curiousGeorge
Registered Users (C)
Polish citiznship has become quite attractive for many people in the last few years since Poland joined the EU. If you have Polish parents or grandparents, you are already have Polish citizenship, you just need to prove it, and then you can get a passport that lets you live / work / go to school in the EU.
To get a Polish Passport you can apply directly in Poland, or let a Polish consulate handle everything for you. If you do it at the consulate, it takes significantly longer, not to mention you need more documents and if there are any issues, you won’t have the opportunity to reply with additional supporting documentation. The down side of having someone in Poland do it for you is quite obvious....you need to know someone in Poland willing to go through the trouble to help you out.
____________________________________________________________
(1) Birth Certificates: Get 2 copies of long form originals of your birth certificate showing the name(s) of your Polish parents.
____________________________________________________________
(2) Marriage Certificates: If you are married, get 2 copies of your long form marriage certificate.
____________________________________________________________
(3) Passports: Get your current unexpired passport from all countries where you have citizenship.
____________________________________________________________
(3a) Military Enrollment: Get proof of any military enrollment, whether in Poland or abroad.
____________________________________________________________
(4) Parents' Birth Certificates: If your parent(s) were born in Poland, get their long form birth certificate(s) (i.e. “zupelny” NOT “skrucony”). If you don't have the long form you'll need to get it from the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego where they were born. If you apply at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw, they will forward the request to the appropriate wojewodstwo where each parent was born. (Note: If your parents were not born in Poland and your lineage is based on your grand-parents, then start over in step (1) and get your parent's foreign birth registered first, repeat if necessary for your grand-parents, depending on where your lineage links you back to Poland.) If your second parent was not born in Poland, their information is irrelevant, and you can skip this step for the non-Polish parent.
____________________________________________________________
(4a) Parents' Military Enrollment: Get proof of any military enrollment that your parents had, whether in Poland or abroad.
____________________________________________________________
(5) Parents' Marriage Certificate: If your parents were married in Poland get their Polish long form marriage certificate. (i.e. “zupelny” NOT “skrucony”) If you don't have the long form you'll need to get it from the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego where they were married. If you apply at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw, they will forward the request to the appropriate wojewodswto where your parents were married. (Note: If your parents were not married in Poland, then start over in step (1) and get their foreign marriage registered first, repeat if necessary for your grand-parents, depending on where your lineage links you back to Poland.) If they NEVER married, you can still proceed with out it. My instructions assume they did marry, and if so, the marriage certificate should be provided. You can prove your lineage by your father's birth certificate and yours showing his name on it. Really the marriage certificate is a single doc that links everybody together, so it just makes it easier for them, but they can do without it.
____________________________________________________________
(6) Parents' Polish Passports: Get your parent’s Polish passports (expired or not). If they never had a passport, or simply never left Poland, this step is optional. If they had passports, it helps if you provide them.
Obviously an expired or unexpired passport makes things simpler, since its recognized easily by the Polish authorities very quickly and easily. The other option is to get a document showing how your ancestor exited Poland, or a document that shows how he entered the next country. But if your ancestor never exited, his notarized statement will probably suffice to get the ball rolling, together with thier "Dowod Osobisty", and thier PESEL number (if they are still alive). It may just take the Polish authorities a little longer to corroborate his statement without any supporting documentation. If they can't find proof, then they may deny the case to claim citizenship. This is where a lawyer comes in handy, since he can find the proof for you by scouring the archives, instead of allowing yourself to be a the mercy of the authorities, and their possible ineptitude to prove this for you. Its not in the best interest of the authorities to prove this for you, so they may not go the extra mile to find the right information. Its best that you have the proof up front.
____________________________________________________________
(7) Parent's Immigration / Emigration Docs: Get your parent’s exit visa, or immigration travel voucher, or immigrant visa, or anything that shows how they exited Poland. Ideally this document should state that they are citizens of Poland. If they never left Poland, this step is optional of course.
____________________________________________________________
(8) Apostille / Legalization: If the country where (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4a), and (7) originated from has signed the Hague Convention, then all you need to do is get an apostille for each of the documents at the civil office in the country where the documents were issued, and get them translated by an official translator, or at the Polish consulate. If the country where (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4a) and (7) originated from has NOT signed the Hague Convention then you’ll need to get (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4a) and (7) legalized and translated by the Polish consulate in the country where the documents were issued. If you live in a different country now, these documents still need to be legalized in the Polish consulate where they originated, since only the Polish consulate in that country will be able to determine if they are authentic. Here is a list of countries that signed the Hague Convention:
http://travel.state.gov/abduction/resources/congressreport/congressreport_1487.html
I got my son's long-form US birth certificate and the apostille at the same time and got them both translated together. I think you need to ask your local authorities to issue the certificate and the apostille together, since one is proof that the other is authentic. Getting the apostille at a later date would probably defeat the purpose. I then got my long-form Canadian birth certificate legalized by the Polish consulate in Canada, since Canada did not sign the Hague Convention, they could not issue an apostille.
____________________________________________________________
(9) Name Change: If you're married, and your name is now different than it was at birth, you will need to register your marriage in Poland with the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw using (1), (2), (4), and the legalized translations you got in (8), so that your name is correct on the Polish birth certificate that you will get in step (10). They actually give you a birth certificate with your married name.
____________________________________________________________
(9a) Divorce: If you’re divorced, and your marriage is already registered in Poland, and you have reverted back to your maiden name, or if you performed a legal name change, you’ll have to get a legalized and translated copy of the certified copy of your divorce records or name change document issued by the government organization that granted the divorce or legal name change. You would send these records to the Polish court so that they can issue a decision on your civil status change. If you once lived in Poland, you need to send it to the court in the wojewodswto in your last place of residence. If you never lived in Poland, send it here:
Sądu Okręgowego w Warszawie
skrytka pocztowa 220
00-958 Warszawa.
____________________________________________________________
(10) Polish Birth Certificate: Register your birth in Poland at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw using (1), (2), (4), and the legalized translations you got in (8), and the Polish marriage certificate you got in (9) & (9a). Make sure you get the long form Polish Birth Certificate. They will give you three copies one of which you will need for step (11) below.
You need a Polish Birth certificate to get a Polish passport. It says so right on the New York Polish Consulate's website:
http://www.polishconsulateny.org/index.php?p=58
Paszport wydawany jest wyłącznie na podstawie polskich dokumentów stanu cywilnego. Oznacza to, że osoby posiadające akt urodzenia lub małżeństwa wydany przez urząd zagraniczny, np. amerykański, powinny umiejscowić te akty w polskim urzędzie stanu cywilnego, właściwym dla ostatniego miejsca zamieszkania lub w przypadku osób urodzonych za granicą, w USC Warszawa Śródmieście
TRANSLATION: [Passports are issued solely on the basis of Polish documents from the civil status office. This means, that persons who have an act of birth or marriage issued by a foreign organization, (for example American) should register these acts in the appropriate Polish civil status office of last residence, or, in the case of persons born outside of Poland, in the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego Warszawa-Śródmieście.]
As of August 2006, they changed the laws, so AFAIK if you do not currently have an unexpired Polish passport, you would need your Polish birth/marriage ceritificates, and also a proof of Polish citizenship document before applying for a passport and a PESEL number.
The easiest way of course is to apply at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego (USC) in Warsaw, but if that is not an option then you can do this at the Polish consulate as well, although it will take longer.
