Unannounced PIP inspection — employer’s rights and obligations in 2026

A State Labour Inspectorate (PIP) inspector may turn up at a company from one day to the next — without prior notice and at any time. For an employer this means one thing: readiness for an inspection must be permanent, not built only when the inspector is already at the door. Below we explain the legal basis for an unannounced inspection, what changed as of 8 July 2026, and how an inspection proceeds step by step — from the inspector’s entry, through the report, to legal remedies, appeals and penalties. Separately we discuss the most common flashpoint in companies employing foreigners: the legality of employing foreigners and residence documents, including the residence card.

1. Unannounced inspection — legal basis

The right to inspect without notice follows directly from the Act on the State Labour Inspectorate. Under art. 24(1) of that Act, a labour inspector is entitled to carry out inspections of compliance with labour law — in particular the state of occupational health and safety, the rules on legality of employment and payment of remuneration at least at the minimum hourly rate — without notice and at any time of day or night. In practice an inspection takes place during the establishment’s working hours, but it may also cover shift work and night-time.

The inspection is undertaken after presentation of an official ID confirming the inspector’s identity and powers (art. 24(2)). At an entrepreneur’s premises the inspector acts on the basis of a named authorisation; however, the Act allows the inspection to be undertaken already after presentation of the ID alone, with the authorisation served at a later date — which is why the lack of an authorisation “at the door” is not in itself grounds for refusing the inspector entry.

2. What changed as of 8 July 2026

Since 8 July 2026 an amendment to the PIP Act has been in force (the Act of 11 March 2026 amending the Act on the State Labour Inspectorate and certain other acts, Journal of Laws 2026 item 473). It is the broadest change to the inspectorate’s powers in years. The key points:

• A wider circle of those inspected. The amended art. 13 of the PIP Act extends inspection — in the field of OHS, legality of employment and the conclusion of civil-law contracts in conditions where, under art. 22 § 1 of the Labour Code, an employment contract should have been concluded — also to entrepreneurs who are not employers and other entities for which work was performed (including under the B2B model) in the year preceding the start of the inspection. Terminating contracts just before an inspection no longer protects against it being carried out.
• Decision establishing the existence of an employment relationship. The inspector may issue a decision reclassifying a civil-law contract (or B2B) into an employment contract where the work is performed in the conditions of art. 22 § 1 of the Labour Code. The decision produces effects under labour, tax and social-insurance law.
• Remote inspection and electronic reports. Inspection activities may also be carried out via a postal operator or means of electronic communication, if this is not contrary to the purpose of the inspection and the nature of the activity; the report may be drawn up in electronic form.
• Higher penalties. The upper limits of fines for offences against employee rights have been raised (more in section 9).

3. The inspector’s powers during the inspection

The scope of the inspector’s powers is broad and covers both documents and activities on the establishment’s premises. In practice the inspector may, among other things:

• enter the premises and the buildings and rooms of the inspected entity,
• demand the production of documents concerning employment, wages, working time, OHS and legality of employment (including of foreigners),
• question and take explanations — also from employees and persons actually performing the work,
• inspect workstations, machinery and equipment,
• make copies, extracts and summaries and secure evidence,
• after the inspection, apply legal measures: orders, submissions, instructions and, in justified cases, refer requests for punishment or notifications to other authorities.

The inspection’s findings may translate not only into a “report”, but also into decisions in the field of OHS (up to and including suspension of work), fines in offence cases, and material for further proceedings.

4. Legality of employing foreigners — what the inspector checks

The legality of employing foreigners is one of the main areas of PIP inspection, often carried out in cooperation with the Border Guard. Since 1 June 2025, entrusting work to foreigners has been governed by the Act of 20 March 2025 on the conditions of admissibility of entrusting work to foreigners (Journal of Laws 2025 item 621). The inspector verifies two separate layers of legality — residence and work:

• the residence title — a valid residence card, national visa or another document authorising residence, or a status legalising residence while the application is being examined;
• the basis for performing work — a work permit, a single permit for residence and work, or a declaration on entrusting work entered in the register;
• the conformity of the actual working conditions (position, pay, working time) with the content of the permit or declaration.

