Law / Can an International student staying 2 yrs in Poland, take out 2 yr cell phone contract? [4]


Get pre-paid. It isn't expensive in PL and if you pay (I think) 125zl you get 5gb of data from Play.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

We have all those except the Mediterranean warmth (though the palm-treed south coast does well in summer and Catalonia is cold in winter). There's also wild moorland, fens and broads, wolds, rolling hills and beautiful valleys (The Winster Valley, Elan Valley and Swaledale come to mind) beautiful forests, rugged Snowdonia, the North West Highlands (the least densely populated region in Europe), the historical industrial landscapes of the lower Pennines, the thousand islands that ring the coast, the Cotswolds etc, etc, etc.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]


In short, no.

As johnb121 says, it's a matter for tax advisors. And it only really affects the very rich whose advisors are adept at working round such issues and negotiating with various jurisdictions if need be.

For most people there isn't any sort of issue of dual residency, and in any case, where the UK is concerned the vast majority of people, including those from Poland, are on PAYE.

Of course there's no shortage of people who are tax resident in neither jurisdiction, plus expats (in the precise sense of the word) paying equalised tax.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]

No. No change. Both countries have their own systems however a dual taxation agreement means they do not charge tax on money that has been taxed under the other system.

Work / Australian looking to teach English in Poland [25]

Would they learn anything at all? It's a total drag when people masquerading as teachers talk about so-called comversation classes and say "all I do is chat'" without ever realising themselves that there's a whole range of techniques for 1-1 teaching that are probably harder to master than normal language teaching methodology and certainly much harder to put in to practice effectively.

That and a sequential structure to the course of lessons. Without it, they're just a form of masturbation; except perhaps somewhat less enjoyable.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]


See below:

The Polish tax office works according to the Polish tax year.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]

Exactly - that's the catch, though it's so vague that it's very hard to enforce unless someone is operating businesses back home. Most in that situation just operate their business as a Polish agency of a foreign entity.

Work / Australian looking to teach English in Poland [25]

20zl per hour! That's a scandal - the person must be truly short of money to buy food if they're doing that.

Mind you, they almost certainly aren't a teacher of any sort - just some bod who'll accept money to chat.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]

Indeed. Poland has a fiscal economy which is great for some, in civil service jobs or working for large companies, especially at Dyrektor (not the same as the UK term Director) but not for many. The UK has particularly good taxation and of course an underlying concept that illness, joblessness or disability isn't the fault of the individual or their family and that the responsibility for the well-being of individuals is collective.

Poland does however have one big plus as far as tax is concerned: liability for tax generally (there are a few exceptions that affect almost nobody) kicks in at 183 days per year rather than the UK's 90.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]

It doesn't quite work like that because Poland's approach to new situations tends to be reactive. Since the income is not generated within PL they have no way of knowing what the person earns in the UK unless they go to court in the UK to find out. Providing Jacek or Wojtek haven't left a business open that should be declaring income or lack of it, there's nothing they can really do.

Basically, what they don't know about, they can't touch.

There are plenty of grey areas, however the Polish tax system is not a good one about responding to reality. What it is good about is not chasing income that doesn't derive from or end up (traceably) in Poland.

Law / Poles going to live in the UK or elsewhere and their tax residency status? They pay tax to Poland? [15]

The two countries have a dual taxation agreement so people pay tax where they live and work. The UK recognises that people up sticks during the tax year. Poland's taxation system is less efficient, but they are also less efficient at collecting, so people just ignore them.

In any case, the cleaner Agata that you mention would find much of her income covered by her UK personal allowance and therefore untouchable by Poland - much as the Urzad Skarbowy would love to nab her wages, they can't. Poland also has to respect Working Tax Credits that provide such an important part of many poorer families' income.

Worth mentioning that in Poland you can't easily work for cash (unless it's receipted and declared and you're registered as self-employed and you declare it monthly) whereas in the UK you can, provided you declare it yearly.

Given the choice, most people would prefer to pay tax in the UK than Poland, not least because of the personal allowance.

Work / Any Speed School of English in Poland? [54]

Avoid Callan schools in general - they don't help your CV if you want to work elsewhere in the country.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

It's amazing what's there really. The three tourist boards don't promote a lot of it. That does mean that so much is unspoilt, but also that foreigners never hear about the best bits.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

I don't think so. Few are so varied, 'guest poster'.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


You'd be surprised:


buzzfeed.com/hilarywardle/12-places-youd-never-believe-were-in-the-uk-aplm

Life / Amazon stops super saver delivery on orders to Poland [40]


They use Royal Mail and other distribution networks.

Travel / 9-Day Poland Trip Itinerary: Warsaw-Krakow-Wroclaw-Poznan-Gdansk-Torun-Warsaw [27]


That's a hell of an itinerary. I'd miss Torun off the list (although it's nice) and maybe Wroclaw and Poznan. Spend longer in Gdansk and visit Sopot and Gdynia (the three are called the Tri-city and are really three different parts of the same place) too. Also there's a lot to see in Warsaw - you need more than the days you arrive and leave.


