Poland

Special Legislation

In connection with the influx of refugees, Poland has adopted special legislation – Act of 12 March 2022 – on help for the citizens of Ukraine in connection with armed conflict in its territory (“Special Legislation”). Under the Special Legislation a Ukrainian citizen who:

• left Ukraine and arrived in Poland in connection with the armed conflict in Ukraine after 24 February 2022, and
• declares their intention of staying in Poland,

​​
has a right to legally reside in Poland for a period of 18 months from 24 February 2022 (i.e. until 24 August 2023).

​This period can be extended based on a special temporary residence permit. The Special Legislation allows Ukrainian citizens who entered Poland based on its provisions to file an application for a special temporary residence permit. The permit is issued for a maximum period of three years. The application should be filed at least 9 months from entry and not later than the last period of the legal stay under the Special Legislation. Overall, the Special Legislation can enable a Ukrainian citizen to stay in Poland for a period longer than four years. However, temporary residence permit issued to Ukrainian citizens under the simplified procedure is planned to be eliminated in view of the planned legislative changes.

Ukrainian citizens who legalized their stay based on the Special Legislation can work and conduct business activity.

​There is no application process for the Special Legislation route.

Working in Poland under the Special Legislation route

Ukrainian citizens who fulfil the conditions stipulated in the Special Legislation are entitled to stay and work in Poland by the virtue of law. There is no need for a permit or other administrative formalities. Ukrainian citizens can start work immediately. However, the employer must, within 14 days, notify the labour office about entrusting work to a Ukrainian citizen. The work must be entrusted with no fewer working hours not less than those indicated in the notification or with no fewer number of hours than that indicated in the notification, and with wages of not less than established at the rate specified in the notification, proportionally increased if the working hours or the number of working hours is increased.

The only exemption pertains to those Ukrainian citizens whose entry to Poland was not registered during the crossing of the Polish border by the Border Guard. Those Ukrainians must register within 90 days of entering the territory of Poland with the local authorities. As a result, the foreigner will be entered into the register of the Border Guard and given a personal identification number PESEL. Legislative work is currently underway to remove the 90-day deadline for registration. At the same time, there will be a deadline of 30 days from entry to Poland to submit an application for a PESEL number (registration), which under the planned changes, will be mandatory for Ukrainian citizens.

Under the Special Legislation, Ukrainian citizens who entered Poland based on its provisions can conduct business activity under the same conditions as Polish citizens. This means that they can conduct their business activity after:

​​

• obtaining a PESEL number (number in the Electronic System for Registration of the Population);
• opening a PLN bank account in a Polish bank;
• registering their business activity at CEIDG (Central Register and Information on Economic Activity) at the local administration and obtaining a NIP number (Taxpayer Identification Number).

​
Please note that leaving Poland for a period longer than a month deprives a Ukrainian citizen of the protection granted based on Special Legislation. This rule does not apply to individuals referred by entities operating in Poland to perform work or services outside Poland.

Currently, any person who has Ukrainian citizenship, is an adult, has crossed the border after 24 February 2022, has been assigned a PESEL number and has an active trusted profile, can obtain an electronic Diia.pl document. Together with a valid travel document (passport), it entitles to cross the borders of Schengen countries and stay in these countries for up to 90 days in the last 180 days. In addition, the document entitles the holder to cross the Polish border in the direction of entry from the territory of Ukraine for the entire period of recognition of the stay of a Ukrainian citizen as legal in Poland under the Special Legislation (i.e. for 18 months calculated from 24 February 2022), regardless of whether the foreigner is entitled to visa-free days or not. It is recommended to legalize the stay of self-employed Ukrainian citizens based on the Special Legislation as the protection status under the Special Legislation is currently the most beneficial solution available to Ukrainian citizens under Polish law. The alternative protection statuses – described below – are currently less beneficial to Ukrainian citizens who entered Poland after 24 February 2022.

​For more routes to work in Poland, click here.

