Citizeo
Pathway

Poland Temporary Residence and Work Permit

Poland Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Poland's temporary residence and work permit is for non-EU/EEA/Swiss citizens who will live in Poland to work for a Polish employer or other qualifying Polish work arrangement. It generally requires legal stay in Poland when applying, employer paperwork, non-seasonal work, compliant pay and conditions, and health insurance.

Type
Work permit or work residence
Work fit
People with a qualifying work route in Poland
Core requirements
Eligible citizenship, job terms, and route-specific documents
What to know
Often temporary and route-specific
Salary requirement
≥ minimum wage
Job offer required?
Yes; the old labor-market test was abolished on 1 June 2025

Summary

Poland's temporary residence and work permit is the main combined permit for a person from outside the EU, EEA, and Switzerland who will live in Poland for more than 3 months to do a specific, non-seasonal job. It is often called a “uniform permit” because one decision covers both residence and the work described in that decision.

The route starts with a concrete Polish job. Merely searching, applying, or interviewing does not provide the employer information needed for an application. Seasonal work, an assignment to Poland by a foreign employer, and some other work situations have separate procedures.

Pathway fit check

Eligibility

This route may fit if:

The old labor-market test was abolished on 1 June 2025. An employer should not rely on an old checklist that still asks for a starosta's labor-market information. However, a county may now identify occupations or types of work for which permits will not be issued locally, so the employer should check whether a current restricted list affects the position.

What This Route Allows

The permit lets you live in Poland and work under the employer, position, pay, working-time, and contract terms in the decision. It is generally granted for more than 3 months and no more than 3 years.

This is not fully open work authorization. A material change of employer or employment terms may require a permit amendment or a new application. If the job ends, the permit holder normally has 15 business days to notify the voivode in writing. Prompt advice is important because losing the job does not by itself create a general job-search status.

Qualifying time on this permit can count toward the 5-year residence period for EU long-term resident status. That later application still requires its own residence-continuity, income, insurance, housing, and Polish-language evidence.

What This Route Is Not

Next Steps

  1. Confirm the employer's legal name, position, contract type and duration, working time, gross pay, and intended start date.
  2. Ask the employer to check any current county restricted-occupation list and to confirm that the pay meets both general employment law and residence-permit rules.
  3. Gather your passport, digital photograph, proof of legal stay, insurance evidence, and any role-specific qualifications. Arrange sworn Polish translations when required.
  4. Give the employer the email address MOS will use for its digital attachment and allow time for the employer to complete and sign it.
  5. File electronically through MOS before your legal stay expires. Since 27 April 2026, temporary-residence applications generally must be submitted through MOS, signed through login.gov.pl, and supported by the required attachments. Save the UPO.
  6. Attend when the voivode calls you to show the original passport, give fingerprints and a signature specimen, or complete the evidence.
Compare your options

Similar work permit pathways in other destinations.

Sources