Life / Free Poland Health Care - Paying minimal to no Zus [105]


Like someone mentioned, you can set up a one-person company and pay about 450zl for the first two years which would cover all three of you, it's not a bad deal really. But then your ZUS payments are jacked up to the normal rate (970zl or so).

Nonetheless, the entire NFZ system is in such a state of disrepair you will be going to most doctors privately, maybe not to your family doctor ("doctor of first contact") but certainly to see an ob gyn, pediatrician, orthopedist...etc. There are a number of private health insurers that offer decent medical care with most specialities covered and zero or short wait times, but which does not include hospitalization or cover serious long-term diseases. That's why I have both.

NFZ for accidents, amublances, hospital stays, and I dont know, chemotherapy and heart surgery. Some priv health insurers do offer hospitalization/surgery but its quite expensive, others offer "perks" like a private room or a private nurse.

Priv health insurance for day to day stuff like the flu, back pains, broken leg and most important, preventive medicine. My biggest beef with Poland's public health care is the absolute lack of preventive healthcare, i.e., no annual blood tests, urine samples, and all that routine checkup crap that is considered barebones standard in western countries. My insurer/doctor just scheduled a round of chest xrays, full blood tests, urine tests, and some other tests/analyses just as a routine control and had everything done in a period of two days.

Travel / What can Poland do to attract more tourists? Llamas farm? [65]


you nailed it.

the other thing I find particularly disappointing is that most cities simply dont have that much to do and see (except for Krakow). walking around the old town and drinking at some pub and visiting some church or god knows what other religious relic gets real boring real fast. every european city that is attractive to tourists has an "in" or a "reputation", most polish cities are quite bland when you consider what they can offer your average tourist. and the idea that poland needs more 5 star accommodation and "luxury" entertainment is laughable

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]


You will have no problems, you are more bound to deal with people who are aggressive in general than any extermists or racists, in fact I dont think Ive ever met an "extremist" in Poland. There is a sizable Spanish/Portuguese group in Wroclaw, most of them Erasmus students. If you wander off to some of the more rough neighborhoods late at night or walking around by yourself you may be accosted by some toughs or hear some insults (in Polish) hurled your way. How you deal with them is up to you.

Btw, your English is very good.

Real Estate / Poland's flat rental agents and the anger they brew in me.... [60]

Most Poles dont want to rent to foreigners for two good reasons. Foreigners can always skip and bail out quite easily, so the chances of dealing with unpaid rent/utilities or a demolished flat are far higher, with the landlord having no way at filing suit. The second is even more practical. Most foreigners have to declare their place of residence, and the authorities do check up on this. I would say 70% of landlords do not declare their rental income and the last thing they need is any official attention brought their way.

Travel / Will I get instantly laid with my American accent when I speak Polish? [34]


You are an idiot.

Life / Let`s compare prices of services and products in Poland [359]


hahahaha, check your tire pressure... hahahahaha
I dont know how it is in England but in Poland if you're stupid enough to pay for something like that, here is what'll happen:

you drop off your car and are told this "full service" should take two hours
you come back after two hours, not finished, another hour or so
you come back two hours later, still not done, one more hour
this time you call, should be done any second
you call just before closing, still not done, but tomorrow morning the car will be ready
you call tomorrow morning, "almost ready" you hear
you call a few hours later and finally are told the car is ready
you show up, but hear that the full service cost a bit more because "xyz" was difficult to check/replace/inspect, you pay, because youre a big enough idiot to pay for something like that

few months later, when your car is falling apart, you hear at another mechanic

"why didnt you 1. check your brake/oil/coolant level 2. change your spark plugs/filter?" or even " why did you replace your original parts with these cheap knockoffs?". turns out nothing was done at that "full service check", or even worse, parts were stolen off your car.

Travel / Will I get instantly laid with my American accent when I speak Polish? [34]


Yea, taco dude, the days when being from the US made you a hot item were 15 years ago. I guess it might turn on a few chicks at the local wiocha club in the middle of nowhere, but in any city, if you try to play that up, the "dzem dobrym, yestem TaCoPL from ameryka, jestem tutaj zeby fu.ck ciebie" you'll get scorned with laughter and a well-deserved punch to the face.

How old are you btw, 18? Young dumb and full of ... as they say

Life / Is it common in Poland to reduce the km numbers of the cars? [11]

A few cars? How much is a few? As in guessing that youve been in Poland for a few years and buying cars that often, for me it means that youre buying lemons.

Fine, you're not, maybe its because you probably know what fuel injection or a differential is. If you know a lot about cars, repairs, etc, then sure, it's easy to spot when your being ripped off. The vast majority don't and do get ripped off.

