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I'm an Indian citizen and I'm planning to marry my Polish girlfriend. After the marriage, we are considering the option of moving to Poland. I wanted to know if I can move to Poland right away after the marriage and how long it will be before I can work in Poland.
Do I still need to get a work permit to work in Poland if I'm married to a Polish national or can I start working right away? Additionally, if I do need a work permit, how long does that take?
The answer depends whether you have been living in another EU country together or not before trying to settle in Poland. If you have, then EU laws will apply, which provide you with the same coverage as any other EU member, including employment. EU laws will also apply if you both plan on moving to a different EU country to live and work there.
If not, then Polish national laws will apply to you (until you have moved together to a different EU country). Fortunately Polish laws are also quite lenient, as you won't need a work permit if "you are the spouse or a former spouse of a Polish citizen, provided that they have a residence permit for Polish territory".
Note that your marriage needs to be recognized by Polish Immigration and they might also do some checks (Act 55, Section 1) to determine whether your marriage was "not been concluded for the purpose of abuse by an alien the provisions on granting a residence permit for a fixed period on the territory of the Republic of Poland".
