Schengen Agreement refers only to European citizens whose countries signed this agreement. Students from outside the EU (for example from China, Ukraine, India, Pakistan, USA, Turkey, Nigeria, etc.) do not have the right to cross the borders with other EU member states without their visas. It’s the common external policy that as a student you receive a country visa and not a Schengen visa – you have to apply for a Schengen visa in your country of origin, but the Polish embassies usually don’t provide these European visas (it’s a long procedure and the application has to be checked in Brussels).
Holders of residence permit to a Schengen state, however, enjoy the freedom of travel to other Schengen states for a period of up to three months. It means that if you receive our Polish residence permit you can travel to other Schengen countries without their visas – with the residence permit you have the same rights as Polish citizens, but you can stay in other European countries only for 3 months, and during first 3 working days you have to register in their Foreigners Department.

European Immigration Portal On these pages you can find practical information about studying or coming to work in EU countries other than Poland for more than 90 days.

If you are planning a short stay of up to 90 days in one of the EU Member States and associated states that are part of the Schengen area you can find information here.

Under special circumstances, your visa can be extended by the Dolnośląski Urząd Wojewódzki (Lower Silesian Governor’s Office).

You can apply for an extension of the period of validity of an issued visa or period of stay under this visa on the territory of the Republic of Poland if the following conditions are met:

• the stay is for your important professional or personal interest or on humanitarian grounds, you cannot leave the territory before the end of the period of validity of the visa or before the end of the period covered by the visa of an allowed period of stay,
• the events that are the cause of applying for a visa extension, occurred regardless of your will and were not foreseeable on the day of submission of the application for a visa,
• the circumstances of the case do not indicate that the purpose of your stay on the territory of the Republic of Poland will be different than declared,
• there are no circumstances, because of which the national visa should be refused.

Click here for more information

In other cases, you should contact the embassy of your country in Poland to check how to extend your visa. It may be sometimes necessary to go back to your home country to extend it in the Polish embassy or consulate.

Residence card issued by another country belonging to the Schengen area entitles you to stay in the territory of different member states of the Schengen area (including Poland) during the period no longer than 90 days in every 180 days’ period. However, students of joint Programmes between partner universities can benefit from the Mobility of a Student procedure which allows for a longer stay. Find out more here

You submit an application for a temporary residence no later than on the last day of legal residence on the territory of the Republic of Poland.

In other words - you should apply for a residence permit or extend your visa before your visa expires. It is crucial that you do not find yourself staying in Poland illegally!

If it is not possible to appear in person due to the long waiting time, send an application by post.

For the period of legal stay, the date of posting the parcel at the post office is counted.

If you submit your application on time and there are no formal defects or formal deficiencies are supplemented, your stay will be legal from the day of submitting the application to the day on which the decision in this matter becomes final.

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The duration of the procedure for granting a temporary residence permit depends on several factors - but above all, whether the documents are complete and correctly filled in. We recommend that you carefully check and complete the documents before making your application, which will allow us to carry out the procedure and process your application efficiently. Please note that the procedure can sometimes take rather long (from 60 days up to 3 years in extreme cases).
In order to speed up to process we strongly recommend to:

• Register your application documents in the MOS system. It is a national system run by the Office for Foreigners, which automates the process and thus makes it faster.  
• Submit your documents in one of the delegation offices (PL: delegatura) of the Lower Silesian Governor’s Office (PL: Urząd Wojewódzki) in Legnica (recommended), Wałbrzych, Jelenia Góra. You need to make an appointment first, however, waiting time is shorter.

 No, it is not necessary to hire a lawyer to apply for your temporary residence card. You can hire one but still it does not guarantee getting your residence card faster.

There are 3 ways of submitting your application form:

1. In person (partly on-line)

How to do it step by step?

• fill in the application on-line available at https://przybysz.duw.pl. It is a system operating in the Lower Silesian Region only. It allows you to  track your application on the website: https://pio-przybysz.duw.pl. 
• print out the application and sign it. Remember to put the date on the application form!
• collect the attachments
• At the same time, we strongly recommend registering your application documents in MOS system, which is a national system. It will speed up processing your case! https://mos.cudzoziemcy.gov.pl/en
• book an appointment to submit hard-copies of your documents in person and leave your fingerprints via https://wizyta.duw.pl. Please note that you can make an appointment in one of the Delegation Offices in Legnica (recommended), Wałbrzych and Jelenia Góra. The waiting times are much shorter there!

Important: during your meeting ask the officer for a passport in your stamp confirming that you are in the process of applying for a temporary residence card!

2. By registered post (list polecony)

Please find the addresses to the Lower Silesian Governor's Offices (otherwise called Lower Silesian Voivodship Office) here.

If you choose to send it by courier, make sure you send it earlier (the time runs from the date of receiving your application by the Voivodeship Office)

If you send your application by post, you must keep the sending confirmation (potwierdzenie nadania) as a proof of submitting your application. We recommend choosing the confirmation of receipt option, too. It allows you to add your own description (you need the ‘potwierdzenie odbioru’ yellow receipt).

At the same time, we strongly recommend registering your application documents in MOS system, which is a national system. It will speed up processing your case! https://mos.cudzoziemcy.gov.pl/en

Please read these detailed instructions here before submitting your application 

If you face difficulties completing the application form, you can get help in the Institute of Migrant Rights organization 46/202 Ruska Str. or in Wro Migrant info point in 19 Świdnicka Str. (underground passage), 

• Border Guard Service - frequently asked questions
• Office for Foreigners in Warsaw - link here
• International Organization for Migration - link here
• Governor's Office in Wrocław (Dolnośląski Urząd Wojewódzki) - foreigner’s section
• Online legal support for migrants (Association for Legal Intervention, online tool to help you complete the application form for your temporary residence card) - link here
• EU Immigration Portal - here you can find practical information about studying or coming to work in EU countries other than Poland for more than 90 days. 

