Skip to content
Open menu
varta.Poland
Deadline remindersReminders — about deadlines, Varta Personal plans· from €2.50/mo
Colour theme: System
Colour theme

VARTA / POLAND · CUKR

CUKR card: apply by 4 March 2027

The CUKR card is a 3-year residence card on special terms for people with UKR status who decide to move from temporary protection to a temporary residence permit. You do not need to prove a purpose of stay, such as work. The application is filed online only — through the MOS portal, by 4 March 2027.

Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

Every point was checked against UdSC, MOS and the act on 24 October 2026.

The official UdSC page changed after our last check. Before acting, check the dates and conditions in the source.

Key dates

4 March 2027 — the last day to apply · 113 days left

Get a reminder for this date

Applications
04.05.2026 – 04.03.2027Online only, via MOS. The last day is 4 March 2027.

Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab)

UKR status
until 04.03.2028Temporary protection has been extended to 4 March 2028 (EU Council Decision 2026/1912; UdSC notice of 06.08.2026). UdSC’s CUKR pages still say “until 04.03.2027” — written before the extension. The CUKR application deadline has not changed: 4 March 2027. This is the general status date, not the date of your own document.

Sources: UdSC: extension to 04.03.2028 (opens in a new tab), UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab)

If you applied on time
your stay stays legal until the outcomeUnder Art. 42x of the act — until the day you collect the card (or it is cancelled because it was not collected), or until a decision refusing the card or discontinuing the proceedings becomes final.

Sources: the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

Processing
up to 180 daysThat is what the act says (Art. 42l). UdSC warns that the exact wait cannot be estimated now and differs between voivodeships.

Sources: the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab), UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab)

Collecting the card
60 daysFrom the voivodeship office’s notice. If you do not collect it, the card is cancelled and the fees are not refunded.

Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab)

Card validity
3 yearsFrom the day it is issued (printed), not from the day you collect it. The CUKR card cannot be renewed.

Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

Who can apply

Self-check: the four UdSC conditions

According to UdSC, the card is issued when all four conditions are met at once. Tick what you have already checked for yourself.

What I have checked

You can check in MOS with the “Sprawdź możliwość złożenia wniosku” button, or at any municipal office (urząd gminy).

Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab)

According to UdSC, if you did not have the status on that day — for example after a long absence — the CUKR card is not issued.

Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab)

Separate periods are not added together. The 365 days do not have to come right before you apply, and a break after them is allowed (MOS).

Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

Applying does not end UKR status, but after you apply do not leave Poland for more than 30 days — otherwise UKR status is cancelled.

Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab)

This is general information from the UdSC conditions, not an assessment of your situation. The ticks stay on this screen only: the page stores and sends nothing. MOS and the voivode make the final check.

Step by step: how to apply

  1. Check that your registry data is complete

    MOS checks your data against the PESEL and UKR registers itself: name, date of birth, citizenship, the series, number and expiry date of a valid passport, fingerprints and a signature sample. If anything is missing, MOS will not let you apply and will not say what is missing. Then go to any municipal office with your passport and ask them to complete the data.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  2. Pay the two fees — as separate transfers

    PLN 340 stamp duty (opłata skarbowa) and PLN 100 for the card — to different accounts and before you apply. You cannot pay inside MOS: the account numbers are on your voivodeship office’s official website.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), UdSC: fees (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  3. Create a new MOS account

    Even if you had an account in the previous version of MOS, you need a new one. For a child or ward, create a sub-account: “Moje konto” → “Dane osobowe” → “Dodaj konto”.

    Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), UdSC: sub-accounts (opens in a new tab)

  4. Sign in yourself via login.gov.pl and fill in the form

    In MOS choose “Wniosek UKR” — the residence card application for Ukrainian citizens under temporary protection. The form is filled in Polish. You can pause, save and come back later.

    Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  5. Attach the photo and payment confirmations

    A digital photo (JPG) and confirmations of both payments (PDF): an electronic transfer confirmation or a scan or clear photo of the receipt. Photo requirements are below.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), UdSC: fees (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  6. Sign the application electronically

    An adult applicant signs the application themselves, via login.gov.pl: with a trusted signature from a trusted profile (podpis zaufany, profil zaufany) or a qualified electronic signature. An application signed any other way is not considered filed (Art. 42f and 42g of the act). The act allows the electronic “personal signature” (podpis osobisty) only for the person filing for a child or someone without full legal capacity — a parent, guardian or curator; MOS adds: a Polish citizen. The UdSC page lists podpis osobisty without this limit — here we follow the act. A proxy cannot file or sign the application.

    Sources: the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab), UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab)

  7. Send it and keep the confirmation

    After sending, save the application (PDF and XML) and the UPO — the official receipt. MOS does not issue a separate certificate of filing.

