President Karol Nawrocki has signed legislation repealing the 2022 Special Act on Assistance to Citizens of Ukraine, closing a four-year chapter in which more than 1.5 million Ukrainians were granted near-automatic rights to live and work in Poland. The bill, enacted on 20 February 2026, replaces the bespoke regime with the EU’s standard Temporary-Protection Directive and Poland’s Foreigners Act. Ukrainian nationals already in the country will retain legal stay until 4 March 2027 but must apply for residence cards, register address changes and obtain a PESEL ID within 30 days of any new arrival. Warsaw argues the switch restores “equal rules for all third-country nationals” and eases fiscal pressure—annual social-benefit costs had reached PLN 11 billion. Critics counter that many refugees risk falling into irregular status because appointment slots at voivodeship offices remain scarce.
![Poland abolishes special Ukrainian-refugee act, transitions support to EU temporary-protection framework]()
For organizations or individuals who prefer expert help to avoid such pitfalls, VisaHQ offers tailored visa and residence-permit support through its Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/). The service can coordinate document collection, schedule voivodeship visits, and provide real-time tracking so applicants don’t miss key deadlines—particularly valuable now that compliance windows have tightened.
Employers in construction, IT and logistics, sectors that rely heavily on Ukrainian labour, are scrambling to file work-permit extensions before processing bottlenecks worsen. For corporate mobility teams the immediate action items are: audit Ukrainian assignees’ paperwork, budget for application fees (now PLN 440 for a temporary residence-and-work permit), and schedule biometric visits well ahead of the 5 March transition when e-systems are expected to face peak demand. Universities must likewise convert student-status holders to standard national visas by the autumn semester. The government has pledged an online ‘one-stop’ portal by June, integrating visa, work-permit and social-benefit modules, and says it will recognise Ukrainian digital ID Diia for e-filing. Nevertheless, NGOs warn that rural applicants without broadband could be stranded. Mobility advisers recommend contingency plans such as company-sponsored shuttle trips to processing centres and advance payroll set-asides in case of delayed work-authorisation renewals. Longer term, Poland hopes the realignment will attract a more diversified talent pool beyond its eastern neighbour, but in the short run the policy shift heightens compliance complexity and underscores the importance of proactive immigration budgeting.
For organizations or individuals who prefer expert help to avoid such pitfalls, VisaHQ offers tailored visa and residence-permit support through its Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/). The service can coordinate document collection, schedule voivodeship visits, and provide real-time tracking so applicants don’t miss key deadlines—particularly valuable now that compliance windows have tightened.
Employers in construction, IT and logistics, sectors that rely heavily on Ukrainian labour, are scrambling to file work-permit extensions before processing bottlenecks worsen. For corporate mobility teams the immediate action items are: audit Ukrainian assignees’ paperwork, budget for application fees (now PLN 440 for a temporary residence-and-work permit), and schedule biometric visits well ahead of the 5 March transition when e-systems are expected to face peak demand. Universities must likewise convert student-status holders to standard national visas by the autumn semester. The government has pledged an online ‘one-stop’ portal by June, integrating visa, work-permit and social-benefit modules, and says it will recognise Ukrainian digital ID Diia for e-filing. Nevertheless, NGOs warn that rural applicants without broadband could be stranded. Mobility advisers recommend contingency plans such as company-sponsored shuttle trips to processing centres and advance payroll set-asides in case of delayed work-authorisation renewals. Longer term, Poland hopes the realignment will attract a more diversified talent pool beyond its eastern neighbour, but in the short run the policy shift heightens compliance complexity and underscores the importance of proactive immigration budgeting.
