Residence through a company in Poland: conditions

Setting up a company in Poland and obtaining residence is one of the plans Turkish entrepreneurs ask about most. Residence through a company in Poland is genuinely possible; but setting up a company does not by itself grant residence. The company is one process, the residence permit another, and the permit depends on conditions showing that the company actually does business. This article takes the conditions from the text of the law and the official pages of the Office for Foreigners, and explains why a newly formed company struggles in its first year.

Short answer: Residence through a company in Poland is the "temporary residence permit for the purpose of conducting business activity" (Act on Foreigners Art. 142). You need health insurance, a regular income to live on and accommodation. In addition, the company must meet one of three conditions: in the previous tax year, income of 12 times the average monthly gross wage in the voivodeship; at least 2 full-time, open-ended employees for at least a year; or resources or activities showing it will reach these in the future. A new company cannot show the first two; the third is at the authority's discretion.

Which permit, and who can apply?

The permit's Polish name is "zezwolenie na pobyt czasowy w celu prowadzenia działalności gospodarczej", and its basis is Article 142 of the Act on Foreigners (ustawa o cudzoziemcach) (consolidated text of July 2025). According to the Office for Foreigners' MOS guidance, those who can apply are:

people running a sole proprietorship (JDG) registered in CEIDG (remember that a JDG is open to Turkish citizens only with certain statuses);
management board members of a Sp. z o.o. or joint-stock company in which they are shareholders;
general partners in a limited partnership or a limited joint-stock partnership;
commercial proxies (prokurent) in these companies.

If you are not a shareholder and only a management board member, the relevant permit is not this one but the temporary residence and work permit (pobyt czasowy i praca). If you have not yet chosen the company type, see the JDG or Sp. z o.o. article.

The permit is granted by the voivode (wojewoda) competent for your place of stay. According to MOS, it is granted for the period the purpose requires, up to 3 years, and it does not renew automatically.

Personal conditions: insurance, income, accommodation

The Act (Art. 142(1)) requires three things of the applicant personally:

Health insurance: coverage under the Polish public health system or a private policy confirming that treatment costs in Poland are covered.
Regular and sufficient income: a stable source of income covering your own living costs and those of family members you support. According to MOS (as of September 2026), this income must exceed PLN 1,010 per month for a person living alone, and PLN 823 per month per person for someone living with family.
Accommodation: a document showing your right to stay permanently in a habitable place in Poland (such as a lease, an address registration or a statement from the person entitled to the property).

The company's condition: one of three routes

On top of the personal conditions, the company must meet one of the conditions in Article 142(1)(3) of the Act:

Income condition. In the tax year preceding the application, the company must have earned income (dochód, i.e. what remains after deducting costs from revenue) of at least 12 times the average monthly gross wage, for the year preceding the application, in the voivodeship where it has its seat. The voivodeship averages are announced every year by Statistics Poland (GUS).
Employment condition. For at least one year before the application, the company must have employed at least 2 employees on open-ended, full-time contracts. According to MOS, these employees must be Polish citizens, EU, EEA or Swiss citizens, holders of permanent residence in Poland or others with free access to the labour market.
Future condition. The company must show that it has the resources, or conducts activities, that will allow it to meet the first two conditions in the future. The Act specifically mentions contributing to increased investment, technology transfer, beneficial innovation and job creation.

The first-year reality: why does a new company struggle?

A newly formed company has no closed tax year and no year of employment history behind it. So on paper it cannot show the first two conditions. The only route left open is the third, and that condition is at the authority's discretion.

MOS addresses this directly: for a company that has only just started, the permit may be granted if a credible, positive forecast of the business's development can be made, such that it will meet the conditions in the future. The assessment looks at the company's financial resources, investments made and their return, jobs created, and the innovativeness and technological level of the business. MOS also states that there is no separate permit for start-up founders; the right permit is this one.

Our practical reading is this: with a new company this permit is often hard in the first year. Unless you have real capital, investments already made, signed contracts and a convincing business plan, it is safer to plan the first period on another basis. That basis can be temporary residence and work as a management board member if you are not a shareholder, work through an employer, or family reunification. We listed the options in the four ways to move to Poland article. The company's first closed year and its financial statement become the strongest documents for the next application.

Which documents are requested?

According to the MOS document list, the following are uploaded to MOS with the application:

the electronic application form;
a scan of all pages of a valid passport;
a biometric photograph;
proof of payment of the fee and the card charge.