    Sources: UdSC: procedure (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  8. Wait for the voivode’s notice

    The voivode for the place where you live on the day you apply handles the case. You are not called in to show your passport or give fingerprints or a signature: the voivode uses the registers. Extra documents only if the voivode asks for them.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  9. Collect the card in person within 60 days

    The card is handed over at the voivodeship office. From that day UKR status changes to CUKR. If you do not collect it within 60 days, the card is cancelled, there is no permit and the fees are not refunded.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

Open the MOS portal (opens in a new tab)UdSC page in Ukrainian (opens in a new tab)

Photo and fees

  • Photo

    In colour, 35 × 45 mm, taken within the last 6 months: the face fills 70–80% of the frame, plain light background, no head covering or dark glasses (exceptions for religious reasons or a sight impairment, with a separate statement or document). File at least 684 × 883 pixels, up to 2.5 MB.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  • PLN 340 — stamp duty

    For the temporary residence permit. Paid to the account or cash desk of the city mayor (prezydent miasta) of the city where the voivode handling your case is seated.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  • PLN 100 — for the card

    For issuing the plastic card itself. Paid to the voivodeship office’s account or cash desk.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), MOS (opens in a new tab)

  • Good to know

    PLN 440 in total. There is no fee exemption. Before transferring, check the account number on the official website of the office: each office has its own account. The PLN 340 stamp duty is not refunded after a refusal, if the proceedings are discontinued (umorzenie), if the voivode refuses to open them, or if the application is left unexamined. If you do not collect the card within 60 days, it is cancelled and neither fee is refunded.

    Sources: UdSC: Q&A (opens in a new tab), UdSC: fees (opens in a new tab), the act (Dz.U. 2026 item 1293) (opens in a new tab)

Fingerprints and signature

Children

What changes once you have the card

Before you apply

Refusal and appeal

No intermediaries needed: what UdSC says

On 29 October 2025, before applications opened, UdSC issued a separate warning about intermediaries: they offered paid “coordinated filing” of CUKR applications and misled people into thinking paper applications would be accepted. Below are the key sentences of that warning and of the current procedure page, word for word.

Tymczasem, urząd otrzymał sygnał dotyczący nieuczciwych praktyk stosowanych przez pośredników w sprawie uzyskania takich kart pobytu. Praktyki te polegają na oferowaniu płatnych usług w zakresie tzw. skoordynowanego składania wniosków o kartę pobytu CUKR. Pośrednicy wprowadzają w błąd swoich potencjalnych klientów sugerując, że do urzędów wojewódzkich miało zostać skierowane pismo dopuszczające przyjmowanie takich wniosków w formie papierowej.

Translation by Varta: Meanwhile, the office has received a report of dishonest practices used by intermediaries in obtaining such residence cards. These practices consist of offering paid services of so-called coordinated filing of CUKR residence card applications. The intermediaries mislead their potential clients by suggesting that a letter allowing such applications to be accepted on paper was to be sent to the voivodeship offices.

UdSC — “Nieuczciwe praktyki dotyczące uzyskania tzw. kart pobytu CUKR” (in Polish) (opens in a new tab) · published 29 October 2025 · checked 24 October 2026

W związku z powyższym, Urząd do Spraw Cudzoziemców zaznacza, że nie jest możliwe składanie wniosków o wydanie karty pobytu z adnotacją „Poprzednio posiadacz ochrony czasowej” (CUKR) w formie papierowej – urzędy wojewódzkie nie przyjmują takich wniosków. Procedura w tej sprawie będzie odbywała się wyłącznie on-line po uruchomieniu dedykowanego narzędzia, do którego dostęp będzie bezpłatny (bez konieczności posiadania pośrednika). Jedynym kosztem ponoszonym przez cudzoziemca będzie opłata skarbowa przy składaniu wniosku (340 zł) oraz opłata za wydanie karty pobytu (100 zł).

Translation by Varta: Accordingly, the Office for Foreigners points out that applications for a residence card annotated “Previously a holder of temporary protection” (CUKR) cannot be filed on paper – voivodeship offices do not accept such applications. The procedure will take place exclusively online once a dedicated tool is launched, access to which will be free of charge (without the need for an intermediary). The only costs borne by the foreigner will be the stamp duty when applying (PLN 340) and the fee for issuing the residence card (PLN 100).

UdSC — “Nieuczciwe praktyki dotyczące uzyskania tzw. kart pobytu CUKR” (in Polish) (opens in a new tab) · published 29 October 2025 · checked 24 October 2026

Dostęp do systemu MOS jest bezpłatny. Wniosek możesz złożyć samodzielnie, bez konieczności korzystania z odpłatnych usług pośredników.

Translation by Varta: Access to the MOS system is free of charge. You can file the application yourself, without having to use paid intermediary services.

UdSC — CUKR residence card procedure (in Polish) (opens in a new tab) · checked 24 October 2026

Nigdy nie podawaj nikomu informacji służących do logowania na login.gov.pl. Może to wpłynąć na bezpieczeństwo Twoich danych!

Translation by Varta: Never give anyone your login.gov.pl sign-in details. It may affect the security of your data!

UdSC — CUKR residence card procedure (in Polish) (opens in a new tab) · checked 24 October 2026

Varta Personal

Remind me about 4 March 2027

A ready reminder appears once the system automatically checks this date against the UdSC page. The date on this page was checked by hand — you can add it in your account as your own date.

Remind me

After signing up, come back here and tap “Remind me”: Varta does not add this date by itself — only when you choose it. If your case in Poland is temporary protection, the date also appears among the recommended ones in your account.

Already have an account? Sign in

€29.99 a year, paid once (about €2.50/mo), or €3.99/mo · Paid via Ko-fi · Cancel any time

You can save your dates right away. Reminders start after payment and switch on by themselves once Ko-fi confirms it.

Sources

All pages were opened and checked on 24 October 2026.

Whether to apply is your choice: this page explains the rules and does not assess your situation. Varta gives general information from official sources and does not give legal advice. The voivode decides on the card; if in doubt, contact the voivodeship office or UdSC.

Poland: country overview