Temporary protection

Foreigners (including family members of citizens of Ukraine) who are not citizens of Ukraine and are not spouses of citizens of Ukraine or members of the immediate family of a citizen of Ukraine holding the Card of the Pole may apply for temporary protection. The provisions apply to persons who have resided legally in Ukraine on the basis of a valid permanent residence permit and are unable to return to their country of origin in safe conditions or have enjoyed protection in Ukraine (including family members of the latter). Foreigners who meet the above requirements may obtain a certificate confirming that they have been granted temporary protection. The certificate is issued by the Office for Foreigners upon the foreigner’s application and it is free of charge. The matter may be settled in person.

Temporary protection status is granted for a period until the return of a foreigner to their country of residence becomes possible, although not for longer than one year. If the obstacles for the safe return of foreigners to their previous place of residence continue, the period of temporary protection is to be 107894977 v1 31 extended for a period of further six months, but no more than twice. The temporary protection status allows for a legal stay of maximum two years, whereas the Special Legislation allows for a stay longer than four years. Temporary protection allows for the right to work, conduct business activity as well as to access healthcare in Poland.

The Special Legislation is treated as ‘lex specialis’ in relation to the temporary protection. For that reason, Ukrainian citizens to whom the special legislation applies enjoy the rights under the Special Legislation and stay and work based on the special legislation.

International protection

An alternative solution providing for a legal stay in Poland is to acquire international protection, i.e. refugee/complimentary protection. In general terms:

• refugee status is granted due to fear of being persecuted in the country of origin for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group;
• complimentary protection is granted where return to the country of origin may expose the foreigner to a real risk of suffering  serious harm by i.a. torture, threat to life or health of the civilian population in situations of armed conflict.

The foreigner is deprived of the refugee/complimentary protection status if, after such status has been granted, the competent authority found that the reasons for granting this status have ceased to exist.

The international protection is granted in a formal procedure which is initiated on the application of the foreigner. The application is decided within a period of 6 months from filing the application (which in complex cases can be extended to 15 months).

A person who acquires the status of refugee/complementary protection has a right to work/conduct business activity in Poland. A person who filed an application for international protection can start working in Poland after the lapse of 6 months from filing the application once being provided with a temporary certification.

Under certain conditions, refugee/complimentary protection status can entitle its holder to a permanent residence permit.

Asylum

A foreigner can be granted asylum in Poland if it is necessary to provide him/her with protection and if it is justified due to the important interests of Poland. Asylum is granted on a discretionary basis – no claim to be granted asylum can arise in accordance with Polish law. The foreigner is to be deprived of asylum when the reasons for which he/she was granted it cease to exist.

The international protection is granted in a formal procedure which is initiated on the application of the foreigner. The application is decided within the period of 6 months from filing the application (which in complicated cases can be extended to 15 months).

Alternative routes to work in Poland for Ukrainian Nationals

Foreigners can also work on the basis of other titles. A citizen of Ukraine can work in Poland on the basis of:

• Temporary residence and work permit – may be granted to a foreigner who intends to undertake or continue work in the territory of Poland, if the circumstances justify his/her stay in Poland for more than 3 months. On the basis of the granted permit, the foreigner receives a residence card, which, together with a travel document, entitles him to cross the border multiple times without the need to obtain a visa.
• Temporary residence permit for highly qualified workers (the so-called Blue card) – a residence permit for persons who have a valedictorian degree or at least 5 years of work experience at a level comparable to the level of qualifications obtained through higher education. This permit is granted for a period of 3 months longer than the period of work, but no longer than 3 years.
• Residence permit for the purpose of business activity – A temporary residence permit for the purpose of business activity shall be granted to a foreigner whose purpose of residence is to perform work by performing functions on the board of directors of a limited liability company or a joint-stock company which he has established or whose shares he has taken up or acquired
• Visa “Poland. Business Harbor” – a special visa that allows working without the need to obtain a work permit. Intended mainly for those with experience in the IT sector
• Statement of employment of a foreigner – the employer may obtain for citizens of Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Russia or Ukraine a statement of employment if the period of employment does not exceed 24 months
• Work permit – a work permit for a foreigner applied for by the employer. A work permit for a foreigner is issued for a specified period of time, but no longer than 3 years.