Doctors from countries outside the European Union will receive an additional year to confirm their knowledge of the Polish language at the B1 level. This decision was made by the Sejm, despite protests from the medical self-government, which believes that poor language proficiency may threaten patient safety. The topic was also discussed at a meeting with the president.
Amendments have been made to the law on the prevention and combating of infections. The new deadline applies to medical professionals with so-called conditional work rights — those who received permission after October 24, 2024. Previously, they could work under a simplified procedure without a mandatory language certificate.
The medical self-government sharply criticizes the parliament’s decision.
“Understanding the patient is the foundation of successful treatment, and without knowledge of Polish, this is impossible. Poland remains the only country in Europe with such low language requirements for foreign doctors. If a person has not reached the B1 level in two years, deadlines cannot be extended indefinitely,” said the head of the Supreme Medical Council, Łukasz Jankowski.
According to the previous rules, medical professionals were required to confirm their language knowledge by the end of April. After May 1, regional medical councils planned to revoke the conditional work rights of more than 200 individuals. However, in the middle of the month, the Sejm approved a new extension.
On May 20, Jankowski met with President Karol Nawrocki. According to him, the medical self-government hopes that the Senate will introduce amendments and limit access to work for specialists who do not speak Polish until the law is signed.
It is estimated that more than 3,000 doctors and dentists need to confirm their language knowledge.
