If you employ a foreigner in your company, as an employer/ordering party, in addition to the basic obligations arising from the Labor Code (e.g., informing employees about the terms of their employment, providing working conditions no less favorable than those guaranteed by Polish labour law, timely and correct payment of remuneration, organizing work in a way that ensures safe and hygienic conditions, referring the employee for medical examinations, indicating the reason for termination of a fixed-term or indefinite employment contract, issuing a work certificate), the Civil Code (e.g., payment for completed assignments if they are remunerated, reimbursement of expenses incurred by the contractor, organizing safe and hygienic working conditions), tax law (e.g., verifying tax residency, remitting income tax advances, issuing an annual tax declaration), social security law (e.g., registering the foreigner for the appropriate social insurance, remitting contributions), occupational health and safety regulations, etc., you also have additional obligations related to the so-called “foreigner aspect.”

 Regardless of whether the foreigner will work/is working under an employment contract or a contract of mandate, you have additional obligations, in particular:

• verification of the legality of the foreigner’s stay in Poland – make sure that the foreigner has the appropriate residence permit (e.g., a visa, a residence permit, or temporary protection – a PESEL number with the status “UKR”),
• verification of the right to work – make sure whether the residence permit held by the foreigner automatically entitles them to work in the territory of the Republic of Poland, or if it is necessary to obtain additional documents, such as a declaration of entrusting work to a foreigner or a work permit,
• storage of copies of the above-mentioned documents legalizing work and residence – make copies of these documents and keep them in the employee’s/contractor’s personnel file,
• concluding a written contract with the foreigner – this obligation applies to every type of contract, both employment contracts and civil law contracts (e.g., a contract of mandate),
• providing the foreigner with the content of the contract in writing, in a language understandable to them. 

 Depending on the residence permit or document legalizing the foreigner’s work in Poland, as an employer you have additional obligations related to:

• submitting a notification of entrusting work to a Ukrainian citizen;
• entering the declaration into the register of declarations;
• issuing a work permit;
• obtaining a temporary residence and work permit by the foreigner.