If you can have someone do it in Warsaw for you, you would use this form to register your foreign birth certificate, (supported by the docs I already mentioned earlier):
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/dokument...isanie_zagranicznego_aktu_stanu_cywilnego.pdf
If its already registered, and you just need a copy, use this form:
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/dokumenty/ip/usc_wniosek_odpis_urodzenia.pdf
And here are some addresses and phone numbers:
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/informacja.asp?mn_id=279
Here is some info on the procedures (understandably I couldn't find an English version)
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/informacja.asp?mn_id=2416
If it is not registered, and you want to do it at the consulate instead then you would need to register your birth, and they would send your birth certificate to you. (WNIOSEK O UMIEJSCOWIENIE AKTU URODZENIA)
If you are an adult you need this form (WNIOSEK O UMIEJSCOWIENIE AKTU URODZENIA OSOBY DOROSŁEJ W POLSKIM USC)
http://www.polishconsulatechicago.org/forms/formsNR8.pdf
If you are under 18, you need this form (WNIOSEK O UMIEJSCOWIENIE AKTU URODZENIA W POLSKIM USC)
http://www.polishconsulatechicago.org/forms/formsNR9.pdf
If you've confirmed that it is registered, you just need to fill out a request at the consulate to get copies of the birth certificate from Poland. (WNIOSKI O WYDOBYCIE AKTU URODZENIA)
This is the form you would use for that:
http://www.polishconsulatechicago.org/forms/formsNR4.pdf
this is the address to do it in Poland:
00-281 Warszawa
ul. Jezuicka 1/3
tel. 0 22 504 52 06
faks 0 22 635 52 97
Phone number to call about registering foreign acts of birth and marriage:
tel. 0 22 504 52 49
or
01-627 Warszawa
ul. Słowackiego 6/8
faks 0 22 56 01 316
Phone number to call about registering foreign acts of birth and marriage: tel. 0 22 56 01 314
Here is the web page:
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/um_www/informacja.asp?mn_id=279
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/um_www/informacja.asp?mn_id=644
____________________________________________________________
(11) Polish Citizenship: If you are under 18, AND one (1) of your parents has a valid Polish passport. you can use this passport as your proof of citizenship for the puposes of getting your first passport. Otherwise, if you are not in possession of a current, unexpired Polish Passport showing your current name, then apply for Proof of Polish Citizenship using (3), (3a), (4), (4a), (5), (6), (7) the legalized copies you got in (8), and also your long form Polish Birth Certificate you got in (10). You will also need to know the following information when filling out the application form, the same information will need to be provided in the zyciorys if you are applying at the consulate, instead of in person in Poland:
...(I) - Your Full Name
...(II) - Your Date of Birth
...(III) - Your Place of Birth
...(IV) - Parent’s names (this is where your parent’s birth certificates will come in handy to reduce any errors in spelling, or translations. This information will be a key piece in determining whether your parents are still Polish citizens, since their records will be searched for any hints of the citizenship having been renounced.)
...(V) - Mother’s maiden name
...(VI) - Your last address in Poland (if you ever lived in Poland)
...(VII) - List countries where you have a valid passport, and the dates those passports expire. Preferably provide a legalized & translated copy of the passports.
...(VIII) - Details on how you emigrated from Poland, if you ever lived in Poland (when, to which country, and using what type of documents or visas) If it was your parents who emigrated, then provide their info instead.
...(IX) - What other citizenships have you been granted? (dates, and explain how you qualified, and how it was obtained or granted)
...(X) - A statement confirming that you did or did not renounce your Polish citizenship
...(XII) - Which Polish consulate are you under the jurisdiction of at your current place of residence?
...(XIII) - Any other supporting factual evidence proving your Polish citizenship. This probably comes into play if you don’t have the other documents I listed above, and/or if your lineage to Poland starts with a grand parent or great-grand parent.
For more info on submitting the application in person go here:
http://www.mazowsze.uw.gov.pl/news.php?id=885
Here are the addresses:
http://www.mazowsze.uw.gov.pl/pdf.php?id=267
The cost for the proof of citizenship is as follows:
5 zł. for the application.
50 groszy to make a copy of each attached document / page.
50 zł. to process the application
The payment needs to be made using "Znaki opłaty skarbowej". These are stamps (not postage stamps) that get stuck on to the application to show that the processing fee was paid. The stamps need to be purchased prior to making the application.
Keep one important factor in mind. Polish law dictates that even if you were born in Poland, you don't necessarily have Polish citizenship, since you get Polish citizenship by proving that your parents have Polish citizenship.
The same goes for one's parents and grandparents and great-grandparents. They need to prove their parent's were citizens at time of their birth... Therefore even if your great-grand parents were considered to have been born in Poland, they are not necessarily Polish citizens, since their parents need to have had Polish citizenship.
Another important factor is the year when they were born. Since Polish citizenship law has changed several times over the last century, it’s possible that your acestors, who you are trying to link your Polish nationality to, may have lost their citizenship due to another factor, such as joining a foreign army.
The bottom line is in a case where your lineage starts at a grandparent or further back like a great-grandparent, you won't really know for sure unless you try and make the application, and let the Polish authorities investigate your lineage. They will also tell you what other supporting docs you will need to prove your great-grandparents citizenship, like possibly an exit/entry record, or something stating they are Polish citizens. You say you have another set of Polish great-grandparents, so if I were you I would try to get their docs to support your case as well. The other option of course is to hire a lawyer and let him do the research for you.
____________________________________________________________
(12) PESEL: If you do not have a PESEL number then attach (1), and (2 to the PESEL application, and apply for a PESEL number BEFORE you proceed to step (13).
In section VI of the PESEL application, they want to know the legal reason why you need a PESEL number. The legal reason is "Rozdział 7a Art. 31a ust. 3 pkt 4"
So, you can answer this question as follows:
"PESEL jest mi potrzeby aby otrzymać paszport zgodnie z Rozdział 7a Art. 31a ust. 3 pkt 4"
In english this means: "I need a PESEL number to get a passport in accordance with.... and the actual law number
____________________________________________________________
(13) Polish Passport: Apply for a Passport at the consulate using (9), (10), (11) (11 is not needed if you have an unexpired Polish passport or if you are under 18 and one of your parents has an unexpired passport), together with (12), a copy of a local ID card such as a driver’s license or document showing your address of residence (this is used to determine which consulate has jurisdiction over your area), and 3 Polish passport photos, which you cannot assume match the dimensions of your local country, so get the right dimensions from the consulate. Children under the age of 5, need not attach (9), (10), or (11) for their first passport, as an original, translated, Hague-apostilled or consulate-certified birth certificate from the country where they were born will suffice in addition to one of the parent’s unexpired Polish passports. However, the child will need (12) , and once the child is over 18 they will need (10), and should the passport expire, the child over 18 will also need (11) to get a new passport. If the parent does not have an unexpired passport, then (9), (10), (11) are needed for the child regardless. Both parents must sign the application for a child under 5 years of age. If both parents cannot sign the application then a notarized letter of consent from the second parent must be attached. All passport applications regardless of age of the applicant must be submitted in person at the Polish consulate. For some people this is a true inconvenience due to distance and time, or the age/health condition of the applicant (for example, I live 1600 kms away from my consulate). The consulate will probably only excuse people who are not physically able to make the trip and those people must write a letter explaining why they cannot appear in person, such as an extremely frail elderly person. Infants are not exempt from appearing in person, unless they have an extreme ailment that prohibits them from being in public.
You must do this in this order.
____________________________________________________________
Ether way you need to get (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4), (4a), (5), (6) , and (7) all done before you proceed.
You must use the originals of (1), (2). and (8), this is not an option. The Polish authorities will keep these originals.
You will need to do (8) at the Polish consulate in the country where (1), (2), (3) and (7) originated from, OR if you're just getting an apostille, then the civil office in the country where (1), (2), (3), and (7) originated from can give you that.
Then:
You can do (9), (9a), (10), (11), (12), and (13) at the Polish consulate where you live. In addition you would also need to attach the following information:
a) “życiorys”, or a resume signed and dated in which you would provide among other things:
...i) when and how your foreign citizenship(s) were granted
...ii) the citizenships your parents had upon your birth
...iii) whether both parents had Polish citizenship
...iv) whether either of your parents ever renounced their Polish citizenship
...v) when and how did your parents end up in their current country.
b) Naturalization act for all of you citizenships, if not acquired by birth.
c) Proof of legal residence or legal status in the country where you currently reside, if you are not a citizen of this country.
d) A statement explaining that nether you nor your parents ever renounced Polish citizenship.
e) A statement listing all foreign citizenships.
f) Two photos that match the Polish passport photo requirements.
g) Any other relevant documents produced by a Polish government office.
