Law / Dual citizen non-Polish resident studying in Poland [14]

I'm not Polish, so I'm not familiar with how it's passed on - is being born in the territory of the RP enough to give you citizenship, or do you have to have a link from parents/grandparents? If you were born in Krakow to at least one Polish parent, then as far as I can work out, you're entitled to it. But if neither of the parents were Polish, then you wouldn't be entitled.

Life / How much Zloty to have an average life in Poland? [98]


Why would you need to explain it to me? I'm from Scotland and have exactly that in Poland.

But it's not a question of choice - there simply isn't enough accomodation to allow everyone to live as they please. Combined with Western property speculators, you've got a situation where rents and mortgages are very high compared to the amount of money that can be made by an average Pole.

To be honest, I struggle to see why an expat in his 20's needs a place of his/her own in the first place. Plenty of people in the UK will be sharing at that age, especially in London - so if someone's can't have a decent life on 2500zl-ish in Warsaw, then they're doing something wrong.


Sometimes just have a little bit of common sense can save you a fortune - look at prices in markets as opposed to in supermarkets, for instance. Likewise, not using a car to go everywhere when public transport is so laughably cheap in Poland. But if you don't go off the beaten track and insist on living in a gated osiedle, then of course Warsaw (or indeed, anywhere else) is going to cost you an absolute fortune.

Even eating out can be done stupidly cheaply if you take the time to look - we've got one favourite Italian restaurant in Poznan that's literally 90 seconds walk from Stary Rynek, and you can get a fantastic meal there with wine and extras for about 40zl for two. The same thing will cost you twice the price, maybe even three times the price if you insist on eating at 'expat English menu friendly' places.

Work / tell me about poznan hospitality jobs i have four years experience [9]

No problem. If you need any help here, feel free to drop me a message on here. It'll be tough, but worth it! :)

Work / How to get and survive an internship in Poland [5]


No. Don't skip the visa requirements. If you're caught (and this isn't impossible, the Straż Graniczna like to look through passports) - then a ban from Schengen could happen very easily. Being banned from the Schengen zone is effectively rendering you persona non grata throughout a huge chunk of Europe - and may force you to apply for a visa for any subsequent vists, with a hell of a job to explain just why you overstayed.

It's also a recipe for disaster if you're stopped by the police - it's not completely unrealistic to assume that they might want to see your ID - and if you're found to have overstayed, deportation will follow.

There's enough anecdotes online of people caught and thrown out to make it not worth the risk.

Life / How much Zloty to have an average life in Poland? [98]


It's also because Poles are more willing to make sacrifices to live. The idea of a married couple sharing a flat with other people is almost unheard of in the UK for instance - but it's hardly out of the ordinary in Poland. Even in my block, there's plenty of examples of 5-6 people sharing a 3 roomed flat. It seems to be almost accepted that three generations of a family will be sharing the same place.

Likewise, I know of examples where two adult children and parents will be sharing a two roomed flat. For that reason, people can easily live on 2000.

But a foreigner coming to Poland won't be so happy to live in a shared flat. I've never understood why, to be honest - all it does is force them to end up paying a ridiculous amount for a 1 roomed flat through English speaking agents.


8-10zl for beer? Bloody hell...5.50 in Poznan in anywhere that isn't 'tourist trap hellhole' - and even lower if you can bothered to look.

With what you can potentially get in Warsaw, 1800zl plus bills really isn't that much though.


As I said above, Poles will be making sacrifices in their living arrangements, combined with the advantage of not being ripped off by English-speaking letting companies that know that their clients will pay over the top.


That seems hideously unrealistic to be honest - unless you define 'good lifestyle' as 'expat hell'.

Life / How much Zloty to have an average life in Poland? [98]


Are living costs so high in Warsaw that you can't get by on 2500zl? Bearing in mind that you can get a 30sqm, one roomed place in the centre of Poznan for 1200zl including bills, I really can't imagine Warsaw to be that much higher.

There's also plenty of rooms to be had in shared flats here for 500zl including bills - I really can't imagine Warsaw to be significantly more - unless of course, you want to live the expat lifestyle.

Life / How much Zloty to have an average life in Poland? [98]


An average life? Depends on the city, but I'd say 2000zl in a smaller place and 2500zl in a bigger place. You won't be ridiculously rich or live like a king, but it's more than enough money to be comfortable and not have to worry about anything.

Work / tell me about poznan hospitality jobs i have four years experience [9]


In the space of 6 weeks, it went from -15c here to +10. The swing this year has gone from nearly -20c to +30c. That should tell you all you need to know ;)


Shouldn't be too difficult as long as you have someone to help you out. The biggest problem you'll have is with the Urząd Miasta with the zameldowanie nonsense.


