Polish President Karol Nawrocki is looking to dramatically increase the amount of time foreigners are eligible to apply for Polish citizenship with a new law. The law would only provide foreigners with a pathway to Polish citizenship 10 years after receiving a permanent residence visa.
However, this could result in non-EU foreigners having to wait up to 15 years to receive citizenship, as it usually takes three to five years to first receive a permanent residence visa in the first place.
In a speech addressing his recent vetoes directed at a number of new laws, Nawrocki said that he is looking to propose a draft law on granting citizenship, not only to “guests from Ukraine, but also from other regions of the world who come to Poland.”
According to TVN 24, he noted that the granting of citizenship is the prerogative of the president, “so I recognize that the process of granting citizenship should be extended from three to ten years and such a proposal will be included in the bill.”
“Polish citizenship isn’t just a great honor. Someone who receives Polish citizenship also has an impact on the future of our national community, not only for years, but for decades, and perhaps for generations,” he added.
The news comes after Nawrocki vetoed an amendment to the Act on Assistance to Ukrainian Citizens. The Polish government was looking to extend a law that provided healthcare to unemployed Ukrainian refugees and their children. He said that he could not extend the social benefit, which is set to expire in September, arguing that it should only apply to Ukrainians who work.
At the beginning of May this year, Poland’s Rzeczpospolita newspaper wrote about a Law and Justice (PiS) proposal to extend the time required to obtain Polish citizenship from three to ten years.
“In response to the growing immigration, especially Ukrainian immigration, PiS wants the requirements for foreigners to be increased, following the example of other European countries,” wrote the paper, adding that “the idea is to extend the minimum period of uninterrupted stay in Poland from three to ten years.”
Last month, Remix News wrote an analysis of why it is likely going to be more difficult for the EU, and the Polish left, to impose mass immigration on Poles. Nawrocki’s new law is a clear sign that the fight to impose open borders on Poles may be significantly more difficult. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk may be put in a difficult position if he opposes Nawrocki’s proposed law, as he then may appear soft on this key issue, especially with national elections approaching.
