Hiring Engineers from Outside the EU in Poland
Work permits, the EU Blue Card and how long each route actually takes in 2026
Hiring engineers from outside the EU into a Polish company is possible, routine, and the slowest part of building a team here. It is also the part where the guides you will find online are most likely to be wrong, because the rules changed on 1 June 2025 and one programme that half of those guides still recommend has not accepted an application since January 2024.
Below is what the routes are, what they cost, and how long each one really takes. Figures are current as of August 2026, and none of this is legal advice.
Three routes, and they get confused
The confusion is worth clearing up first, because it decides who fills in what.
| Work permit (type A) | Single permit | EU Blue Card | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who applies | You, the employer | The engineer | The engineer |
| What it covers | Permission to work only. A separate visa or residence permit is still needed | Residence and work in one decision | Residence and work, for high-qualified roles |
| Where it is filed | Electronically, at the voivodeship office | Electronically, via the MOS portal, normally from inside Poland | Electronically, via the MOS portal |
| Official fee | PLN 200 up to three months, PLN 400 beyond | PLN 440, plus PLN 100 for the card | PLN 440, plus PLN 100 for the card |
| Statutory deadline | None | 60 days | 60 days |
| What actually happens | One to three months | Eight to ten months in Warsaw, longer in some cases | One to several months, depending on the voivodeship |
| Valid for | Up to three years | Up to three years | The length of the contract, renewable |
What changed on 1 June 2025
The new act on conditions for entrusting work to foreigners replaced a procedure that had barely moved in a decade. Four changes matter to a software employer.
The labour market test is gone. You no longer need an opinion from the district employment office confirming that no Pole wanted the job. In its place there is a list of protected occupations, set per district and driven by local unemployment and group redundancies. The lists are local, so check the district rather than assuming.
The whole procedure is electronic. Applications, explanations, appeals and documents go through the government system, and nothing is filed on paper any more. In practice this is the single biggest reason permits move faster than they used to.
The contract has to be in writing before the first day. If it is in a language other than Polish, you need a sworn translation and you have to keep it for two years after the employment ends. You also have to send the office a copy of the signed contract before work starts, and tell them if the person never turns up or leaves.
Penalties went up and inspections got sharper. Fines now run from PLN 3,000 to PLN 50,000 for each violation found, rather than as one total, and the labour inspectorate and Border Guard can arrive without the seven days of notice they used to give.
Overall the process is faster than it used to be, and the checks are harsher. For a company that intends to do this properly, that is a reasonable trade.
The EU Blue Card is usually the right route for a software team
The Blue Card is a residence permit for high-qualified employment, and since June 2025 it is easier to use than it was.
- Salary threshold for 2026: PLN 13,355.34 gross a month, or about PLN 160,264 a year. That is 150% of the 2025 national average. Applications started in 2025 use the older threshold.
- A contract of at least six months, down from twelve.
- Higher education, or documented professional experience at a comparable level, generally at least five years in the field. This is the provision that matters for good engineers without a degree.
- Mobility inside the EU. The holder can work in another member state for up to 90 days in any 180 without a further permit, and can move properly after twelve months of residence.
Put the threshold next to real salaries and the picture is clear. A mid or senior engineer clears PLN 13,355 comfortably. A junior does not, so juniors from outside the EU go through the ordinary routes. If you are budgeting a role at the border of the threshold, budget above it. A few hundred zloty either way decides whether the faster route is open.
The work permit route
You apply, electronically, for a type A permit tied to your company and that specific role. The fee is PLN 200 for up to three months of work and PLN 400 beyond that, which is the normal case. There is no statutory deadline, and one to three months is what we see, with the busier voivodeships at the slow end.
The permit is permission to work. It is not permission to be in Poland. If the person is abroad, they then need a national visa, and consular appointment availability is the variable nobody can plan around. If they are already in Poland on another basis, they may be able to switch to a single permit instead and skip a step.
Poland.Business Harbour no longer exists
This needs saying plainly, because it is still recommended everywhere. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs suspended Poland.Business Harbour on 26 January 2024, and consulates have not accepted a new application under it since. The reason was that it had started to function as a convenient way into the Schengen area rather than as a route to actually living and working in Poland.
People who already hold a PBH visa keep their rights and can move to a temporary residence permit without leaving Poland. For anyone new, it is not an option, and any adviser who offers it is working from an old page.
A realistic timeline
| Step | How long |
|---|---|
| Route chosen, diplomas and documents collected, sworn translations ordered | Two to four weeks |
| Work permit filed and issued | One to three months |
| National visa at a consulate, if the person is outside Poland | Driven by appointment availability, from a few weeks upwards |
| Arrival, address, PESEL | Days, once there is an address |
| Residence card, if the application is made inside Poland | 60 days by statute, eight to ten months in Warsaw in practice |
From signed offer to someone sitting at a desk, three to six months is normal. The residence card often arrives long after the person has started working, and that is not a problem in itself: an application filed on time keeps the stay legal while the office works through it. What does cause problems is starting late: if the plan depends on relocating one specific person, the permit work should run alongside the company registration, not after it.
One update worth knowing: since 27 April 2026 residence applications, the single permit and the Blue Card included, are filed electronically through the government’s MOS portal rather than on paper. Processing times have not changed much yet, so the timelines above still hold.
The mistakes that cost months
The most expensive one is waiting: the whole plan rests on relocating one person, and the paperwork starts months after the decision. Relocation is the only part of building a Polish team that cannot be compressed by spending more money.
The rest is discipline. Foreign-language documents need sworn translations. The contract has to be written and signed before day one, and the office wants a copy of it before work starts. If the person never turns up, or resigns after half a year, that information has to go back to the office too, and since June 2025 fines are counted per violation rather than per case. Watch the salary line as well: in a budget spreadsheet PLN 13,000 and PLN 13,400 look like the same offer, but only one of them opens the Blue Card route.
Frequently asked questions
Do we still need a labour market test?
No. It was abolished on 1 June 2025 and replaced with lists of protected occupations set per district.
Is Poland.Business Harbour still available?
No. It has been suspended since 26 January 2024 and consulates do not accept new applications. Existing visa holders keep their rights.
What salary do we need for an EU Blue Card in 2026?
PLN 13,355.34 gross a month, or roughly PLN 160,264 a year, for applications started in 2026.
Can an engineer without a degree get a Blue Card?
Yes. Documented professional experience at a comparable level can stand in for the qualification, generally at least five years in the field.
Can we start the process before the Polish company is registered?
The employer named on the application has to be a real entity, so in practice the company comes first. You can do the preparatory work in parallel: choose the route, collect diplomas, order translations.
When can the person actually start working?
Once the permit is issued and they have a legal basis for being in Poland. The residence card documents a status that already exists, which is why it can arrive months into the job.
If you would rather not run this yourself
BranchWise sets up and runs software subsidiaries in Poland for companies based abroad, including the permit and relocation work for engineers from outside the EU. If you are still at the earlier question, we also wrote about setting up the company itself.
Tell us what you are planning and we will walk you through how it would work in your case. You can also read how working with us goes, step by step.