Poland is tightening visa rules as investigation confirms previous government’s cash-for-visa scandal

Radek Sikorski said it will now be much more difficult to obtain a visa for Poland, a document that gives access to unlimited travel within Europe’s border-free Schengen zone, and that vetting of applicants will be intensified. For example, student visa applications will be scrutinized to prevent situations where they were only used as a means of entering Europe.

On Thursday, the State Supreme Audit Office released the report of its investigation into the Foreign Ministry’s visa department, confirming last year’s media allegations that Polish consulates in Asia and Africa collected thousands of dollars for each work visa, against the regulations. It says it found 46 types of irregularities in five different areas, including a lack of transparency, an environment prone to corruption and poor supervision by the then minister, Zbigniew Rau.

One of the most egregious examples involved visas for dozens of farmers from India, described in their documents as Bollywood filmmakers.

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The ministry lost control of the visa system, especially in the years 2018-2023, Sikorski told a news conference.

“We can confirm that, unfortunately, unlawful pressure was shamefully exerted on Polish consuls with the intention of increasing the number of visas issued to people… who should not necessarily obtain them, including citizens of the Russian Federation, Sikorski said. He said the ministry contributed to the process of drafting Poland’s new policy on reducing illegal migration, which Prime Minister Donald Tusk will present on Saturday. Earlier this year, Sikorski’s first response to the scandal was to increase visa fees. , which used to be among the cheapest in Europe and attracted migrants from Asia and Africa seeking access to Europe via Poland. The cash-for-visa system was developed under the previous Law and Justice government, in stark contrast to its anti-migrant policies and statements.

The report released on Thursday said that between 2018 and early 2024, thousands of visas were issued to people who paid large sums to agencies working with Polish consulates.

One agency alone issued more than 4,200 visas between January 1, 2018 and March 29, 2024. Some applicants paid as much as 30,000 zloty ($7,600; euro 7,000), according to the auditors.

The audit office is considering whether the case should be brought to the public prosecutor’s office.

Based on a separate investigation by the state’s anti-corruption bureau, prosecutors have so far charged former Deputy Foreign Minister Piotr Wawrzyk and nine other people and are continuing their investigation.

A special parliamentary committee formed after last fall’s elections is also investigating visa irregularities, and its conclusions so far have confirmed many flaws in the system.

The audit office said that between 2018 and 2023, Poland issued a total of 6.1 million visas, including 1.2 million Schengen visas, out of a total of 6.5 million applications. About 3.4 million visas were granted to Ukrainian citizens, 1.6 million to Belarusians and more than 357,000 to Russian citizens, some after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in February 2022.