Tell us which occupations and countries you cover and we will review whether cooperation for Szczecin roles fits.
Szczecin sits closer to Berlin than to Warsaw. The Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH) describes it as a European seaport and the capital of the Zachodniopomorskie (West Pomeranian) Voivodeship, about 130 km from Berlin, in a region that lies along the EU’s internal border with Germany. Any recruitment agency partnership for Szczecin has to start with that geography. Candidates who come to Szczecin often have Germany in mind, and some intermediaries exploit that by suggesting that a Polish job is a stepping stone to work across the border. It is not. A Polish work permit, declaration, or national visa authorises work only in Poland.
The second point is the labour market. The County Labour Office in Szczecin (Powiatowy Urząd Pracy w Szczecinie) publishes thecity’ss registered unemployment rate every month, and the voivodeship-wide tables compiled by the labour offices show the city below the Zachodniopomorskie average. Employers therefore have some local labour to draw on, but not enough for every skilled or shift-based role, and the region's shortage forecast points to specific trades rather than general labour.
AtoZ Serwis Plus approaches foreign worker recruitment for Szczecin with both points in mind: a careful explanation of what Polish authorisation does. It does not allow recruitment focused on roles where the employer can show a real, documented need.
Invest in Szczecin, the investor service run for the city by the Szczecin Metropolitan Area development agency, promotes logistics, business services, renewable energy and ICT. PAIH names maritime operations and logistics, the machinery and metal industry, the bio-economy, and future services such as ICT, R&D, BPO, and IT as the region’s development areas, and notes that an economy traditionally associated with shipbuilding and agriculture is increasingly using renewable energy.
According to the city’s investor service, the Szczecin and Świnoujście port complex is one of the largest on the Baltic and the most important transit port for the Czech Republic, Slovakia, eastern Germany and western Poland. The same source describes the Szczecin Industrial Park on former shipyard land as suited to companies in the offshore and steel sectors, with two maritime clusters active in the region. Port and steel fabrication roles include welders, fitters, crane and handling equipment operators and stevedoring staff. These are safety-critical jobs, so partners should ask for certificates, practical evidence, and experience working outdoors in all weather.
The city presents itself as a logistics location, citing road, rail and port connections and cargo handling at Szczecin Goleniów airport. Warehouse and distribution roles follow a familiar pattern: handheld scanners, productivity targets, shift work, forklift or reach truck operation. Screen for shift tolerance and confirm the workplace address, because distribution centres can sit on the city edge or in a neighbouring county.
The investor service describes Zachodniopomorskie aPoland’s's leader in renewable energy and expects offshore wind farm projects to transform the coastal industry. That points to future demand for welders, electricians, steel fabricators and technicians with documented qualifications.
The city describes Szczecin’s ICT sector as specialising in automotive software and electronics, fintech, and systems for business management and production automation. Business services and IT roles usually require English or German, sometimes both, and specific experience.
The occupational barometer (Barometr zawodów), a survey-based forecast prepared for every county and voivodeship under the labour ministry, has listed for Zachodniopomorskie shortages of welders, electricians and energy technicians, earthmoving equipment operators, bus and truck drivers, chefs, accountants, and a long list of education, health and care occupations. Its authors attribute shortages mainly to a lack of candidates with the qualifications employers expect.
Use the forecast as a guide to where well-qualified foreign candidates may be welcome. It does not shorten any permit procedure. Health, education and some care occupations also need professional recognition or registration beyond a work permit, so we do not present them as routine placements. Warehouse work appears far less in the forecast, so partners proposing large numbers of general workers for Szczecin should expect employers to ask hard questions about reliability and retention.
AtoZ Serwis Plus has no office in Szczecin; this page lists no vacancies, and describing a sector here does not mean we hold a job order in it. The sector notes exist so partners can judge where their candidate pools might fit.
Partners recruiting for Szczecin will hear candidates ask whether they can live in Szczecin and work in Germany, or start in Poland and move later. Answer clearly:
We ask partners to put this in writing in pre-departure information. A candidate who intends to cross the border to work risks illegal employment, and the Polish employer loses a worker it has invested in.
The border also shapes pay expectations, because candidates hear about German wages from friends and relatives. Partners should not promise candidates more than the written job order states.
Szczecin is a city with county rights, and the County Labour Office at ul. Mickiewicza 39 serves the city itself. Neighbouring towns such as Police, Goleniów, Gryfino and Stargard lie in separate counties (policki, goleniowski, gryfiński and stargardzki), each with its own labour office. For declarations and seasonal permits, the competent county office is the one for the employer’s registered seat (or a sole trader’s permanent residence), not the one for the site. A Goleniów company hiring for a Szczecin site therefore files with its own county office, while a Szczecin company with a site in Police files in Szczecin. The site still decides commuting and housing.
