People studying at university very often take up gainful employment. Among these people are often those with citizenship of other countries. Can a student who does not have Polish citizenship be employed, and if so, what formalities must be completed?
A student who is a citizen of an EU country
If a person has the status of a student of an approved educational institution, has sufficient income to support himself and has health insurance – he can legally stay in Poland. Note, however, that if your stay in Poland exceeds 3 months, registration of your stay is required. Health insurance is usually provided by another family member or the university (upon request!). Employment of such a person does not involve any additional formalities on the part of the employer.
Student who is a citizen of a third country
If a non-EU citizen undertakes studies in Poland, he or she must have a basis for legal residence in our country. Such a basis may be a visa or a temporary residence permit issued for the purpose of study. It is also necessary to take out voluntary health insurance. If a student has a visa marked 09 or the aforementioned permit, he or she is exempt from obtaining a work permit. The employer can then hire such a person without obstacles. However, it is important to remember to make periodic verifications of the employee’s student status and basis for legal residence. The cessation of these circumstances necessitates a return to the need to obtain a work permit.
The student is exempt from obtaining a work permit – what about a statement?
In this case, a statement is also not required. This is due to the fact that the obligation to obtain a work permit is the general rule governing the employment of foreigners from third countries. However, in the case of countries such as Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine – the basis for performing work may be a statement of entrustment of work entered in the register of statements, which follows from the Decree of the Minister of Family, Labor and Social Policy of December 8, 2017. (Journal of Laws of 2017, item 2349). However, this does not change the fact that, as a rule, a permit is required. Since, on the other hand, a student holding a visa or temporary residence permit for education is exempt from the requirement to obtain a permit, it is also not necessary to register a statement.
Student internship agreement with a third-country national
Formal employment of a student through the conclusion of an employment contract or other civil law agreement is not the only form of establishing cooperation with a student. This is because students can take part in student internships with employers, which can be either unpaid or paid. The Law on Graduate Internships of July 17, 2009 applies to such a relationship. (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 1244). According to these regulations, an entity accepting an apprenticeship may accept a person who has graduated from at least a junior high school or an eight-year elementary school and is under 30 years of age on the day the apprenticeship begins (Article 2, paragraph 1). This provision is applied mutatis mutandis to graduates of foreign universities.