Travel / From Poland to Kaliningrad: car rental and insurance required [6]

It's quite simple - you just need all the vehicle papers, such as MOT certificate, tax, V5, insurance documents, etc. You'll also need an International Driving Permit, and I believe that Russia is now accepting the Green Card. There's some random fees to be paid at the border, and you can expect all sorts of nonsense - but generally speaking, it shouldn't be too difficult.

But are you sure you want to drive in Russia with an RHD?

Study / TEFL Test Centers and TEFL blogs in Poland [7]

Why are many TEFL blogs full of utter drama queen behaviour?

Law / New ID 'card' in Poland [19]


There are two seperate issues here -

1) being able to identify yourself if requested to do so by for instance the police, the Straz Graniczna, Sluzba Celna, etc - in this case, an EU/EEA/CH driving licence is enough. They might want to clarify it, so carrying around a photocopy of the permanent residence certificate will be more than enough to satisfy them.

If they get really arsey, they could demand an ID card or passport, but in this case, the permanent residence certificate wouldn't satisfy them anyway. The only time that they would expect to see the national ID would be if you're stopped crossing a Schengen border - Schengen law says that you must carry national ID when doing so, and again, the permanent residence certificate wouldn't be enough to satisfy them.

2) Being able to identify yourself when a dowod osobisty is requested, such as at the bank, the Urzad Miasta, etc - in this case, you need to have a national ID, which is either a passport or national ID card - again, the permanent residence certificate isn't a national ID and shouldn't be accepted.

What nationality are you?

Incidentally, anyone refusing credit for stupid reasons like you list above should be ignored anyway - who wants to deal with outdated thinking?

But...if you want something convenient, couldn't you just obtain Polish citizenship if you're married to a Pole and have been here for over 5 years? It's certainly the easiest way!

Law / New ID 'card' in Poland [19]


This is because it's not a replacement for your national ID - it's just a piece of paper to confirm your permanent residency in Poland. Likewise with the EU 5 year permit - it's not meant to be carried round on a day-to-day basis.

Why they can't just issue something like this - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonian_ID_card#Categories_of_Estonian_identity_cards - is entirely beyond me.


Are you Polish? If so, you're breaking the law by not having one - it's compulsory for any Polish citizen resident in Poland to have one. Otherwise, as an EU citizen, it makes life significantly easier to have legal residence - though you can live here happily without it.

Language / The letter combo "ch" and a thing about "ść" [11]


Can so :(

Law / Learner motorcycle rider visiting Poland [3]

You can't ride here as a learner, except with an instructor. There are no 'provisional' or 'learners' permits - essentially, you must be accompanied by an instructor at all times. The UK provisional licence isn't valid outside of the UK - in fact, GB and NI provisional licences are *not* interchangable.

Law / Is translating into Polish required for getting a Polish Citizenship? [7]

You need to ask them - they may interpret things differently in different consulates.

Be warned that if they require a translation, then they'll demand a sworn translation.

Real Estate / Prices of apartments in Krakow are collapsing further down in 2010-2011 [150]


I guess I'm last in the queue :( Remeber me when you make a killing, will you? ;)


Hi Mark!

You made a very interesting blog post about Krakow here -
poland-claritaslux/blog/galeria-bonarka


You said it yourself - Krakow is getting rich ;)

News / Farrell makes the statement that a type of dinosaur was even 'dumber' than Poles [19]

Whee, no doubt 5th generation Polish-Americans will be getting offended on behalf of the motherland (while not speaking Polish and having never been to Poland) - meanwhile, ordinary Poles will just laugh and move on.

Real Estate / Taking loans in Poland underneath someone else [7]

Why not take a loan under your own name?

Life / Regional traits in Poland [27]


True though, isn't it? If you compare Poznan to Gorzow or Kostrzyn, you can really see the difference. People from Slubice are surprisingly urbane though ;)

Law / Polish Bank account? UK resident applying for permanent residency in Poland. [5]


Of course you can - you just have to declare the interest to the Polish taxman. Or don't - it's entirely up to you. At the end of the year when you fill in the PIT form, you just add the interest received from the UK bank account. I think you can also tell the UK bank that you aren't resident for tax purposes (not in the UK for more than 185 days a year) and so you'll receive interest gross, not net.

UK banks don't particularly care that much if you aren't resident in the UK - as long as you maintain an address in the UK (parents/uncle/aunt/cousins/whatever) - that's all they care about.

But you will need a Polish bank account to satisfy their demands at the Foreigners Office. mBank is probably the easiest as a Brit, because their systems are actually set up to cope with foreigners without residence permits.

Travel / New Year's Eve in Warsaw. How to spend it? [26]


Jesus, buttons!

Cheers, looks like a plan for next year :)

Travel / New Year's Eve in Warsaw. How to spend it? [26]


How much does it cost to do that? Wouldn't mind doing it next year...

Life / Regional traits in Poland [27]


Poznan, yes - but have you seen the state of some of the villages when you go from Poznan towards Szczecin/Germany? There's one particular village/osiedle/whatever on the way from Poznan to Kostrzyn that looks literally like hell on earth!

Food / Looking for Cider around Poznan Area [16]

It's a shame you're not in Poznan, I know quite a few people who would happily pay for a course on making cider/beer at home :(

Real Estate / Prices of apartments in Krakow are collapsing further down in 2010-2011 [150]


Arguing with yourself again?

So why do you live here, Mark?


Poland is 'dirty and frozen' now, is it? Does your wife know of the comments you're making on here? Is she aware that you appear to be exceptionally bitter?

