Paper is no longer an option
Applications for a temporary residence permit, a permanent residence permit and EU long-term resident status are filed exclusively electronically through MOS — art. 225a(1) of the Act on foreigners. A paper application received after the cut-off is left without examination. What counts is the date the office receives it, not the date you posted it.
What you need before you start
- An electronic signature — a Polish profil zaufany, a qualified electronic signature, or an e-ID. Without one you cannot sign and submit the application.
- A scan of your travel document, all used pages.
- Documents supporting your purpose of stay — employment contract and employer's statement, enrolment certificate, marriage certificate, and so on.
- Proof of the stamp duty payment and of the residence card fee.
- A photograph meeting the official specification.
How the procedure runs
- Create an account in MOS and confirm your identity electronically.
- Complete the application form for the permit type that matches your situation. Choosing the wrong type is a substantive error, not a clerical one.
- Attach the documents and the proofs of payment.
- Sign and submit. Keep the confirmation of submission — it fixes your filing date.
- The office confirms a complete application; your stay remains legal until the decision becomes final (art. 108(1)).
- Correspondence in a case started in MOS is conducted electronically, to your address for electronic delivery.
Where MOS applications go wrong
- Wrong permit type selected. The office will not silently reclassify it for you.
- Payments made but not attached, or paid into the wrong account — stamp duty and the card fee go to different recipients.
- No electronic address monitored. Once correspondence is electronic, a request for missing documents can expire while you are not reading it. You then get at least 7 days from delivery (art. 64 § 2 k.p.a.) — delivery, not from when you happen to notice.
- Illegible scans of passport pages or stamps.
Legal basis and sources: Act of 12 December 2013 on foreigners (Dz.U. 2013 poz. 1650, as amended); Act of 20 March 2025 on the conditions for entrusting work to foreigners (Dz.U. 2025 poz. 621); Code of Administrative Procedure (k.p.a.). Fees verified against the Office for Foreigners (Urząd do Spraw Cudzoziemców) and the MOS system. Legal status: 31 August 2026.
This page describes Polish procedure in general terms and is not individual legal advice. Dariusz Włodarczyk is a legal adviser running a Polish law office (kancelaria); he is not an adwokat or radca prawny — these are separately regulated Polish professions. Representation before administrative authorities (the voivode, the Head of the Office for Foreigners) is open to any authorised person under art. 33 § 1 k.p.a.
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