It'll be tough with no language skills. I'd advise trying the larger hotels and see if anything comes up, but I'd suggest learning the language as soon as possible. English teaching is likely to be a no-no for you, unfortunately.


10zl an hour might be doable. But I would prepare yourself for the worst - 5zl in the hand might be the most you can hope for. It depends on what you find - I'd actually suggest hunting down the Easyjet call centre and seeing if they've any use for you there.

All I can really suggest is perhaps going to Dragon and running into the expats there - someone might very well help you out or have some connections there.

Law / Dual citizen non-Polish resident studying in Poland [14]


As far as I understand it, the general regulations insist that when in Poland, you are solely Polish and other citizenship isn't recognised. Given that Poles must have one when resident in Poland, there's no choice in theory.

But would they even allow someone to use university accomodation as a registered address?

Mind you, having one is useful if you can get it without too much fuss - having a recognised travel document valid throughout the EEA is priceless in terms of having it in credit card sized form.

Get one if you can, they're not expensive and are a much more preferable option to carrying around a passport!

Life / American moving to Poland [34]


What's the chances of getting a job there if he doesn't have relevant qualifications, though?

Do you know if there's any such list of schools online, btw?

Life / American moving to Poland [34]


Yes. Legally working in Poland is easy if you're EU, but if you're non-EU, there's a fair amount of regulations that you'll have to go through. You'll have to get a job lined up before you come, you'll need a work permit in most cases and you'll need to get the relevant visa.

Whatever you do, do not come to Poland on a tourist stamp and overstay.

Life / Weekly Food costs - Krakow [16]

It'd be a doddle to live on 50PLN - when you think that you can get a kilo of chicken breasts for 12PLN or so, it's really not difficult.

Travel / Gdansk OR Poznan for a weekend? [12]


Well yeah, if you want to experience a city where all the women between 18-30 have left... ;)

(still plenty of 14 year olds and 40 year olds going about!)

Travel / Gdansk OR Poznan for a weekend? [12]

Pah, plenty of contest, Poznan is far nicer!

And Gdansk is/was flooded..

UK, Ireland / Friend told "just allow your son to forget Polish" by school. [96]


No. The UK doesn't have an official language - which is why there are Gaelic, Welsh and Irish medium schools which treat English as a foreign language. I have a friend who went to a school where the language used in school and in the playground was Gaelic, not English - in fact, although she can perfectly well use English, she is first and foremost a Gaelic speaker.

The fact that English differs between the Home Nations should tell you everything.

Law / Financing a car in Poland, info required on price. [4]

A finance deal will be very very difficult for you if you don't have a verifiable history here - think about how difficult it would be for a Polish person to get a finance deal in the UK after having stepped off the plane, then add in some extra difficulty and you might have the idea.

Bearing in mind that you'll be earning no more than about 2500zl that's verifable, I cannot for the life of me see a Polish finance company taking the risk - particularly as you won't be employed under a permanent contract.

But why not just get a cheap car? You can buy something ok for 2500zl, 1000zl-ish for insurance and you're sorted :)

Life / UK citizen moving to Poland - some advice required. [4]

The British in Poland blog pretty much answers all your questions in detail, however...


For the temporary (three month registration), you just have to go to the Urząd Miasta with the owner(s) of the property that you wish to be registered at and fill in a form with your passport. It's painless, as long as you've got the owners of the property with you. You might have problems with getting the owners of the flat to agree however - which is why it's imperative that you get them to agree to this before handing over any sort of rent or deposit.

For the five year residence permit, it's more hassle - but you don't have to worry about this right now.


There's no such thing as a single number - you have to obtain a NIP number (tax number) and a PESEL. The NIP is a doddle to get - once you're registered, go to the tax office (Urząd Skarbowy) and fill in a form and wait three weeks.

The PESEL will come after you obtain the EU residence permit for 5 years - but it isn't needed for day to day life. It's the closest to our national insurance numbers, though. If you do need it, they'll often just accept your passport number as a substitute.


mBank all the way. They offer multiple accounts (in PLN, USD, GBP, EUR and CHF) for free, along with almost free banking. They don't need proof of residency, just a declaration that you're actually resident in Poland - and they're very pain free to setup. They've also always got an English speaker on the phone (in my experience!).

Travel / Driving to Russia via Poland Info on Ukraine Border [30]

The general consensus seems to be to avoid Medyka and take one of the smaller border crossings - though they might involve a bit of a detour, they'll be much, much quicker in actually getting you through the border.

