EU Blue Card

(a temporary residence permit for work in highly skilled professions)

It is a special type of residence permit aimed at highly skilled professionals who intend to undertake a highly qualified job in Poland. If you want to have it granted you need to have an employment contract for a period of at least 1 year, high enough income and documents confirming your qualifications. The permit may be granted for a period not longer than 3 years. It is granted  for a period 3 months longer than the period of employment, however, it still cannot be longer than 3 years.

The permit is issued so that you could undertake a job for a particular employer and under certain conditions.  A change in working conditions within two years from the date of permit requires notification of the Office that issued it. It should be done within 15 days. If you want to change the employer you must obtain a new permit. If do not do not fulfill the above obligations it may result in the withdrawal of the permit.

If you apply for an EU blue card, you must submit:

• an employment contract for a period of at least 1 year (optionally it may be a mandate contract or a contract for specific work),
• qualifications and documents required in order to undertake a particular job in the case of regulated professions,
• documents confirming that you have high professional qualifications,
• health insurance as referred to in the provisions on public health insurance or a document confirming that the costs of medical treatment on the territory of Poland will be covered by an insurance company,
• consent to perform work, hold a specific position or start a business activity, when it is required.

The amount of required earnings is at least 150 percent. average salary in Poland in the year preceding the submission of the application for a permit.

The employer must also carry out a labor market test, unless:

• the occupation performed by the foreigner is included in the list of occupations and types of work exempted by the voivode from the labor market test;
• the foreigner, immediately before submitting the application, had a residence and work permit or a residence permit for the purpose of working in a profession requiring high qualifications for the same employer in the same position;
• the foreigner has already been legally employed in Poland for a period of 2 years on the basis of a temporary residence permit in order to perform work in a profession requiring high qualifications;

• for the profession of a foreigner, there are grounds for issuing a permit, irrespective of the conditions referred to in art. 88c of the Act on Employment Promotion and Labor Market Institutions (the list of professions is defined by the minister responsible for labor);

• the foreigner meets the conditions for exemption from the obligation to have a work permit specified in separate regulations.

The regulations allow a foreigner to be temporarily unemployed twice during the time of the permit being granted. Periods of unemployment may not, however, be longer than three months.

Legal basis:

Act of 12 December 2013 on Foreigners (Articles 127-139)

The act of 17 December 2021 amending the act on foreigners and some other acts

Development: Editorial team of Zielona Linia