Poland declares amnesty for illegal immigrants

Under the terms of the programme, foreign citizens who have been working illegally in Poland may be granted the right to work within the law.

Jacqueline Pyrcz, director of the Warsaw branch of the Office for Foreigners, told Polish Radio's Press Agency (IAR) that staff will not only accept applications, they will also help applicants to write them.

Applications may be submitted until the end of June at regional branches of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

However, a favourable result is not guaranteed.

What is more, applicants must allow two months for the forms to be processed.

Those hoping to secure a legal working permit must prove that their initial entry into Poland was no later than December 2007 and they must prove that they have not left Poland since the beginning of 2010.

Victoria Ivanchuk, a Ukrainian national, told IAR on Monday that she hopes that she will be one of those to reap the benefits of the amnesty. She told IAR that she has been working in Poland for five years, and that she has not visited her family in Ukraine for half a decade. (nh/pg)

Source: PAP