The main documents the voivode may request for an application through a Sp. z o.o.:

Insurance: ZUS registration and no-arrears certificate, or a private health policy.
Personal income: the resolution appointing you to the management board, a profit distribution resolution, an employment or management contract, your personal income tax return for the last tax year.
Accommodation: a lease, address registration or a statement from the property owner.
For the income condition: the corporate income tax return (CIT-8) for the previous tax year, a tax office certificate of income, certificates of no ZUS or tax arrears.
For the employment condition: employment contracts, ZUS contribution records for each employee's entire period of employment.
For the future condition: business plan, CIT-8, balance sheet and current profit and loss account, investment invoices, contracts, business premises lease, stock information and documents showing innovativeness.

Documents in a foreign language are submitted with a sworn translation and must be current on the date of the decision. The company's financial documents are the core of this file; we explained how they are prepared in the accounting in Poland article.

How is the application made, and what is the fee?

The application is made only in Poland, while your legal stay continues, and only through the MOS system; MOS applications from abroad are not accepted. You fill in the form and sign it yourself with a trusted profile (profil zaufany) or a qualified e-signature; an attorney cannot take your place at this step. The step-by-step process, the UPO receipt, the fingerprint appointment and the zaświadczenie certificate are covered in our first residence permit application article.

According to MOS (as of September 2026):

Permit fee (opłata skarbowa): PLN 340, paid with the application.
Residence card charge: PLN 100, paid after the permit is granted, for the card to be issued.

An application filed in time makes your stay legal until the decision becomes final; however, the certificate you receive during this period does not give the right to travel within Schengen.

A note for Turkish citizens: Art. 142(5)

Under Article 142(5) of the Act on Foreigners, Article 41(1) of the EEC–Turkey Additional Protocol (the "standstill" clause) applies when a Turkish citizen seeks this permit to run a business on their own account. Under Court of Justice case law, the clause gives you no new right; as a rule, however, it prevents Poland from applying conditions stricter than those in force on 1 May 2004 (Tum and Dari, C-16/05). The Office for Foreigners has named the 2003 Act on Foreigners as that benchmark. Its Article 53 used a "beneficial to the national economy" test, not numerical thresholds: investment, technology transfer, innovation or new jobs, plus the financial means to cover your costs.

Today's thresholds do not disappear automatically: the two sets of rules are compared case by case, and we found no published Polish court ruling applying this paragraph. In 2025 the Office for Foreigners stated that applications relying on this clause could be filed on paper rather than through MOS; we confirm current practice after 27 April 2026 with the voivodeship. The voivode decides; our partner lawyer assesses whether to rely on this in your file.

Frequently asked

Does setting up a company in Poland automatically give a right of residence?

No. Company registration (KRS) and the residence permit are independent of each other. After the company is set up, a separate residence application is filed through MOS. The voivode assesses the personal conditions and the company's income, employment or future condition. The authority decides; owning a company does not by itself guarantee the outcome.

I am not a shareholder, only a management board member. Which permit do I apply for?

In this case the relevant permit is not residence for business activity but the temporary residence and work permit (pobyt czasowy i praca). MOS draws this distinction clearly: the business activity permit is for management board members of a company in which they are shareholders. The work permit has its own conditions; we clarify which route fits you before applying.

For how long is this permit granted, and is it renewed?

According to MOS, the permit is granted for the period the business requires, up to 3 years, and it is not renewed automatically. To keep staying, a new application is filed before the permit expires and the conditions are assessed again. In the second application, the company's closed tax year, financial statement and employment history are decisive.

How we run it

First we map your situation: your role in the company (shareholder, management board member or both), the company's age, whether it has a closed tax year, the number of employees and investments. On that basis we tell you in writing, together with the migration specialist and, where needed, the lawyer partner, which permit and which condition are realistic for you. We prepare the document list, obtain the financial documents from the accountant partner in time, and follow up on sworn translations and the MOS application. We explain every letter from the voivodeship office in Turkish. The authority decides; we make sure the file goes in complete and on time.

Sources

Last checked: 26 September 2026. This article is general information; your own case needs assessment by a licensed partner.

Tell us your role in the company, the company's age and your current residence status; we will tell you in writing, together with the partner, which permit is realistic. Tell us your situation or see the Start a Company page.

This article is for information only; it is not legal advice. Basis: Act on Foreigners Art. 142 (consolidated text of 25 July 2025; later amendments did not change this article), MOS guidance from the Office for Foreigners and GUS announcements, as of September 2026. Income amounts and fees may change; for your own case the final word lies with the licensed partner.

Author

Savaş Dere · Founder, CEO

Close to twenty years in software and e-commerce: web and application development, automation, digital products. At Senavia he runs process design, the technology infrastructure and integrations; a founder who has been through company formation and settling in Poland himself.

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Residence permit through a company: residence for business activity in Poland (conditions and the first-year reality)