(a), (d), and (e) need to be in Polish and signed before a consular officer.
(f) needs to be signed before a consular officer.
(b), and (c) need to be translated and legalized by the Polish consulate, or translated with an apostille, where appropriate.
This path would take about 18-24 months, maybe longer, not to mention that the list of information is much longer than the next option.
Or.................................................................................................
If you know someone in Warsaw, you can go to the Polish consulate and get a power of attorney for use in Poland, and also get (8) done at the same time. Your contact in Warsaw can use all the docs (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4), (4a), (5), (6), (7), (8), and the Polish power of attorney to get you (9), (10) and (11). All this would take about 2 months for your contact in Warsaw to obtain. Then once you get these back from the person in Warsaw, using (9), (10) and (11) the Polish consulate that has jurisdiction over your area could then help you get (12) and (13) at the same time, which could take about 6 months to get.
Tip: Although the Polish authorities will return all originals except (1), (2), and (8), things have a tendency of getting lost (i.e. stolen) in the mail in Poland, so you may not feel comfortable including originals if you don't need to. If you don't want to use the originals from (3), and (7), then you can go to the Polish consulate in the country where each of these were issued, and get legalized copies. If you don't want to send the originals for (4), (5), and (6) then you can go to the Polish consulate where you live, and just get legalized copies of each.
The bottom line is if you know someone in Poland, this path is a LOT faster than going to the Polish consulate for everything. It would take about a year.
____________________________________________________________
Here is a link to the Polish citizenship act right from the Sejm (in Polish of course):
http://isip.sejm.gov.pl/servlet/Search?todo=file&id=WDU19620100049&type=3&name=D19620049Lj.pdf
(...) Dual Citizenship:
Polish law does not recognize dual citizenship of its citizens. While Polish law does not forbid Polish citizen from becoming the citizen of a foreign state by birth or naturalization, Polish authorities shall recognize that national as a Polish citizen only.
Citizenship laws fall under the responsability of the Minister of Interior Issues and Administration (Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji). The Parliment (i.e. the Sejm) is the one who makes the laws.
Unfortunately the Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji website only has laws since 1998, probably since the organization was only created after communism fell. The Sejm on the other hand lists the laws since 1918, but they only have the more recent ones scanned in for viewing online. You could probably try to email them and request a copy of these laws.
The main citizenship law from 1920 is: Dz.U. 1920 nr 7 poz. 44
There were many ammendments to this law, even as recently as 1938. Here are all the amendments:
Dz.U. 1920 nr 52 poz. 320
Dz.U. 1920 nr 57 poz. 358
Dz.U. 1920 nr 92 poz. 615
Dz.U. 1921 nr 39 poz. 246
Dz.U. 1921 nr 59 poz. 375
Dz.U. 1923 nr 51 poz. 361
Dz.U. 1923 nr 53 poz. 374
Dz.U. 1924 nr 22 poz. 240
Dz.U. 1925 nr 17 poz. 118
Dz.U. 1926 nr 93 poz. 545
Dz.U. 1928 nr 95 poz. 843
Dz.U. 1938 nr 16 poz. 114
The main page to the Sejm webiste is here:
http://www.sejm.gov.pl/
You can use thier search tool to see the law titles, and if there is a PDF, you can view the document in the results:
http://isip.sejm.gov.pl/prawo/index.html
____________________________________________________________
LEGAL REGULATION
The Statute on Polish Citizenship, of 15 February 1962 with later amendments (final text of statute, Dziennik Ustaw — Journal of Laws of the Republic of Poland, No. 28, item 353, 2000)
ELIGIBILITY TO ACQUIRE POLISH CITIZENSHIP
By descent from parents, where at least one of them is a Polish citizen/Ius Sanguinis
A child acquires Polish citizenship by birth when:
1. Both parents are Polish citizens, or
2. One of the parents is a Polish citizen, whereas the other is of unknown or undefined citizenship or does not possess any citizenship … (Art. 4)
A child of parents of which one is a Polish citizen, while the other is a citizen of another state, acquires Polish citizenship by birth. However the parents may, in a declaration made in conformity before the proper authority within the course of three months from the day of the birth of the child, choose for the child the citizenship of the foreign state of which one of the parents is a citizen, if according to the law of that state the child acquires its citizenship.
In the case when the parents are not in agreement on this matter, each of them may apply to a court for a resolution within the course of three months from the day of the birth of the child.
The proper authority outside of Poland for receiving declarations concerning citizenship is a consul of the Republic of Poland. (Art. 6)
By birth on the Polish territory
A child who was born or found within the territory of the Republic of Poland acquires citizenship when both parents are unknown, whose citizenship cannot be established, or who are stateless (Art.5)
By declaring a stateless person as a Polish citizen
A stateless person can be declared Polish if:
- The applicant resides in Poland for at least five consecutive years
- The stateless person applies to the Woyewoda of her/his place of residence in Poland.
Acquisition of Polish citizenship can be extended to applicant’s children if they reside in Poland. Each child over sixteen years of age needs to agree to the acquisition of Polish citizenship (Art.9)
By marriage with a Polish citizen for aliens residing in Poland
An alien can acquire Polish citizenship, if she/he:
- Is married for at least three years to a Polish citizen, and
- Obtained a residence permit
Applicant needs to apply to the Woyewoda of her/his place of residence in Poland and declare intention of becoming a Polish citizen. Application needs to take place within 6 months from obtaining the residence permit. (Art. 10)
By regaining the citizenship lost in childhood by Parents declaration
By affidavit executed before proper Polish authorities within 3 months after the birth of the child, parents can choose foreign citizenship for the child if the laws of the foreign country grant the child citizenship based on descent from the foreign parent. Such child looses Polish citizenship by parents’ declaration.
She/he can however regain Polish citizenship if he/she executes an affidavit expressing the will of becoming the citizen before proper Polish authorities after turning 16, but before 6 months to the legal age.
By regaining Polish citizenship lost pursuing marriage to a foreign citizen
Polish citizen who lost Polish citizenship by marrying a foreign citizen can regain his/her citizenship if the aforementioned marriage no longer exists. Such person needs to apply to the Woyewoda of her/his place of residence in Poland, or to a Polish consul if residing abroad.
By naturalization by the President of the Republic of Poland
A foreigner may be granted Polish citizenship at his or her request, if
- He or she is residing in Poland for at least five years on the basis of a permanent residence permit;
- In particularly justified cases a foreigner may be granted Polish citizenship at his or her request, even though he or she does not meet the conditions defined above.
The granting of Polish citizenship may be dependent on a submission of proof of the loss of or dispensation from a foreign citizenship.
The granting of Polish citizenship to both parents extends to the children remaining under their parental authority. (Art. 8)
Note:
For citizens who emigrated from Poland before 1962, the above-mentioned eligibility criteria do not apply.
INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS WHO EMIGRATED FROM POLAND BEFORE 1962 AND THEIR DESCENDANTS:
Under Polish law there were in force, in the corresponding periods: the statute on citizenship of the Polish State of the January 20, 1920 and the statute on Polish citizenship of January 8, 1951. The provisions of Polish law that were in force at the time of the occurrence of events significant to the case in hand are applicable in the resolution of questions of Polish citizenship (significant events taken into account are usually the date of departure from Poland and/or the date of acquisition of foreign citizenship)
Provisions applicable from 1918 until 1951:
The provision 11 of the Act dated 1920 stated that a Polish citizen looses his/her Polish nationality:
- When a person obtains foreign citizenship, or
- When a person accepts public office or joins the army in a foreign country without prior approval of the Polish Government. Persons compelled to active military service may acquire foreign nationality after obtaining permission from the Minister of Military Affairs, otherwise they are deemed to be Polish citizens.
