Law / Opening a Polish Bank Account by a foreigner in Poland. Recommendations. [299]

Regarding the "withdraw money from the cash counter", I would be very surprised if that requires a PESEL number.
If you are able to open an account without PESEL, have your salary paid into the account, use the Debit card to pay for goods in stores and withdraw money from ATMs, there is absolutely no reason why you would need a PESEL number t owithdraw cash from that account via the cash counter. After all, to pay money into the account via cash counter, they wouldn't ask for a PESEL either.

It is not part of the Polish banking regulations to require a PESEL number to open a current account with a debit card. If you want to add a credit card however after let's say three month, you would need your PESEL.

I found it very easy to open accounts in Poland. Three years ago I opened one with Nordea with just my passport (EU citizen). In February I changed banks and opened one with Getin Bank with passport and employment contract.

I then realized that i actually need a credit card (for car rental purposes) so I applied for one at Bank Millenium. I chose Bank Millenium because their website is in English and the application process (online application, phone verification etc.) can be done in English too. All i needed was my PESEL, employment contract and three months bank statement from my (at the time) current bank.

Overall, opening a bank account in Poland as a EU citizen is a piece of cake. The only issue you may sometimes face is some older bank clerk who has missed the fact that banking in Poland has become a competitive business and is making it as difficult as they possibly can. If you face that issue, walk straight out and into the next bank across the road.

By the way, Bank Millenium offers free banking and free withdrawels in Poland and abroad as long as you pay at least 1000 zloty into your account every month. Their staff speaks English, their online banking is in English and their online banking has won several awards.

Law / Opening a Polish Bank Account by a foreigner in Poland. Recommendations. [299]


@Superzul.........in your original post you forgot to mention that when you said "withdrawing cash over the counter without PESEL seems impossible", you meant US Dollars, not Polish Zloty. You were talking about cash which, given that we are talking about Polish banks in Poland, I assumed you meant zloty.

I have absolutely no idea how it works regarding any foreign currency, but withdrawing Polish zloty from the cash counter most certainly does not require a PESEL.

Need to be a bit more precise next time to avoid confusion :) :)[/quote]

Law / Regarding Entering Poland - residency and travelling to other Schengen countries [19]


It depends on the type of Visa. If it is a "Type D" visa, then yes, travel to other Schengen countries would be allowed for up to 3 months in any 6 months period.

Life / Which nations do Poles like the most / the least? [150]

Intesresting how "wrong" some people are.

I would go with Germany. Simply because there is no denying that Poles appreciate Germany and Germans for their efficiency, correctness, motorways, time-keeping, accuracy, cars etc. etc. etc. etc.

Even though Poles like to give the impression to be rather negative towards Germans, they actually appreciate their neighbours quite a lot. Of course not many would openly say it.

Polonia / POLES vs BULGARIANS [160]


Well, let the media say whatever it wants. I have spent a couple of weeks in beautiful Sofia last year and also traveled to your old capital city Veliko Tarnovo for a few days. I loved it. The people were so genuine, welcoming, honest. Absolutely amazing. I also lived in Ukraine for three years and all my friends always asked me why I would want to live there. They asked me if it wasn't dangerous. If I feel safe. I have spend 5 days in Belarus and never felt so comfortable leaving my things in hotel room before because I felt safe and genuinely welcome. All countries that have a certain "reputation". Would I ever leave anything laying around by itself on a train in Germany (my home country)? Most certainly not but I know that I can do so in Bulgaria, Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia. Nie ma problem.

Let people who do not know it better say what they want. If they are not ready to make that experience of good Bulgarian food, good beer, beautiful landscape, welcoming people and pretty woman ( just like anywhere else in Eastern Europe), then let them be........ no point in wasting your energy over it :)

Genealogy / Want to find a person [762]

Hi Sven, have you ever thought about the fact that she may not want "to be found"?

I don't want to sound harsh, but i find it a tiny bit creepy that someone is posting personal details of another person on a public forum, in order to get in contact with her.

Life / Move to Poland or UK? (Advice needed) [51]

I am not sure what kind of experience you have made Harry, but i have found the Poles to be very welcoming towards foreigners, specially towards westeners. You have to remember however, that what goes around comes around. Having observed your beahviour in this forum, I am not surprised that you feel "mistreated" by the Poles.......

Life / Move to Poland or UK? (Advice needed) [51]

I think the problem is that SSC or BPO's are regarded as call centers with low level income employees.

@ DominicB, you will find that "cold call sales" or "low level collections" is something that you will not find too often in Poland. Reason being is that doing cold call sales requires a certain level of the language you are doing the sales in. I.e., you need to overcome objections from the person you trying to sell to. For that, you almost certainly need native speakers and getting them to work in Poland requires a decent salary offer. It is almost more lucrative for cold call sales to stay in their respective countries as there they have the workforce with the required skillset which is the native language.

All in all, SSC / BPO's can be quite attractive for foreigners. Most specialize in Accountancy or IT whereas Accountancy would be the higher paying sector to be in. As a trained accountant speaking Swedish as native language you should be able to get at least 7 - 8k PLN gross. If the salary is lower, then there most certainly would be other benefits such as company apartment which would make up for the lesser income.

