News / What should Poland do with the problem of Belarus? [1800]

Bit of sad news - that Polish soldier who defected to Belarus has been found hanged in Minsk

Rest In Peace

News / What should Poland do with the problem of Belarus? [1800]

He will want to keep his best and most loyal troops close to Minsk - god knows what a rabble the rest of them will be. The Russians are slovenly and ill disciplined but Belarus army will be next level rubbish

Language / Is This the Correct Way to Say 'bro, wake up, it's the 90's'? [10]

Kolego is the closest fit to the Anglo / Aussie "mate" which you are right is not quite the same as bro. I think to say bro you need to be room mates or school mates

Language / Is This the Correct Way to Say 'bro, wake up, it's the 90's'? [10]

I think I would go for Kolego ! Certainly not bracie. But maybe Stary :)

UK, Ireland / Boris Johnson - is the new British PM a popular figure in Poland? [150]

Might be personable but he is a liar, very poor leader (much worse than Trump) and it's clear from this incident that he thinks ordinary British people are scum

Law / ZUS for a sole trader in Poland [10]

Good question but might be several weeks - they have a huge backlog at the moment after the lockdowns

Law / ZUS for a sole trader in Poland [10]

The Zus should have sent to your business address a letter with your individual Zus account on it. You need to make a monthly transfer to that account. If you haven't got that letter then contact your local Zus office (you might need to take a Polish speaker with you, and get vaccinated before you go - its full of coughing old people).

If you missed a few months then its not a big deal - theoretically there is interest to pay, but if you send a lump sum of what you owe they probably wont bother you).

I don't know if there is any law saying you must issue invoices, but there is a law that you must keep some accounting records, so at the very least you need bank records.

News / New Polish tax system hits the ground stumbling... [14]

This shows them at their worst - no consultation with business, ignored the questions of accountants, rushed through parliament and now subject to quick amendments which will just create the kind of loopholes that Poles love

Even worse is their anti inflation drive - a painkiller not a cure but one that will dramatically increase the deficit. Proper Gierek stuff

Work / Can any international computer science student get software development job in Wrocław or Warsaw? [45]

I would ignore the pessimism on this forum - the average age is quite high and few people are working in your sector. Rather seek out forums for programmers and IT or a fb group for younger foreigners

My own view - there is a shortage of workers full stop and a double shortage of developers. So employers will be more likely to go through the effort than they were a few years ago.

Law / Claiming Zachowek from Australia [11]

I don't think you will get any cash for the house until it is sold - so that's the actual sale price of the house, not the market value

Real Estate / An increase of 25% rent is legal in Poland? [5]

Yes - it's completely legal. Try and negotiate a smaller increase with him - he won't want the hassle of finding another tenant

News / Polish Pegasus Spyware Scandal [40]

Hopefully the more sensible members of PiS will now see they won't be ruling for ever and will be aware that criminal behavior will be punished eventually.

History / Chances of Moscow becoming part of Poland again? [102]

Ah home sweet home - the rickety trams, the queues, the aroma of soggy pelmeni and your weekly ration of herring.

Life / All Things Christmassy in Poland [332]

Happy Christmas

Don't think it can't get worse; but one day it will get better

Real Estate / Problems with Father's property in Poland - inheritance [6]

Well if the apartment is in his name in the Ksiega Wieczysta then it is up to him what he does with it. His house, his rules.

So you probably have to wait for nature to take its course.

If you are a Polish citizen you also need to be careful not to inherit his debts - might be a nasty surprise, so check that out.

Classifieds / A open position in Krakow for Polish students [7]

I use OLX for advertising for interns - get fairly good response rates and it keeps junk out of your email inbox. Be very clear about what you need - if they have to speak English or have tech experience.

And be prepared for some appalling standard of replies - the quality of applications and manners has gone south since Covid and you will have to pay about 25 zloty an hour for an English speaker.

UK, Ireland / Moving To Poland - Cost Of Living compared to the UK [65]

One of the problems you will have is that the market for family homes to rent is small. Pre 1989 places are not comfortable and after that people started to build to their own weird specs and can't understand why you won't pay 7000 zloty to rent their dream construction.

Re your car be aware that there are some extra expenses here like winter tyres and that you will probably need to run a second car if your kids school isn't close.

And seriously get your papers in order or at least make enquiries - being married to a Pole will give you residency rights and I think you can work but I am not sure. Check it out because it can be difficult to fix those things retrospectively and COVID has caused long delays in the offices that issue those things.

UK, Ireland / Moving To Poland - Cost Of Living compared to the UK [65]

In those towns you could live very well on that. However sort out private healthcare and also be aware that for remote work you still need a work permit.

News / Abortion still under control in Poland [2986]

And none of the people who support it here are women. I am also not sure if they are parents or married.

News / Abortion still under control in Poland [2986]

TVPInfo ?

Well they would say that wouldn't they.

News / Poland highest inflation in 20 years [319]

And they have what is typical in state owned crony run industries - high prices, bad service and awful food. I make it a point to avoid them but its hard on the autostrada

News / Poland highest inflation in 20 years [319]

So Poland's government is dealing with it by inflationary taxes, inflationary supply restrictions and changing the way its measured to make it look better

News / Poland highest inflation in 20 years [319]

They are not economic liberals - they believe in state ownership, handouts and gimmes, high regulation, intervention in markets and high taxes on labor. Not my cup of tea but I guess they do have some economic theory which PO rarely displayed when they were in power

Love / How to find Asian Girlfriend in Poland [56]

You mean an Indian or a Chinese ?

There are plenty of Indian students for sure in most big towns and some of them must be single. Just hang out near some university and you can chat one up

Real Estate / Buying property in Poland [41]

You won't need to pay gift tax in Poland - you and your wife are one economic unit.

But you might need to check if you have capital gains tax in wherever you are tax resident. Depends if it's your regular house or a second property etc

Love / How to show a Polish guy that you're interested? [31]

Well in the old times I would have just said ask him for a coffee

Nowadays I think you have to first get his Instagram and then DM him to ask for a coffee :)

Law / Do Poland's taxes apply to foreign pensions? [21]

The UK one certainly you need to pay Polish tax on though you should get a credit for any British tax paid.

You would be much better off asking your question on one of the Brit expat Facebook groups. Maybe Brits in Poland. Here you mostly get trolls and flame wars

News / Unfulfilled promises by PiS [559]

Wouldn't it make more sense to look at a 10 year chart - then you can quite clearly see 4 years before JK and 6 years after him

chartoasis.com/eur-pln-forex-chart-10-years-cop0/

News / Unfulfilled promises by PiS [559]

Indeed - part of the irony is that the increase at the gas pumps is funding JKs troll army and the PiS nomenklatura

News / Unfulfilled promises by PiS [559]

How does it balance out ? Wages for people who have a job are not increasing by 5 or 7 percent. Taxes are increasing for the hard working people in order to fund election handouts. The increase in the economy is only because we are not locked on our osiedle any more.

The real inflation is probably higher - certainly for middle class people. Things you need to work are where a squeeze is really felt - petrol, public transport, parking, coffee, clothes. The items the government measures are a farce - a list of consumer items that you have probably never heard of, unless a balecon sandwich is a popular breakfast in Sydney.

It's quite tiresome to have someone in Australia tell us how well we are doing.