Residence permit — business activity

Temporary residence permit for the purpose of conducting business activities

Foreign nationals whose purpose of staying in the territory of the Republic of Poland is to lawfully conduct business activities, in accordance with Article 142 of the Act of 12 December 2013 on Foreign Nationals (i.e. Journal of Laws of 2023, item 519, as amended), may be granted a temporary residence permit. However, they must also meet additional conditions. What are these?

Conditions for obtaining a temporary residence permit for the purpose of conducting business activities in Poland

1. The foreign national must have:
2. Health insurance or confirmation from an insurer that medical costs within Poland will be covered;
3. A stable and regular source of income sufficient to cover the living costs of themselves and any dependent family members;
4. Consent from the relevant authority to hold a specific post or practise a specific profession (if such a requirement arises from the applicable regulations);
5. A guaranteed place of residence within Poland;
6. The entity through which the foreign national conducts business must have generated income (in the tax year preceding the submission of the application) of not less than 12times the average gross wage in the national economy in the relevant province in which that entity has its registered office or place of residence OR
7. The entity through which the foreign national carries out business activities must have employed, on a permanent and full-time basis, for at least one year preceding the submission of the application, at least two employees who are Polish citizens or foreign nationals entitled to work legally in Poland OR
8. Demonstration by the entity through which the foreign national conducts business that it possesses the resources to fulfil the two above conditions in the future or is undertaking activities that will enable it to fulfil these conditions in the future. In particular, this refers to activities that contribute to: increased investment, the introduction of beneficial innovations, technology transfer or job creation.

The entity to which the conditions described in points 2, 3 and 4 apply may include, amongst others: a limited partnership, a limited joint-stock partnership, a limited liability company, as well as a public limited company:

1. Which was established by a foreign national OR
2. To which a foreign national has joined OR
3. In which a foreign national has taken up or acquired shares OR
4. In which a foreign national holds a position on the board OR
5. In which a foreign national manages the company’s affairs as a general partner OR
6. In which he acts as a proxy.

Residence permit and running a business

A residence card on the basis of business activity? Absolutely!

If you are a foreign national who has met the conditions described above and have already obtained a temporary residence permit for the purpose of running a business, you are also entitled to be issued with the relevant residence card.

If this residence card for business activity is your first residence card in Poland, it will be issued to you automatically.

However, if for any reason this does not happen automatically, you can use one of the templates provided in the article entitled ‘Residence card – what is it?’ to apply for a temporary residence card for business purposes.

Do you need help obtaining a temporary residence permit and a residence card for the purpose of running a business?

The ‘Firma Dla Każdego’ Foundation helps all foreign nationals who wish to reside legally in Poland.

The Foundation also provides its services to entrepreneurs who run a business in Poland and are seeking to obtain a temporary residence permit and a residence card here.

You can find a description of the full range of services offered by the ‘Firma Dla Każdego’ Foundation for foreign nationals at the following link: https://firmadlakazdego.pl/cudzoziemcy/.