Applications for temporary, permanent and EU long-term residence are concentrated in regions with large urban centers and stronger job markets, the office’s spokesman Jakub Dudziak told state news agency PAP.
From 2023 to 2025, Mazowieckie received 396,000 applications, followed by Wielkopolskie (182,000) and Dolnośląskie (165,000).
The lowest volumes were in Świętokrzyskie (17,000), Opolskie (23,000) and Podkarpackie (24,000).
Processing speeds also diverge sharply. This year the shortest average times were reported in Małopolskie (172 days), Warmińsko-Mazurskie (201) and Lubelskie (223). The longest were in Śląskie (640), Opolskie (623) and Pomorskie (537).
Heavy workloads stem from rising demand since 2014, Dudziak said. He cited 250,000 applications in 2019, 393,000 in 2021 and 609,000 in 2023, adding that the trend eased last year.
Extra tasks linked to the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine also strained offices, he said.
Delays are aggravated by incomplete filings and poor cooperation with applicants or their representatives, Dudziak added.
A planned digitization project is intended to ease pressure.
A government-backed bill approved by the Cabinet in August, passed by the lower house and awaiting Senate review would require applications to be filed exclusively online.
The changes aim to shorten procedures, curb abuses by intermediaries and improve information exchange between regional offices and the Internal Security Agency (ABW), Dudziak said.
(jh/gs)
Source: PAP, tokfm.pl