The CUKR residence card is the first step toward EU residency — with no obligations
The CUKR card stabilises your stay for 3 years and, at that very moment, starts the clock toward EU long-term residency. See the whole path on a single timeline.
Active “UKR” status on 4 Jun 2025
Your “UKR” status must be active on exactly 4 June 2025. If it wasn’t active that day, you can’t get the CUKR card.
365 days of continuity
It is enough to have had an unbroken run of at least 365 days of “UKR” status at any point since you first obtained it — it does not need to run right up to your application. A trip longer than 30 days ends that run, and shorter runs are never added together.
“UKR” status at application and decision
Your “UKR” status must be active on the day you apply and on the day the office issues its decision.
No prior temporary residence permit / permanent / EU resident
If you already hold temporary, permanent or EU-resident status, you no longer have “UKR” status and can’t get the CUKR card.
Check your situation
The Dopomo assistant checks your situation step by step and prepares your application.
What you gain
- 3-year temporary residence — regardless of your purpose of stay.
- Work and your own business, no red tape — no permits, no employer notification.
- This time counts toward EU residency — UKR status alone does not.
- 800+ and family benefits stay — on general terms.
- Simplified procedure — fewer formalities than a standard application. more
- Schengen travel — up to 90 days in any 180-day period.
What you lose
- UKR status and temporary-protection benefits — e.g. free accommodation and meals in collective centres.
- diia.pl stops working — in PESEL, UKR status changes to CUKR.
- New obligations once you hold the card — report any address change to the voivode within 15 working days; leaving Poland for more than 6 months can be grounds for withdrawing the permit.
Ready to apply?
We guide you through every field of the CUKR application and check your data before the office sees it.
Next temporary residence permit — on general terms
When the CUKR card expires, you apply for the next permit on general terms — work, study or family.
Send this to someone with UKR status
Temporary protection with PESEL UKR status runs until 4 March 2028, but a CUKR application can only be filed until 4 March 2027 — after that date the CUKR application won’t be possible, only the standard path remains. Share while there’s still time.
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Questions and answers
What does the CUKR residence card give you, and for how many years?
The CUKR card is a temporary-residence permit for 3 years, regardless of your purpose of stay. It lets you work and run your own business without separate permits, and your employer does not have to report you anywhere. Time on this card should count toward EU long-term residency — unlike time on the "UKR" status itself; the final reading is the voivodeship office's.
Who can get a CUKR card?
There are four conditions and all must be met together: your "UKR" status was active exactly on 4 June 2025; it ran uninterrupted for at least 365 days; it is active on the day you apply and on the day of the decision; and you hold no earlier temporary-residence, permanent-residence or EU long-term residence permit. Leaving Poland for more than 30 days resets the 365-day count.
How do I apply for CUKR?
The application is filed electronically, so you first need a Profil Zaufany — you activate it free of charge through online banking. Then you fill in the CUKR residence-card application: Dopomo walks you through every field and checks the data before the voivodeship office sees it. The procedure is simpler than a standard application — there are fewer formalities.
Is it worth switching to CUKR instead of temporary protection?
The CUKR card gives you a stable 3 years and time that counts toward EU long-term residency, but you lose the "UKR" status — along with temporary-protection support, including free accommodation and meals in collective centres, and diia.pl stops working. Once the temporary-residence decision is issued, there is no going back to "UKR". Weigh both columns on the timeline above before you apply.