You should be ready to pay the following fees: 

• 340 PLN The stamp duty for issuing a uniform permit for temporary residence. / Remember to attach confirmation of payment of the fee to the application
• 100 PLN A charge for issuing / replacing of the residence card
• 200 PLN Fee for replacement of a residence card in case of culpable loss or culpable damage: 
• 300 PLN Fee for replacement of a residence card in case of subsequent culpable loss or culpable damage

A DISCOUNT OF 50% OF CHARGE FOR ISSUING OR REPLACEMENT OF THE CARD IS APPLICABLE TO THE FOREIGNERS:

• who are in a difficult material situation
• whose objective of residence is an education in secondary school and higher education on the territory of the Republic of Poland

40-50 PLN In addition, if you do not have current photos, the fees associated with taking relevant photos.

For more information click here

Your TRC will remain valid as long as your decision for a temporary residence permit is valid. According to the law, decisions for TRCs can be issued for a period of no less than 3 months and no more than 3 years. If your main purpose for staying in the Republic of Poland is enrollment, starting, or continuing full-time studies at a Polish university, you may receive a decision for a temporary residence permit that lasts no longer than the duration of your studies plus an additional 3 months. However, the maximum validity period for the TRC that can be issued is 3 years.

For first-year students the first TRC is usually issued for 15 months. 

Getting your PESEL number is not obligatory to apply for a temporary residence card, yet obtaining PESEL is strongly recommended for all students. You can apply for PESEL when you register your residence (‘meldunek’) or you can obtain it in Centrum Obsługi Mieszkańca (Inhabitant Care Centre) – eg. in Magnolia Park mall at Legnicka 58 Str.

Read more to learn why you need PESEL number.

Find out more on how to obtain your PESEL number.

If you are a foreigner and you plan to stay in Poland longer than 30 days, you ought to register your place of stay in Poland (get 'meldunek).

If you apply for 'meldunek' you will automatically receive a PESEL number. For non-European Union citizens, it is recommended to register your place of stay within 4 days since your arrival in Poland. 

"Meldunek" is a confirmation of registration a place of stay (domicile) in Poland.

You should attach to your application form the following documents as:

1. Rent agreement signed between you and your landlord or the dormitory administration.
2. If your accommodation is provided to you by your relatives or friends for free of charge, you should attach to your application form a declaration of granting a place of stay to a foreigner ("oświadczenie o zapewnieniu miejsca zakwaterowania cudzoziemcowi"). It has to be signed by the property owner.
3. ID card (for EU citizens) or international/travel passport and visa in a travel passport or temporary residence permit card (for non-EU citizens).

*You can obtain a statement about registering the place of stay (domicile) "zaświadczenieo zameldowaniu na pobyt czasowy bądź stały" after paying a fee in amount of 17 PLN

You can register your place of stay (domicile) (ie. get ‘meldunek’) in Centrum Obsługi Mieszkańca (Inhabitant Care Centre) – eg. in Magnolia Park mall at Legnicka 58 Str. More info here

The most important thing to remember is to collect mail from Urząd Wojewódzki. You should check your traditional mailbox for an ‘Awizo’ piece of paper labeled ‘zawiadomienie’ to collect registered mail ‘list polecony’ in your post office. It speeds up the procedure if you collect and reply to mail.

Remember to register your application documents in the MOS system. It is a national system run by the Office for Foreigners, which automates the process and thus makes it faster. 

If your visa has expired but you have already submitted an application for the temporary residence card (by post or in person), you can stay in Poland legally. You need a stamp in your passport, which you can obtain in the Dolnośląski Urząd Wojewódzki (Lower Silesia Governor’s Office). However, this stamp does not allow you to travel abroad. The only exception is when you go back to your home country. Please note, that you will not be able to return to Poland, though. For more information click here. 

If you change your correspondence address, you should inform the Urząd Wojewódzki (Lower Silesia Governor's Office) immediately. Otherwise they will send letters to your previous address. You should inform them in an official letter and send it by post (addresses) or submit it in ‘biuro podawcze’ (registry office) at the Lower Silesia Governor’s Office in Wrocław building near point #1 or in one of the delegation offices.

To collect your residence permit card, which has already been printed, please complete the questionnaire to request an appointment when you can visit the Urząd Wojewódzki (Lower Silesian Governor’s Office) to collect your residence permit card. You must present your passport (or another travel document) and a confirmation of payment for the issuance of the residence permit card, which costs 100 PLN (for children under 16 years old, the fee is 50% lower) on the appropriate website at: https://kartypobytu.duw.pl 

Replacement of the residence card is required in the case of a change of name or surname, residence registration, loss or damage of the residence card, and in cases where the foreigner has a residence permit for an indefinite period (unlimited). In such cases, the foreigner only needs to replace the residence card itself without undergoing re-legalization. For individuals with subsidiary protection, the card must be replaced every 2 years; for those with refugee status, every 3 years; for long-term residents, every 5 years; and for permanent residents, every 10 years.

It is very important that you avoid staying in Poland illegally. If for any reason that happens, you can be refused re-entering the EU for a certain period of time. Read more about the consequences of illegal stay here (Polish only).

If you need legal support because you have problems with your legal stay, you can find assistance in the following NGO organizations:

Institute for Migrant Rights 

NOMADA

Yes, you can work legally as a student. However, if you want to get a temporary residence card to do full-time daily studies, you cannot work more hours than you study.