If your karta pobytu was issued on the basis of work (zezwolenie na pobyt czasowy i pracę, art. 114 of the Act on Foreigners), you may work only for the employer and on the terms written in the decision. To move to a new employer, you need a decision amending the permit (zmiana zezwolenia, 220 PLN, filed on paper) or a new permit, and until that decision is issued you cannot start the new job under the old card. If you lose your job, you have 15 working days to tell the voivode in writing, and after that the permit is safe from revocation for 30 days.
This applies to the most common card held by workers from India, the Philippines, Nepal, Colombia, Turkey, Ukraine and elsewhere. A Blue Card, a card for studies, family or business, and permanent residence work differently; the table below shows which rules apply to you.
Where the employer is written: the decision, not the card
The plastic card shows your personal data, address, the type of permit and the note "dostęp do rynku pracy" (access to the labour market). The employer and the terms are in the decision (decyzja) that came with it. Under art. 118 ust. 1 the decision states:
- the employer (podmiot powierzający pracę) and, if you work through a temporary work agency, the user employer (pracodawca użytkownik);
- the position;
- the lowest salary you may be paid;
- working time (full-time, half-time and so on);
- the type of contract.
The Mazowiecki office puts it plainly on its procedure page: "Nie możesz pracować u innego pracodawcy na jego podstawie" (you cannot work for another employer on the basis of this permit). The exception is a permit issued to someone who is exempt from the work permit requirement, for example a graduate of a Polish full-time university programme.
Does the employer tie apply to your card?
| Card | Tied to one employer | What you do when you change job |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary residence and work (art. 114) | Yes | Zmiana zezwolenia or a new permit before you start |
| EU Blue Card (art. 127) | No single employer, but the work must be highly qualified | Notify the voivode in writing within 15 working days (art. 134 ust. 2) |
| CUKR card (Ukrainian citizens) | No | Exempt from the work permit requirement |
| Temporary residence for family reunification, studies or as the spouse of a Polish citizen | No | Your access to work does not depend on one employer |
| Permanent residence or EU long-term resident | No | Free access to the labour market |
If you are only about to apply on the basis of work, check the position, salary and Załącznik nr 1 now: these are the terms that will later bind you. Our guide to applying through MOS explains how the employer fills in the annex online.
Changes that do not need a new decision
Art. 119 ust. 1 lists the situations where neither a zmiana nor a new permit is required:
- the employer (or user employer) changed its registered office, address, name or legal form;
- the business or part of it passed to another employer (przejście zakładu pracy);
- your working time was increased with a proportional pay rise;
- the job title changed but your duties did not;
- a civil-law contract (umowa zlecenie) was replaced with an employment contract (umowa o pracę).
In these cases the employer, not you, notifies the voivode in writing within 15 working days (art. 119 ust. 2).
A pay rise in the same position needs nothing at all: the decision sets the minimum salary, not the exact one. The risk runs the other way. If your position changed or your pay was cut and the permit was not amended, the voivode revokes it (art. 122 pkt 1).
Changes that do need a zmiana zezwolenia
Under art. 120 ust. 1, you apply to amend the permit if you are going to work:
- for another employer, or under an exemption from the work permit requirement;
- for another user employer, if you work through an agency;
- on other terms: a different position, lower minimum salary, different working time or contract type (other than the art. 119 cases).
You can apply "w każdym czasie", at any time, and the permit keeps its original expiry date (art. 120 ust. 3). The alternative is a new temporary residence and work permit with the new employer, filed through MOS. A new application takes longer to prepare but gives you a fresh period of validity; an amendment keeps the old end date. Which is better depends on how much time your current permit has left.
How to apply for a zmiana zezwolenia
Since 27 April 2026 the law says the application for a zmiana is filed "w postaci papierowej", on paper (art. 120a ust. 1). It does not go through MOS. You file it with the voivode competent for where you live now. In Warsaw that is the Wydział Spraw Cudzoziemców, Mazowiecki Urząd Wojewódzki, ul. Marszałkowska 3/5, 00-624 Warszawa.
The Mazowiecki office asks for:
- the signed application form for a zmiana;
- the original Załącznik nr 1 from the new employer with the new terms;
- a copy of your valid passport, with the original shown;
- proof of health insurance;
- proof that the employer really runs its business and can pay your salary;
- proof that you notified the voivode within 15 working days that your previous job ended;
- a świadectwo pracy (employment certificate) from the previous employer, or bills if you worked on a civil-law contract.
