Moving your business to Poland

We have already tried covering this subject in one of our popular blog entries about doing business in Poland, so if you are curious about the types of businesses you can establish — click here and take a look at that article.

Poland is a part of the EU, and Europe remains a key location in terms of international growth and is crucial for anyone trying to reach new customers.

Following the United Kingdom’s hard decision to finally leave the European family, countries like Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary are competing and trying to reach businesses interested in relocating to Continental Europe.

Furthermore the relatively huge Polish market, and lower Labour costs, then those of neighbouring western countries are making Poland an attractive place to invest or set up your own business here in the Vistula country.

We prepared a couple of tips that should sum up everything you know before relocating your business or setting up a new one here in Poland.

EU is not a country

​​While it may sound silly to some, a huge number of international countries fail to understand, that being a member of the EU does not mean, that the same laws apply everywhere.

While the majority of European directives are usually implemented in local bills, it does not mean, that the labour laws in Germany, Poland or France are the same.

If you are afraid, that moving to Europe automatically means huge labour costs, Poland may surprise you. Social security and health insurance contributions, as well as minimum wages are significantly lower here.

We would recommend getting to know Poland’s Tax Ordinance Act and the rules on VAT, corporate (CIT) and personal (PIT) income taxes.

It’s easier if you are a EU citizen

That is true. If you current company’s country of origin is a EU member it’s way easier for you to let’s say post employers to Poland, before relocating your whole business.

If you are a one-man business and planing on making a fresh start here in Poland, it is easier if you come from a EU (EEA) country as well, like Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia.

Registering sole traders businesses (private entrepreneurship) are usually available to EU (EEA) citizens only. There are a couple of exceptions, such as being a Polish student, a EU residence card holder, and a couple of others.

But if you come from China, Malaysia, India, Russia, Ukraine you are usually stuck with 4 forms of business organisation available to you:

• the ever popular LLC company — Spółka z ograniczoną odpowiedzialnością (Sp. z o.o.);
• joint stock company — Spółka Akcyjna (S.A.).
• a registered partnership — Spółka komandytowa;
• limited joint-stock partnership — Spółka komandytowo akcyjna;
  

However as you can see if you were planning on setting up a traditional limited liability company here in Poland, it does not matter if you from from a EU country or not, that form of business incorporation is available to all foreigners. No exceptions.

Check the market

Remember to gather local information. If something works on your local market, there’s virtually no 100% guarantee, that it will work here in Poland.

We at Moja Firma witnessed a number of projects fizzled out, even though they were quite successful on the neighbouring countries’ markets. They worked perfectly there, but due to the fact that Poles behave differently as consumers, they failed.

Remember that consumer behaviour may differ from country to country. Germany may have a more developed financial sector, but lags behind Poland in terms of contactless payments usage.

Before making a final decision to move your business, order a market analysis for your project, perform a competitor analysis. It’s of utmost importance to have concrete figures, and a marketing strategy, before making any hasty decisions.

Even if your products are good, you shouldn’t assume, that all doors will be automatically open for you here in Poland. There’s a number of things, that unfortunately may go wrong.

Contact local experts

We sugest adopting a start-up mentality here. We know it’s hard, especially if you are already running a well-oiled business machine, but it’s the way to go.

Do not hesitate to contact local companies and look for potential partners, especially those, that have vast experience dealing with foreigners.

Not sure if the local laws are going to affect your business — reach out to local lawyers. Have no idea, how ledgers are kept in Poland, and what are the major do’s and don’ts — local accountants will have your back.

They will all give you some concrete information to base your decision, entering new markets without any sort of analysis is a reckless endeavour.

Not sure where to start? We may have a solution or two, when it comes to moving your business to Poland.