Further away, the coast around Świnoujście and Kołobrzeg and the eastern part of the region around Koszalin are separate labour markets. The voivodeship office, the Voivodeship Labour Office and the District Labour Inspectorate all have branches in Koszalin. A job “in Zachodniopomorskie” may be a long journey from Szczecin, so always ask for the exact address.
The administrative split also affects paperwork. A declaration or seasonal permit goes to the county labour office for the employer’s seat, a work permit to the voivode for the employer’s seat, and a residence case to the voivodeship office where the candidate lives.
Zarząd Dróg manages city public transport i Transportu Miejskiego w Szczecinie (ZDiTM), which publishes routes, timetables, a journey planner and fares at zditm.szczecin.pl. Its ticketing includes the Szczecin Agglomeration Card (Szczecińska Karta Aglomeracyjna), and some connections run beyond the city towards Police and other parts of the metropolitan area. Partners should still not assume that a particular port terminal, industrial park or distribution centre is well served at shift-change times.
For each job order ask:
Port and industrial work often starts early. A candidate who cannot reach a 6:00 start without a car will not stay long.
Residence applications are filed electronically in the MOS portal, after which the applicant attends in person for fingerprints as the office instructs. We do not give processing times for any of these offices.
Steel fabrication, port infrastructure and construction work often reaches recruiters through chains of subcontractors. Each extra link makes it harder to see who the real employer is, which contract the worker will sign and who registers them for social insurance. Cooperation on these orders therefore depends on the job order meeting stricter conditions:
Hypothetical example: a subcontractor on a large site near the port asks for 15 steel fixers, offers a contract of mandate with pay “by agreement” and cannot say which main contractor it works for. That order lacks the minimum details needed to verify it, and a partner should not recruit for it until the gaps are filled in writing.
These are the points we expect a partner to cover before putting a candidate forward.
For business services and ICT roles, test the required language with a short spoken task, ask for examples of work in the relevant software or process, and confirm whether the employer expects Polish within a set period.
Retention problems in Szczecin often trace back to expectations set before departure. Partners can head off three of them before departure.
Pay comparisons with Germany. Candidates hear what wages are across the border and compare them with a Polish gross salary. If the partner has not explained living costs, taxes and the legal limits of a Polish permit, the comparison breeds dissatisfaction. Present the Polish offer on its own terms, with a realistic net pay example.
Weather and outdoor work. Port, shipyard and construction work continues through autumn and winter. Tell candidates who have not worked through a Central European winter plainly what conditions to expect and what protective clothing the employer provides.
Changing employer. A work permit names one employer and one position. A worker who leaves for another job needs a new legal basis before starting, and a worker who switches on impulse can easily end up working illegally.
Employers file work permit applications and declarations electronically through praca.gov.pl, and no labour market test applies. The main routes are:
Work authorisation is separate from the right to enter and stay. Most non-EU candidates also need a national visa from a Polish consulate, booked through e-Konsulat under each consulate’s own rules, or a residence permit. Visas issued for tourism, visits to family or friends, certain education or training, medical treatment, temporary protection or other purposes do not support work under a permit or declaration, except an other-purposes visa granted to a Karta Polaka holder on that basis, and a Schengen visa issued by another member state does not allow work in Poland. A visa-free stay gives citizens of Georgia, Colombia and Venezuela no right to work. Those who had already started legal work before the restriction may continue on existing terms until their visa-free stay ends, and all three nationalities can still be employed with an appropriate visa or residence permit. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no permit and register their residence after three months.
AtoZ Serwis Plus works with recruitment agencies, overseas workforce suppliers, recruiter partners and appropriately authorised immigration advisers. A written agreement sets out the job orders coveredd who sources, screens, testssand iinterviews;who communicates with candidates and in what llanguage;how personal data moves between the parties and when it is ddeleted;and how problems after arrival are reported. Commercial arrangements between the partner and AtoZ Serwis Plus are matters to agree in that agreement.
Before any candidate is approached, we expect:
People placed in work in Poland must never be charged placement fees, and partners must follow their own national licensing rules.
The Council of Ministers sets the minimum wage nationally, reviews it annually, and each new rate applies from 1 January. Employment contracts are subject to a monthly minimum and certain civil-law contracts to a minimum hourly rate; the figures in force are published on the ministry’s minimum wage page. The job order must state gross pay, and foreign workers must be paid no less than the minimum or comparable employees. The Labour Code norm is 8 hours a day and an average of 40 hours a week in the settlement period; it is a norm, not a cap, and overtime is allowed with a supplement. Deductions, for example for accommodation, are lawful only within Labour Code limits and generally need the worker’s written consent.