Provisions applicable from 1951 to 1962:
Pursuant to provision 4 of the 1951 Act stated that a person is not a Polish citizen, even though
he/she had Polish citizenship on the 31 of August 1939, but he/she resides permanently outside Poland and:
- If due to the change of Polish borders he/she obtained foreign nationality in accordance with the international agreements, or
- If a person is of Russian, Belarussian, Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian nationality or
- If a person is of German nationality unless the spouse of such person has Polish citizenship and resides in Poland.
Special provisions for Polish citizens who immigrated to Israel from 1958 to 1984:
Pursuant provisions of Act of January 23 1958, Polish citizens lost their nationality if:
- They submitted an application for changing their Polish citizenship into Israeli
citizenship and were issued emigration travel documents to Israel
- Entered Israel to reside in the country and became Israeli citizens. Those persons
and their descendants can regain Polish nationality by applying for Polish
citizenship to the nearest Polish consulate.
____________________________________________________________
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Q: Is a Birth Certificate, Baptismal Certificate or school diploma proof of Polish citizenship?
A: NO. According to Polish law, place of birth, place of baptism or attending a Polish school does not prove Polish citizenship. The factor determining Polish citizenship is the citizenship of parents.
Q: Does a child born from Polish parents on the US territory and holding US citizenship, who never lived in Poland, hold Polish citizenship?
A: YES, because he/she is born from Polish parents.
Q: I am a Polish citizen. My spouse is a US citizen. Our children are born in the US and are US citizens. Are they also Polish citizens?
A: YES. Children born from couples of mixed nationality loose their Polish citizenship only by parents’ declaration made within three months from the child’s birth.
Q: I have surrendered my Polish passport to foreign authorities and declared to those authorities that I renounce of Polish citizenship. Have I lost my citizenship?
A: NO. A Polish citizen can only loose his/her citizenship if she/he submits to the President of Poland specific declaration and receives President’s declaration of renunciation.
Q: I have emigrated from Poland with my parents as a minor child, before WWII. Since then, I reside abroad. I do not have a Polish passport. Am I still a Polish citizen?
A: To receive answer to that question, you should submit an Application for Confirmation of Possession or Loss of Polish Citizenship to the nearest Polish Consulate.
Q: My grandparents immigrated to the US in the 1920s’, 1930’s. Am I entitled to Polish passport?
A: In order to determine your eligibility, you need to submit an Application for Confirmation of Possession or Loss of Polish Citizenship to the nearest Polish Consulate.
Q: I have sent my passport to the Polish Consulate and/or declared before a consul my wish to renounce Polish citizenship. Am I no longer a Polish citizen?
A: NO. A Polish citizen can only loose his/her citizenship if she/he submits to the President of Poland specific declaration and receives President’s declaration of renunciation.
____________________________________________________________
Still need help?
If you don't have a contact in Poland willing to help you, and you don't want to wait for the Polish consulate to waste your time, and you've got a bit of money to throw away, contact this lawyer, he can probably help you get it done. I've never used him personally, but did consider his services as a last resort:
http://www.staczek.com/
http://www.polishcitizenship.net/
http://www.polishcitizenship.pl/
Template for Power of Attorney
I tried to keep this as generic as possible to exclude my person information, and to allow you to insert your own information. Use these variables to fill out your specifics in the document.
VARIABLE1: Today's day verbose (ex: czternastego)
VARIABLE2: Today's month verbose (ex: grudnia)
VARIABLE3: Today's year verbose (ex: dwa tysiące siódmego)
VARIABLE4: The date in polish format (ex: 14.XII.2007r)
VARIABLE5: Full name of Notary (ex: John Smith)
VARIABLE6: County
VARIABLE7: State (ex: Alabama)
VARIABLE8: Your full name (ex: JAN KOWALSKI)
VARIABLE9: Your father's first name in possessive form (ex: Tadeusza)
VARIABLE10: Your mother's first name in possessive form (ex: Jadwigi)
VARIABLE11: Your mother's maiden name (ex: Misiaszek)
VARIABLE12: Country from where your current passport is from (ex: USA)
VARIABLE13: Passport Number (ex. XX999999)
VARIABLE14: Your full address of residence, including country.
VARIABLE15: Your birth date in Polish date format (ex: 22.VI.1950)
VARIABLE16: Your city of birth (ex: Nowy Jork)
VARIABLE17: Your country of birth (ex: USA)
VARIABLE18: The full name of the person who your are giving the power of attorney to (ex. John Doe)
VARIABLE19: The person's Polish national ID number (ie "dowód osobisty") (ex:
VARIABLE20: The person's PESEL number
VARIABLE21: The person's full address of residence in Poland
VARIABLE22: Your signature
VARIABLE23: The name of the state where you are at the time of signing
VARIABLE24: The name of the county where you are at the time of signing
VARIABLE25: The name of the country where you are at the time of signing
VARIABLE26: Today's day (ex: 14th)
VARIABLE27: Today's month (ex: December)
VARIABLE28: Today's year (ex: 2007)
VARIABLE29: Notary's signature and STAMP
_________________________________________TOP OF PAGE________________________________
AKT NOTARIALNY
Dnia VARIABLE1 VARIABLE2, VARIABLE3 roku (VARIABLE4) przed notariuszem VARIABLE5 w kancelarii notarialnej w VARIABLE6, VARIABLE7 stawił się:
VARIABLE8
Pan VARIABLE8, syn VARIABLE9 i VARIABLE10 z domu VARIABLE11, legitymujący sie paszportem VARIABLE12 nr. VARIABLE13, na stałe zamieszkały pod adresem VARIABLE14.
Tożsamość stawiającego się notariusz ustalił na podstawie paszportu VARIABLE12, którego numer wpisano obok nazwiska.
PEŁNOMOCNICTWO
Ja, niżej podpisany VARIABLE8, ur. VARIABLE15 w VARIABLE16, VARIABLE17, ninieszym upoważniam VARIABLE18, legitymujący się dowodem osobistym numer VARIABLE19, PESEL VARIABLE20, zamieszkał przy VARIABLE21 do wszelkich czynności w Urzędach Stanu Cywilnego łącznie ze składaniem wniosków wszelkiego rodzaju oraz do reprezentowania mnie i działania w moim imieniu na terenie Rzeczpospolitej Polski, oraz do reprezentowania mojej osoby oraz moich interesów przed wszelkimi osobami fizycznymi, prawnymi, instytucjami państwowymi, prywatnymi, spółdzielniami jakiegokolwiek rodzaju, biurami notarialnymi, urzędami celnymi, komunikacyjnymi i innymi, przed bankami, instytucjami finansowymi, sądami, ZUS-em, PZU i Pocztą Polską na terenie Rzeczpospolitej Polskioraz do występowania w mojej osoobie łączenie ze składaniem wszelkich oświadczeń, wniosków, dokumentów i podpisów jakie okażą się niezbędne do realizacji ninieszego pełnomocnictwa.
Koszty wynikające z tego aktu ponosi pełnomocnik. Wypisy tego Aktu można wydawać również pełnomocnikowi.
Akt ten został odczytany, przyjęty i podpisany.
Podpisali: VARIABLE8 i VARIABLE5
VARIABLE22
VARIABLE8
STAN VARIABLE23
POWIAT VARIABLE24
Niniejszym zaświadczam, że powyższe oświadczenie zostało sporządzone dnia VARIABLE1 VARIABLE2 VARIABLE3 roku w VARIABLE24, VARIABLE23, VARIABLE25 i podpisane przez VARIABLE8, którego tożsamość ustaliłem na podstawie paszportu VARIABLE12 nr. VARIABLE13.
STATE OF VARIABLE23
COUNTY OF VARIABLE24
The forgoing instrument was acknowledged before me this VARIABLE26 day of VARIABLE27, VARIABLE28, by VARIABLE8.
