Foreigners

Poznań City Hall’s archive

In 2017, in a ranking put together by the morizon.pl website, Poznań was recognized as the friendliest Polish city for foreigners living in Poland.

Foreigners registered for permanent or temporary residence

In 2017, the share of foreigners registered in Poznań for permanent or temporary stays exceeding 3 months constituted 0.5% of the city’s population. Approximately 2.7 thousand people with foreign citizenship from over 100 countries were registered in Poznań, including 76% from Europe (28% from EU countries), including citizens from:

• Ukraine (approx. 950 persons)
• Germany (approx. 200 persons)
• Belarus (170 persons)
• Russia (120 persons).

Among the citizens of EU countries, the largest number of foreigners have:

• Italian citizenship (60 persons)
• British, Dutch, French citizenship (approx. 50 persons each).

The share of people from other continents was as follows:

• Asia (14%)
• Africa (3.5%)
• North America (2.3%)
• South America (1.1%)
• Australia and Oceania (0.1%)

The number of foreigners registered in Poznań is increasing and has increased by half in the last 5 years.

Foreign students

Every year, over 5,000 foreigners study at Poznań’s universities – permanently or temporarily as part of the Erasmus programme. They study primarily at the University of Medical Sciences or the Adam Mickiewicz University. More than half of foreign students come from Europe. The majority, approx. 1.9 thousand people, are Ukrainian citizens. Numerous young people from Belarus, China, India, Norway and Canada also come to Poznań for a full course of studies. Persons from Spain and Turkey most often come for temporary exchanges. It is worth noting that a significant portion of foreign students are not included in official migration statistics.

Foreign workers

Poznań has become an increasingly attractive place of employment for foreigners. In 2017, the District Labour Office registered 42.4 thousand employer’s statements on the intention to employ a foreigner in Poznań (this procedure concerns citizens of 6 countries: Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine), of which 91% concerned Ukrainian citizens and 5% – Belarus. Employers offered employment mainly in services (50%), industrial processing (22%), and construction (12%).
Foreigners in Poznań constitute a small number among the registered unemployed, their share does not exceed 0.5%.

Students – foreigners

The number of foreign students in Poznań schools increased. There were 390 foreign students enrolled in public education institutions, including 250 children enrolled in primary schools and kindergarten wards at primary schools, who had the opportunity to participate in additional Polish language classes.

Integration of foreigners

In 2017, the activities of the City of Poznań in the area of support for repatriates included:

• continuation of the municipal programme aiding families from Mariupol, Ukraine.
• adoption of resolutions on enabling repatriates from Georgia and Kazakhstan to settle in Poznań by the Poznań City Council
• cash benefits intended to partially cover the costs of development and current maintenance in Poland for 204 holders of the Polish Card
• launch of the Ukrainian version of the official website “Multimedia City Guide in order to facilitate access to municipal information and services for Ukrainian citizens.

The City of Poznań organized the “Poznań for Syria” campaign and joined the “Zaadoptuj kamizelkę” (“Adopt a vest”) initiative.

The Migrant Info Point ran by the Centre for Migration Studies Foundation, offering information and counselling to foreigners. In 2017, the Migrant Info Point, supported by the City of Poznań, implemented projects in the area of integration, information, support, and education – including:

• AIRBAG Poznań – Safety and support for foreigners
• Open Days MIP
• MIP Support Group
• Build your own business with the Migrant Info Point and the Poznań City Hall.

Discovering other cultures and integration was the aim of recurring cultural events, such as:

• 10th Culture Festival “Ukrainian Spring”
• Festiwal Pora na Skandynawię (“Time for Scandinavia Festival”)
• XXVII Dni Kultury Francuskiej i Frankofonii (27th French Culture and Francophonie Days)
• My French Film Festival.