Accommodation details must be concrete: address, room sharing, monthly cost and terms if the job ends. Only call housing free if the employer says so in writing.
Collect documents in stages. A CV and eligibility details are enough for shortlisting; passport copies, certificates and licences are needed only once an employer has selected a candidate. Port and offshore roles may need specific safety certificates. Professional drivers need initial and periodic qualification shown by Code 95 or a driver qualification card, and non-EU drivers in international haulage for an EU carrier also need a driver attestation. Licence exchange depends on the issuing country and must be confirmed with the licensing office. GDPR applies throughout, and the agreement should say who holds which data and for how long.
Before the foreigner starts work, the employer sends a copy of the contract, in Polish, through praca.gov.pl, and the worker receives a version in a language they understand. Reporting then follows the route. For a declaration, the employer tells the county labour office through praca.gov.pl that work has begun within 7 days of the first day, reports a non-start within 14 days, and reports if the worker will not start or has ended work before the end date in the declaration, which invalidates the entry. A work permit carries no start report: the employer informs the Zachodniopomorskie Voivode within 7 days if the worker does not start work within the period set by law after the permit’s start date, interrupts work for a long period, or ends it early. On the notification route, the employer files within 7 days of the worker's start date. Partners should stay in touch with candidates during the first weeks and pass any complaints about pay, hours, safety, or housing to us immediately.
If you can source welders, fitters, electricians, drivers, equipment operators or language-skilled specialists, and your candidates want to build a working life in Poland rather than pass through it, we would like to hear from you. Send your licence details, source countries,es and the occupations you cover, and mention any Szczecin or Zachodniopomorskie job orders you would like us to review. Begin with the recruiter partner registration or read the Poland cooperation overview.
Share your licence details, source countries and the occupations you cover, and we will review whether a written cooperation for Szczecin or Zachodniopomorskie roles is possible.
Not on Polish documents. No matter how short the distance to the border, a permit, declaration, or national visa issued in Poland covers work only on the Polish side. A job in Germany needs authorisation under German rules, a separate matter outside this cooperation, and candidates should hear this before they accept a Szczecin offer.
Which cuisines they have cooked, the size of the kitchen and volumes handled, and what hygiene training they hold. Ask whether the Szczecin role is year-round or seasonal, because that decides the legal route, and confirm in writing which documents the employer needs under food safety rules.
The labour offices’ voivodeship tables show Szczecin below the Zachodniopomorskie average, and the County Labour Office in Szczecin publishes the city rate monthly. Use the latest release rather than figures quoted in older material.
The County Labour Office in Szczecin, ul. Mickiewicza 39, covers employers whose registered seat is in the city. It registers their declarations, issues seasonal permits and receives notifications. Employers based in Police, Goleniów or Stargard use the labour office of their own county, wherever the job is.
The Zachodniopomorskie Voivode decides on permits for employers whose registered seat is in the voivodeship, through the Department of Civic Affairs and Foreigners at Wały Chrobrego 4 in Szczecin. The employer applies electronically through praca.gov.pl. The same department handles residence cases for foreigners living in the voivodeship.
The West Pomeranian Voivodeship Office lists a foreigners’ information line at 91 44 12 000 on its gov.pl pages. Candidates and employers should use official contacts rather than unofficial groups that sell information or appointment help.
Not simply by changing jobs. A work permit names one employer and one position, so a worker who leaves needs a new legal basis before starting elsewhere. Explain this before departure, because a worker who switches on impulse, or crosses to a job in Germany, can easily end up working illegally.
The Voivodeship Labour Office is at ul. Mickiewicza 41 in Szczecin, with a branch at ul. Słowiańska 15a in Koszalin. It publishes regional labour market information on wupszczecin.praca.gov.pl but does not register individual declarations.
Invest in Szczecin lists logistics, business services (BPO and SSC), renewable energy and ICT. PAIH adds maritime operations, the machinery and metal industry, and the bio-economy for the region. Partners can use the list to match candidate pools to the local economy.
The city’s investor service describes the Szczecin and Świnoujście port complex as one of the largest on the Baltic and a key transit port for several neighbouring countries. Port work includes handling, stevedoring and equipment operation, all safety-critical roles that need careful screening.
According to the city’s investor service, it is an industrial area on former shipyard land suited to offshore and steel companies, supported by maritime clusters. Roles there may include welders and fitters, but every job order must be verified individually.
