Poland deported 5,640 foreign nationals between January and June 2026, a 28 percent increase year-on-year and the highest half-year total ever recorded, according to data cited by regional outlet EADaily on 24 July. Monthly removals peaked above 1,100 in both March and April, roughly matching the entire 2022 annual figure in just eight weeks. Officials attribute the surge to accelerated post-pandemic court proceedings, additional charter flights secured under EU Frontex return operations and closer coordination with embassies to secure travel documents. The Interior Ministry has also prioritised cases involving public-order offences and repeat visa overstays, claiming the faster pipeline acts as a deterrent to irregular migration. Human-rights groups counter that over-reliance on administrative detention and charter removals limits migrants’ access to legal remedies. They point in particular to accelerated returns of Georgian, Armenian and Nigerian nationals whose asylum appeals are often rejected within days. For employers sponsoring third-country workers, the statistics underline the importance of monitoring residence-card expiry dates and filing timely extension applications. The government is expected to publish a new Enforcement Strategy in September that may further shorten appeal windows and introduce higher employer fines for non-compliance.
Source: EADaily