__Personally known OR _X_Produced Identification
Type of identifiacation producted VARIABLE12 nr. VARIABLE13
VARIABLE29
______________________________________END OF PAGE_____________________________________
To get a Polish Passport you can apply directly in Poland, or let a Polish consulate handle everything for you. If you do it at the consulate, it takes significantly longer, not to mention you need more documents and if there are any issues, you won’t have the opportunity to reply with additional supporting documentation. The down side of having someone in Poland do it for you is quite obvious....you need to know someone in Poland willing to go through the trouble to help you out.
____________________________________________________________
(1) Birth Certificates: Get 2 copies of long form originals of your birth certificate showing the name(s) of your Polish parents.
____________________________________________________________
(2) Marriage Certificates: If you are married, get 2 copies of your long form marriage certificate.
____________________________________________________________
(3) Passports: Get your current unexpired passport from all countries where you have citizenship.
____________________________________________________________
(3a) Military Enrollment: Get proof of any military enrollment, whether in Poland or abroad.
____________________________________________________________
(4) Parents' Birth Certificates: If your parent(s) were born in Poland, get their long form birth certificate(s) (i.e. “zupelny” NOT “skrucony”). If you don't have the long form you'll need to get it from the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego where they were born. If you apply at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw, they will forward the request to the appropriate wojewodstwo where each parent was born. (Note: If your parents were not born in Poland and your lineage is based on your grand-parents, then start over in step (1) and get your parent's foreign birth registered first, repeat if necessary for your grand-parents, depending on where your lineage links you back to Poland.) If your second parent was not born in Poland, their information is irrelevant, and you can skip this step for the non-Polish parent.
____________________________________________________________
(4a) Parents' Military Enrollment: Get proof of any military enrollment that your parents had, whether in Poland or abroad.
____________________________________________________________
(5) Parents' Marriage Certificate: If your parents were married in Poland get their Polish long form marriage certificate. (i.e. “zupelny” NOT “skrucony”) If you don't have the long form you'll need to get it from the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego where they were married. If you apply at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw, they will forward the request to the appropriate wojewodswto where your parents were married. (Note: If your parents were not married in Poland, then start over in step (1) and get their foreign marriage registered first, repeat if necessary for your grand-parents, depending on where your lineage links you back to Poland.) If they NEVER married, you can still proceed with out it. My instructions assume they did marry, and if so, the marriage certificate should be provided. You can prove your lineage by your father's birth certificate and yours showing his name on it. Really the marriage certificate is a single doc that links everybody together, so it just makes it easier for them, but they can do without it.
____________________________________________________________
(6) Parents' Polish Passports: Get your parent’s Polish passports (expired or not). If they never had a passport, or simply never left Poland, this step is optional. If they had passports, it helps if you provide them.
Obviously an expired or unexpired passport makes things simpler, since its recognized easily by the Polish authorities very quickly and easily. The other option is to get a document showing how your ancestor exited Poland, or a document that shows how he entered the next country. But if your ancestor never exited, his notarized statement will probably suffice to get the ball rolling, together with thier "Dowod Osobisty", and thier PESEL number (if they are still alive). It may just take the Polish authorities a little longer to corroborate his statement without any supporting documentation. If they can't find proof, then they may deny the case to claim citizenship. This is where a lawyer comes in handy, since he can find the proof for you by scouring the archives, instead of allowing yourself to be a the mercy of the authorities, and their possible ineptitude to prove this for you. Its not in the best interest of the authorities to prove this for you, so they may not go the extra mile to find the right information. Its best that you have the proof up front.
____________________________________________________________
(7) Parent's Immigration / Emigration Docs: Get your parent’s exit visa, or immigration travel voucher, or immigrant visa, or anything that shows how they exited Poland. Ideally this document should state that they are citizens of Poland. If they never left Poland, this step is optional of course.
____________________________________________________________
(8) Apostille / Legalization: If the country where (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4a), and (7) originated from has signed the Hague Convention, then all you need to do is get an apostille for each of the documents at the civil office in the country where the documents were issued, and get them translated by an official translator, or at the Polish consulate. If the country where (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4a) and (7) originated from has NOT signed the Hague Convention then you’ll need to get (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4a) and (7) legalized and translated by the Polish consulate in the country where the documents were issued. If you live in a different country now, these documents still need to be legalized in the Polish consulate where they originated, since only the Polish consulate in that country will be able to determine if they are authentic. Here is a list of countries that signed the Hague Convention:
http://travel.state.gov/abduction/resources/congressreport/congressreport_1487.html
I got my son's long-form US birth certificate and the apostille at the same time and got them both translated together. I think you need to ask your local authorities to issue the certificate and the apostille together, since one is proof that the other is authentic. Getting the apostille at a later date would probably defeat the purpose. I then got my long-form Canadian birth certificate legalized by the Polish consulate in Canada, since Canada did not sign the Hague Convention, they could not issue an apostille.
____________________________________________________________
(9) Name Change: If you're married, and your name is now different than it was at birth, you will need to register your marriage in Poland with the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw using (1), (2), (4), and the legalized translations you got in (8), so that your name is correct on the Polish birth certificate that you will get in step (10). They actually give you a birth certificate with your married name.
____________________________________________________________
(9a) Divorce: If you’re divorced, and your marriage is already registered in Poland, and you have reverted back to your maiden name, or if you performed a legal name change, you’ll have to get a legalized and translated copy of the certified copy of your divorce records or name change document issued by the government organization that granted the divorce or legal name change. You would send these records to the Polish court so that they can issue a decision on your civil status change. If you once lived in Poland, you need to send it to the court in the wojewodswto in your last place of residence. If you never lived in Poland, send it here:
Sądu Okręgowego w Warszawie
skrytka pocztowa 220
00-958 Warszawa.
____________________________________________________________
(10) Polish Birth Certificate: Register your birth in Poland at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego in Warsaw using (1), (2), (4), and the legalized translations you got in (8), and the Polish marriage certificate you got in (9) & (9a). Make sure you get the long form Polish Birth Certificate. They will give you three copies one of which you will need for step (11) below.
You need a Polish Birth certificate to get a Polish passport. It says so right on the New York Polish Consulate's website:
http://www.polishconsulateny.org/index.php?p=58
Paszport wydawany jest wyłącznie na podstawie polskich dokumentów stanu cywilnego. Oznacza to, że osoby posiadające akt urodzenia lub małżeństwa wydany przez urząd zagraniczny, np. amerykański, powinny umiejscowić te akty w polskim urzędzie stanu cywilnego, właściwym dla ostatniego miejsca zamieszkania lub w przypadku osób urodzonych za granicą, w USC Warszawa Śródmieście
TRANSLATION: [Passports are issued solely on the basis of Polish documents from the civil status office. This means, that persons who have an act of birth or marriage issued by a foreign organization, (for example American) should register these acts in the appropriate Polish civil status office of last residence, or, in the case of persons born outside of Poland, in the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego Warszawa-Śródmieście.]
As of August 2006, they changed the laws, so AFAIK if you do not currently have an unexpired Polish passport, you would need your Polish birth/marriage ceritificates, and also a proof of Polish citizenship document before applying for a passport and a PESEL number.
The easiest way of course is to apply at the Urzad Stanu Cywilnego (USC) in Warsaw, but if that is not an option then you can do this at the Polish consulate as well, although it will take longer.
