Beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement - only until December 31, 2021
Persons who exercised the right to stay in Poland before December 31, 2020 and continue to stay / work in Poland in 2021, under the Withdrawal Agreement of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community (hereinafter: the Withdrawal Agreement) may retain the existing rights and privileges.
The condition is the submission of an application for a new residence permit, however, it cannot take place later than December 31, 2021.
The right of residence in the territory of the Republic of Poland may be retained by, among others:
- employees (excluding delegated persons) or self-employed persons;
- persons with sufficient financial resources to support themselves and their family members;
- students and people undergoing vocational training;
- spouses of Polish citizens;
- frontier workers.
Our practice shows that the possibility of taking advantage of the provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement is not limited only to people who have obviously met the conditions of their stay in Poland in 2020, i.e. for example stayed in Poland throughout 2020 and had continued their stay in 2021 without interruption.
It is important to emphasize that interruptions in the stay in Poland (for example due to the state of epidemic) do not exclude the possibility of applying for a residence permit under the Withdrawal Agreement. It is worth analyzing individual cases, including the situation of board members with British citizenship, who performed their duties in Poland in 2020 and continue them in 2021.
Posted workers
Although the posted workers are not covered by the Withdrawal Agreement, the rules for their further stay and work in Poland have been regulated on favorable terms in local provisions, i.e. the Act on foreigners.
Also, in their case, the performance of work until December 31, 2020 and its continuation after January 1, 2021 may result in exemption from the work permit and the need of obtaining a special temporary residence permit, which may be granted to them for 5 years. However, the application for such a permit must be submitted no later than the end of 2021.
What steps should be taken?
- Analysis of the situation of persons who may be covered by the Withdrawal Agreement (or the posted workers) as soon as possible and submitting an application for residence permit - no later than by 31 December 2021;
- In the case of people who intend to come to Poland - planning an appropriate immigration path and obtaining adequate work and residence permits.
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