Poland Cash-for-Visas Scandal: Government Pressured by Parliament

(Photo : FREDERICK FLORIN / AFP) (FREDERICK FLORIN/AFP via Getty Images)
The Polish government is under pressure by the parliament over the cash-for-visas scandal that alleged hundreds of thousands of work visas were issued quickly in exchanged for money.

The country's upper house of parliament pressures the Polish government over the controversial cash-for-visas scandal.

The speaker of the country's upper house of parliament, Tomasz Grodzki, said that the issue was causing the ruination of the nation's international reputation as a responsible democracy. The government has also released only a few details, but reports from media outlets claim that migrants paid up to $5,000 to quicken their work visa applications.

Poland's Cash-for-Visas Scandal

So far, seven people related to the scandal have been charged, none of whom are public officials. Poland's Deputy Foreign Minister Piotr Wawrzyk was fired last week following the revelation of the allegations.

The dismissal of the public official came on the same day as Poland's Anti-Corruption Bureau (CBA) searched the foreign ministry. Additionally, the director of the agency's legal service has been fired.

The foreign ministry, which is currently facing an audit in relation to the cash-for-visas scandal, said that it would terminate all contracts for outsourcing companies that have been handling visa applications since 2011, as per BBC.

Additionally, opposition MPs said that up to 250,000 visas for people who were from Asia and Africa were issued irregularly by outsourcing companies. However, the Polish government disagreed with this figure, saying that only several hundred were issued.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the leader of the opposition Civic Platform party, Donald Tusk, said that anyone who wanted to get from Africa to Poland goes to the embassy, buys a stamped visa at a special stand, fills in their details, and immediately gets served.

But Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki accused Tusk of trying to stir up problems for his governing Law and Justice Party (PiS). He also denied that there was a widespread issue regarding the issuance of work visas.

The allegations could severely damage the ruling party, which is already campaigning on an anti-immigration platform. Polish authorities said that the scheme may have involved several hundred Polish work visas being given out to countries in the Middle East, including India, the Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, according to DW News.

Controversial Situation

Polish media outlets reported the scandal coming to light after other European Union states noticed an unusually high number of migrants entering with Polish visas. Migrants who hold such visas are meant to stay and work in Poland.

But they can also travel to other nations within the EU, including Germany, because Poland is part of the border-free Schengen area. The scandal first surfaced in the media at the end of August.

The controversy comes as Poland's government touts its tough-on-immigration credentials. The foreign ministry also released a statement, seeking to place the blame on opposition politician Radoslaw Sikorski, who last served as the country's foreign ministry in 2014.

In a Friday evening statement, Morawiecki said there is no problem with illegal immigrants in Poland. He added that Tusk is simply trying to create an "alternative false reality" and wants to make political hay with the issues at the foreign ministry, said Politico.