More than 17.5 Thousand Citizens of Belarus Received Assistance in Poland

Almost half of them entered the country on the basis of a humanitarian visa.

Since the start of protests against election fraud in Belarus, more than 17.5 thousand people have received aid in Poland, Polish Radio reports.

According to the Border Guard Service, more than 8 thousand Belarusian citizens came to Poland on the basis of a humanitarian visa.

The data provided by the Border Guard Service to PAP shows that, between 18 August 2020 and 17 October 2021, 10,778 Belarusian citizens announced that they were looking for help in Poland.

In addition, 6,750 Belarusian citizens came to Poland under the Poland Business Harbor program (a comprehensive relocation program for IT professionals, startups, and other companies from Belarus to Poland).

During this time, 241 citizens of Belarus applied for international protection when crossing the Polish border, 1669 citizens of Belarus applied for international protection on the territory of the country; four citizens of Belarus announced their intention to submit an application for international protection when crossing the state border, and 659 citizens of Belarus announced their intention to submit an application for international protection on the territory of the country.

The Border Guard Service, citing data from Eurostat, reports that Poland is among the leaders in the countries that issued employment-related residence permits to Belarusians. In 2020, 502,300 permits were issued, representing 22 percent of all permits issued in the EU.