If you can have someone do it in Warsaw for you, you would use this form to register your foreign birth certificate, (supported by the docs I already mentioned earlier):
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/dokument...isanie_zagranicznego_aktu_stanu_cywilnego.pdf
If its already registered, and you just need a copy, use this form:
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/dokumenty/ip/usc_wniosek_odpis_urodzenia.pdf
And here are some addresses and phone numbers:
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/informacja.asp?mn_id=279
Here is some info on the procedures (understandably I couldn't find an English version)
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/informacja.asp?mn_id=2416
If it is not registered, and you want to do it at the consulate instead then you would need to register your birth, and they would send your birth certificate to you. (WNIOSEK O UMIEJSCOWIENIE AKTU URODZENIA)
If you are an adult you need this form (WNIOSEK O UMIEJSCOWIENIE AKTU URODZENIA OSOBY DOROSŁEJ W POLSKIM USC)
http://www.polishconsulatechicago.org/forms/formsNR8.pdf
If you are under 18, you need this form (WNIOSEK O UMIEJSCOWIENIE AKTU URODZENIA W POLSKIM USC)
http://www.polishconsulatechicago.org/forms/formsNR9.pdf
If you've confirmed that it is registered, you just need to fill out a request at the consulate to get copies of the birth certificate from Poland. (WNIOSKI O WYDOBYCIE AKTU URODZENIA)
This is the form you would use for that:
http://www.polishconsulatechicago.org/forms/formsNR4.pdf
this is the address to do it in Poland:
00-281 Warszawa
ul. Jezuicka 1/3
tel. 0 22 504 52 06
faks 0 22 635 52 97
Phone number to call about registering foreign acts of birth and marriage:
tel. 0 22 504 52 49
or
01-627 Warszawa
ul. Słowackiego 6/8
faks 0 22 56 01 316
Phone number to call about registering foreign acts of birth and marriage: tel. 0 22 56 01 314
Here is the web page:
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/um_www/informacja.asp?mn_id=279
http://www.bip.warszawa.pl/um_www/informacja.asp?mn_id=644
____________________________________________________________
(11) Polish Citizenship: If you are under 18, AND one (1) of your parents has a valid Polish passport. you can use this passport as your proof of citizenship for the puposes of getting your first passport. Otherwise, if you are not in possession of a current, unexpired Polish Passport showing your current name, then apply for Proof of Polish Citizenship using (3), (3a), (4), (4a), (5), (6), (7) the legalized copies you got in (8), and also your long form Polish Birth Certificate you got in (10). You will also need to know the following information when filling out the application form, the same information will need to be provided in the zyciorys if you are applying at the consulate, instead of in person in Poland:
...(I) - Your Full Name
...(II) - Your Date of Birth
...(III) - Your Place of Birth
...(IV) - Parent’s names (this is where your parent’s birth certificates will come in handy to reduce any errors in spelling, or translations. This information will be a key piece in determining whether your parents are still Polish citizens, since their records will be searched for any hints of the citizenship having been renounced.)
...(V) - Mother’s maiden name
...(VI) - Your last address in Poland (if you ever lived in Poland)
...(VII) - List countries where you have a valid passport, and the dates those passports expire. Preferably provide a legalized & translated copy of the passports.
...(VIII) - Details on how you emigrated from Poland, if you ever lived in Poland (when, to which country, and using what type of documents or visas) If it was your parents who emigrated, then provide their info instead.
...(IX) - What other citizenships have you been granted? (dates, and explain how you qualified, and how it was obtained or granted)
...(X) - A statement confirming that you did or did not renounce your Polish citizenship
...(XII) - Which Polish consulate are you under the jurisdiction of at your current place of residence?
...(XIII) - Any other supporting factual evidence proving your Polish citizenship. This probably comes into play if you don’t have the other documents I listed above, and/or if your lineage to Poland starts with a grand parent or great-grand parent.
For more info on submitting the application in person go here:
http://www.mazowsze.uw.gov.pl/news.php?id=885
Here are the addresses:
http://www.mazowsze.uw.gov.pl/pdf.php?id=267
The cost for the proof of citizenship is as follows:
5 zł. for the application.
50 groszy to make a copy of each attached document / page.
50 zł. to process the application
The payment needs to be made using "Znaki opłaty skarbowej". These are stamps (not postage stamps) that get stuck on to the application to show that the processing fee was paid. The stamps need to be purchased prior to making the application.
Keep one important factor in mind. Polish law dictates that even if you were born in Poland, you don't necessarily have Polish citizenship, since you get Polish citizenship by proving that your parents have Polish citizenship.
The same goes for one's parents and grandparents and great-grandparents. They need to prove their parent's were citizens at time of their birth... Therefore even if your great-grand parents were considered to have been born in Poland, they are not necessarily Polish citizens, since their parents need to have had Polish citizenship.
Another important factor is the year when they were born. Since Polish citizenship law has changed several times over the last century, it’s possible that your acestors, who you are trying to link your Polish nationality to, may have lost their citizenship due to another factor, such as joining a foreign army.
The bottom line is in a case where your lineage starts at a grandparent or further back like a great-grandparent, you won't really know for sure unless you try and make the application, and let the Polish authorities investigate your lineage. They will also tell you what other supporting docs you will need to prove your great-grandparents citizenship, like possibly an exit/entry record, or something stating they are Polish citizens. You say you have another set of Polish great-grandparents, so if I were you I would try to get their docs to support your case as well. The other option of course is to hire a lawyer and let him do the research for you.
____________________________________________________________
(12) PESEL: If you do not have a PESEL number then attach (1), and (2 to the PESEL application, and apply for a PESEL number BEFORE you proceed to step (13).
In section VI of the PESEL application, they want to know the legal reason why you need a PESEL number. The legal reason is "Rozdział 7a Art. 31a ust. 3 pkt 4"
So, you can answer this question as follows:
"PESEL jest mi potrzeby aby otrzymać paszport zgodnie z Rozdział 7a Art. 31a ust. 3 pkt 4"
In english this means: "I need a PESEL number to get a passport in accordance with.... and the actual law number
____________________________________________________________
(13) Polish Passport: Apply for a Passport at the consulate using (9), (10), (11) (11 is not needed if you have an unexpired Polish passport or if you are under 18 and one of your parents has an unexpired passport), together with (12), a copy of a local ID card such as a driver’s license or document showing your address of residence (this is used to determine which consulate has jurisdiction over your area), and 3 Polish passport photos, which you cannot assume match the dimensions of your local country, so get the right dimensions from the consulate. Children under the age of 5, need not attach (9), (10), or (11) for their first passport, as an original, translated, Hague-apostilled or consulate-certified birth certificate from the country where they were born will suffice in addition to one of the parent’s unexpired Polish passports. However, the child will need (12) , and once the child is over 18 they will need (10), and should the passport expire, the child over 18 will also need (11) to get a new passport. If the parent does not have an unexpired passport, then (9), (10), (11) are needed for the child regardless. Both parents must sign the application for a child under 5 years of age. If both parents cannot sign the application then a notarized letter of consent from the second parent must be attached. All passport applications regardless of age of the applicant must be submitted in person at the Polish consulate. For some people this is a true inconvenience due to distance and time, or the age/health condition of the applicant (for example, I live 1600 kms away from my consulate). The consulate will probably only excuse people who are not physically able to make the trip and those people must write a letter explaining why they cannot appear in person, such as an extremely frail elderly person. Infants are not exempt from appearing in person, unless they have an extreme ailment that prohibits them from being in public.
You must do this in this order.
____________________________________________________________
Ether way you need to get (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4), (4a), (5), (6) , and (7) all done before you proceed.
You must use the originals of (1), (2). and (8), this is not an option. The Polish authorities will keep these originals.
You will need to do (8) at the Polish consulate in the country where (1), (2), (3) and (7) originated from, OR if you're just getting an apostille, then the civil office in the country where (1), (2), (3), and (7) originated from can give you that.
Then:
You can do (9), (9a), (10), (11), (12), and (13) at the Polish consulate where you live. In addition you would also need to attach the following information:
a) “życiorys”, or a resume signed and dated in which you would provide among other things:
...i) when and how your foreign citizenship(s) were granted
...ii) the citizenships your parents had upon your birth
...iii) whether both parents had Polish citizenship
...iv) whether either of your parents ever renounced their Polish citizenship
...v) when and how did your parents end up in their current country.
b) Naturalization act for all of you citizenships, if not acquired by birth.
c) Proof of legal residence or legal status in the country where you currently reside, if you are not a citizen of this country.
d) A statement explaining that nether you nor your parents ever renounced Polish citizenship.
e) A statement listing all foreign citizenships.
f) Two photos that match the Polish passport photo requirements.
g) Any other relevant documents produced by a Polish government office.
