Citizenship requirements
Citizenship requirements and procedure
Applications for the confirmation of Polish citizenship are lodged with the relevant local Voivode. As part of the process of confirmation of Polish citizenship, the applicants must show their ancestors were Polish citizens and that no event took place in the lives of the applicants or their ancestors indicating loss of citizenship. In the past, Polish citizenship regulations were more restrictive. In Poland, after independence was regained, under the 1920 Act on Citizenship of the State of Poland, Polish citizenship could be lost in some circumstances.
The current regulations applicable in Poland, commencing with the 1951 Act, allow explicitly for dual citizenship. Polish citizenship is acquired through one’s parents – this is regulated by the so-called law of blood (ius sanguinis).
A child born in any country to a Polish parent, in most cases, will have inherited Polish citizenship. For this reason, it is possible for Polish citizenship to be “passed down” through many generations. Therefore, you could be eligible for Polish citizenship even if neither of your parents holds a Polish passport.
Every document can be a hint, indicator or source of information. Often, applicants don’t even realise that the documents confirming their parents’ or grandparents’ Polish citizenship are already in their possession because the documents do not contain explicit notes on Polish citizenship. However, other details can indicate indirectly that a person was a Polish citizen. Sometimes, documentation and information on other family members, for example, documents of siblings of the grandparents, prove to be very useful.
We will tell you straight away if the documents in your possession are sufficient to start the process of confirming Polish citizenship. If they are not sufficient, we can initiate a search for your family documents in Polish archives.