[8] Since 1989, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, there has been a new wave of Ukrainian immigration, mostly of job seekers, tradesmen, and vendors, concentrated in larger cities with established markets.

[12] As a result of the Eastern Partnership, Poland and Ukraine have reached a new agreement replacing visas with simplified permits for Ukrainians residing within 30 km (19 mi) of the border.

[6] About 102,000 Ukrainian citizens received Karta Polaka,[20] of whom some 15,500 obtained permanent residence permits in the period from 2014 to March 2018.

[21] Following the 2014–2015 Russian military intervention in Ukraine, including its annexation of Crimea ("Helsinki Declaration"),[22] the situation changed dramatically.

[23] The policy of strategic partnership between Kyiv and Warsaw was extended to military and technical cooperation,[24][25] but the more immediate task, informed Poland's State secretary Krzysztof Szczerski, was Ukraine's constitutional reform leading to broad decentralization of power.

At the time most applicants were not eligible to claim refugee protection in Poland, because Ukraine as a sovereign country with a democratic government remained fully accountable to its citizens.

[16] After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine newly arriving refugees may apply under the standard EU asylum procedure or receive emergency temporary protection.

It has been presumed that employing several hundred thousand more people should not be a problem (this is already partially corroborated by the fact that nearly 150,000 newly arrived war refugees have entered the Polish labor market).

The recent influx consists primarily of women with children, whereas prior to the war, Ukrainians in Poland were predominantly employed in male-dominated occupations.

Additional measures will be required to prevent threats such as workplace exploitation, abuse, and sexual harassment, which are to be expected given the magnitude of the phenomenon and the limited bargaining power of war refugees.

Especially people using public services may experience a deterioration in the standard of living due to the presence of war refugees who will also be entitled to state support.

[33][34][35] In January 2025, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk supported proposals to reduce benefits for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.