UK, Ireland / Money Transfer from UK to Poland [14]

If you use the search box you will see a few threads on this. Partly depends on the amount too. If it's a few thousand pounds or so then normally a currency broker is the way to go.

Law / Renewing Karta pobytu in Warsaw [35]

I feel your pain.

I suggest you just do the application as best you can based on the rules as you understand them (rightly or wrongly). The burden is then on them to process your application and if it is wrong or has mistakes they will have to tell you why. Keep on going and eventually you will get there...

I recently used this strategy at the USC when I got sick of going around in circles being told different things and them stalling me/fobbing me off.

Good luck.

Life / Should I take my motorbikes to Poland? [14]


I imported my motorbike to Poland from the UK. That's my blog post about how I did it in the link. It's not too tricky if you go through the steps. Good luck!

Law / Do I set up Company in Poland or UK (to invoice my schools and students)? [11]


I think in Dazza's case self employed in Poland is probably the best as inkrakow says. The 19% flat rate scheme is one of a number of tax schemes you can choose (also there is zasady ogólne, karta podatkowa and ryczałt).


I have a UK company and wanted to continue to run that and pay myself from it. The problem is that now I am classed as resident in Poland for tax purposes. That means I have to pay my tax and social insurance here. I was planning to register my UK company as an employer at ZUS so I could pay Polish social insurance but it was such a hassle I have simply opened up a Polish self-employed company instead.

I think that it would be better to just keep everything simple and in Poland. It's very simple to set up a Polish self-employed company.


Are you referring to profits made by a Polish registered overseas branch of a foreign company? Are you talking about corporation tax or employer's social insurance contributions? Because I have a UK company and so it pays UK corporation tax. I am going to guess that if there are tax breaks they are on profits made by Polish overseas branches. I would guess there are tax breaks for the big boys who come to Poland and set up factories, create lots of jobs etc..


I just started a Polish self-employed company this week so if you want some help just PM me.

Good luck

News / Polish Banks suck yes or no ? [16]

I heard a Politician one or two years ago say that he thought there was something wrong with the Polish banking system when Polish companies found it easier to borrow money from foreign banks abroad than to use Polish banks here in Poland. I hope that gives Polish banks the incentive to be more competitive and modernise, so I guess the situation will continue to improve...

News / Polish Banks suck yes or no ? [16]

ShelleyS does have a good point though - identity fraud is common in the UK but very rare in Poland (at least I have never heard of it here).

Law / Do I set up Company in Poland or UK (to invoice my schools and students)? [11]

ok no problem. I will put some notes together for you on how to do it at the weekend.

I am about a 45 min drive south of Krakow.

Dazza have PM'ed you some info.

Life / Help with Polish Nicknames / Diminutive Names [21]

Would it be possible to say Samuelek and Michaelek?

What about making Janinka from Janina?

Or do they just sound silly?

Work / NIP number - can I get this before I am employed? [13]



I find that a little strange. I didn't have a job in Poland and I got a NIP-4 without any problem at all. I wanted to import my UK motorbike to Poland and needed to pay tax on it at the Urząd Skarbowy. There they told me I had to do an application for a NIP which was straight forward and I got it a few days later in the post.

Work / How hard/easy is to find a job in PL for a non-EU with european MSc.? [6]

Let me know when you come over. I would be interested in hiring you. PM me if you're interested.

Life / Applying for EU passport... [51]

I have to do it the other way around as I am already living in Poland - get my Polish birth certificate first and then do the application. Am still trying to get all my documents, translations and apostiles together for it....

Work / NIP number - can I get this before I am employed? [13]

I don't see the problem. You go to the Urząd Skarbowy. You fill out form NIP-4. You wait one week. You get your number in the post.

At that time I had no pesel, no karta pobytu, no job and only a 3mth zameldowanie.

What problems did you have? Did they not send you the number?

Work / Best place to advertise for Polish IT workers [7]

Thanks for the ideas.

Is Reed not an agency? I would prefer to avoid using an agency and save myself the cost.

Meanwhile I have found jobs4it.pl which seems to be what I am after so will probably give them a go.

Thanks.

Work / Best place to advertise for Polish IT workers [7]

oh OK. When I was in IT in london the one and only site was jobserve.com, that was the site everybody used to use.

Genealogy / Last name Natkaniec [14]

I guess you would have to contact the Urząd Stanu Civilnego (office of civil affairs) in the town where he was born. Possibly and/or the state archive in Krakow.

Genealogy / Last name Natkaniec [14]


I am not sure that that is the case at the state archives. From what I understand from the Krakow Archive website you can get this info by just filling out a form if it's for genealogical purposes.

archiwum.krakow.pl/menueng.php

I could be wrong though, and it could well be you are right for the USC too.

