Polish residence and highly qualified employment based on a qualifying contract, professional qualifications and the applicable annual salary threshold, filed through MOS while legally in Poland.
Route overview
Highly qualified salaried work
Typical timeline / duration: Employment period plus three months, up to three years; this is permit validity, not processing time.
Important notes
Apply during an eligible legal stay in Poland; the ordinary Blue Card residence filing cannot be made from abroad. Tourist or family/friends-visit status is among the excluded bases. A consular entry visa is a different procedure.
Have a written qualified-work contract lasting at least six months. Professional qualifications can be a recognised higher-education cycle of at least three years or equivalent five-year professional experience; only specified professions use three years' experience acquired in the preceding seven years. Regulated professions need the required authorisation.
For 2026 applications, the annual gross salary must be at least PLN 160,264.08, using 150% × PLN 8,903.56 × 12. MOS describes the monthly figure as above PLN 13,355.34; check the contract against the annual requirement.
Submit through MOS with the required electronic form/Annex 2, the employer's electronically signed Annex 1, passport scans, photo, health-insurance evidence and PLN 440 application stamp duty. Follow the authority's document/translation instructions; residence-card issuance is a separate charge.
MOS electronic residence filing has applied since 27 April 2026. Sending the form to the employer is not submission: after Annex 1 is returned, the applicant must sign, send and retain the official UPO receipt. Fingerprints, original documents and a signature specimen may still require attendance.
The permit follows the employment period plus three months, capped at three years; renewal needs a new qualifying application before expiry, not an automatic extension.
The current MOS guidance also requires checking the applicable local restricted-occupation list and any exemption. Changing employer or losing work carries notification duties; job loss must be reported within 15 working days. Conditional unemployment protection is three months before two years of Blue Card residence, or six months after two years.
Family reunification and intra-EU mobility have their own conditions. A Polish Blue Card is not unrestricted permission to take any job anywhere in the EU.
Preparation checklist
Confirm the legal-stay basis, contract length and applicable occupation restrictions.
Collect the degree or qualifying experience evidence and any professional authorisation.
Check the 2026 annual gross salary calculation and insurance cover.
Arrange login.gov.pl access and the employer's ability to sign Annex 1 electronically.
Complete, sign and send the MOS application, pay stamp duty and save the UPO receipt.
Attend the requested checks and track expiry plus employer-change/job-loss notification duties.