Poland is currently one of the most attractive labour markets for foreigners in Europe. In the first half of 2024:

• 173,500 work permits were issued, an increase of 18% compared to the same period in 2023;
• 233,000 declarations of entrustment of work to citizens of Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine were registered, a decrease of 13% related to the extension of the work period on the declaration from 6 to 24 months;
• 1.16 million foreigners were registered in the ZUS social insurance system, an increase of 32,000 compared to the beginning of the current year.

Citizens of Ukraine continue to be the largest group of foreigners on the Polish labour market – 774,000, of which 242,000 are refugees with the UKR PESEL number. At the same time, there has been an increase in the number of work permits for citizens of non-European countries, such as the Philippines, Nepal, India, Colombia, Uzbekistan and Bangladesh.

Most foreigners are employed in manufacturing (29%), transport and storage (22%), administrative services (16%) and construction (11%). They are mainly employed as unskilled workers (39%), industrial workers and artisans (21%) and machinery and equipment operators (15%).

Data from the Ministry of Family and Social Policy for the first half of 2024 confirm that Poland remains an attractive labour market for foreigners. The increase in the number of foreigners from non-European countries and the growing number of employees registered in the ZUS social insurance system confirm that foreigners are playing an increasingly important role in the Polish labour market.

For more data, see information from the Ministry of Family and Social Policy here.