And Im not generalizing, if you in fact did try to buy a car in PL then the amount of hidden defects that no one is ever upfront about, the all too famous "powypadkowe skladak" i.e., a car buy together from two or more cars, and the now infamous "owned by a woman, garaged, never smoked in, never driven in rain, only used on sunday to go to church with" description is rampant. Totaled cars bought in the UK, repaired in Poland, and then registered in Germany as to appear as an original well maintained DE car for Polish buyers are incredibly common. Or my favorite, the "fully service history", all backed up by doctored stamps and forged signatures. I've seen one with my owns eyes. So take a hike, Im not generalizing, it's common practice here, just go to any sunday car market and ask if you can take their car to a mechanic or inspection station, or even check their car with a paint thickness meter, must will flat out refuse or even assault you.

Life / Is it common in Poland to reduce the km numbers of the cars? [11]

the car market in Poland is the absolute most vicious, brutal, dishonest, scam-filled, heap of sh1t you will find in all of Europe. Good luck.

UK, Ireland / "If it's not Polish, it's shite" - What is great about Polish Beer in UK? [78]

Most Polish beers have already been ranked by foreigners at ratebeer.com and beeradvocate.com. Nice site though

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]

You are quite right, I misinterpreted the results provided by:

cpi.transparency.org/cpi2011/results/

Poland actually is the least corrupt in Central/East Europe.

However, Spain is less corrupt than Poland.

Life / Let`s compare prices of services and products in Poland [359]


Uhhh can you translate for us what the dollar figure of "social security and a small pension check" is?

These are very general prices, but expect to pay 2000zl for a studio including utilities. Food depends on how much and what you eat. From 400 to 800zl a month. Other random costs like phone, transport, ermmm 300zl. So 3k a month for Warsaw.

Travel / What do you think about hitchhikers in Poland? [33]


Nope, they had no chance like most foreigners in Poland, I raped and killed them. Sorry, better luck next time.

Travel / What do you think about hitchhikers in Poland? [33]

Hmmm... you are quite right here, the amount of Poles I met whose definition of a good job meant not a good career track, an executive office, bonuses or professional enrichment... but a "ciepla posadka", a desk job where you sit on your ass, drink coffee and read a newspaper the whole day, was quite astounding. This is considered a dream job in Poland to be making 3000zl a month doing nothing. NO ambition, work ethic, hope... at least they're cheap in this regard, most Westerners want jobs paying 3000 USD/EUR/GBP per month for doing nothing.

On the other hand I know many Poles who bust their ass day in day out, 12 hour days, sacrificing family, friends and life to make the boss happy. I can quite honestly point to them and say "here are the ones trying to make their own lives and the country better".

But like you, I do not sympathize nor understand the "woe is me, I have no job and can't find work". There is tons of work out there. It is, in most regards, due to sheer laziness.

Travel / What do you think about hitchhikers in Poland? [33]

Ive picked up numerous hitchhikers and most were very polite and I remember a few good conversations. I just dont commit to driving them anywhere in particular or for any distance, its not my responsibility. Thats what hitchhiking is all about.

And the fact that there are people who dont want to work is shocking to you? I met boatloads Americans, Canadians, Poles, Brits etc who turned out to be parasitic leeches, the worst are the upper middle class college grads, they expect everything to be delivered on a platter to them. Poland is absolutely normal in this regard.

Real Estate / Renting in Poland - tenants' rights? [51]

"Wynajem" is the sum you pay for renting the property, czynsz is utilities (gas, water, elec), not the administration fee, which is included in the "czynsz".

If you own the property and its a co-op, then "czynsz" for you is the admin fee + other crap.

From my personal experience, most rental contracts are not worth the paper they are printed on, it's more of a gentlemen's agreement.

Law / Penalty points on driving licences in Poland [26]

Smurf meant that your friend is bullshitting you, in other words, he was not telling the truth. It's not "hoodie" or "graffiti" English (btw, graffiti???? wth does that even mean?), its regular slang.

However, he is not entirely correct. Yes, points are linked to a driver's license, not a PESEL number. However, on the basis of your PESEL the police can easily check how many points you have.

Nonetheless, if you hold Polish citizenship or are a legal resident but have a driver's license from another country you are not affected by points. You must pay the fine but it is "credited", i.e., you do not have to pay on the spot.

Law / Penalty points on driving licences in Poland [26]

You do not get points. They do not go on your UK license. All you have to do is pay the fine. If you do not have legal residence in Poland you must pay on the spot.

Parking tickets are another matter, do pay them otherwise they will hunt you down.

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]

Poland is the most corrupt country in the EU besides Estonia, but who ever heard of Estonia... Of course its critical for development, but money is so poorly mismanaged Im actually thrilled that they did anything at all with it. of course most public projects require maintenance works within two to four years after completion because they were so poorly built, but hey..