Documents in a foreign language need a sworn translation. The opłata skarbowa is 220 PLN. You do not give fingerprints again, and after a positive decision you keep the same card. The office gives no processing time. A refusal can be appealed within 14 days of delivery, through the voivode, to the Head of the Office for Foreigners (Szef UdSC).
If you lose your job
The clock starts on the day the work ends.
| Deadline | What happens | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| 15 working days | You notify the voivode in writing that you lost the job. Filing a zmiana for a new employer within the same 15 working days also counts | art. 121 ust. 1 and 3 |
| 15 days | Your former employer must notify the voivode as well; that does not replace your notice | art. 121 ust. 4 |
| 30 days | The permit is not revoked for lack of work, once per permit, and only if you sent your notice (or it failed to arrive for reasons beyond your control) | art. 123 ust. 1-2 |
| 3 months | For permits in occupations listed as needed by the economy (art. 114 ust. 1a): up to 3 months without work, no more than twice | art. 123 ust. 3 |
| 3 or 6 months | Blue Card: 3 months without work, or 6 months after 2 years on the Blue Card | art. 133 ust. 2 |
Missing the 15 working days has two consequences. The voivode must refuse a zmiana for a new employer (art. 120 ust. 4 pkt 6), and you lose the 30-day protection. That is why the notice is the first thing to send, even before you start looking for work. A short letter with your name, passport number, the case or decision number, the employer's name and the date the job ended is enough; keep the postal receipt or the e-Doręczenia confirmation.
If no new employer turns up within the protected period, the voivode may open a cofnięcie zezwolenia (revocation). The Mazowiecki office warns that it will start that procedure. You will receive a zawiadomienie o wszczęciu postępowania (notice that proceedings have started) and a deadline to explain yourself. If you have another basis to stay, such as marriage to a Polish citizen, studies or a business, filing an application on that basis is often the more realistic route.
A second job on the same card
Your permit lets you work for the employer named in it. You can take a second job with another employer only if that employer obtains its own permission for you to work, for example a work permit (MOS answers this in its work permit FAQ). Starting the second job first and sorting the paperwork later is illegal employment. The worker faces a fine of at least 1,000 PLN and the employer from 3,000 to 50,000 PLN under the 2025 Act on employing foreigners (Dz.U. 2025 poz. 621, art. 84), and it can be held against you in your next residence application.
If you change employer while your application is still pending
If you filed for a work-based permit and changed jobs before the decision, tell the voivode by letter or through e-Doręczenia, quoting your case number. The terms in Załącznik nr 1 must still be true on the day the permit is issued, so the new employer will need to fill in a new annex. Do not wait for the office to discover the change: a decision issued for an employer you no longer work for is a permit you cannot use.
Mistakes we see most often
- Starting at the new employer the day after resigning, before the zmiana decision. Until the decision, the old permit covers only the old employer.
- Mixing up the two deadlines. The notice is due within 15 working days, about three calendar weeks; the 30 days are the protection that follows only if the notice went out on time.
- Assuming the former employer's notice covers you. Only the foreigner is a party to the case (art. 120 ust. 7); both notices are separate duties.
- Accepting an offer below the minimum wage. In 2026 the salary in Załącznik nr 1 must be at least 4,806 PLN gross a month, or the voivode refuses the amendment (art. 120 ust. 4 pkt 4).
- Moving to a company that has just been set up or has suspended its activity. The voivode may refuse if the employer does not run a business that justifies hiring you or cannot pay you (art. 120 ust. 5).
- Looking for the zmiana form in MOS. It is not there; the application is on paper.
How we can help
We prepare the zmiana zezwolenia application with you, check the new employer's Załącznik nr 1 before it is filed, and draft the 15-day notice if your job has ended. A consultation costs 300 PLN, you get a written plan, and the amount is credited if you then order the service. Full residence card handling starts from 2,000 PLN. If the voivode has started a revocation, we go through the case and prepare the explanations and the odwołanie (appeal) for you to file; we are immigration consultants, not adwokaci, and if the case goes to the administrative court you will need an adwokat or radca prawny.
Consult on changing employer →
This article is informational and reflects the Act on Foreigners as of October 2026. Deadlines in your case depend on the wording of your decision; check it before acting.
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