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Standard
& Poor's rates the city of Krakow AA- for local currency
and BBB+ for major foreign currencies. Krakow is Poland’s
fourth biggest manufacturing center, with steel, tobacco and
pharmaceuticals being the key industries. At the same time the
city is second only to the capital Warsaw as regards the
service sector. On top of being the country’s prime tourist
destination it boasts headquarters of 6 banks, 15 major
institutions of higher education, and plethora of consultants,
stockbrokers, etc. Krakow is also home to two of Poland’s
three biggest Internet portals.
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Visitors from
member-states of the European Union and NATO do not need
visas to enter Poland. Otherwise, when a country wants
Polish citizens to acquire a visa the general rule is that
Poland requires citizens of that country to secure one for
admission to Poland as well. The EU's nationals may become
residents of Krakow practically right away while other
aliens need to apply for temporary or permanent residency.
[See also tips on employment, transport, communication, currency,
paying, weights & measures, business hours, holidays,
dates and numbers, and local customs].
More
tips for business visitors Taxes in Poland As a rule expatriates and natives pay
the same taxes in Poland. Of course, there are
exceptions and they benefit the former. E.g. the country has tax treaties with 60-plus
nations, including the USA, which ensure no income is
taxed twice and lower taxes apply. Value added
tax (VAT) is included in the price of
almost every product and service you purchase. Excise
duty is a ‘sin tax’ of sorts,
included alongside VAT in the price of such
products as
cigarettes, liquors, motor fuels, etc.
Companies incorporated or headquartered in Poland
are subject to corporate
income tax (28% in 2002, 24% in 2003, and 22% since 2004). Personal
income tax is paid both by
Poland’s citizens and by permanent residents.
More
on taxes in Poland Krakow's Real Estate In Poland
foreigners can freely buy apartments or plots up to 0.4
hectare (i.e. about an acre) in urban areas. They may also
inherit any property. Otherwise acquisition of real estate by an alien
requires authorization from the Ministry of
Internal Affairs, easily obtainable in most
cases. It applies to individuals as well as
companies whenever foreigners hold the
controlling interest.
More
on Krakow's real estates
In 2005 nineteen Krakow companies ranked among Poland’s
500 biggest corporations, i.e. with sales exceeding $50
million a year. Bank Przemyslowo-Handlowy PBK S.A., with
its headquarter in Krakow and branches all around the
country, proved to be the tenth largest Polish business
owing to its annual turnover exceeding $ 1.3 billion.
Yet Mittal Poland, former Sendzimir Steelworks,
has
remained the biggest employer in the city with over
9,000 on its payroll despite the recent massive
reductions due to restructuring.
More
on Krakow corporations New Town in the Center of
Krakow
So-called New Town (‘Nowe Miasto’), a
200,000-sq-m office-shopping-and-entertainment complex on the 70,000-sq-m site
in downtown Krakow next to the Old Town historic district, is the city’s
biggest development project under construction. Local government earmarked the
strategic area adjoining Krakow’s communication hub with main railroad and bus
stations for its brand-new commercial center.
More
on New Town project
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Poland’s labor costs stay at a third of Germany’s, and the country boasts a
sizeable and fast-expanding internal market, enjoys a healthy GDP growth, and
remains a model of political and economic stability in the region. No wonder
foreign investors flock: from multinationals to fairly small enterprises. If you
want to jump the bandwagon, Krakow appears a particularly good place with some
8.5 million people living within a radius of 100 km. And the city is situated at
Europe’s crucial crossroads between Germany and Ukraine and between
Scandinavia and the south of the continent.
More
on FDI in Krakow
Investing in Krakow
All companies incorporated in Poland are equal before the law of the
country. And Polish corporations can be owned altogether and run
by foreign shareholders, while full repatriation of capital as well as after-tax
profits and dividend earnings is guaranteed. At the same time Poland's competition law, the
protection of intellectual property, bankruptcy
law, etc. are nowadays up to the Western
standards.
More
on investing in Krakow
Krakow
Old Town Historic District
Poland's prime tourist attraction and a must-see in
Central Europe boasts numerous world-class monuments,
charming vistas, delightful atmosphere, and the best restaurants–everything
easily available on foot.
Go
to Krakow's Old Town historic district
Shopping
in Krakow
From designer garb to
jewelry, and from antiques to books and CDs–Krakow’s central
Old Town historic district,
turned into a pedestrian precinct, teems with stores
of all sorts, crammed into every available space.
More
on shopping in Krakow
Good
restaurants in Krakow
Krakow has always been Poland’s gourmet Mecca. And
the recent decade brought about a genuine restaurant
explosion all over the city owing to the hectic
efforts of aspiring restaurateurs–native ones as
well as immigrants. The Old Town historic district
seems virtually stuffed with establishments catering
to all kinds of diners.
More
on Krakow’s restaurants
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Krakow
General Data:
Geography,
Weather,
Local
Government, History,
Culture,
Environment,
Wildlife,
Province,
Basic Krakow info for
visitors
Poland
nation, geography, climate, wildlife, visitors,
currency.
Malopolska
Province
Krakow's
Transport
How to move about the city.
Travel
to Krakow
Good
hotels in Krakow
In
the proximity of Krakow
Krakow is Poland's tourist mecca, and also a gateway to
many other must-see sites in the region.
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