The legislation aims to streamline procedures, tighten penalties for illegal employment and fully digitize administrative processes.
The bill was approved by 231 lawmakers on Friday, with 196 voting against and none abstaining.
Earlier, the Sejm rejected a motion by the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party to dismiss the bill entirely.
The new law is part of Poland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan, a government strategy aimed at modernizing administrative procedures and addressing workforce shortages.
A key provision of the law is the removal of the so-called labor market test, a procedure that currently requires verification of whether a registered unemployed Polish citizen could fill a job before offering it to a foreigner.
The Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy, which drafted the bill, argued that the test is ineffective.
Instead, local authorities will have the power to decide which professions and industries should be restricted from hiring foreign workers based on labor market conditions.
The law also increases the role of public employment services in issuing work permits and mandates the establishment of special service points for foreign workers at local labor offices.
It introduces mandatory grounds for refusing work permits if a business exists primarily to facilitate the entry of non-European Union nationals into Poland.
Provincial governors will have the authority to deny work permits if a company does not engage in real economic activity and earns revenue solely from helping foreigners obtain residency and work documents.
Amendments proposed by the far-right Confederation party were rejected.
These included a proposal to eliminate a declaration requirement for hiring citizens of Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, as well as a requirement for foreign workers to present proof of Polish language proficiency at a B1 (high standard) level.
Confederation also sought to introduce an annual cap on work permits issued, but this amendment did not pass.
However, the Sejm approved an amendment from the Left party that raises penalties for labor law violations, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Without this change, fines for breaking employment laws when hiring Polish citizens would have been lower than those for hiring foreigners.
The amendment ensures equal penalties for all cases of labor law breaches.
The legislation significantly strengthens enforcement measures, according to officials.
Border Guard and State Labor Inspectorate officials will be allowed to conduct unannounced inspections of companies employing foreign workers.
Additionally, multiple agencies will be permitted to carry out concurrent investigations, a departure from current rules limiting oversight to a single institution at a time.
Penalties for illegal employment will be increased, with fines ranging from PLN 3,000 to 50,000 (USD 750 to 12,500) per case.
Another major change is the full digitization of the work permit application process, from submission to final decision, to reduce delays and improve efficiency.
The legislation now moves to the Senate, the upper house, for further debate and potential amendments.
(rt/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP