Poland: Significant Restrictions on Intra-corporate Transfers Forthcoming
April 17, 2025
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At a Glance
- Effective May 1, 2025, Poland will introduce several restrictions to its intra-corporate transfer rules, including, among other changes, requiring:
- a shareholding or management connection between the transferring and receiving corporate entities; and
- the transferring entity to conduct actual business activity in its country of registration.
- These changes may require certain employers to reconsider their corporate structures and contractual arrangements.
- Employers should consider submitting intra-corporate transferee work permit applications prior to the restrictive regulations coming into effect.
- Employers should also account for potential delays regarding intra-corporate transfer applications from May 1, 2025, as authorities transition to the new rules.
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Update – April 17, 2025: Due to an unexpected delay in the formal publication of the legislation, the implementation date for these reforms has been delayed. Currently, immigration experts anticipate an implementation date of June 1, 2025. We will continue to monitor the situation.
The situation
Effective May 1, 2025, Poland will introduce several restrictive changes to its intra-corporate transfer (ICT) work permit rules.
Update – April 17, 2025: Due to an unexpected delay in the formal publication of the legislation, the implementation date for these reforms has been delayed. Currently, immigration experts anticipate an implementation date of June 1, 2025. We will continue to monitor the situation.
A closer look
Key changes include:
- Shareholding or management connection. ICT work permits will only be granted if one corporate entity directly or indirectly owns shares in the other corporate entity or if they have common management board members.
- Actual business activity. ICT work permits will not be granted if the home entity does not conduct actual business activity in its country of registration.
- ICT worker already employed. ICT work permits will only be granted if the to-be-transferred employee is working for the transferring entity (as indicated in the permit application) when the application is submitted.
- Service contract. Applications for an ICT work permit will require a service contract, signed directly by the transferring corporate entity.
- Other changes. Additional ICT work permit requirements on necessary application supporting documents (confirming compliance with Polish labor laws, minimum remuneration, and authorized contact persons) will be implemented.
Impact
- Earlier application submissions. In light of these changes, employers should consider submitting ICT work permit applications prior to the restrictive regulations coming into effect.
- Restrictions to ‘letterbox companies’. Several of these changes are expected to significantly restrict the operation of ‘letterbox companies’, which are entities that have no substantive business activity and that serve solely as formal posting entities for ICTs overseas.
- Potential delays. Employers should account for potential delays regarding ICT work permit applications from May 1, 2025, as authorities transition to the new rules.
- Corporate structure modifications possible. Many current business models relying on temporary posting of workers to Poland may become more difficult to manage. Companies may need to modify their corporate structures or contractual arrangements to comply with the new regulations.
Background
These changes are part of the Polish government's bigger picture plans to rework the immigration law. The restrictions come after several other limits to posted worker rules in Poland, dating back to 2016.
Looking ahead
These reforms come amid other wide-ranging Polish immigration reforms expected later in 2025. We are monitoring developments in this space.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].