It also depends on the company whether or not they are just setting up in Poland or have been here for a number of years. New SSC's tend to pay more for native speakers, mainly because they require them for the transition process.

All in all, 5k as a Swedish native speaker without any other benefits (i.e. company apartment) is too little to even consider.

One example, an Italian native speaker i know is going to move to Krakow in January to work in Accounts Receivable. His experience in this area would amount to 1 year. He has been offered 6400 PLN gross. Given that Italian is considered to be one of the lower paid language skills, i would assume that in the same area with the same amount of experience, a Swedish native speaker sould achieve at least 7k PLN gross.

Life / Do you think that Polish people are rude? [951]


I am not sure whether or not this can be considered as being "rude". From my time here in Poland but also in Ukraine, i have always found assistants in normal shops / supermarkets to be fairly abrupt and straight to the point with a "buy it or leave it" attitude. There simply is no need for smalltalk and to a certain extend, i actually prefer it this way. If i want a simple loaf of bread or a liter of milk, I do not feel the need to talk about my weekend plans with the shop assistant, nor do i need any special consultation about which kind of milk i should buy.

It is different in shops for clothing, electronics etc. where i would like to have someone at least a tiny bit competent and talkative. Here in Lodz, in the main shopping centers, i found the assistants in those shops rather helpful with surprisingly good level of English.

Life / Do you think that Polish people are rude? [951]

Sometimes knowledge of grammar and usage of such knowledge comes in handy. Particularly when reading and understanding forum posts :) :)

Language / Polish Language Exchange Thread [141]

Hi,

if you are interested, a friend of mine is looking for a translator from Polish to English for her company website. The translated text would be proofread by an English native speaker together with her, to point out any mistakes you may have made in order to help you to improve.

She is struggling to find the time to do it herself, so if you are interested, you could earn a few zlotych on the side, she would get her translation and you would get your practice. Win - Win situation :)

Let me know if you are interested.

Life / Which is the best credit card to get in Poland? [10]

Bank Millennium's credit card offers two different types of bonuses. One is a 5% refund if you shop at selected partners, the second one is their "Buy &Smile@ program.

The one thing I love about Bank Millennium is their easy to use online banking. It is fully available in English and has won several awards for best online banking in Poland.

Life / Which is the best credit card to get in Poland? [10]

My current account with Millennium is completely free of charge, even withdrawls abroad are free of charge, as long as at least 1000 PLN are paid into it every month.

My actual bank (the one i get my salary paid in to every month) charged me an outragous 30 zloty when i withdrew 200 francs in Switzerland in spring this year. Plus 7.50 zloty for "something" i can not quite understand for using the card at some outlets.

All in all, I will change the bank account with the company i work for to my Millennium account as i am quite happy with it.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

You know, as a child of a French man and a Polish woman, born and bread in East Berlin, I am very patriotic about being German although in fact I am even more patriotic about my country which doesn't exist anymore ( who doesn't love the country they were born in?). I can only say that I love the Russians as much as I love the Polish. I love their way of living, their way of keeping traditions (something we "westerners" have lost a long time ago). I have no issue with Poles or Russians neither do they seem to have an issue with me as a German. So what is this topic about?

Who hates who most? Look west! In 2007 I went to a football game in Frankfurt between Germany and Wales. The main chant between the supporters was "We hate England more than you". Same in Ireland, again, "we hate England more than you". Does it reflect in real life? I hardly think so. It's banter.

Anyone who wastes their time thinking about who they hate more has more serious issues than just hating someone. Grow up guys!

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]


How did you get to that assumption? Given the fact that I live in Poland would somewhat give away that there must be some kind of connection, no?

Law / Termination of permament or contract work contract in Poland [35]


Well, actually it is not that easy. According to the Polish Labour Code, the employer has to justify the dismissal of an employee.

@ Anna83, here is a very good summary of terminations of employment contracts in Poland

ec.europa.eu/social/BlobServlet?docId=4633&langId=en

Law / Termination of permament or contract work contract in Poland [35]

Yes, I suppose some more details would be helpful. However, it is every employees right to challenge the employer , even going to court, if the dismissal is not justified at all or the reasons appear to be "made up".

But what you said earlier "Employer doesn't have to give a reason at all" does not apply.

Law / Termination of permament or contract work contract in Poland [35]

UFO973, just because you do not know your rights, does not mean that you do not have any.

Perhaps you should take the time and educate yourself on the rights of employees in Poland instead wasting it moaning about what happened to you. The Polish labor code is quite an extensive "booklet" which outlines exactly what rights and obligations employers have and what rights and obligations employees have. You will find, if you would only take the time, that there is probably something you could have done against your dismissal if it is was not justified at all.

