedings for granting a work permit and it is they who submit the application for its issuance. Official correspondence is directed directly to the foreigner, to their address for delivery provided in the application form.

In a unified permit, as in a work permit, the employer and position are specified.

There are temporary residence permits that allow work without a permit, such as temporary residence permits for a family member (spouse) of a Polish citizen or having the status of a university graduate and working without a permit.

Special solutions – work based on the so-called “SPECIAL ACT”

The Act of March 12, 2022, on assistance to Ukrainian citizens in connection with the armed conflict on the territory of that state (Journal of Laws of 2022, item 583), provides for special rights for Ukrainian citizens who legally stay in the territory of Poland, regarding the right to perform work in Poland.

This entitlement applies to both Ukrainian citizens who entered Poland from February 24, 2022, and whose stay is legal under the special act, as well as Ukrainian citizens legally staying in the territory of the Republic of Poland on another basis (e.g., visa, visa-free travel).

The employer is obliged to notify the District Labor Office within 14 days from the date of the foreigner taking up work. The notification is sent to the office appropriate for the registered office or place of residence of the entity entrusting the performance of work.

Notification of entrusting work to a Ukrainian citizen should be made electronically (through the portal www.praca.gov.pl), and the notification must include the following data:

• information about the entity entrusting the performance of work – the employer,
• basic data of the foreigner,
• type of contract,
• position or type of work performed,
• place of work performed.

Failure to meet the notification requirement means the inability to perform work without a work permit.

According to the provision of Article 39 of the Special Act, also in the case of granting a Ukrainian citizen a temporary residence permit based on this special act, their work will be legal without the need to have a work permit.

Other possibilities of taking up work without a permit

In some cases, it will also be possible to take up work without the need to obtain a declaration or permit, under general principles.

A work permit in Poland is not required, among others, when a foreigner: has the status of an EU/EEA/Swiss citizen or a member of their family (spouse as well as a dependent ascendant and descendant or their spouse up to the age of 21 or dependent on them),

• is a person specified in the Regulation of the Minister of Labor and Social Policy of April 21, 2015 – e.g., when a foreigner is a graduate of Polish upper secondary schools, full-time higher education or full-time doctoral studies at Polish universities,
• has the right to permanent residence based on a permanent residence permit issued in Poland or a long-term EU resident permit,
• has consent for stay for humanitarian reasons or consent for tolerated stay in the Republic of Poland,
• is the spouse of a Polish citizen, having a temporary residence permit in the territory of the Republic of Poland granted in connection with the conclusion of marriage,
• has specific residence permits, e.g., temporary residence permit for the purpose of family reunification, for the purpose of education at studies but this only applies to full-time or doctoral studies,
• has a valid Polish Card,
• has a valid visa with the annotation “Poland. Business Harbour”.

Other exceptions are regulated, among others, in:

• the Act on Employment Promotion and Labor Market Institutions (Article 87)
• the executive regulation of the Minister of Labor and Social Policy of April 21, 2015, on cases in which entrusting the performance of work to a foreigner in the territory of the Republic of Poland is permissible without the need to obtain a work permit (Journal of Laws 2018.2273).

Information for entities employing Ukrainian Citizens (employer’s obligations)

First of all, it is necessary to confirm the citizenship of the foreigner, verify whether they have issued permits in Poland or another European Union country, and determine whether they meet the conditions allowing them to work without a permit.

Before entrusting work, it is the employer’s obligation to check whether the foreigner has a valid document entitling them to stay in Poland, make a copy of this document, and keep it throughout the entire period of employing the foreigner (a document entitling to stay in the territory of Poland may be a residence permit or a valid visa).

It is necessary to ensure that the foreigner’s residence title may be associated with the right to take up employment in the territory of the Republic of Poland (type of visa – e.g., tourist visa).

Obtain an appropriate permit, register a declaration, or notify the Labor Office.

The employer is obliged to sign a contract with the foreigner (contract in written form) and present to the foreigner before signing the contract its translation into a language understandable to the foreigner. Other documents such as those related to health and safety at work or the remuneration regulations should also be translated.

The contract with the foreigner must include the working conditions contained in the declaration, work permit, or temporary residence and work permit.

The foreigner should receive from the employer one copy of the work permit which the permit concerns.

The entity entrusting the performance of work should inform the foreigner about actions taken in connection with the legalization of their employment.

Remember the same tax obligation as for any other employee (settlement of advance payments for income tax) and insurance (Social Insurance Institution), the minimum wage requirement, as well as obligations arising from labor law.

Foreigner’s remuneration

The amount of monthly remuneration cannot be lower than the amount of the minimum wage for work (in 2022, this is the amount of 3,010.00 PLN gross).

The amount of remuneration, which will be specified in the contract with the foreigner, cannot be lower than the remuneration of employees performing work of a comparable type or in a comparable position.

Employment contract

• we apply the provisions of the labor code (types of contracts, duration of the contract, notice periods);
• the regulations do not indicate the period for which an employment contract should be signed with a foreigner;
• the duration of the contract may be longer than the declaration or work permit.