5. Can entry be refused to the inspector

As a rule, an employer may not refuse the inspector entry — the right to enter and conduct an inspection follows from the PIP Act. Refusing, obstructing or thwarting an inspection gives rise to liability (section 9). What is permissible, however, are steps that order the course of the inspection, provided they are not obstructive in character:

• verification of the inspector’s identity (official ID) — in case of doubt it can be confirmed at the district labour inspectorate,
• designating a contact person and a place for the inspector to work,
• preparing documents within a reasonable time, respecting data-protection rules (GDPR), whereby this may not prevent the exercise of inspection powers.

A separate matter is the scope of a specific request. If it concerns information unrelated to employment, OHS or the legality of work, one may ask for the legal basis and purpose to be indicated; the assessment of a “connection” with the inspection, however, depends on the circumstances and requires caution.

6. How to prepare the company for an unannounced inspection

Good preparation shortens the inspection and reduces the risk of accidental procedural violations. In practice four elements work well:

• A “first contact” procedure — who verifies the inspector, where they direct them, who accompanies them during the inspection and who is responsible for communication.
• A document map — where they are: working-time records, payrolls, contracts, OHS training and examinations, as well as documentation on the legality of employing foreigners (residence cards, permits/declarations, notifications).
• Training of managerial staff — how to give explanations, what not to declare “on the fly”, when to escalate to the legal department.
• Data-handling rules — rules for making copies and providing documents based on the purpose of the inspection.

7. Inspection report and objections

The inspector documents the inspection’s findings in a report drawn up in writing — in paper or electronic form (art. 31 of the PIP Act). The employer’s key power is the right to objections:

• before signing the report, the inspected entity has the right to raise reasoned objections to the findings,
• objections are submitted in writing within 7 days of the date the report is presented,
• the inspector is obliged to examine them and, if found justified, to amend or supplement the report.

8. After the inspection — legal remedies and appeals

Following the inspection the inspector may apply, among other things, orders (decisions) in OHS matters, a decision on payment of remuneration, submissions and instructions, and — since 8 July 2026 — also a decision establishing the existence of an employment relationship (art. 11 and art. 33 of the PIP Act).

Against decisions issued in writing (art. 11(1)(1–7) and art. 11a) an appeal lies to the district labour inspector competent for the place of the inspection activities; the appeal is filed within 7 days of service of the decision (art. 34(5) of the PIP Act). In the case of an appeal against an OHS decision (art. 11(1)(2–4)), the district labour inspector may suspend enforcement of the decision until the appeal is examined, if the measures taken eliminate the immediate threat to life or health (art. 34(6)). Against a final administrative ruling a complaint lies to the voivodeship administrative court.

9. Penalties for obstruction and violations

Obstructing an inspection and violating employee rights carry sanctions on two levels:

• Offence (Labour Code). Whoever obstructs the activity of a PIP authority — e.g. prevents an inspection of the establishment or fails to provide information necessary for the performance of its tasks — is liable to a fine (art. 283 § 2 of the Labour Code). Since 8 July 2026 the upper limits of fines for offences against employee rights have been raised; for some offences the range has risen to up to PLN 60,000, and in special cases of recidivism may reach as much as PLN 90,000.
• Crime (Criminal Code). Whoever thwarts or obstructs the performance of an official act by a person authorised to inspect in the field of labour inspection (or a person called upon to assist them) is liable to imprisonment for up to 3 years (art. 225 § 2 of the Criminal Code).

On top of this come separate sanctions for illegal employment and illegal entrusting of work to a foreigner, provided for in the rules on employing foreigners.

10. Risk assessment and recommendation

The greatest risk arises where the inspection is contentious (an employee complaint, an accident, an allegation of illegal employment) and where documentation is not in order. After the changes of 8 July 2026, two areas require particular attention: the B2B/civil-law contract cooperation model (risk of reclassification into an employment relationship) and the legality of employing foreigners (consistency of the residence card, permit/declaration and actual working conditions).

We recommend: putting personnel files and working-time records in order, verifying the residence titles and work bases of foreigners, preparing an internal inspection procedure and — in the event of a dispute — making use of the deadline for objections to the report (7 days) and the appeal (7 days from service of the decision). In contentious cases it is worth consulting a lawyer before these deadlines expire.