Work / I want to move to Poland from Ukraine but I need to find a job [19]

To be honest, even with fluent Polish, she'll still struggle with the work permit part. There's just no motivation for someone to hire an outsider

The best bet I think would be to try and get in through one of the multinationals - Unilever for example.

Life / Foreigner in Poland asking for information how to travel to Scotland? [23]


Shouldn't be a problem, Poland requires you to be Polish when in Poland, but doesn't care less about what you are otherwise.


There isn't a problem though - the UK is required to implement access under the relevant directive, and is instead choosing to tie people up in endless red tape. It's the same nonsense that makes Russian/Belarussian visas so ridiculously expensive for us.

Work / 2400 pln take home in Krakow - can I live on this? [10]

It's definitely doable if it's after tax. 1400PLN is more than some people get paid netto - so you shouldn't have any problems. Add in a few private lessons if you feel so motivated and you can be left with 2000PLN a month - and if you can't live on that, something is seriously wrong!

Work / I want to move to Poland from Ukraine but I need to find a job [19]


My friend finished at 16 (did well enough in her Highers), went to RGU who were still doing three year degrees at that point, then a one year masters - voila, finished at 20. I say she missed out, though...I can't imagine going to uni and not being allowed to drink legally for the first 18 months :/


It's not impossible, especially as jumping up a year isn't unheard of - she might have finished at 17, got the two degrees by 21 and worked during her Masters.

To be honest, her problem is that she'll find a work permit absolutely impossible to get - I just can't imagine many people wanting to go to the hassle of arranging a work permit for someone who doesn't speak Polish.

Life / Foreigner in Poland asking for information how to travel to Scotland? [23]

You shouldn't, but sadly, the UK seems to be putting up barriers where there shouldn't be any. The politics are neither here nor there - the fact is that they are obliged to facilitate free access to people like yourself, who are then forced to jump through needless hoops.

You're good for any of the Schengen countries though - but best practice is to make sure that you take a *lot* of supporting documentation including copies of the relevant directive, just in case you're stopped.

But..but. You've been living in Poland for three years - have you been married for those three years? If so, aren't you now entitled to citizenship?

Work / I want to move to Poland from Ukraine but I need to find a job [19]


Maybe in England, but it's quite possible to get your masters at the age of 20 in Scotland ;)

Life / Foreigner in Poland asking for information how to travel to Scotland? [23]


immigrationboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=15545

This is actually a source for the definitive word on the matter.

The moral of the story is that the UK is yet again completely uncompliant with an EU directive.

To the original poster - avoid the UK as long as they're not complying with the relevant EU directive. It's simply not worth the hassle!

Life / Foreigner in Poland asking for information how to travel to Scotland? [23]

Technically, I believe you're allowed under some EU regulation or another.

But the UK immigration authorities are a law unto themselves - and I don't believe for a minute that they'll let you in without a hell of a fight, especially considering some of their attitudes towards their own.

Law / How do Americans go about getting a work visa in Poland? [21]

Whatever you do, don't come here without the visa/work permit already sorted. I've heard enough stories of Americans that come here, working illegally and then getting caught and subsequently banned from the Schengen area - you're only allowed 90 days in every 180 as a tourist within any of the Schengen countries.

Life / Poznan - best city to live in Poland (according to "Przekrój") [10]

Yep, Poznań is fantastic. :)

Even bicycle paths are true - I cycled from Piątkowo to Rataje and did pretty much the entire trip on cycle paths which were seperated from the main road.

Law / How do Americans go about getting a work visa in Poland? [21]

You don't need anything like that, you just need an employer to obtain a work permit for you. But this is much easier said than done - many schools are taking the attitude (at least in Poznan!) that it's completely pointless to go to the hassle of obtaining a work permit for a non-EU citizen when you can hire a British/Irish native.

Simply put, you'll need a job offer and the work permit secured before you can think about obtaining any visas.

Life / Driving License - B1 that allows 16 year old to drive light vehicles? [27]

Well, a Polish 16 year old should be allowed to drive something resembling a car, but it would seem next to impossible for a foreign national to pass the test because of the need for the sworn translator to be present during the test - and any car capable of sitting the B1 test on wouldn't have four seats.

But it seems that there are some cars produced in Europe that are under 550kg and have four seats - maybe, just maybe, you could get one of them, then find a driving school who could sort out training (on a quad bike, maybe?) for the B1 category in English, then sit the test on the quad bike (again, could be issues with the translation!) and then be legal to drive a car under the B1 category.