Types of work permits for foreigners – Permits type C, D, E and S

In the previous article, we presented types of permits – A and B. The scope of these permits significantly differs from the next four types. Permits C, D, E, and S are permits for dispatched and seasonal workers. This article will provide information on these permits.

Permit type C

It applies to a foreigner who works for a foreign employer who is dispatched to Poland for a period exceeding 30 days in a calendar year to a branch or establishment of a foreign entity or an affiliated entity, as defined in the Act of 26 July 1991 on personal income tax, with a foreign employer.

A type C work permit is issued for a specified period of time, usually covering the period in which the employee is dispatched , up to a maximum of 3 years.

The grounds for submitting an application for a type C permit are as follows:

• the foreigner is employed in a company based outside the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), or Switzerland,
• the dispatching period exceeds 30 days in a calendar year,

• the foreigner is dispatched to a branch or establishment of your company or to an entity affiliated with your company (with reference to capital, organizational, and personal links, which have been specified in detail in Art. 23m (1) (4) of the Act of 26 July 1991 on personal income tax).

Permit type D

It applies to a foreigner who works for a foreign employer that does not have a branch, establishment, or other form of organized activity in Poland and is dispatched to Poland to provide a temporary and occasional service (export service).

To obtain a type D work permit, the following conditions must be met:

• the foreigner must be employed in a company based outside the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), or Switzerland,

• the company has no branch, establishment, or other form of organized activity in Poland,

• you are delegating a foreigner to Poland to provide an export service, which is temporary and occasional in nature.

Important! The provided service will be subject to evaluation. The characteristics of the service provided will be verified – whether it is temporary and occasional, taking into account the length, frequency, regularity, and continuity of service provision.

A type D work permit is issued for the duration of the service provision, up to a maximum of 3 years.

Permit type E

This permit applies to a foreigner who performs work for a foreign employer and is delegated to Poland for a period exceeding 30 days within the next 6 months for a purpose other than those specified in type B, C, or D permits.

In summary, an application for a type E work permit requires the following conditions to be met:

• the headquarters of the company that employs the foreigner is not located in a European Union, European Economic Area, or Switzerland member state,

• there is no organized business activity of your company in Poland, and it does not have a branch or facility in Poland,
• the delegation period to Poland exceeds 30 days within the next 6 months.

The purpose of the delegation differs from the purpose in:

• Type C permit – issued in the case of delegation to a branch.

• Type D permit – issued for export services.

The work permit is issued for a fixed period not exceeding 3 years.

Work Permit for Foreigner Type S

This permit applies to a foreigner who performs seasonal work in Poland. What can be considered seasonal work? Seasonal work concerns industries in which employment is dependent on seasonal or weather conditions.

Seasonal work should not be performed for a period longer than 9 months in a calendar year and includes agricultural crops, animal husbandry, accommodation and catering services (subclasses of PKD are defined by the Regulation of the Minister of Family, Labor and Social Policy of December 8, 2017 on subclasses of activity according to the Polish Classification of Activities, for which work permits for seasonal foreign workers are issued). Seasonal work is carried out on the basis of a contract with an entity whose headquarters or branch, plant or other organized form of business activity is located in Poland.

Important! Ukrainian citizens and their spouses who legally reside in the territory of the Republic of Poland may perform seasonal work provided that the employer submits a notification of entrusting work to a Ukrainian citizen through the praca.gov.pl portal within 14 days of the foreigner starting work.

Author: Anna Korzun