The city’s investor service expects offshore wind farm projects to transform coastal industry, which points to later demand for welders, electricians, steel fabricators, and technicians with documented qualifications. Partners can share this information when workers register, so they can be matched once a verified Szczecin order exists.
Employers often set their own practical test, sometimes after arrival, and may require recertification against the standard they use. Partners should warn candidates, ask the Szczecin employer which methods and positions will be tested, and confirm who pays for any recertification.
The city describes Szczecin’s ICT specialisations as automotive software and electronics, fintech, and systems for business management and production automation. These roles need specialist skills and English or German, so they suit targeted, individual recruitment.
The occupational barometer for the voivodeship lists welders, electricians and energy technicians, earthmoving equipment operators, bus and truck drivers, chefs, accountants, and many education, health and care occupations. It is a survey-based forecast, and its authors attribute shortages mainly to a lack of candidates with the qualifications employers expect.
About handheld scanners and pick rates, tolerance for night and weekend work, and forklift or reach truck experience, including whether a Polish qualification is needed. Record any lifting limitation only with consent and only where relevant, and confirm whether the distribution centre is in Szczecin or a neighbouring county.
The city promotes logistics as a focus sector, and warehouse roles are established in the area. Each job order still needs its own verification, including the exact site, the shift pattern and the commuting route from the accommodation.
Yes. The city’s investor service refers to cargo handling at Szczecin Goleniów Airport as part of the area’s transport links. That supports logistics activity in the wider area, but any workplace connected with the airport should be described by its own address.
Zarząd Dróg i Transportu Miejskiego w Szczecinie (ZDiTM) manages city public transport and publishes timetables, a journey planner and fares, including the Szczecin Agglomeration Card. Check each site’s timetable against the actual shift times.
No. Police and Goleniów are in separate counties with their own labour offices. Describe such jobs as near Szczecin, use the town’s own name for anything further away, and check travel times from the accommodation before presenting the order.
Subcontracting chains make it harder to see the real employer, the contract type and who registers the worker for social insurance. Cooperation on shipyard, port and construction orders depends on the employer confirming in writing the site, the main contractor, the exact trade and the safety arrangements.
The District Labour Inspectorate in Szczecin, ul. Pszczelna 7, with a branch at ul. Piłsudskiego 55 in Koszalin covers the entire Zachodniopomorskie Voivodeship. It inspects the legality of employment and working conditions and gives free advice. See szczecin.pip.gov.pl.
No. The seasonal permit is reserved for listed farming and horticulture activities, and a small number of accommodation and food-service roles, so quayside, shipyard, warehouse, and building work in Szczecin falls outside it. Those roles need a work permit or, for eligible nationalities, a declaration.
Possibly, if the employer’s activity falls within the accommodation or food-service subclasses listed in the regulation. The starost issues the permit through the county labour office at the employer’s registered seat, and it lasts up to nine months in a calendar year.
For business services and ICT roles that serve German-speaking clients, often yes, given the city’s position next to Germany. Confirm the required language level in the job order and test it in the interview rather than relying on self-assessment.
No. AtoZ Serwis Plus has no office in Szczecin. Cooperation is arranged remotely under a written agreement; this page lists no vacancies, and a sector described here does not mean we hold a job order in it.
Port, shipyard and construction work in Szczecin continues through autumn and winter, often outdoors and close to the water. Candidates should know what conditions to expect, which protective clothing the employer provides and at whose cost before they accept an offer.
The machines operated, the length of experience and any licences held, with copies requested only once an employer shows interest. Ask the Szczecin employer early whether it accepts the foreign licence or requires a Polish qualification first, and who arranges and pays for that.
Some workplaces sit on the opposite bank from typical accommodation, which can lengthen journeys. Partners should check the route and travel time for each shift start, especially for early port and industrial shifts.
We cannot say in general. Ask the employer whether it provides accommodation, the address, room sharing, monthly cost, which bank of the Oder it is on and the terms if the job ends. Present housing as free of charge only if the Szczecin employer has put that in writing.
Citizens of Armenia, Belarus, Moldova, and Ukraine can use a declaration through the county labour office for theemployer’ss seat. It runs for up to 24 months; work must start within six months, and it excludes board members, commercial proxies (prokurent), and partners representing a limited partnership. Temporary protection holders and Ukrainians under the transitional rule use the notification route; other candidates for Szczecin need a work permit.
Up to three years. The actual period depends on the application and the decision. Workers staying longer usually move to a residence permit that covers work, applied for through the MOS portal.
