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Permission to stay for humanitarian reasons

A humanitarian residence permit is a national form of protection for third-country nationals and stateless persons against expulsion. In the specific situations specified by law, it provides for the possibility of remaining in the territory of Poland to a foreigner who meets the conditions for anyone to leave the territory of Poland voluntarily or under duress.

When conducting administrative proceedings regarding the foreigner's obligation to return, the Border Guard authority each time examines the conditions for granting the foreigner permission to stay for humanitarian reasons. If they occur, and it is not possible to give such consent according to the law, it is examined whether the foreigner can be granted permission for tolerated stay.

If the risks associated with returning to the country of origin or residence become revealed only after the end of the obligation procedure, then the Border Guard ex officio initiates proceedings to grant such consent.

A foreigner has the right to appeal against a decision refusing to grant such consent to the Head of the Office for Foreigners.

Humanitarian residence is complementary to other forms of protection against expulsion, such as refugee status, subsidiary protection, temporary protection or asylum. You can find the necessary information about international protection procedures at the following link: https://udsc.gov.pl/uchodzcy-2/.

A foreigner who has been granted this consent may not apply for a temporary residence permit in Poland or for a residence permit for a long-term EU resident. Instead, they can obtain a permanent residence permit.

In certain cases, this consent may be revoked and may expire. A foreigner may also renounce it.

Regulations

Stay for humanitarian reasons is regulated in the Regulations of Chapter 3 of Section VIII of the Act of 12 December 2013 on foreigners (Articles 348-350).

Detailed explanation

A foreigner is granted permission to stay on the territory of the Republic of Poland for humanitarian reasons, if the obligation to return:

• may be made only to a State in which, within the meaning of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, done at Rome on 4 November 1950:

• their right to life, liberty and security of person would be endangered, or

• they could be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, or

• could be forced to work, or

• could be deprived of the right to a fair trial or be punished without a legal basis, or

• would prejudice their right to family or private life within the meaning of the Regulations of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, done at Rome on 4 November 1950, or

• would infringe the rights of the child as defined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 20 November 1989, to an extent which significantly threatens their psychophysical development.

A foreigner shall be refused a residence permit on humanitarian grounds if there are serious grounds for considering that:

• has committed a crime against peace, a war crime or a crime against humanity within the meaning of international law, or is guilty of actions contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations as set out in the Preamble and Articles 1 and 2 of the Charter of the United Nations, or has committed a crime in the territory of Poland or has committed outside that territory an act which is a crime under Polish law (Article 349(1)(1)-(3) of the Act on Foreigners), or

• incite or otherwise participate in the commission of such crimes or acts (as above), or

• constitutes a threat to the defence or security of the State or to the protection of security and public order.

The regulations allow for the possibility of refusing to grant this consent if, before arriving in Poland, they committed an act (other than the above- one), which according to Polish law is a crime punishable by imprisonment if they left the country of origin only to avoid punishment.

Permission to stay for humanitarian reasons is not granted at the request of a foreigner – but if the foreigner notifies the BG authorities of circumstances that may support granting such consent, this notification will not be ignored, and the BG authorities will take appropriate actions.

Administrative proceedings in this respect are not subject to stamp duty.

The consent is granted for an indefinite period, and the foreigner is issued with a residence card, which they are obliged to exchange within the indicated periods (every 2 years). More information about the residence card can be found here.

The consent to stay for humanitarian reasons expires when the foreigner acquires citizenship of the Republic of Poland, as well as when they are granted international protection or obtains a permanent residence permit in the Republic of Poland. A foreigner may also renounce it.

This consent shall be withdrawn among others. if the foreigner returns to the country of origin or the circumstances for which the consent was given have ceased to exist or have changed in such a way that consent is no longer required.

This consent is also withdrawn if it is established that the foreigner should not have received such consent – if in the proceedings regarding its granting they concealed information or documents or presented false information or documents of significant importance for granting consent.

Foreigners who have been granted a residence permit for humanitarian reasons are entitled to perform work without the need to obtain a work permit and do not need a visa when crossing the border of the Republic of Poland.

They may also, if they maintain appropriate conditions, move and reside on the territory of other Schengen States for a total period of 90 days in each 180-day register. More information in this regard can be found here.

Remember!

• This consent is not provided unconditionally – if there is no need for you to remain covered by it, then it is revoked.

• It will also be revoked if it has been obtained by deception – if you knowingly conceal relevant information or documents or present forged, falsified or untrue documents or give false testimony.