Definitely no if you don't speak Polish. Unless you use PolskiBus which is a bit more user-friendly and book online. The buses leave from easy to find places.

Life / Golden Wedding in Poland, the protocol for giving gift for a wedding? [58]


Fine as long as you don't get fitted sheets and remember that the pillows in PL are a bit specific - and in any case, most large supermarkets sell 'normal' ones now.. Beds are usually 140cm, 160cm or sometimes 180cm. They are sometimes but not often larger.


You shouldn't worry - criticism is a sign that Poland's coming out of isolation. Nobody knows anything about Moldova or Latvia and therefore people nod politely when a Moldovan or Latvian talks about their culture or history and accepts their point of view without question. In the case of UK, US, Germany, everyone has opinions. Poland is becoming less like Moldova/Latvia and more like Britain, Germany etc - you'll therefore need to get used to people questioning the Polish point of view. On the whole it's the right direction to be going in.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

No - there's an amazing variety there. No deserts and not many palm trees, but truly amazing countryside and a thousand small islands round the coast.

News / Polish MP lives as a migrant in London earning £100 [21]

You can get a fairly nasty room in a shared house in Tottenham for 60 or 70 per week. With a wobbly lock on your room, strangers in and out and not an English person on the street. And a long way from the tube. Plenty live like that.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


That's pretty bizarre. Most people have the opposite experience. Mind you, I've heard of a guy who brings Coca Cola from PL to UK, because the stuff in UK isn't sugary enough for him.


Why go to rthat sort of place. Reminds me of a guy I know from Warsaw who went there and complained about the bread. Turns out he'd only bought white sliced in a packet from petrol stations - just the same sort of muck as if you buy tost or Baltonowski in Poland.. If you must go to a supermarket, try Waitrose.

News / Polish MP lives as a migrant in London earning £100 [21]

A stunt, but a good one. At least he's actually showing some initiative instead of hiding in an office on ul. Wiejska.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]

Indeed ;-)

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


Now that's something new. Started after I left UK. I'm not sure what to think about it.


That's nothing new - a long tradition, but more disposable income seems to have led to this. I see it more and more in Warsaw too.


Me too. I do think old fashioned pubs are nicer than big drinking factories. I miss some of the old pubs you used to get in the industrial North - real focal points for the community. In Poland I tend to prefer more old-fashioned bars, though they're going the same way in Warsaw, often forced out by rising rents and younger people preferring big and loud places.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


Exactly - young people will have fun. Also, the UK and Ireland have a very rich pub culture. Sadly dying off now, but definitely not a nation who keep themselves to themselves.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


Silly cow. Mind you, I've never seen anyone frozen to death in the UK, but I've seen it several times in Warsaw.


I suspect the young ladies of Newcastle leave drugs until later, if at all and in any case, they start the evening off like that. As I say, hardy people.


Gross. Anyway, I doubt anyone's "freezing to death" on a bus in April or October.

Law / Are Car Damage by Pothole Claims in Poland Possible? [12]

It would take so long as to be hardly worth it, if at all. And it wouldn't surprise me if there was some way of the authorities denying responsibility.

Still, it might be worth a lawyer having a go at a test case.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


You should see the young ladies in Bigge Market in Newcastle - far from 'randomly wandering around in the snow' (who does that, anyway?) but very determinedly heading from bar to bar having fun. Hardy people. Whereas in PL, I see people dressed like Nanook on mild spring days.

UK, Ireland / Do people in Poland live "better" than here in the UK? [150]


In any of the butchers shops in my small town in the UK you can buy a bigger selection of cuts of meat and from a wider variety of animals than in most large supermarkets in Poland. All local,, and they'll get things in for you, save things, do special cuts etc. Plus the local market sells 20 or 30 types of fish, most of which were in the sea a few hours before. And the fruit and veg is better too, and more likely to be local.


Poland doesn't exactly do badly for its vast range of packet soups and sauces. And remember, a lot of the meat eaten day-to-day is actually wędliny - processed and preserved meats. Of course it may be different in tiny villages in the countryside (which foreigners don't spend so much time in) but that's exactly the same in the UK. And what's with all the frozen chips? It's as if people have forgotten to cut potatoes. Even in restaurants. I asked a (young) waitress a couyple of months ago if the chips were frozen and here reply was "what other kind are there?"!!!


Horses for courses. If you're from the South, especially the so-called 'home counties', yes, real estate prices are high in proportion to wages. If you're from where I'm from, they're not - the average for the borough is about 130k.. In Warsaw where I live, real estate is expensive compared to wages and trust me, couples who both work long hours don't sit up rolling their own pierogi or boning trout.