In 2023, Poland issued 642 residence permits for foreigners, the most in the entire European Union - according to Eurostat data. Although it was less than in 800 (2022 permits), on the scale of the entire EU - countries issued a total of over 700 million residence permits for non-EU citizens, which is an increase of almost 260% (3,7%) compared to 5. Poland is the leader of this ranking, issuing 4,7% of all documents granted in the EU. In second place was Germany with 2022% (17), and third place was taken by Spain with 16% of permits (586 thousand).
Eurostat reported that employment was the main reason for issuing permits in 2023, accounting for 33,8% of all permits. Family reasons accounted for 14,3% of permits, while other factors, including international protection, accounted for 25,6%. Interestingly, as many as 66,5% of all permits in Poland were issued for work reasons, only 3% for family reasons, 4,8% for education, and as many as 25.7% for other reasons (international protection or residence without the right to work, e.g. pensioners). The majority of permits issued in the EU were issued to Ukrainian citizens (307 permits). They were followed by Belarusians (313) and Indian citizens (281).
In 2023, around 89 highly skilled workers from outside the EU received the EU Blue Card, which allows skilled workers from outside the EU to work. The vast majority of these documents – 78% – were issued in Germany. Poland came in second, but issued 7% of Blue Cards – over ten times fewer, meaning that it is mainly manual workers who come to Poland.
Currently, the average waiting time for legalization of work and residence in provincial offices is on average 4 months (work) and from 6 months to even 2 years (stay). Over 80% of companies cooperating with Gremi Personal complain about shortages in employment. There has been a shortage of employees in the same industries for at least several years: construction, manufacturing, TLS and HoReCa, which also coincides with the recently published forecasts of the Occupational Barometer of the Ministry of Labor. It should be emphasized that Poland issues the most residence and work permits in the entire European Union, this is worthy of recognition and should be seen as proof of the dynamic economic growth and openness of the Polish labor market. Poland has become an attractive destination for immigrants from countries outside the EU, which means that this market is flexible and can respond to the needs in terms of human resources regardless of what politicians in the country or the EU think.. – he comments Yuriy Grygorenko, chief analyst of the Gremi Personal Analytical Center. -Unlike countries like Germany, which is currently struggling with recession, or Spain, which has been struggling economically for years, Poland is able to attract a significant number of workers from abroad. This shows that despite certain challenges, such as bureaucracy and not always ideal conditions for highly skilled specialists, Poland is still competitive on the European migration scene. When it comes to highly skilled workers, Poland actually ranks second in terms of the number of Blue Cards issued, which is a positive sign. Although Poland is not the first choice for specialists compared to Germany, which clearly dominates in this category, the fact that Poland is able to attract such workers is a sign of the growing attractiveness of our labor market. Poland has room for further development here, especially by improving employment conditions and simplifying administrative procedures. Overall, Poland should continue its policies that encourage the inflow of labor from abroad, not only low-skilled workers, but also highly skilled specialists. The key is to create an environment that is attractive not only economically but also socially, which will over time attract even more talent and contribute to the long-term economic development of the country.
