Immigration
Poland | Draft Act on the labour market access for foreign nationals
Significant changes in the Polish immigration law
Summary
The Polish government is developing a new bill to regulate the access of foreign nationals to the Polish labour market. The legislation is anticipated to be enacted in the third quarter of 2024. Its objectives include streamlining immigration procedures via digitalization and reducing administrative burdens, and preventing abuses and circumvention of the regulations.
The detail
The Polish government has recently proposed a new Act on the Access of Foreign Nationals to the Labour Market.
The aim is to consolidate the regulation of foreign employment in Poland into a single legislative act, which is presently scattered across multiple bills and ordinances.
The new regulations will enhance the existing ones by incorporating provisions to prevent abuse and circumvention of the requirements, thereby elevating the standards of the labour market.
The proposed legislation is set to introduce enhanced measures necessary to eradicate abuse and circumvention of regulations, thereby safeguarding the local labour market and immigrants based on:
– enforcing stronger penalties for the illegal employment of foreigners and for submitting false data about their employment (fines will be proportional to the number of illegally employed individuals);
– ad-hoc, announced controls of Border Guards and Labour Inspectorate to verify employment of foreign nationals in Poland;
– denying a work permit if the employer fails to pay social security contributions or income tax advances as well as when (based on the criteria set in the new law) an entity was created or is operating primarily to facilitate the entry of foreign nationals into Poland, without the intention of providing subsequent employment;
– extra requirements for issuing work permits to newly founded entities or those utilising virtual offices, as well as for companies whose employees are working remotely within Poland;
– restrictions of the possibility of making workers available under the guise of so-called labour outsourcing.
In addition there are some further developments expected as follows:
Full digitalization of the work permit procedures through:
– introduction of an electronic system to streamline digital filing, communication, and the collection of work permits, as well as to manage appeals and complaints processes;
– establishment of a central database to oversee the employment conditions of foreign nationals, ensuring they align with the granted work permits – the database will monitor employer compliance with social security and income tax payments, granting access to institutions including, but not limited to, the Border Guards, Labour Inspectorate, Tax
Authorities, Social Security Institution, and the Office for Foreigners.
Involving additional authorities to process work authorizations in order to enhance the function of Public Employment Services to decrease the workload in government offices and eliminate the current backlogs. This involves the labour offices processing certain work authorizations, as well as implementing a list of professions and jobs that are restricted from receiving work permits in specific regions.
Reducing administrative barriers and enhancing work permit procedures through:
– limiting the number of immigration procedures and introducing organisational changes to enhance efficiency and reduce work permit processing times;
– abolishing the Labour Market Test, allowing local authorities to issue a list of professions ineligibles for work permits, effectively preventing the hiring of foreign nationals for certain positions;
– discontinuing the work permit extension and allowing ongoing employment while awaiting the next work permit;
– introducing cases to be processed as a priority.
What it means
The new legislation is designed to streamline and digitise work permit processes to expedite processing times and alleviate the current backlogs.
Simultaneously it reinforces work permit criteria and defines the conditions that will restrict the employment of foreign nationals, including the imposition of severe penalties for noncompliance.
Employers must establish appropriate procedures to oversee, monitor, and ensure compliance with regulations regarding the employment of foreign nationals in Poland. Each employer that intends to hire foreigners must demonstrate its financial and business standing, which may pose a challenge as the draft regulations lack clarity in rules and policies.
Contact us
For a deeper discussion on the above, please reach out to your Vialto Partners point of contact, or alternatively:
Jadwiga Chorązka
Partner
Emilia Piechota
Immigration Director
Further information on Vialto Partners can be found here: www.vialtopartners.com
Vialto Partners (“Vialto”) refers to wholly owned subsidiaries of CD&R Galaxy UK OpCo Limited as well as the other members of the Vialto Partners global network. The information contained in this document is for general guidance on matters of interest only. Vialto is not responsible for any errors or omissions, or for the results obtained from the use of this information. All information is provided “as is”, with no guarantee of completeness, accuracy, timeliness or of the results obtained from the use of this information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including, but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will Vialto, its related entities, or the agents or employees thereof be liable to you or anyone else for any decision made or action taken in reliance on the information in this document or for any consequential, special or similar damages, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.
Simply follow our Vialto Alerts page on LinkedIn and posts will be displayed on your feed. To ensure you don’t miss one, once you’re on our LinkedIn page, click on the bell icon under the banner image to manage your notifications.
Further information on Vialto Partners can be found here: www.vialtopartners.com
Vialto Partners (“Vialto”) refers to wholly owned subsidiaries of CD&R Galaxy UK OpCo Limited as well as the other members of the Vialto Partners global network. The information contained in this document is for general guidance on matters of interest only. Vialto is not responsible for any errors or omissions, or for the results obtained from the use of this information. All information is provided “as is”, with no guarantee of completeness, accuracy, timeliness or of the results obtained from the use of this information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including, but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will Vialto, its related entities, or the agents or employees thereof be liable to you or anyone else for any decision made or action taken in reliance on the information in this document or for any consequential, special or similar damages, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.
© 2025 Vialto Partners. All rights reserved.