The Polish Ministry of the Interior and Administration has published a draft amendment to the Act on Foreigners. If adopted, the proposed changes would simplify immigration procedures for certain foreign nationals while introducing additional requirements and restrictions for others. The key proposed changes include the following:
- Fast-Track Residence Permits processing for Selected Nationalities (“tacit approval”)
Poland is proposing a new “tacit approval” procedure for temporary residence permit applications from nationals of selected highly developed countries. If authorities do not issue a negative decision within 60 days and the application is complete and free of formal deficiencies, the application will be deemed approved.
In practice, additional time may still be needed for the formal decision to be issued and for the residence card to be printed. However, this change will result in a significant reduction in processing times for qualifying nationals.
Although an official list of eligible nationalities has not been published yet, the new procedure is expected to apply to nationals of Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Israel, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.
- Work Permit Exemption for Selected Nationals
The same group of nationals expected to benefit from the “tacit approval” procedure will also be exempt from the requirement to obtain a work permit in Poland.
- New Notification Requirement Expanded to nationals who are exempt from a work permit
Similar to the current notification requirement applicable when employing Ukrainian nationals, employers will be required to submit an employment notification within seven (7) days of the employee commencing work for the following individuals:
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- Nationals covered by the work permit exemption described above
- Full-time students at Polish universities
- Graduates of Polish Universities
- Pole’s Card holders
- Family reunification permit holders
- Spouses of Polish citizens holding a temporary residence permit as a family member of a Polish citizen.
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- The extension of Temporary Protection for Ukrainian Nationals
The European Union intends to extend temporary protection for Ukrainian nationals until 4 March 2028.
However, newly arriving Ukrainian men aged 25 to 60 may be required to provide a certificate confirming their exemption from military mobilization to qualify for temporary protection. Without such confirmation, temporary protection may not be granted.
Individuals who do not qualify for temporary protection will still be able to remain in Poland and apply for a temporary residence based on employment or other grounds in Poland.
- The restriction of the visa free regime for select nationalities
Poland plans to restrict the ability for nationals of Georgia, Colombia and Venezuela to rely on the visa-free regime when entering Poland for employment purposes. In other words, nationals of these countries wishing to take up employment in Poland will be required to obtain a Polish national visa before entering the country.
Next Steps:
Please note that these are currently proposed changes only. The legislative process has not yet been completed, and the draft provisions may be amended before they enter into force.
We will continue to monitor developments and provide further updates as additional information becomes available.
If you have any questions regarding the proposed changes, please contact the T&S EMEA Team.
