On March 12, 2022, the Parliament of the Republic of Poland adopted an act on assistance to Ukrainian citizens in connection with an armed conflict on the Ukrainian territory.
The act provides mainly for:
- specific rules for legalizing the residence of Ukrainian citizens;
- specific rules for entrusting work to Ukrainian citizens legally residing in the territory of the Republic of Poland;
- assistance provided by voivodes, local government units and other entities to citizens of Ukraine;
- establishing an Assistance Fund to finance or co-finance the implementation of tasks to help Ukrainian citizens;
- some rights of Ukrainian citizens whose stay in the territory of the Republic of Poland is considered legal;
- specific rules for extending the periods of legal residence of Ukrainian citizens and the documents issued by Polish authorities regarding the rights to enter and stay on the territory of the Republic of Poland;
- certain rights of Polish citizens and Ukrainian citizens who are students, academic teachers or research workers entering from the territory of Ukraine;
- specific regulations concerning the education, upbringing and care of children and students who are citizens of Ukraine, including support for local government units in the implementation of additional educational tasks in this regard, special rules for the organization and operation of universities in connection with the provision of study places for Ukrainian citizens;
- specific rules for undertaking and pursuing economic activity by Ukrainian citizens legally residing in the territory of the Republic of Poland.
Under this law, the voivode may provide assistance consisting in:
- accommodation;
- all-day collective meals;
- transport to the places of accommodation referred to in point 1, between them or to centers run by the Head of the Office for Foreigners or places where the citizens of Ukraine receive medical care;
- financing journeys by means of public transport and specialized transport intended for people with disabilities to places or between places referred to in point 3;
- providing personal hygiene, cleaning products and other products.
In addition, on March 15, 2022, the Council of Ministers issued an implementing regulation to the above-mentioned act on the maximum amount of cash benefit due to providing accommodation and meals to Ukrainian citizens and the conditions for granting this benefit and extending its payment, providing for the amount of PLN 40 per day for a person who provides accommodation and meals for a period not longer than 60 days, paid in arrears upon an application submitted to the competent municipality office.
The law also provides for an exemption from personal income tax for humanitarian aid received in the period from February 24, 2022 to December 31, 2022 by taxpayers who are Ukrainian citizens who came from the territory of Ukraine during this period. The tax exemption will also apply to a cash benefit granted to a natural person running a household who provided accommodation and meals to Ukrainian citizens.