Migration within the EU: Polish migrants move to the UK When Poland and seven other Eastern European nations joined the EU in 2004 it started a wave of migration to the UK. By 2008, over 850,000 had registered to work in the UK. Many of these migrants were Polish. Polish migrants moved to the UK to find work. There was high unemployment in Poland at the time. Most migrants were under 34 (85%) and only 15% wanted to stay permanently. Most wanted to work in the UK for a couple of years, earn money and then return home. Wages in the UK are much higher than they are in Poland (in 2006 a Polish migrant could earn an average of £20,000 a year in the UK compared to £4,000 in Poland).