Recognition as a Polish citizen – how to quickly obtain Polish citizenship

More and more people want to obtain Polish citizenship. Why? How to quickly get recognized as a Polish citizen? Polish citizenship allows you to legally work within the European Union, move freely in the Schengen area, or purchase real estate in European Union countries. The greatest interest in granting Polish citizenship is among Ukrainian citizens, but also British citizens in connection with Brexit. Polish law allows you to be a citizen of Poland and another country.

Polish citizenship for a foreigner – recognition as a Polish citizen

How you can obtain Polish citizenship is regulated by the Act on Polish Citizenship. There are several ways to acquire Polish citizenship:

• by the power of law;
• by granting Polish citizenship;
• by being recognized as a Polish citizen;
• by restoring Polish citizenship.

Each of these ways of obtaining Polish citizenship concerns a different group of people and differs in formal requirements. The speed of proceedings also varies depending on the legal basis.

Acquisition of Polish citizenship by operation of law, i.e. the fast track

It is the fastest and least complicated way to obtain Polish citizenship. In this way, you can become a Polish citizen if:

you were born in Poland and your parents are unknown or do not have any citizenship or their citizenship is undefined

or

at least one parent is a Polish citizen

The latter method of acquiring Polish citizenship is called the so-called blood principle. This is currently the most common and fastest way to become a Polish citizen.

The procedure for confirming Polish citizenship is formalized and takes place in accordance with the provisions of administrative law. In these proceedings, it must be demonstrated that the parent had Polish citizenship at the time of birth of the person applying for Polish citizenship.

In this article, we will focus on the acquisition of Polish citizenship by a parent who had Polish citizenship.

Application for acquisition of Polish citizenship

The application for the recognition of Polish citizenship is submitted to the competent voivode or the Consulate of the Republic of Poland. There is no binding official application form. This means that the application for confirmation of Polish citizenship should meet all the formal requirements set out in the provisions of administrative procedure.

Application for confirmation of Polish citizenship – requirements

An application for confirmation of Polish citizenship should contain the following elements:

name and surname of the applicant, indication of the request for the application, including the name and surname of the person to whom the application relates, signature.

In addition to your name and surname, you should provide your maiden name, date and place of birth, father’s name and maiden name, mother’s name and maiden name, sex, citizenship, marital status and PESEL number, if any.

Additional requirements of the application for confirmation of Polish citizenship include providing the data of the grandparents and information on significant circumstances necessary to determine the factual and legal status.

When submitting the application, you must attach documents confirming the data and information contained in the application.

What documents to attach to the application for confirmation of Polish citizenship

In the application for confirmation of Polish citizenship, you must prove that at least one of your parents had Polish citizenship at the time of your birth.

It should also be noted that there were no events that resulted in the loss of Polish citizenship.

This duty rests on you, no Polish authority will do the search in your name for the necessary documents confirming your parent’s Polish citizenship.

The desired documents are polish birth certificates of parents and grandparents, documents with an annotation of Polish nationality, copies from church books.

Where to find ancestral documents

If you lack documents confirming the Polish citizenship of your ancestors, you can try to find them in many archival collections. It is best to hire an attorney for this.

A citizenship lawyer can be very helpful by finding the necessary documents in, for example, church books, the Central Military Archives, the State Archives, or books of permanent population. In special cases, foreign archives should be consulted. A law firm with experience in cases of granting Polsih citizenship has much greater possibilities of finding documents.

Loss of Polish nationality through military service in a foreign army

If your parent performed military service in foreign countries until January 19, 1951. it should be considered that he has lost Polish citizenship. This does not include enlisting in a foreign military during World War II.

This is especially true for people whose parents immigrated to Israel before 1951. Since there is an obligation to perform compulsory military service in Israel, this may mean that the parent has lost Polish citizenship. Thus, the child cannot obtain Polish citizenship in the above manner.

Citizenship of another country and the possibility of obtaining Polish citizenship

Pursuant to the Act on Polish Citizenship, a Polish citizen who is also a citizen of another country has the same rights and obligations towards the Republic of Poland as a person who has only Polish citizenship.

This means that if you are a citizen of Great Britain, Ukraine or another country, and you meet the requirements to confirm your Polish citizenship, there are no obstacles to obtaining such Polish citizenship.

Therefore, you can be a citizen of Poland and another country at the same time. You can be a citizen of two countries or even more.

Law Office for foreigners – it is worth using the help of a specialist in citizenship matters

There are several ways to obtain Polish citizenship. A good lawyer for foreigners should explain to you all possible ways to obtain Polish citizenship. A citizenship lawyer will not only indicate the appropriate procedure, but will also help you collect the necessary documents to obtain Polish citizenship.

Acting without a immigration lawyer, you may lose the possibility of obtaining Polish citizenship.

Are you looking for a immigration lawyer who will help you in the entire process of obtaining Polish citizenship and a Polish passport? Feel free to contactour Law Firm! We will effectively handle your case for recognition of a Polish citizen.