No. Applications for work permits and declarations are filed electronically through praca.gov.pl, and residence applications, including the single permit for residence and work, are filed electronically in the MOS portal, with limited exceptions.
PLN 400 for a declaration, PLN 200 for a work permit up to three months, PLN 400 for a longer permit and PLN 100 for a seasonal permit. These are state fees paid by the employer, not recruitment fees, and must not be recharged to candidates.
No. A visa for tourism, visits to family or friends, certain education or training, medical treatment, temporary protection or other purposes does not allow work under a permit or declaration, except an other-purposes visa granted to a Karta Polaka holder on that basis. A Schengen visa from Germany or another member state also does not allow work in Poland.
Georgia has been removed from the declaration route. Georgians may not work during a visa-free stay. However, those who had already started legal work before the restriction may continue on existing terms until their visa-free stay ends. Others need a work permit and an appropriate visa or residence permit.
If they hold temporary protection, they start work, and the employer then notifies the county labour office through praca.gov.pl within 7 days of the first day; for a Szczecin-based firm, that is the office on ul. Mickiewicza. A three-year transitional rule extends this to Ukrainians legally resident without protection. Check ongov.p pl for how long temporary protection currently runs before a long assignment.
The national minimum wage, set each year by Council of Ministers regulation and effective from 1 January, with a monthly rate for employment contracts and an hourly rate for certain civil-law contracts. Pay must also match comparable employees. Current rates are on the ministry’s gov.pl page.
The Labour Code norm of 8 hours a day and an average of 40 hours a week in the settlement period is not a cap. Work beyond it is overtime and carries a supplement. Szczecin port and industrial job orders should say how overtime is recorded and paid.
The employer must tell the county labour office through praca.gov.pl within 14 days that work did not start; for a firm based in Szczecin, that is the County Labour Office on ul. Mickiewicza. A partner who learns that a candidate has pulled out should pass this on the same da so thato the Szczecin employer can report on time.
Look up the company in the KRS or CEIDG register by tax number, confirm its activity fits the role, and check any agency in KRAZ. Ask for a written job order and a draft contract before you contact candidates.
No. Employment agencies must not charge placement fees to people placed in work in Poland, and we expect partners to follow the same rule. Report anyone selling jobs, permits or appointment slots.
Code 95 on a Polish licence or a driver qualification card, showing initial and periodic qualification. A non-EU driver doing international haulage for an EU carrier, a common pattern for firms near the German border, also needs a driver attestation. Exchanging a foreign licence depends on the issuing state, so a Szczecin employer should confirm it with the licensing office first.
At shortlisting, you only need a CV and evidence of relevant experience. Copy certificates such as welding or safety qualifications once the employer shows interest, check them for consistency, and never alter them. Ask the employer which certificates it accepts.
Collect data in stages, share it only with those who need it, store it securely and delete it when the purpose ends. GDPR applies, and the written agreement should set out each party’s responsibilities and the transfer method.
Before the start, a Polish copy of the contract goes through praca.gov.pl, and the worker gets a version they understand. After tha,t it depends on the route: a declaration needs a start report within 7 days and a non-start report within 14 days; a permit has no start report, but the voivode hears within 7 days of a non-start, long break or early end; a notification is filed within 7 days of the start.
Refusal grounds include pay below the minimum or below comparable employees, false information, unpaid taxes or contributions, no real business activity, or signs of sham employment. Accurate job orders reduce this risk.
Yes. With the voivode’s approval, starosty may set lists of occupations for which permits are refused in their county, and the Minister keeps a register of these lists. Check the register for the county of the employer’s seat and the county where the work is done.
No. Citizens of EU and EEA countries and Switzerland, including Germans commuting across the border, do not need a Polish work permit. Anyone living in Poland for more than three months must register their residence with the West Pomeranian Voivodeship Office, which handles EU citizen registration.
Through e-Konsulat, but each Polish consulate applies its own rules, and some allocate slots by queue or draw. Szczecin candidates should follow the gov.pl page of the consulate where they will apply. No one can legitimately sell or promise an appointment.
Tell AtoZ Serwis Plus immediately through the channel in your agreement, with dates, names, and documents. The worker can also contact the District Labour Inspectorate in Szczecin directly. Urgent safety issues should never wait.
After filing the residence application in the MOS portal, the applicant attends the West Pomeranian Voivodeship Office in person for fingerprints, usually at Wały Chrobrego 4 in Szczecin or at the Koszalin branch, as instructed by the office. No one can promise a specific appointment date.
Use the recruiter partner registration and give your licence details, source countries and the occupations you cover. Mention Szczecin or Zachodniopomorskie, the trades you specialise in, and any job order you would like us to review.
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