Employment of Non-EU Students in Poland after 1 December 2025: New Rules and Transitional Period
What Changed in the Rules on Employing Foreign Students from 1 December 2025
As of 1 December 2025, Poland has introduced a new legal framework governing the employment of foreign students who are nationals of third countries (outside the EU, EEA, and Switzerland). Unlike EU citizens, this category remains subject to the general system of access to the Polish labour market based on work permits and statutory exemptions.
Before this date, a simplified model applied in practice: full-time (stationary) studies at a Polish higher education institution combined with a lawful residence title allowed students to work without obtaining a separate work permit.
From 1 December 2025, this model no longer applies automatically. The right to work without a work permit (zezwolenie na pracę) or an employer’s declaration (oświadczenie) now depends not only on the fact of studying, but also on the legal status of the educational institution and on the applicability of transitional provisions.
This article explains:
- how the rules operated before and after 1 December 2025;
- which conditions must be met cumulatively;
- what the “MSWiA approval” means and why it has become decisive;
- how the transitional period until 30 June 2026 functions in practice;
- where employers most often make mistakes and what risks follow.
Rules applicable before 1 December 2025
For third-country nationals, the basic principle was clear: lawful employment required a valid residence title and a legal basis for work, unless the law expressly provided an exemption.
Full-time foreign students constituted one of the key exempted categories. If a person studied on a stationary basis at a Polish higher education institution (or within an officially recognised student mobility programme) and held lawful residence, they could work without a work permit for the duration of their studies.
Importantly, this exemption never applied universally. Part-time, distance-learning, postgraduate programmes or various “courses” did not automatically grant access to the labour market and often required a separate work authorisation.
Legal acts introducing the change
The change results from the new system regulating the employment of foreigners and a revised catalogue of cases where work may be performed without a permit.
Primary act:
Act of 20 March 2025 on the conditions for the admissibility of entrusting work to foreigners (Journal of Laws 2025, item 621), in particular the exemption mechanism set out in Article 3.
Secondary legislation (effective from 1 December 2025):
Regulation of the Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy of 20 November 2025 (Journal of Laws 2025, item 1620), which specifies situations allowing work without a permit or declaration, including rules applicable to students.
Core change: the legal status of the university now matters
Under the new framework, full-time student status alone is no longer sufficient. The decisive factor is where the student studies.
The regulation links the exemption to whether the student is enrolled in:
- an institution or unit approved by the Ministry of the Interior and Administration (MSWiA), or
- an institution not subject to approval and not covered by a formal decision prohibiting the admission of foreigners.
The purpose is clear: to eliminate high-risk or fictitious education schemes used primarily as a gateway to the labour market rather than for genuine studies.
Conditions for working without a permit after 1 December 2025
Three groups of conditions must be met cumulatively:
1. Form of studies
Only full-time (stationary) studies conducted in Poland qualify. Part-time, online, distance-learning or postgraduate programmes do not provide an automatic exemption.
2. Residence title
The student must hold a valid residence title that allows access to the labour market. An expired, inappropriate or restrictive residence basis nullifies the exemption.
3. Type and status of the educational institution
The institution must either hold MSWiA approval or fall outside the approval regime and not be subject to a ban on admitting foreign students.
MSWiA approval – what it means
MSWiA approval is an administrative decision granting an institution the status of an approved unit authorised to admit foreign students. This concept originates from the Act on Foreigners (notably Articles 144-144a) and has become indirectly decisive for assessing whether a student may work without a permit.
Transitional period until 30 June 2026
The legislator introduced a transitional mechanism rather than an immediate cut-off.
Under § 3 of the Regulation (Journal of Laws 2025, item 1620), between 1 December 2025 and 30 June 2026 the exemption also applies to full-time students enrolled in:
- a non-public academic higher education institution, or
- a public vocational higher education institution,
even if the institution does not meet the condition linked to Article 144(4) of the Act on Foreigners.
This does not constitute a general authorisation for all students until mid-2026. The exemption remains limited by the form of studies, the type of institution and the legal conditions expressly set out in the regulation.
Typical compliance errors
In practice, the highest risks arise where employers:
- verify student status but ignore the legal status of the institution;
- fail to distinguish full-time studies from part-time or online formats;
- misinterpret the transitional period as a universal exemption;
- inadequately verify the residence title;
- fail to reassess the situation after changes in student or institutional status.
Consequences
Incorrect qualification may result in illegal employment of a foreigner, exposing employers to financial penalties and inspections by the Labour Inspectorate or Border Guard, and students to administrative consequences affecting future residence procedures.
When a work permit becomes necessary
A separate work authorisation is required whenever any of the statutory conditions are not met, including non-stationary studies, lack of the required institutional status, expiry of the transitional period, or an inadequate residence title.
This is the point where general analysis ends and individual assessment based on documents and dates becomes decisive.
(This public material does not replace an individual legal assessment.)
Ukrainian version of this article
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