The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs is preparing to launch a new IT platform aimed at stopping middlemen from monopolising and reselling visa appointment slots at exorbitant prices. This initiative is designed to ensure that only legitimate applicants can book appointments directly, eliminating the need for intermediaries.
Polish daily Rzeczpospolita reported that the system will initially be piloted in countries with significant migration flows, including India, the Philippines, and Uzbekistan. In India, numerous workers, students, and professionals have experienced difficulties in securing visa appointments due to intermediaries reserving slots and later selling them at inflated prices. The new system will restrict appointment bookings solely to the applicants, effectively barring unauthorised agents from accessing the slots.
A key feature of the upcoming platform is an identity verification process that will likely utilise biometric data, such as fingerprints or facial recognition, to prevent unauthorised individuals from booking multiple appointments for profit. As a result, Indian applicants may soon be required to undergo biometric screening when scheduling their visa appointments online.
Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not yet announced an exact launch date, the system is expected to be implemented later this year. The initial pilot phase will target high-migration regions like India before being rolled out to other locations. Once fully operational, the new platform will integrate with Poland’s existing eKonsulat system, as well as a forthcoming consular e-services platform currently under development.
Many Indian visa applicants, including IT professionals and skilled workers, have struggled to secure appointments through official channels. Polish employers, particularly in the technology and manufacturing sectors, have raised concerns over the limited availability of slots, which has forced them to rely on intermediaries. Reports indicate that while the official system often shows no available appointments, agents can quickly secure them and charge substantial fees.
