Right of permanent residence of a citizen of the United Kingdom – the beneficiary of the withdrawal agreement

Requirements

Case: Right of permanent residence of an EU citizen (independent/self-contained)

In order for a citizen of the United Kingdom to be able to obtain the right of permanent residence in Poland and receive a document confirming the acquisition of this right, it is necessary for them to meet the following requirements in a combined manner:

  • stayed in Poland continuously, as a rule, for at least 5 years preceding the submission of the application for a document confirming the right of permanent residence, with the proviso that uninterrupted residence does not mean the absence of any departures from Poland and that the stay is interrupted by the implementation of the decision to expel an EU citizen from the territory of Poland;

  • the stay began before the end of the transition period, i.e., before 1 January 2021, and continued after that date;

  • belongs to (at least) one of the following categories of persons who have a right of residence, and met the conditions of stay provided for this category during the period required to acquire the right of residence:

►  an employed / self-employed person in Poland

►  or undergoes vocational training in Poland or is another professionally inactive person, e.g., a pensioner, who meets additional requirements regarding:

• to have sufficient financial resources to support themselves and the dependent family members so as not to become a burden on the social assistance system, and

•  health insurance, i.e.

health insurance within the meaning of the Regulations of the Act of 27 August 2004 on health care services financed from public funds (Journal of Laws of 2020, item 1398, as amended by 30), or

a person entitled to health care services on the basis of the Regulations on coordination within the meaning of Article 5 point 23 of the Act of 27 August 2004 on health care services financed from public funds, or

a document confirming the possession of private health insurance, covering all expenses that may arise during the stay on the territory of the Republic of Poland in connection with the need for medical assistance or hospital treatment, in which the insurer undertakes to cover the costs of health services provided to the insured directly to the entity providing such services, on the basis of an account issued by this entity;

►  the spouse of a citizen of the Republic of Poland (this category is not required to meet additional requirements);

- also, in the case of maintaining the right of residence (in the cases referred to in Articles 17, 19(1) or (3) and 19a of the Entry Act; see the explanation in the tab "Registration of Stay" – "Requirements.).

  • complete the formal requirements, including: submit the application in person (this requirement does not apply to a minor whose under 6 years of age by the date of submitting the application, in particularly justified cases, including due to the applicant's state of health, you may waive the requirement to appear in person),on the form, together with photographs and other necessary attachments, and also show a valid travel document (or other document confirming their identity and Citizenship of the Union).

Remember!

  • In certain cases, it is possible to acquire the right of permanent residence after a period of uninterrupted residence in Poland for less than 5 years.

An employee and a self-employed person acquire the right of permanent residence after the expiry of:

  • 3 years of uninterrupted residence – in the case of retirement (including early retirement), if immediately before for a period of 12 months they performed work or other gainful activity in Poland in their own name and on their own account, with the proviso that in the case of a spouse of a citizen of the Republic of Poland, the above-mentioned requirements regarding the length of stay and the period of work are not applicable;

  • 2 years of uninterrupted stay – if they ceased to perform work or other gainful activity in their own name and on their own account due to permanent incapacity for work (if the incapacity for work is the result of an accident at work or an occupational disease and in the case of a spouse of a citizen of the Republic of Poland, the requirement regarding the length of stay does not apply);

  • 3 years of uninterrupted residence – if after 3 years of uninterrupted stay and performance of work or other gainful activity in Poland in their own name and on their own account performs work or other gainful activity in their own name and on their own account in another EU country, still staying in Poland (i.e., returning to Polish at least once a week).

The spouse of a citizen of the Republic of Poland acquires the right of permanent residence after 3 years of uninterrupted residence on the territory of the Republic of Poland, during which they met the conditions of residence.

  • The method of calculating the period of residence and periods of gainful activity required to determine the acquisition of the right of permanent residence is specific.

The stay is considered uninterrupted if none of the breaks was longer than 6 months and the breaks did not exceed a total of 6 months in a given year.

The stay is not interrupted by a temporary absence from Poland, which is caused by:

  • necessary compulsory military service;

  • an important personal situation (in particular related to pregnancy, childbirth, illness, studies, vocational training, secondment), requiring the presence of the foreigner outside Poland, provided that the break lasted no longer than 12 consecutive months;

The stay is interrupted by the execution of the decision to expel an EU citizen – in the case of return to Polish the stay is calculated from that date.

Periods of work or other gainful activity in one's own name and on one's own account include periods of breaks in work/self-employment of an EU citizen:

  • resulting from unintentional unemployment

  • independent of their will

  • resulting from temporary incapacity for work due to illness or accident.

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