300000zl-250000zl is considered the "standard" price for an apartment in Poland in all of the major cities except for Warsaw, everything there is 1.5x to 2.0x more expensive. The problem with Poland is that although real estate is cheaper outside the major cities, the salaries are even crappier, not to say that life in a small city without knowing Polish will be very hard. The only cities worth considering are: Krakow, Warsaw, Gdansk, Poznan, Katowice. Warsaw is the "best" in terms of salaries.

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]

I spend sometimes up to an hour driving 10 km. the traffic and public transportaiton system is so bad that i bought a bike and scooter.

No major crime like murder and the need for a weapon, but petty theft and muggings are quite common. Ive had two bikes stolen, everything that I ever left outside in the yard, my car's side mirrors and bumper. ive been in two fights with strangers.

40% of your salary also goes to the government
23% VAT on all goods, gas costs almost 6zl or 1.4 euro
Nothing works that well over here either
corruption is rampant, the bureaucracy mind-staggering complicated and slow
salaries are low, costs of living are very high
an average apartment in an average part of town costs 300000 pln,
most people make 2000-3000zl net a month, just to survive costs 1500-2000zl a month

oh yea the winters are brutal and depressing if you dont do any winter sports (good luck affording them)

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]


THE GRASS IS NOT GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE.

If you dont understand this proverb, it means people always thinks someone "over there" have a better life than you "over here".

Study / Is it really worth moving back to Poland to study in a pharmacy school? [44]

Uhhhh, you say "dzien dobry" to random people on a street? That's not quite "lol", that's "I'm totally inept in all social situations".

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]


What kind of opportunities are you talking about here? Fighting skinheads? Selling drugs? Teaching Portuguese? Learning Polish? Opening a business?

Life / What is the best platform to sell items in Poland? [17]

"selling items"

thanks for being so vague, so I'll give you a vague answer: online auction sites

Work / South Americans living in Poland, what are my chances of teaching English and Spanish there? [23]


You're insane to want to move to Poland, but whatever, the world needs idiots. If anything half of Spain's, Portugal's and Italy's students are moving to Brazil looking for work right now.


Yes. You are an EU national and a part of the Schengen zone. You can live and work anywhere. I do recommend reading a bit about this as some of this information could be very useful for you.


It kind of depends where you live. A 25k person town in the middle of nowhere? No. Any of the large cities in Poland (Poznan, Wroclaw, Warsaw, Krakow, Gdansk), there are numerous courses to choose from.

Law / "Good" Polish Bank ? [19]

ive had experience with bz wbk, mbank, pko bp and pekao (the one with the bison logo)

pko bp was the worst in terms of service, fees, relatively slow bank transfers but its cash machines are everywhere
pekao i dont remember it was so long ago, but my girlfriend has her acct there and is content
mbank - excellent customer service, excellent website (although very dated looking), fast bank transfers and overall low fees. a number of customizable options which i appreciated. not a physical bank bank. cheap debit/credit cards though, as in low quality

bz wbk - customer service ok, suffers like most banks from long waits, delays and bureaucracy. i have a free account there so i still use it but i use my mbank acct more often

anecdotal evidence of course

Life / Looking for my old car in Poland (is it registered?) [16]


like mentioned above, this is called a bill of sale


hahahaha i laughed

Real Estate / MNE DEVELOPMENT COMPANY , LOFTS, U SCHEIBLERA, LODZ [36]


Yup, you're right, I got my developers confused, apologies for that. I get so incensed with what these people do (and i think youre a developer arent you) in terms of shoddy construction, bad contracts, overcharging, hidden fees, hiding information or not being upfront and it goes on and on and on

Real Estate / MNE DEVELOPMENT COMPANY , LOFTS, U SCHEIBLERA, LODZ [36]

that mne development and all of Opal's other "subsidiaries" i.e., shell companies like MFJ investments were going to go bankrupt was well known months ago. i remember back in november it was already on the news how mne/opal had monstrous debts and incredibly poor sales with their "u scheiblera" lofts plus already dozens of people who already "owned" them who were already oepning up lawsuits. if anything, did you at least know that another of their subsidaries TUP S.A. already declared bankruptcy over one month ago?

how the hell did you not follow this and continue sinking money into something that was not legally yours? i apologize for berating you and of course its too late to do anything about it but god damn... you are the umteenth foreigner i know who got ripped off from buying property in poland during the boom and not just by local thieves but major developers.

News / Radek Sikorski, Polish Foreign Minister, tries to annihilate Polish Slavic identity [19]


Ah yes, Hitler's famous 1933 diary entry, where after having a particularly bad day dealing with his Polish plumber and seeing all the money blown away by Poland's goverment on yet another pointless shopping spree (happily it wasnt on armaments), Hitler personally noted he wished for a "final solution" at seeing a "punctual, hardworking and fiscally sober" Poland and wrote that he would personally come to Warsaw to make it happen.