15 Mar 17057 views

What is a voivodeship invitation in Poland and how to obtain it?

Every year, an increasing number of Ukrainian labour migrants leave the country to work in other countries. They must get a work visa, which is provided through a work invitation from a foreign employer, in order to be officially employed. Depending on the length of stay abroad, many types of visas are available.

A provincial visa is required if you plan to work in Poland for at least one year. Prior to that, you should consider how to issue a provincial work invitation in Poland. Working in Poland on a provincial invitation ensures you receive a provincial visa and allows you to stay in the country legally and for an extended period of time. However, few people in Poland understand what a voivodeship invitation is and how to get one.

A provincial invitation is a document that indicates a foreign employer's intention to hire a long-term employee from another country. The validity of a provincial invitation is one year. We'll show you how to send a provincial invitation in this article.

How to get a voivodeship invitation?

To understand how to obtain an invitation to a voivodeship, you must first understand which documents are required and who is responsible for drafting such an invitation. An invitation to work for a foreign worker is issued by the employer or an intermediate company, according to the law. For this, the following documents must be prepared.

application for a work permit for a foreign worker;
Identity document of the employer or his representative
Criminal record certificate of the employer;
Proof of source of income and possibility of high wages;
an extract from the KRS
Copies of the national and international passports of foreign workers
Written confirmation of the ownership of the flat (in case of providing the place of residence to the employee)
a labour market study confirming the fact that there are no other candidates for the vacancy among citizens of the Polish Republic;
a receipt of stamp duty payment.

Below is an example of how a voivodeship invitation may look like in the old and new version.

How long does it take to issue a voivodeshis invitation and how long is it valid?

You must wait for the voivodship's decision after the employer submits the documentation to the institution. The time it takes to issue a voivodeship invitation is determined by Poland's authorised authorities. It usually takes one to two months. The provincial visa has a one-year validity period. A provincial visa can be extended for a duration of three years. If you do not change jobs, you will not need to send out a new invitation.

"You can find out whether the invitation is ready at the Public Registry Office. Once you have it, you should apply for a visa at your local visa application centre"

What documents are required and how much does it cost?

Before you start collecting documents for your visa application, you should consider the following costs

paying for the invitation letter (approx. 100 PLN);
Purchasing an insurance policy that will cover you for the period of your stay abroad. In your case it is one year (from PLN 150) ;
paying the visa fee.

In order to obtain a voivodeship visa, you will need to prepare the following documents:

an official provincial invitation from a foreign employer;
completed questionnaire provided by the visa application centre;
Original and copy of a certificate of health insurance covering a period of stay abroad (from one year);
2 photographs 3,5\4,5;
original and copy of state and international passports.

The visa application centre is obliged to check all documents and ensure that they are original. Before submitting the documents, it is advisable to find out how to check the provincial invitation and the company of the employer you are doing business with.

How to check the voivodeship invitation?

Ukrainians who would like to know how to check the status of voivodeship invitation should visit the Polish website stat . gov . pl, where you can find full information about the employer's company. You may also check the status of your company at the Polish registry websites:

Krajowy Rejestr Agencji Zatrudnienia (KRAZ) - a national registry of all active employers and recruitment agencies.

If you do not know the Polish language and have difficulty translating, you can check the employer's company on the AtoZ Serwis Plus website. All you have to do is enter the 10-digit KRS or NIP number. These numbers provide comprehensive information on the employer's company and its operations in Poland.

NIP is a company identification number. You can use it to check if your employer is a fraudster. NIP in Poland are tax numbers that are assigned to individuals who pay premiums. Others are exempt from this number.

KRS is a number in the registry of companies or legal persons. If you know the KRS number, you can check whether the employer is an offender and not an insolvent person.

If the search engine returns no results after entering KRS or NIP numbers, the employer is not entered in the state register. It is a reason to doubt the legitimacy of the employment and the trustworthiness of the employer.

How do I find a job in Poland with a Voivodeship invatation?

If this is the first time you are going to work abroad, you should find an employer who will provide you with a job or contact a recruitment agency that will help you find a vacancy from verified employers. A list of vacancies can be found on the AtoZ Serwis Plus portal.

"Some Ukrainians think that once they obtain a voivodeship visa, they can change jobs and employers during their stay in Poland. However, this is not the case. If you are not satisfied with your terms of employment and you decide to leave your employer, your visa is revoked. If you want to get another job, you will have to go through the visa procedure from the beginning and wait again for your work permit for at least two months"

Employment on a voivodeship visa has a number of advantages and peculiarities. The advantage is that it is issued on the basis of an invitation for one year and not for six months. If the voivod agrees to issue the invitation, the embassy is obliged to issue the visa to the employee.

However, one of the peculiarities is that the process of obtaining a visa can be lengthy and costly. Not every employer is prepared to spend their time to prepare and submit the documents.

If this is the case, you can contact AtoZ Serwis Plus staff. We provide online help at all stages of the employment process and only work with reliable employers who are prepared to issue an invitation. This enables you to save time and money and be assured of formal and long-term employment.

Types of Polish work visa

Here is the list of the work visas for which individuals can apply:

Type A: One has to choose this if your employer has a registered office in Poland.
Type B: The work visa is valid only if you are a board member living in the country for more than six months in twelve months.
Type C: If you have been sent to the country by any foreign employer for a period exceeding 30 days for the employer’s branch or subsidiary office.
Type D: This visa allows you to live in the country only if your employer has sent you to work in export services.
Type E: Choose this visa if your reason for entering the country for work is that you don’t fall under the above four visas.

Requirements for applying

Your employer is bound to give you the following requirements before you apply for a Polish work visa:

Written employment contract along with a translated copy of the contract in your preferred language
Check your residence permit or visa
Register under social security and health insurance institutions in less than seven days to avail yourself of free healthcare, sick leaves, etc.

Arrange a checklist of requirements for a Polish work visa

The requirements needed for a Polish work visa are as follows:

Application form with proof of payment of the application fee
Health Insurance copy
Salary receipts of the employers
Deed of the company
The Legal status of the applicant

How can AtoZ Serwis Plus assist you?

AtoZ Serwis Plus will provide the services listed below to get a Polish work visa:

Counseling: Get AtoZ Serwis Plus’ free counseling services.
Job services: Avail of AtoZ Serwis Plus’ job search services to find jobs in Poland
Reviewing requirements: AtoZ Serwis Plus reviews all your requirements for a Polish visa
Application process: We also help in completing your application process
Requirements checklist: AtoZ Serwis Plus also helps you in arranging the requirements for a Polish work visa