The type S seasonal work permit lets an employer hire a foreigner for a maximum of 9 months in a calendar year, and only in a closed list of industries. It is a separate legal construct for strictly defined jobs, not a simplified or cheaper variant of the standard work permit.

What is the type S seasonal permit and which industries it covers

The seasonal permit is registered and issued by the starosta (district governor) through the poviat labor office (powiatowy urząd pracy), not the voivode. It covers selected divisions of agriculture and animal husbandry, plus accommodation and food service activities: 29 PKD (Polish Classification of Activities) subcategories in total. The list is closed, and what decides is the actual work performed, not the company's business profile: colloquial terms like "gardening" or "tourism" are not categories used by the regulation. This is a practical difference: a company registered in a completely different industry can apply for a seasonal permit if the specific work performed fits the list, while a similar business profile gives nothing if the work itself is not on the list.

This is the first point where companies stumble in practice. A production plant with an order peak before the holidays is not doing seasonal work within the meaning of these regulations; it has seasonality of demand, not seasonality of work in the sense of the act.

How many months can you work on a seasonal permit

Work under a seasonal permit is limited to 9 months in a calendar year. The 9-month limit applies to the calendar year; a new year resets it, but within one year it is a rigid ceiling.

Once the limit is used up, a different basis for employment is needed. If the work is meant to continue longer, the appropriate solution is often a standard work permit or, for citizens of certain countries, a declaration on entrusting work to a foreigner, which has its own, separate rules. A separate situation applies to workers posted to Poland by a foreign employer: for them, type C, D, or E permits apply, not the seasonal permit.

Registration in the register versus the permit itself

The procedure has two stages that are easy to confuse for one. First, the application is entered into the register of applications: this is what lets the foreigner apply for a D05b seasonal visa or enter under visa-free travel. Only after arrival, and after the employer reports the actual start of work, does the poviat labor office issue the permit itself.

Entry in the register does not replace the permit. Work is entrusted only after reporting its actual start to the poviat labor office, in line with the rules of this procedure.

Therefore, when planning workers' arrival, it is worth setting aside time for this report from the outset, before anyone starts working at the position.

In practice, the entry in the register alone opens the way for arrival, and the formal permit appears only at a later stage, once work actually starts and the office already has the employer's report.

Employment conditions and change of legal basis

Seasonality concerns the duration of the work, not its standard. The same rules on pay, working time, and occupational health and safety (BHP) apply to seasonal work as to the given type of contract, and the regulations do not provide for relaxed requirements toward it.

The legal basis for work permits for foreigners, including seasonal ones, are the new regulations on entrusting work to foreigners, which in this scope replaced the act on employment promotion and labor market institutions. Materials that cite only the old act may be outdated, and the applicable rules are confirmed by the poviat labor office.

If you have a production peak to staff rather than an agricultural season, we will match the right form of cooperation to the actual nature of the work.

Frequently asked questions

What to do after using up the 9-month seasonal work limit?

You need to find a different basis for employment: a standard work permit or, for citizens of eligible countries, a declaration on entrusting work. Continuing work on an exhausted seasonal permit is illegal.

Who issues the seasonal permit: the starosta or the voivode?

The seasonal permit is registered and issued by the starosta through the poviat labor office, not the voivode, unlike some other work permits, and unlike the temporary residence permit, which is handled by the voivode.

Which industries does the type S seasonal permit cover?

Selected divisions of agriculture and animal husbandry, plus accommodation and food service activities: 29 PKD subcategories in total. Colloquial terms like "gardening" or "tourism" are not categories from the regulation.

The rules on residence and employment of foreign nationals change often, and much depends on citizenship, the basis of stay and the situation of the particular person. This text describes the general course of the procedure. Before filing documents, confirm the current state of affairs at the voivodeship office.