(a), (d), and (e) need to be in Polish and signed before a consular officer.
(f) needs to be signed before a consular officer.
(b), and (c) need to be translated and legalized by the Polish consulate, or translated with an apostille, where appropriate.
This path would take about 18-24 months, maybe longer, not to mention that the list of information is much longer than the next option.
Or.................................................................................................
If you know someone in Warsaw, you can go to the Polish consulate and get a power of attorney for use in Poland, and also get (8) done at the same time. Your contact in Warsaw can use all the docs (1), (2), (3), (3a), (4), (4a), (5), (6), (7), (8), and the Polish power of attorney to get you (9), (10) and (11). All this would take about 2 months for your contact in Warsaw to obtain. Then once you get these back from the person in Warsaw, using (9), (10) and (11) the Polish consulate that has jurisdiction over your area could then help you get (12) and (13) at the same time, which could take about 6 months to get.
Tip: Although the Polish authorities will return all originals except (1), (2), and (8), things have a tendency of getting lost (i.e. stolen) in the mail in Poland, so you may not feel comfortable including originals if you don't need to. If you don't want to use the originals from (3), and (7), then you can go to the Polish consulate in the country where each of these were issued, and get legalized copies. If you don't want to send the originals for (4), (5), and (6) then you can go to the Polish consulate where you live, and just get legalized copies of each.
The bottom line is if you know someone in Poland, this path is a LOT faster than going to the Polish consulate for everything. It would take about a year.
____________________________________________________________
Here is a link to the Polish citizenship act right from the Sejm (in Polish of course):
http://isip.sejm.gov.pl/servlet/Search?todo=file&id=WDU19620100049&type=3&name=D19620049Lj.pdf
(...) Dual Citizenship:
Polish law does not recognize dual citizenship of its citizens. While Polish law does not forbid Polish citizen from becoming the citizen of a foreign state by birth or naturalization, Polish authorities shall recognize that national as a Polish citizen only.
Citizenship laws fall under the responsability of the Minister of Interior Issues and Administration (Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji). The Parliment (i.e. the Sejm) is the one who makes the laws.
Unfortunately the Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji website only has laws since 1998, probably since the organization was only created after communism fell. The Sejm on the other hand lists the laws since 1918, but they only have the more recent ones scanned in for viewing online. You could probably try to email them and request a copy of these laws.
The main citizenship law from 1920 is: Dz.U. 1920 nr 7 poz. 44
There were many ammendments to this law, even as recently as 1938. Here are all the amendments:
Dz.U. 1920 nr 52 poz. 320
Dz.U. 1920 nr 57 poz. 358
Dz.U. 1920 nr 92 poz. 615
Dz.U. 1921 nr 39 poz. 246
Dz.U. 1921 nr 59 poz. 375
Dz.U. 1923 nr 51 poz. 361
Dz.U. 1923 nr 53 poz. 374
Dz.U. 1924 nr 22 poz. 240
Dz.U. 1925 nr 17 poz. 118
Dz.U. 1926 nr 93 poz. 545
Dz.U. 1928 nr 95 poz. 843
Dz.U. 1938 nr 16 poz. 114
The main page to the Sejm webiste is here:
http://www.sejm.gov.pl/
You can use thier search tool to see the law titles, and if there is a PDF, you can view the document in the results:
http://isip.sejm.gov.pl/prawo/index.html
____________________________________________________________
LEGAL REGULATION
The Statute on Polish Citizenship, of 15 February 1962 with later amendments (final text of statute, Dziennik Ustaw — Journal of Laws of the Republic of Poland, No. 28, item 353, 2000)
ELIGIBILITY TO ACQUIRE POLISH CITIZENSHIP
By descent from parents, where at least one of them is a Polish citizen/Ius Sanguinis
A child acquires Polish citizenship by birth when:
1. Both parents are Polish citizens, or
2. One of the parents is a Polish citizen, whereas the other is of unknown or undefined citizenship or does not possess any citizenship … (Art. 4)
A child of parents of which one is a Polish citizen, while the other is a citizen of another state, acquires Polish citizenship by birth. However the parents may, in a declaration made in conformity before the proper authority within the course of three months from the day of the birth of the child, choose for the child the citizenship of the foreign state of which one of the parents is a citizen, if according to the law of that state the child acquires its citizenship.
In the case when the parents are not in agreement on this matter, each of them may apply to a court for a resolution within the course of three months from the day of the birth of the child.
The proper authority outside of Poland for receiving declarations concerning citizenship is a consul of the Republic of Poland. (Art. 6)
By birth on the Polish territory
A child who was born or found within the territory of the Republic of Poland acquires citizenship when both parents are unknown, whose citizenship cannot be established, or who are stateless (Art.5)
By declaring a stateless person as a Polish citizen
A stateless person can be declared Polish if:
- The applicant resides in Poland for at least five consecutive years
- The stateless person applies to the Woyewoda of her/his place of residence in Poland.
Acquisition of Polish citizenship can be extended to applicant’s children if they reside in Poland. Each child over sixteen years of age needs to agree to the acquisition of Polish citizenship (Art.9)
By marriage with a Polish citizen for aliens residing in Poland
An alien can acquire Polish citizenship, if she/he:
- Is married for at least three years to a Polish citizen, and
- Obtained a residence permit
Applicant needs to apply to the Woyewoda of her/his place of residence in Poland and declare intention of becoming a Polish citizen. Application needs to take place within 6 months from obtaining the residence permit. (Art. 10)
By regaining the citizenship lost in childhood by Parents declaration
By affidavit executed before proper Polish authorities within 3 months after the birth of the child, parents can choose foreign citizenship for the child if the laws of the foreign country grant the child citizenship based on descent from the foreign parent. Such child looses Polish citizenship by parents’ declaration.
She/he can however regain Polish citizenship if he/she executes an affidavit expressing the will of becoming the citizen before proper Polish authorities after turning 16, but before 6 months to the legal age.
By regaining Polish citizenship lost pursuing marriage to a foreign citizen
Polish citizen who lost Polish citizenship by marrying a foreign citizen can regain his/her citizenship if the aforementioned marriage no longer exists. Such person needs to apply to the Woyewoda of her/his place of residence in Poland, or to a Polish consul if residing abroad.
By naturalization by the President of the Republic of Poland
A foreigner may be granted Polish citizenship at his or her request, if
- He or she is residing in Poland for at least five years on the basis of a permanent residence permit;
- In particularly justified cases a foreigner may be granted Polish citizenship at his or her request, even though he or she does not meet the conditions defined above.
The granting of Polish citizenship may be dependent on a submission of proof of the loss of or dispensation from a foreign citizenship.
The granting of Polish citizenship to both parents extends to the children remaining under their parental authority. (Art. 8)
Note:
For citizens who emigrated from Poland before 1962, the above-mentioned eligibility criteria do not apply.
INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS WHO EMIGRATED FROM POLAND BEFORE 1962 AND THEIR DESCENDANTS:
Under Polish law there were in force, in the corresponding periods: the statute on citizenship of the Polish State of the January 20, 1920 and the statute on Polish citizenship of January 8, 1951. The provisions of Polish law that were in force at the time of the occurrence of events significant to the case in hand are applicable in the resolution of questions of Polish citizenship (significant events taken into account are usually the date of departure from Poland and/or the date of acquisition of foreign citizenship)
Provisions applicable from 1918 until 1951:
The provision 11 of the Act dated 1920 stated that a Polish citizen looses his/her Polish nationality:
- When a person obtains foreign citizenship, or
- When a person accepts public office or joins the army in a foreign country without prior approval of the Polish Government. Persons compelled to active military service may acquire foreign nationality after obtaining permission from the Minister of Military Affairs, otherwise they are deemed to be Polish citizens.