Genealogy / Last name Natkaniec [14]

To be honest with you this will be very difficult unless you speak Polish and go to these places in person...

If I were you I would get a Polish speaker to call the USC and maybe the archive as a start.

Law / Temporary health insurance for residency requirements [11]

I'd like to know about that too please.

Cheers.

Law / Temporary health insurance for residency requirements [11]

thanks

UK, Ireland / How long before a newly arrived Pole can buy something on credit ? [24]

Yes. Even though under the EU insurance harmonisation rules they are not supposed to penalise you if you have an EU licence and not a UK one.

UK, Ireland / How long before a newly arrived Pole can buy something on credit ? [24]


I did it the other way around as I moved from the UK to Poland. I asked for proof of my No Claims Discount and was going to send it in to my Polish insurer who had asked for it. In the end I didn't bother because there was some confusion about whether they needed it translated into Polish or not and car insurance is so cheap in Poland (I am paying £60 for a year 3rd party only) I just didn't bother.

UK, Ireland / How long before a newly arrived Pole can buy something on credit ? [24]


probably your neighbours rang up the DVLA or council to complain. I would be interested to know what happens if you ignore these letters etc.. because I don't see how they can prove how long the car has been in the UK.


but you don't have car tax in Poland. You guys only display the registration sticker here. Plus why would you pay UK car tax on a Polish registered vehicle? Not sure I have understood what you mean...?

Law / Starting a Business In Poland - what should I know? [28]

I have a UK private limited company and I recently opened a działalność jako osoba fizyczna and so far my experiences mirror what ukpolska is saying.

It has been not particularly difficult and I have found that (maybe because I am a foreigner) the people in the Urząd Skarbowy and the ZUS people have made a real effort to help me and explain what to do.

Travel / Walks up the Beskids mountains [44]

Hi SeanBM

Just noticed this post - I actually live right next to the Beskids but haven't quite got around to having a look at them yet. What tracks did you do?

Law / Buying, Registering, Insuring a NEW Car in PL is a NIGHTMARE [22]

When I registered my (second-hand) vehicle I needed my zameldowanie and because I still didn't have my karta pobytu (at the time) they stamped in my registration booklet that my vehicle registration finished when my 3 month zameldowanie finished. Each time I repeated my 3 month zameldowanie (as my karta pobytu took ages) I had to go back and get my vehicle registration booklet updated.

One gotcha is that from the moment you are the legal registered owner of the vehicle you must have insurance that same day. It is illegal to own a vehicle and not have insurance, even if the car is not on the road. But insurance should be easy to buy - there are brokers in every town centre and I found the cheapest was actually at the post office.

Law / Starting a Business In Poland - what should I know? [28]

Thanks, appreciate it. Actually I have just started recording a series of podcasts and am looking for victims to interview.

If you or anyone else is interested please PM me.

The idea is to interview a range of expats living in Poland to give people a feel for what life is like here, advice etc.. Its in the form of a skype/phone call which I record and then edit.

Life / TP - Telekomunikacja Polska SA (phone/Internet company in Poland) [19]

TP are a bunch of cowboys. 7 days is nothing. I was without my Internet for nearly 3 months! Everytime my wife called up we were told a different story. We wrote letters to complain and the funniest thing was that we got two different replies from two different people saying two different things. The letters were dated 3 days apart. At that point we gave up on them - it's just not possible to deal with people like that without losing your sanity. Clearly they have no clue what they are doing there. Luckily my neighbour let me use his internet during this time.

I plan to never ever move house or change my internet provider in the hope that I never have to go through this all again...

Life / TP - Telekomunikacja Polska SA (phone/Internet company in Poland) [19]

I thought TP was the national provider?

Because in the UK you can get your phone and internet from people other than British Telecom but BT still own the cables to your door. So whenever you have a problem your provider still has to chase up BT to fix it.

Is it not the same in Poland with TP?

Law / Buying, Registering, Insuring a NEW Car in PL is a NIGHTMARE [22]

so it sounds like you didn't have a 'zameldowanie'? i.e. that you weren't registered to live at the flat you were renting.

I told you you needed your zameldowanie in my first post.

This proves you have an address to which the vehicle can be registered.

Law / Buying, Registering, Insuring a NEW Car in PL is a NIGHTMARE [22]

Yes the landlord should let you do your zameldowanie. Even a hotel is supposed to do it if you are going to stay there for more than a few days.

I can't see zameldowanie being abolished any time soon...

Good luck though!