The Polish Border Guard (Straż Graniczna) announced on 1 October 2026 that, in a joint operation with the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau (CBA), it had arrested eleven people in Mazovia province who allegedly arranged forged employment documents and fictitious rental contracts to secure residence permits for non-EU nationals. Investigators believe the network charged up to PLN 15 000 (€3 300) per application and may have legalised the stay of several hundred foreigners over the past two years. Among those detained are two former local-government clerks and a Warsaw-based immigration consultant who allegedly bribed officials to expedite cases. Prosecutors from the National Organised-Crime Department in Katowice have opened proceedings under Articles 258 and 270 of the Criminal Code (participation in an organised criminal group and document forgery). Five suspects were released on bail ranging from PLN 10 000 to PLN 30 000 and had their passports confiscated, while the presumed ringleader remains in pre-trial detention. Authorities seized dozens of blank work-contract templates, counterfeit company stamps and more than €100 000 in cash. The case underscores Poland’s stricter stance on immigration fraud following fee hikes for work-permit applications that took effect last December. HR departments engaging external agents to handle permit filings are urged to conduct enhanced due-diligence checks and to store original payroll and lease evidence in case files. The Border Guard said audits of previously granted permits linked to the suspects’ companies will begin next week, potentially leading to revocations and deportations. Legal advisers warn that employees found to have knowingly submitted false data risk a five-year re-entry ban under the Foreigners Act. Companies implicated could face exclusion from future labour-market tests, jeopardising their ability to hire third-country nationals.