Life / Thread dedicated to Polish and other Slavic children [53]


Crow, you are nothing but a bigoted internet warrior. I lived in Ukraine for 3 years. I live in Donetsk for 3 years. I am German and I can tell you one thing. I have seen half my friends leaving Donetsk because they have no interest in the DNR. I have seen the other half stay because they have nowhere else to go. Some have been recruited by the DNR boys because that's the only grivnas they can get at the moment. The rest are relying on money send from their friends in western Europe or western Ukraine or Kyiv. The DNR does give a **** about them, just like the Transnistrian government does not care for it's citizens or can not care for it's citizens.

Do you want a true report from what's going on in your DNR? Are you ready for it? Have you ever been to Donetsk to even slightly be able to understand the situation?

I beg you, say yes and I will copy / paste every single message I have from my friends who remained in Donetsk. If you feel that you need to cancel your account on this forum in shame, I will understand.

Stop writing about things you clearly have no clue about unless you are ready and willing to man up when someone tells you otherwise.

Life / Thread dedicated to Polish and other Slavic children [53]

Crow, am I paid by "hostile non-Slavic elements?" ?

No, I moved to Donetsk because I support Shakhtar and I fell in love with Donetsk, Donbass and Ukraine in general. I made the decision to move to Ukraine when my team played Dynamo Kyiv on a Sunday at 4pm and my flight out of Kyiv was at 2.30pm to go back home so I missed the game. That's when I decided to start working as a freelance translator over the internet and just live in Donetsk so I don't have to miss games anymore, be closer to my club and just simply live in Ukraine.

You still haven't answered my question yet but I guess you do not want any real opinions about the great DNR and what people think about your Slavic commonwealth ideas to be published. Not that you may have to admit to be wrong in front of an audience........

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]


Actually, expert opinion differs greatly from yours. In fact, they say (and I would conquer) that Poland is one of the most successful countries in the old eastern bloc. While I do maintain the opinion that the success has an expiry date, one can not deny that Poland, in 10 years of EU membership, has done rather well for itselt.

With regards to frustration over Germany's success. I would not call it frustration but admiration. It is not a secret that, when it comes to business, Germans are rather respected in Poland and there is a reason for it. I know of a few Germans who sit on the board of medium sized Polish enterprises and that has been the case since the early 90's. I would suggest you take a train journey on the Warsaw - Berlin Express on a Friday afternoon and speak to some of the guys that go back home for the weekend.

In any case, I can not agree with your statement at all. It shows lack of knowledge.

UK, Ireland / Buying a Polish vehicle in the UK [28]


Because it probably won't interest the DVLA much how he get's a Polish registered car to Croatia, even if he resides in the UK :)

UK, Ireland / Buying a Polish vehicle in the UK [28]


Given that the car is a gift, i would find it hard to believe that anyone would want to go through the trouble and expenses of importing and exporting the car if you can just simply drive it out of the UK on the Polish plates :)

Life / Polish traditions and customs? I'm writing a crime novel that takes place in Poland. [10]

I wouldn't put it down as "tradition" but it seems that Polish people, when waiting for the elevator, like to wait right infront of the doors of the elevator, appearing all surprised when the door opens and someone is trying to get out. Of course, making space for the person trying to get out appears to be too much to ask.

Some goes for trams, busses, trains or anything else that has doors and moves.

Genealogy / Are Silesians people German/Germanic? [178]


Perhaps Germany could also join your dream Commonwealth with Serbia. Would make sense......

Law / USD shooting up so high for PLN [76]


I find that extremely interesting because in 2010, the Swiss government set the exhange rate at minimum of 1 EUR : 1.20 CHF, meaning that the Swiss Franc could never get stronger than 1.20 to the Euro. Obviously, that block must have been lifted, however, i did not hear about that it was at any point.

This may not only be a blow to the Polish home owners who have mortgages in CHF (to be honest, they probably don't deserve otherwise for being that stupid), it could also have a major affect on Swiss retail and export.

When i stayed in Switzerland, the Franc went from 1 - 1:30 to 1 - 1:10 which saw many people exchanging their Francs to Euro and do ther shopping across the border in Germany, France and Italy. It was also the time when the Swiss government decided on the 1 - 1:20.

Law / USD shooting up so high for PLN [76]


Thanks for the link!

Travel / Why most taxis in Warsaw cheat foreigners to get more money? [38]


Of course, generally taxis in Poland are ok. I have had it sometimes that a driver would take a different road, allowing him to earn 1 zloty more, however cheating himself out of a 2 zloty tip which i normally give to drivers who go the right and the quickest way.

I guess we can all agree that a statement such as "charging foreigners ten times more" is utter nonsense.

UK, Ireland / Why Polish girls working in UK as escort more than other Eastern European girls [89]


Why do you think that is?

Perhaps because hardly (if anyone) on this forum works in this field and knows why the girls choose the UK?

However, you must be pretty naive (or blind) if you think that only because Polish girls are actually listed on those websites, that they make up the majority of central / eastern European girls working as prostitutes in the UK.

There is a good chance that Moldovan and Ukrainian girls would make up a much larger number. In most cases, you just would not see it, not even the authorities do.

But surely, such a great "punter" as you does not pay interest to that........

UK, Ireland / Why Polish girls working in UK as escort more than other Eastern European girls [89]


That is why i wrote "not even the authorities".