Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, more than 1 million Ukrainian refugees have found refuge in Poland. This contributed to the creation of new economic entities in Poland, reports the Polish Economic Institute (Polski Instytut Ekonomicznu – PIE). Thus, in January-September last year, 3,600 companies with Ukrainian capital and 10,200 sole proprietorships registered by Ukrainian citizens were created, according to PIE experts. Moreover, 75% of respondents opened a business in Poland in order to raise funds for themselves and their families. At the same time, 66% of them declare that they will continue their activities in Poland, regardless of how the situation in Ukraine will develop. These are the conclusions of the report of the Polish Economic Institute “Ukrainian companies in Poland after the start of the war in 2022”.
There are more and more companies in Poland with Ukrainian capital
According to PIE, there are currently 24,100 companies with Ukrainian capital in Poland, i.e. 25% of the total number of companies with foreign capital. The data of the report indicate that 2022 may become a record year for the number of registered companies with Ukrainian capital. In the first three quarters of 2022, 3,600 firms were created.
– From January to September 2022, as many as 45% of newly registered companies with foreign capital were enterprises with Ukrainian capital, which is 7% of the total number of companies registered in Poland, both with Polish and foreign capital. These are mostly trading companies (22%), construction companies (19%) and transport and storage companies (14%), – says Katarzyna Dembkovska, head of the economic forecasting group.
Non-profit organizations are founded mainly by citizens of Ukraine
FOP is the dominant form of business conduct by citizens of Ukraine in Poland. In total, 10,207 of them were created from January to September 2022. The largest increase in active FOPs that started operations, compared to March, took place in April, when their number almost tripled. At the end of the third quarter of 2022, the number of Ukrainian companies that entered the CEIDG was almost 12 times greater than in February, according to a report from PIE.
–The number of FOPs created by citizens of Ukraine in 2022 grew exponentially from month to month. The biggest jump occurred in the first weeks after the beginning of the Russian invasion – in April 2022, there were already 4.5 times more such companies on the Polish market than in January. In September 2022 – 2.6 times more than in April. Construction (24%), information and communication (16%) and services (14%) dominate the sectors. It is also worth noting that the owners of 41% of FOPs registered by citizens of Ukraine are women, says Anna Shymanska, an analyst of the PIE economic forecasting team.
Most Ukrainian companies will remain in Poland
According to the PIE survey, in 75% of cases, the main motivation for starting a business in Poland was the need to earn money to support themselves and their families. The second reason was cultural closeness and the almost absence of a language barrier in communication between Poles and Ukrainians, compared to other countries (63% of responses).
At the same time, 66% of respondents indicated that they will continue their activities in Poland regardless of how the situation in Ukraine will develop. Only 4% of surveyed companies intend to stop their activities in Poland and return to Ukraine as soon as the situation allows. Most often, representatives of other types of services (43%), construction (17%), and information and communication (13%) want to stay in Poland. The IT industry is represented by entrepreneurs who plan to return to Ukraine.
– The end of the war is unlikely to mean a mass closure or transfer of business to Ukraine. Despite the fact that 40% of Ukrainian companies consider the lack of business experience in Poland an obstacle, the majority of respondents intend to continue their activities in Poland and develop cooperation with Polish partners. Ukrainian entrepreneurs in Poland also want to participate in the future reconstruction of Ukraine, Katarzyna Dembkowska notes.