Harry - if you're in need of some festive cheer, have a read of Mark's blog :) I've never read such badly written rubbish!

Real Estate / Prices of apartments in Krakow are collapsing further down in 2010-2011 [150]


Hi Mark, another username?

Your currency trader stands to lose a significant amount of money if he's actually betting on this - the big institutions are seeing the Zloty/Euro rate heading towards 3.5. If he predicted the sudden crash of the Zloty, it hardly took a genius - I called it!

Anyway Mark, you really ought to do your homework a bit more - the PLZ hasn't existed as a currency for over 10 years - why would anyone be trading it? ;)

Life / grrrr... internet issues (or customer service issues) with TP SA [14]

Cheers Avalon, I'm going to get someone to advise me further on this.

Can't see how it's a get out clause, but hey...

Real Estate / Is it normal to pay 22% tax on renting a flat? [15]

Take someone along to compare Polish and English contracts - it's a *very* common trick to get English (or German, or whatever) speakers to sign both versions, and the Polish contract will have some very nasty clauses included in it - such as a statement that in the event of dispute, the Polish contract will have precedence.

I'd also say that in Poland, if something feels wrong, it usually is wrong.

Study / freelance esl teacher or proofreader looking for assistant [5]

Thank you for that, it's appreciated :)

I won't ask how much your eyes must have hurt after 38 hours straight!

Life / grrrr... internet issues (or customer service issues) with TP SA [14]


I was told by a lawyer that Polish law insists that all contracts should be in Polish. I've asked others and they've backed it up - hence why I'd like to see something that can definitively prove otherwise. Apparently there is a provision somewhere that means a contract can be made in any other language provided both parties agree, but I've never see any evidence of this (and the people I've asked disagreed).

Of course, it's Poland, so you can never be sure - but I think it's safe advising people that contracts should be drawn up in Polish, not least because it avoids hassle with translation (just look at the differences in interpretation between the Irish and English language versions of the Irish constitution!).


Of course - this is why everything needs to be checked and double checked and why I never rely on one person to provide an authortative statement. It's also why I'm so curious about this contract issue - if I can find definitive proof that in Polish law, contracts have to be made available in the native Community language, then I'll take it away and find out what the deal is.


You have to remeber that the EU doesn't make laws - it issues directives. How the individual member states interpret them is up to them - as long as they achieve the end result, the EU couldn't care less. The best example is with consumer protection and guarantees/warranties. The EU demands 2 years warranty - the UK has 6. The EU couldn't care less how many years it is, as long as it's 2 years or more. They have simply told member states that they must offer a 2 year warranty - which the UK does, and goes further.

Study / freelance esl teacher or proofreader looking for assistant [5]

You can contact us at lindenia.net, we will be able to help :)

Harry - is it true what they say about proofreading being well paid but very tedious? It's not the kind of thing I can imagine ever doing, but I suppose knowing about the industry would be useful..

Life / grrrr... internet issues (or customer service issues) with TP SA [14]

I'd love to see an authoritative link for this as well - my understanding of Polish law is that a contract is legal in whatever language, provided both parties agree to it. I've found a reference to timeshare contracts being in the native language, but nothing otherwise.

Life / Why do so many people in Poland have issues with Judaism? [69]


Where does it say they were kidnapped in the link? Nowhere.

The problem isn't exclusive to Israel. In fact, the UK has quite a bad reputation for it.

Let's see - Spain - news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8244474.stm

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking#Europe gives a nice overview of the problem, showing that it's not just THE BIG EVIL NASTY JEWS that indulge in this practice.

Oh look - what a surprise - news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/hereford/worcs/8323368.stm - And in the UK again - underage girls being used! -

As I said - cute.


What's new there? Goes on in Europe, too.


These things are hardly exclusive to Israel and EVIL JEWS WHO STOP PEOPLE FROM WORKING BECAUSE... BECAUSE THEY'RE JEWISH!

As for being one of them - aw, is that the old "you're with us or you're against us" line being used?

Now, go away and get a job.

Life / Why do so many people in Poland have issues with Judaism? [69]


Ah, that 'reality' which involves being unemployed and spending all your time blaming Jews? Quite common problem among internet wannabe Jew-haters, I believe. As I said - most of them haven't actually met a real Jew and spend their time reading conspiracy websites.

The videos on youtube are always good for a laugh though.


Yes, of course it is. Keep telling yourself that - I mean, you might want to readjust your tin foil hat to protect against EVIL JEWS, but hey.


You're welcome to wonder. Personally, I'd rather make money than worry about conspiracy theories involving minorities.

Life / Why do so many people in Poland have issues with Judaism? [69]


Haha, cute. Gotta love internet anti-semtists :)

I take it you don't actually know any Jewish people personally?

Life / Why do so many people in Poland have issues with Judaism? [69]


You might question the wisdom of an administrator who deletes threads about meetups in Poland, yet allows endless threads about EVIL BLACK JEWISH ARABS MURDERING POLES :/

Travel / train @ bus from warsaw to budapest? [17]

Polrail are highly, highly recommended by me - fantastic customer service. They do charge a premium, but for their highly specific knowledge and ability to book obscure fares that bamboozle PKP Intercity workers, they're second to none.

Certainly, they're recommended if you want to book anything esoteric.

Work / Job Opportunity for Non Polish speakers in Warsaw [27]


It's not so much to protect European workers, as opposed to providing a fair and honest scheme in so far as providing work permits go. It's sensible that work permits should only be issued where an employer cannot fill the vacancy from within the EEA/CH zone - though in practice, it's quite easy to obtain such permits for professional jobs.