[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"advice-en-oswiadczenie-employment-foreigner":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"excerpt":6,"body":7,"datePublished":8,"dateModified":8},"oswiadczenie-employment-foreigner","Declaration of entrusting work to a foreigner in 2026","Who the declaration is for after 1 December 2025 changes, PLN 400 fee, 24-month limit, documents, entry and notification deadlines and the most common refusal reasons.","\u003Cp>A declaration of entrusting work to a foreigner (oświadczenie o powierzeniu pracy cudzoziemcowi) is the simplest route to legally employing a citizen of Armenia, Belarus, Moldova or Ukraine. The employer files it electronically, pays a PLN 400 fee, and the staroste (district labour office) enters it in the register usually within 7 working days. Work on this basis may last at most 24 months. Since 1 June 2025 the procedure has operated under the new Act on the conditions of admissibility of entrusting work to foreigners, and since 1 December 2025 — also under several new regulations which have changed, among others, the list of states and the fee amount.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Ch2>Who the declaration is for in 2026\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>The declaration can only be used for citizens of four states:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>the Republic of Armenia,\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>the Republic of Belarus,\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>the Republic of Moldova,\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Ukraine.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Cp>Georgia dropped off the list on 1 December 2025. A Georgian citizen whose declaration was entered in the register before that date may work until its expiry on the terms set out in it. New employment of a Georgian already requires a work permit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The declaration does not cover seasonal work in the types of activity listed in the regulation — for them a seasonal-work permit is used. For Ukrainian citizens benefiting from temporary protection in Poland, the regulations additionally provide for a simplified notification to the labour office; it is worth determining which route applies to the specific person. A broader overview of all bases for employing foreigners is given in the article \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fadvice\u002Femploying-foreigners-overview\">Employing foreigners 2026 — permits, costs, obligations\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Ch2>Conditions the employer must meet\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>The \u003Cstrong>work period\u003C\u002Fstrong> indicated in the declaration cannot exceed 24 months.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>The \u003Cstrong>start date\u003C\u002Fstrong> must fall no later than 6 months from the date of filing. A declaration that does not meet these conditions is left without examination.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Remuneration\u003C\u002Fstrong> cannot be lower than the pay of employees in a comparable position or than the minimum wage. In 2026 that is PLN 4,806 gross for a full-time job or PLN 31.40 per hour for a mandate contract.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Reliability of the entity\u003C\u002Fstrong>: the declaration must not contain untrue data, and the person acting for the employer cannot have been punished twice in the last 12 months for specified offences in employing foreigners.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Cp>The Council of Ministers may additionally introduce annual declaration limits, e.g. for selected voivodeships or professions. Once the limit is exhausted, the staroste will refuse entry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Ch2>Documents and data to prepare\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>The following are attached to the declaration electronically:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Col>\n\u003Cli>a scan of all completed pages of the foreigner's valid passport,\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>proof of payment of the PLN 400 fee, from which it is clear which foreigner it concerns,\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>documents confirming qualifications — where the work concerns a regulated profession,\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>confirmation of arrangements with the user-employer — where the work is entrusted by a temporary-work agency.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Fol>\n\u003Cp>The form itself contains, among others, the employer's data (NIP and REGON, or PESEL in the case of a natural person), the PKD code of the activity in which the foreigner will work, passport data and the visa or residence-card number. Originals may be requested for inspection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Ch2>Procedure step by step\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Col>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Fee.\u003C\u002Fstrong> The PLN 400 is paid before the declaration is filed. As a rule it is not refundable.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Filing the declaration.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Exclusively through the public employment services' IT system, to the staroste competent for the registered office or permanent residence of the employer.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Entry in the register.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Where the case requires no clarification — within 7 working days at the latest; in clarification cases — within 30 days. The staroste may indicate a later start date for the work than the one in the application.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Before work starts.\u003C\u002Fstrong> The employer hands the entered declaration to the foreigner and sends the staroste, through the same system, a copy of the contract with the foreigner in Polish. The terms of the contract must correspond to the declaration.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Notification of taking up work\u003C\u002Fstrong> — within 7 days of the day it began.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Notification of not taking up work\u003C\u002Fstrong> — within 14 days of the start date indicated in the register; the early termination of work is reported separately.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Fol>\n\n\u003Ch2>Obligations during employment\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Raising remuneration when the minimum wage or minimum hourly rate goes up.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Proportional increase in pay when the working-time quota or the number of hours in the civil-law contract rises.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Making documents available (in Polish or in translation) on request of, among others, the National Labour Inspectorate (PIP), ZUS, the Border Guard.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Payment of back pay, if during inspection it turns out the foreigner was receiving less than was due.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Cp>Some changes do not require a new declaration, e.g. a change of the employer's registered office or name or increasing the working time to a full-time job. Other changes in working conditions are worth consulting before being introduced, because they may require a new declaration to be filed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Ch2>Most common reasons for problems\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Salary in the declaration lower than the minimum or than that of other employees in the same position.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Start date more than 6 months after filing.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>No notification of taking up or not taking up the work — this carries a fine of PLN 500 to PLN 5,000.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Filing a declaration for a citizen of a state outside the list, e.g. Georgia after 1 December 2025.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Assuming that the declaration legalises stay. The foreigner must be present in Poland on a basis that allows work; the declaration concerns only the right to perform work.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\n\u003Ch2>How Good Balance can help\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>We prepare and file declarations, watch over notification deadlines and the consistency of contracts with the entry. When cooperation is to last longer than 24 months, we conduct the procedure for a \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Flegalization\u002Fresidence-permit-employment\">temporary stay and work permit\u003C\u002Fa>. The HR side of employment, including ZUS registration and payroll, we handle as part of our \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Fhr\u002Femployees\">employee HR support\u003C\u002Fa> service.\u003C\u002Fp>","2026-10-09"]