VisaHQ and Business Insider Polska warn that the 2025 overhaul of Poland’s Foreign Employment Act is only the opening salvo in a wider compliance clamp-down. From 1 January 2026, three major changes will hit employers: (1) the special act waiving work-permit quotas for more than one million displaced Ukrainians is due to expire, potentially reinstating annual caps; (2) Poland’s statutory minimum-wage hike will automatically raise salary thresholds embedded in work-permit and single-permit rules; and (3) a draft ordinance proposes fast-track fines for firms that fail to notify authorities within seven days when a foreign hire does not start work.
Electronic filing, introduced nationwide this year, gives labour inspectors real-time visibility into permit data but has exposed inconsistencies among voivode offices. Legal advisers predict fiercer competition for a finite number of permits once the Ukrainian safeguard lapses, elongating processing times and inflating recruitment costs.
![HR Alert: Foreign-Worker Compliance Tightens Ahead of 2026 Quotas]()
Multinationals are already conducting year-end audits to map job families reliant on Ukrainian talent and to train HR staff on the upgraded e-portal. Practical tips include budgeting longer lead times for extensions, updating posted-worker cost models, and revising relocation allowances where wage hikes may push expatriates into higher tax brackets. Failure to adapt could trigger fines of up to PLN 50,000 under the June 2025 amendments.
Business groups support digitisation but urge the government to clarify quota rules before annual planning cycles close and to publish a single nationwide FAQ to reduce inter-regional disparities.
Electronic filing, introduced nationwide this year, gives labour inspectors real-time visibility into permit data but has exposed inconsistencies among voivode offices. Legal advisers predict fiercer competition for a finite number of permits once the Ukrainian safeguard lapses, elongating processing times and inflating recruitment costs.
Multinationals are already conducting year-end audits to map job families reliant on Ukrainian talent and to train HR staff on the upgraded e-portal. Practical tips include budgeting longer lead times for extensions, updating posted-worker cost models, and revising relocation allowances where wage hikes may push expatriates into higher tax brackets. Failure to adapt could trigger fines of up to PLN 50,000 under the June 2025 amendments.
Business groups support digitisation but urge the government to clarify quota rules before annual planning cycles close and to publish a single nationwide FAQ to reduce inter-regional disparities.
