A 3 July investigative release by Polish news portal Kresy, based on Border Guard briefings, revealed the scale of recent workplace sweeps targeting unauthorised employment of foreigners. Inspections conducted on 1–2 July in Silesia and Warmia-Mazury reviewed 294 workers in factories and staffing-agency rosters, identifying 8 Colombian nationals working without the required national visas or permits. Separate checks earlier in the year had already found 276 irregular workers – mainly Colombians, Georgians and Venezuelans – in the region.
![Border Guard labour raids uncover hundreds of illegal workers across Silesia and Warmia-Mazury]()
For employers or individuals unsure about the correct visa category or documentation, VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) offers step-by-step guidance, online application handling, and live consultant support for D-type work visas, residence permits and other travel documents, helping to avoid the costly penalties highlighted above.
Employers now face administrative fines of PLN 3,000–50,000 per infringement, while the workers received return orders and one- to two-year Schengen bans. The Border Guard reiterated that visa-free entrants may not take up paid work without first securing a work-permit-supported D-type visa or single permit. The stepped-up enforcement follows April’s draft Bill UD396, which proposes stiffer sanctions for unregistered hiring and tighter reporting duties for temporary-work agencies. Multinational companies, especially in manufacturing and logistics hubs around Katowice and Olsztyn, are urged to audit vendor supply chains, as sub-contractor violations can expose principals to joint-liability penalties. Immigration advisers note that Poland’s e-MOS 2.0 platform – mandatory since 27 April – allows inspectors real-time access to sponsorship records, making on-site verification faster and reducing the window for ‘cash-in-hand’ arrangements. HR departments should ensure all foreign staff appear in the MOS database and carry copies of residence permits or permit-decision receipts.
For employers or individuals unsure about the correct visa category or documentation, VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) offers step-by-step guidance, online application handling, and live consultant support for D-type work visas, residence permits and other travel documents, helping to avoid the costly penalties highlighted above.
Employers now face administrative fines of PLN 3,000–50,000 per infringement, while the workers received return orders and one- to two-year Schengen bans. The Border Guard reiterated that visa-free entrants may not take up paid work without first securing a work-permit-supported D-type visa or single permit. The stepped-up enforcement follows April’s draft Bill UD396, which proposes stiffer sanctions for unregistered hiring and tighter reporting duties for temporary-work agencies. Multinational companies, especially in manufacturing and logistics hubs around Katowice and Olsztyn, are urged to audit vendor supply chains, as sub-contractor violations can expose principals to joint-liability penalties. Immigration advisers note that Poland’s e-MOS 2.0 platform – mandatory since 27 April – allows inspectors real-time access to sponsorship records, making on-site verification faster and reducing the window for ‘cash-in-hand’ arrangements. HR departments should ensure all foreign staff appear in the MOS database and carry copies of residence permits or permit-decision receipts.
