In 1946, Wat was allowed to return to Poland during Polish population transfers (1944–46), along with most Polish nationals expelled from the Territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union. He was appointed chief-editor of the State Publishing Institute (PIW). However, he "turned away from Communism after his imprisonment by the Soviet secret police and became a vociferous spokesman for democracy." Considered unreliable by the Soviet-sponsored Communist authorities in Poland, he was removed from his position and not allowed to publish his own works. He devoted much of his time to translating of several classical pieces of English, French, German and Russian literature to Polish.