Poland is quietly one of the most digital public administrations in Europe. You can file a tax return in a few clicks, get an electronic prescription on your phone and register a company from your sofa. All of this runs through one key: the profil zaufany (trusted profile). Without it, you queue; with it, you rarely go in person again.
What is the profil zaufany and why do you need it?
It is a free digital identity for Polish online public services. It is valid for three years from confirmation and can be extended for another three. To get one, you must first have a PESEL, so start with PESEL number in Poland.
You confirm your identity in one of four ways: through your bank, with an electronic ID card (e-dowód), by video call with an official, or at a confirmation point. Then you log in to login.gov.pl, the single sign-on for most state portals.
Which services does it open?
- Gov.pl and login.gov.pl: the state portal and its single login, by trusted profile, e-ID card or online banking.
- e-Urząd Skarbowy and Twój e-PIT: tax returns, payments and letters from the tax office. You can also log in with your tax data (PESEL or NIP, date of birth and the amounts of last year's return), which only gives access to Twój e-PIT, so it does not work in your first year.
- eZUS: your account with the social security institution, with confirmation through the trusted profile, a bank, an e-ID card, a European eID, a video visit or an agency.
- IKP (Internetowe Konto Pacjenta): the patient account on pacjent.gov.pl, for e-prescriptions and choosing a family doctor.
- Biznes.gov.pl: business registration (CEIDG); S24 for limited companies.
- e-Doręczenia: an official electronic mailbox for registered letters from the administration.
What can a foreigner do online, and what not?
Before you have a PESEL, you register your stay and your address at the counter. After the PESEL and the trusted profile, most things move online: the address declaration for EU and EFTA citizens, tax, ZUS, the patient account and business registration. Still in person: the registration of stay with the voivode (except in justified cases), collecting some documents, and car registration if your town hall does not accept electronic filing.
Which portal for which task, and in which order, is the part nobody explains. Moovy can walk you through your situation and tell you what to set up first. You log in and file yourself.
What about the mObywatel app?
mObywatel is the state's mobile app, with digital documents and services. Its digital ID (mDowód) exists only for the Polish identity card. Whether a foreigner can activate the app at all is a rule we could not confirm from an official page, and it is the kind of rule that changes, so check the current terms on the official mObywatel site before assuming. For now, the profil zaufany or a bank login is the route that works for foreigners with a PESEL.
What are the common mistakes?
- Delaying the PESEL. No PESEL, no trusted profile.
- Expecting a pre-filled return to know everything. Twój e-PIT only knows what Polish payers reported: your foreign income is not there.
- Expecting English everywhere. The portals often have an English or Ukrainian version, but forms and counters are in Polish.
- Ignoring official letters. A registered letter from an authority you do not collect after the notices can be deemed delivered (14 days after the first notice, according to the Code of Administrative Procedure). An e-Doręczenia mailbox helps.
What is the order of the first steps?
- Register your stay with the voivode, see residence in Poland for EU citizens.
- Declare your address and receive your PESEL.
- Create the trusted profile.
- Set up eZUS if you work or run a business, and the patient account IKP for your doctor, see healthcare in Poland for expats.
- Check your access to the tax portal before your first return.
How do you create a profil zaufany as a foreigner?
The steps, from the gov.pl fact sheet:
- Get your PESEL. Without it, you cannot start; see PESEL number in Poland.
- Start the application on the trusted-profile site and enter your details.
- Confirm your identity by one of the four ways: online banking, e-ID card, video call with an official, or at a confirmation point.
- Log in to login.gov.pl, then to the service you need.
Once created, the profil zaufany is valid for three years from confirmation and you can extend it for three years. It is free.
What can you do with a profil zaufany?
It lets you sign documents electronically, log in to the tax portal, the social security portal, the patient account and business registration, and submit applications to public offices. A trusted profile is the key to most of the "can I do this online?" answers on this page. For the paperwork of settling, see moving to Poland.
How does the tax portal work?
The e-Urząd Skarbowy is the online tax office, with Twój e-PIT as its tool for returns. You can log in through login.gov.pl, through the e-US app, or with your tax data (PESEL or NIP, date of birth and the amounts from last year's return, which is impossible in your first year). The tax-data method only reaches Twój e-PIT. The service offers a pre-filled return: check it, add deductions and the child credit, and send it between 15 February and 30 April. The tax rules themselves are on podatki.gov.pl.
How does the eZUS account work?
eZUS (formerly PUE ZUS) is the portal for social security contributions, declarations and benefits. Accounts are available from age 13. You can confirm your identity online through login.gov.pl (trusted profile, bank, mObywatel, e-ID card or a European eID), at a video visit, or at a ZUS agency. This is the one portal that accepts a European eID before you have a PESEL. For self-employed people, it is where you send the contribution declarations.
What is the patient account (IKP)?
The Internetowe Konto Pacjenta on pacjent.gov.pl holds your electronic prescriptions, lets you choose your family doctor and request the European card. It is accessed with the trusted profile. Details in healthcare in Poland for expats.
How do you register a business online?
On biznes.gov.pl with a login through login.gov.pl, signing with a trusted profile, a qualified signature or an e-ID card. From 1 November 2026, CEIDG applications must be filed electronically, and a foreigner needs a PESEL, or a cross-border identifier from an EU state. The S24 system serves limited companies.
Can you use your home country's eID?
The European eID works for eZUS. Whether it is accepted on the other services of login.gov.pl is something to check, because our sources do not confirm it. Plan on the trusted profile as your main route.
What does the Polish state still require in person?
The registration of your stay with the voivode (except in justified cases), the collection of some documents, and car registration if your municipality does not accept an electronic filing. See residence in Poland for EU citizens and driving in Poland.
How do you avoid the usual traps with the profil zaufany?
Do not wait until you need a deadline-bound service to create it: the confirmation by video call or at a point can take time to arrange, and the bank route is the fastest if your bank offers it. Keep note of the expiry date and extend it in time. Use a strong password and the second factor offered, and never share your login with anyone who says they can file for you. Finally, remember that digital services are free: the state does not charge for creating the profile.
Digital services are free. Rules and portals evolve, so check gov.pl for the current process.