Employer of Record in Kraków (2026): Costs, Permits and Rules

• Polish law is national, so hiring in Kraków follows the same Labour Code, social security contributions and minimum wage (PLN 4,806 a month in 2026, PLN 4,950 from 1 January 2027) as anywhere in Poland. See our Poland EOR guide for every rule.
• Employer costs add about 22.0% to a PLN 180,000 salary, mainly ZUS social security contributions.
• The lowest published EOR fee in our Poland guide is US$349 a month (RemotePass), about PLN 1,342.
• Ask how the provider employs in Poland. If it operates as a temporary work agency, the same person can generally work for you for no more than 18 months in any 36.
• Hiring a non-EU citizen in Kraków: the work permit comes from the voivode for the employer's registered seat, which for an EOR hire is the provider's Polish entity, while a combined residence and work permit is decided by the Małopolska voivode if the employee lives in Kraków.

Employer costs on top of gross salary at four salary levels, with the lowest published EOR fee in our Poland guide (US$349 a month, converted at the US Treasury rate). Contributions are capped at the annual ZUS limit, so the percentage falls at higher salaries.

• Temporary work agencies: A temporary work agency may assign the same temporary worker to the same user employer for no more than 18 months in total within any 36 consecutive months, and the user employer may not use the same temporary worker for longer.
• Notice periods: For both open-ended and fixed-term contracts: 2 weeks with under 6 months' service, 1 month after 6 months and 3 months after 3 years with the employer. Notice must be given in writing, and an employer must state the reason when terminating either type of contract.
• Probation: A trial-period contract may last up to 3 months, or up to 1 month where a fixed-term contract of under 6 months is intended and up to 2 months for one of 6 to 12 months (extendable once by up to 1 month if the type of work justifies it).
• Annual leave: 20 days a year with less than 10 years' service and 26 days after that. Education counts towards the 10 years, for example 8 years for a university degree and 4 for general secondary school (not added together).
• Public holidays: 14 statutory public holidays, including Christmas Eve (24 December) since 2025; two of them, Easter Sunday and Pentecost Sunday, always fall on a Sunday. Sundays are also days free from work. They're set nationally, so Kraków has no extra local holidays.

EU and EEA citizens work in Poland under EU free movement rules, and the 2025 Act on employing foreigners lists others with free access to the labour market, such as Swiss citizens with a right of residence (art. 3(1)). For everyone else, two permits matter, and each is handled by a different voivode.

• Work permit (zezwolenie na pracę): issued by the voivode for the registered seat of the Polish entity that employs the person (2025 Act on employing foreigners, art. 26(1)). With an EOR, that's the provider's Polish entity, which may be registered outside Kraków. The employing entity applies, and only online through the government's labour-market system; applications made any other way aren't considered (art. 8).
• Temporary residence and work permit (zezwolenie na pobyt czasowy i pracę): decided by the voivode for the place where the foreigner is staying (Act on Foreigners, art. 104(1)), so the Wojewoda Małopolski for someone living in Kraków. Among the conditions, the pay must be no lower than that of comparable workers and at least the minimum wage, whatever the working time (art. 114(1)).
• Check sponsorship before you commit: not every EOR applies for permits in Poland. See EOR visa sponsorship by country.

Workplaces in Kraków come under the State Labour Inspectorate's district office, the Okręgowy Inspektorat Pracy w Krakowie, at Plac Szczepański 5, 31-011 Kraków. It gives legal advice to employers and employees and handles complaints about breaches of employment law, including for people employed through an EOR.