Provisions applicable from 1951 to 1962:
Pursuant to provision 4 of the 1951 Act stated that a person is not a Polish citizen, even though
he/she had Polish citizenship on the 31 of August 1939, but he/she resides permanently outside Poland and:
- If due to the change of Polish borders he/she obtained foreign nationality in accordance with the international agreements, or
- If a person is of Russian, Belarussian, Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian nationality or
- If a person is of German nationality unless the spouse of such person has Polish citizenship and resides in Poland.
Special provisions for Polish citizens who immigrated to Israel from 1958 to 1984:
Pursuant provisions of Act of January 23 1958, Polish citizens lost their nationality if:
- They submitted an application for changing their Polish citizenship into Israeli
citizenship and were issued emigration travel documents to Israel
- Entered Israel to reside in the country and became Israeli citizens. Those persons
and their descendants can regain Polish nationality by applying for Polish
citizenship to the nearest Polish consulate.
____________________________________________________________
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Q: Is a Birth Certificate, Baptismal Certificate or school diploma proof of Polish citizenship?
A: NO. According to Polish law, place of birth, place of baptism or attending a Polish school does not prove Polish citizenship. The factor determining Polish citizenship is the citizenship of parents.
Q: Does a child born from Polish parents on the US territory and holding US citizenship, who never lived in Poland, hold Polish citizenship?
A: YES, because he/she is born from Polish parents.
Q: I am a Polish citizen. My spouse is a US citizen. Our children are born in the US and are US citizens. Are they also Polish citizens?
A: YES. Children born from couples of mixed nationality loose their Polish citizenship only by parents’ declaration made within three months from the child’s birth.
Q: I have surrendered my Polish passport to foreign authorities and declared to those authorities that I renounce of Polish citizenship. Have I lost my citizenship?
A: NO. A Polish citizen can only loose his/her citizenship if she/he submits to the President of Poland specific declaration and receives President’s declaration of renunciation.
Q: I have emigrated from Poland with my parents as a minor child, before WWII. Since then, I reside abroad. I do not have a Polish passport. Am I still a Polish citizen?
A: To receive answer to that question, you should submit an Application for Confirmation of Possession or Loss of Polish Citizenship to the nearest Polish Consulate.
Q: My grandparents immigrated to the US in the 1920s’, 1930’s. Am I entitled to Polish passport?
A: In order to determine your eligibility, you need to submit an Application for Confirmation of Possession or Loss of Polish Citizenship to the nearest Polish Consulate.
Q: I have sent my passport to the Polish Consulate and/or declared before a consul my wish to renounce Polish citizenship. Am I no longer a Polish citizen?
A: NO. A Polish citizen can only loose his/her citizenship if she/he submits to the President of Poland specific declaration and receives President’s declaration of renunciation.
____________________________________________________________
Still need help?
If you don't have a contact in Poland willing to help you, and you don't want to wait for the Polish consulate to waste your time, and you've got a bit of money to throw away, contact this lawyer, he can probably help you get it done. I've never used him personally, but did consider his services as a last resort:
http://www.staczek.com/
http://www.polishcitizenship.net/
http://www.polishcitizenship.pl/
Template for Power of Attorney
I tried to keep this as generic as possible to exclude my person information, and to allow you to insert your own information. Use these variables to fill out your specifics in the document.
VARIABLE1: Today's day verbose (ex: czternastego)
VARIABLE2: Today's month verbose (ex: grudnia)
VARIABLE3: Today's year verbose (ex: dwa tysiące siódmego)
VARIABLE4: The date in polish format (ex: 14.XII.2007r)
VARIABLE5: Full name of Notary (ex: John Smith)
VARIABLE6: County
VARIABLE7: State (ex: Alabama)
VARIABLE8: Your full name (ex: JAN KOWALSKI)
VARIABLE9: Your father's first name in possessive form (ex: Tadeusza)
VARIABLE10: Your mother's first name in possessive form (ex: Jadwigi)
VARIABLE11: Your mother's maiden name (ex: Misiaszek)
VARIABLE12: Country from where your current passport is from (ex: USA)
VARIABLE13: Passport Number (ex. XX999999)
VARIABLE14: Your full address of residence, including country.
VARIABLE15: Your birth date in Polish date format (ex: 22.VI.1950)
VARIABLE16: Your city of birth (ex: Nowy Jork)
VARIABLE17: Your country of birth (ex: USA)
VARIABLE18: The full name of the person who your are giving the power of attorney to (ex. John Doe)
VARIABLE19: The person's Polish national ID number (ie "dowód osobisty") (ex:
VARIABLE20: The person's PESEL number
VARIABLE21: The person's full address of residence in Poland
VARIABLE22: Your signature
VARIABLE23: The name of the state where you are at the time of signing
VARIABLE24: The name of the county where you are at the time of signing
VARIABLE25: The name of the country where you are at the time of signing
VARIABLE26: Today's day (ex: 14th)
VARIABLE27: Today's month (ex: December)
VARIABLE28: Today's year (ex: 2007)
VARIABLE29: Notary's signature and STAMP
_________________________________________TOP OF PAGE________________________________
AKT NOTARIALNY
Dnia VARIABLE1 VARIABLE2, VARIABLE3 roku (VARIABLE4) przed notariuszem VARIABLE5 w kancelarii notarialnej w VARIABLE6, VARIABLE7 stawił się:
VARIABLE8
Pan VARIABLE8, syn VARIABLE9 i VARIABLE10 z domu VARIABLE11, legitymujący sie paszportem VARIABLE12 nr. VARIABLE13, na stałe zamieszkały pod adresem VARIABLE14.
Tożsamość stawiającego się notariusz ustalił na podstawie paszportu VARIABLE12, którego numer wpisano obok nazwiska.
PEŁNOMOCNICTWO
Ja, niżej podpisany VARIABLE8, ur. VARIABLE15 w VARIABLE16, VARIABLE17, ninieszym upoważniam VARIABLE18, legitymujący się dowodem osobistym numer VARIABLE19, PESEL VARIABLE20, zamieszkał przy VARIABLE21 do wszelkich czynności w Urzędach Stanu Cywilnego łącznie ze składaniem wniosków wszelkiego rodzaju oraz do reprezentowania mnie i działania w moim imieniu na terenie Rzeczpospolitej Polski, oraz do reprezentowania mojej osoby oraz moich interesów przed wszelkimi osobami fizycznymi, prawnymi, instytucjami państwowymi, prywatnymi, spółdzielniami jakiegokolwiek rodzaju, biurami notarialnymi, urzędami celnymi, komunikacyjnymi i innymi, przed bankami, instytucjami finansowymi, sądami, ZUS-em, PZU i Pocztą Polską na terenie Rzeczpospolitej Polskioraz do występowania w mojej osoobie łączenie ze składaniem wszelkich oświadczeń, wniosków, dokumentów i podpisów jakie okażą się niezbędne do realizacji ninieszego pełnomocnictwa.
Koszty wynikające z tego aktu ponosi pełnomocnik. Wypisy tego Aktu można wydawać również pełnomocnikowi.
Akt ten został odczytany, przyjęty i podpisany.
Podpisali: VARIABLE8 i VARIABLE5
VARIABLE22
VARIABLE8
STAN VARIABLE23
POWIAT VARIABLE24
Niniejszym zaświadczam, że powyższe oświadczenie zostało sporządzone dnia VARIABLE1 VARIABLE2 VARIABLE3 roku w VARIABLE24, VARIABLE23, VARIABLE25 i podpisane przez VARIABLE8, którego tożsamość ustaliłem na podstawie paszportu VARIABLE12 nr. VARIABLE13.
STATE OF VARIABLE23
COUNTY OF VARIABLE24
The forgoing instrument was acknowledged before me this VARIABLE26 day of VARIABLE27, VARIABLE28, by VARIABLE8.
__Personally known OR _X_Produced Identification
Type of identifiacation producted VARIABLE12 nr. VARIABLE13
VARIABLE29
______________________________________END OF PAGE_____________________________________
Last edited by a moderator: