What formalities must a person who has fled from Ukraine first to another EU country and then to Poland after a few months?

Update: 03.02.2023

The citizens of Ukraine who entered Poland in the period from February 24, 2022 have the right to take advantage of the act of 12 March 2022 on assistance to Ukrainian citizens in connection with an armed conflict in the territory of that country (hereinafter: the special act), entry to Poland did not have to be made directly from Ukraine.

On January 28, 2023, the amended provisions of the Act on assistance to Ukrainian citizens in connection with the armed conflict in the territory of that state entered into force, according to which temporary protection is not granted to those citizens of Ukraine who benefit from temporary protection in a Member State other than the Republic of Poland European Union granted due to hostilities conducted on the territory of Ukraine. Thus, the stay of these persons on the territory of the Republic of Poland cannot be considered legal under the Special Act.

There is a system for exchanging information between EU countries about persons using temporary protection in a given country, so only if you stop using temporary protection in another EU country (whether it is possible and how it should be determined with the authorities of a given country) you will be able to use protection in Poland. It should be remembered that temporary protection for a Ukrainian citizen in Poland is possible if the Ukrainian citizen meets the following requirements jointly: he arrived legally on the territory of the Republic of Poland in the period from February 24, 2022 from the territory of Ukraine (even if not directly) in connection with hostilities conducted in the territory of that state and declares its intention to remain in the territory of the Republic of Poland.

If it is established that a Ukrainian citizen has the possibility to enter the territory of the Republic of Poland and will be covered by temporary protection in Poland, one of the key formalities to be completed by the foreigner is obtaining a PESEL UKR number within 30 days from the date of entry into the territory of the Republic of Poland.