Research towards Polish Citizenship
01
I have no documents that prove that my grandparents were Polish. Is there anything I can do about it?
If you have at least basic information about your grandparents, we will be able to first conduct research for documents confirming their and your Polish citizenship. On your behalf, after you provide us with signed letters of authority, we will initiate research at the relevant archive and Registry Office. When we are sure the documents we have found will provide you with a positive outcome, we will inform you and then we can proceed with Polish citizenship confirmation. We have Polish Citizenship Experts with more than 10 years of working experience in the area of Polish citizenship. You can be sure we will do our best to address correct institutions and archives to retrieve required records.
02
Is it possible to sign up for research only, in case I do not have any documents confirming my Polish citizenship?
Yes, you can go ahead with the research part first, without signing up for Polish citizenship confirmation. If after talking to you and assessing your case, we decide we need to look for records confirming your Polish ancestry, we recommend proceeding with research-oriented towards Polish citizenship confirmation. We do not want to expose you to any additional costs if we are not sure that your Polish citizenship application will end successfully with the Polish Government. We will offer you confirmation of your Polish citizenship if the search for documents confirming the Polish citizenship of your ancestors is successful and we locate enough evidence to support it.
03
My grandparents lived in a territory which now does not belong to Poland but used to be Poland or Polish territory e.g., Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania. Is it possible to find their documents so that I can confirm my Polish citizenship?
Such research is more difficult and lengthier, but absolutely possible! We cooperate with specialists, who locate Polish documents and documents confirming Polish citizenship in archives in Ukraine, Belarus, or Lithuania concerning Polish citizens. Besides, a lot of archival books from that area were transferred to Poland. Before we offer you a search in the eastern part of Europe we will check the availability of these archival books in Poland as there is a chance we can locate them ourselves without involving researchers from the eastern regions. We will analyze the information you have and advice on the next steps that are necessary to locate evidence and records confirming your Polish citizenship.
04
I am not sure if my grandparents were Polish. If I look at the map, the village where they lived is now part of Ukraine. Does it mean they were Ukrainians? It's possible that they were Ukrainians or Polish.
The fact that their village is now in Ukraine does not mean that they were Ukrainians. If you heard that your grandparents were Polish, then probably their village belonged to Poland before the war. After the war when the borders shifted, it became part of Ukraine. If they left their village before the border change, then your grandparents most likely retained their Polish citizenship. We will verify it during research and assessment. We are dealing with many similar cases. We know it is possible to prove that your ancestors held Polish citizenship, and therefore that you also have Polish citizenship by descent.
05
Two of my cousins and I want to confirm our Polish citizenship. Do we need to do separate research?
If we can confirm your Polish citizenship after one common Polish ancestor/common Polish relative, then no. If for example, you have one grandfather who is or was a Polish citizen, then we only conduct one research that will apply to all of you. One research is enough, and we can use documents from one research for several applications for Polish citizenship confirmation. Therefore, all it takes is for one family member to sign up for research for the Polish documents of your common ancestors. You can split the cost of research for Polish documents between all applicants. However, each of you will need to go through a separate Polish citizenship confirmation process to obtain a decision confirming Polish citizenship. However, if more of your family members are interested in Polish citizenship confirmation, we will be able to offer you a family discount.
06
Research for documents confirming Polish citizenship and how is it different from genealogical research?
Very often we get the question: “Why the fact that my grandfather or great-grandfather was born in Poland is not enough to confirm my Polish citizenship? After all, I have his naturalization certificate, which states that he was a Pole?”
Well, the process of confirmation of Polish citizenship by descent is strictly regulated by law: not one, but four laws concerning Polish citizenship in force since 1920, and the procedural law that specifies formal requirements for the evidence to be presented.
The fact of being born in Poland is, of course, already a great starting point for all our future actions, but since the „ius soli” is not and never has been in full force in Poland, it does not determine whether one is a Polish citizen.
Therefore, while conducting research for documents proving your ancestor’s Polish citizenship, we focus on specific archival sources, often tracing even a hint of your ancestors’ civic rights. Naturally, this search will focus primarily on materials created after the re-establishment of Polish statehood in 1920.
And here is the obvious difference in how research-oriented towards confirming someone’s Polish citizenship differs from genealogical research.
07
I am interested in finding out more about my family ancestry. Is that something you can help me with? Do you offer Polish genealogy research?
Yes, we also conduct genealogy research in Poland. If you are interested in finding out more about your Polish ancestors, contact us for details. Depending on how backward in time you would like to go, or what kind of information is of interest to you, we will be able to conduct research for you in Poland, or we will put you in touch with a company we cooperate with that specialize in Polish genealogy research. If you are interested in a tour, and visiting places your Polish ancestors and family were from, please do let us know.
08
Why do you need to search for additional documents of my family in Poland, if you say I am eligible for confirmation of Polish Citizenship? Isn't the fact that I meet all the conditions enough?
We realize that while analyzing whether you are eligible for confirmation of Polish citizenship by descent, we ask several questions and request any documents you have. We confirm your eligibility based on the information we receive from you, however in case of lack of documents, we need to locate them to formally prove it.
The Polish Citizenship Act currently in effect states that Polish citizens are those who have acquired citizenship and have not lost it under previous laws. This means that even though formally the three previous Polish Citizenship Acts (of 1920, 1951 and 1962) are no longer in force, events that occurred while they were in force must be legally classified in accordance with their provisions.
What do we do to establish one’s eligibility? We check ancestor birth and marriage certificates, naturalization certificates, and other documents for dates of registration, name changes, declared and shown nationality, and any other aspects that are relevant to confirm eligibility.
All these documents are required in the procedure for confirmation of Polish citizenship and the Polish office examines the same evidence and information that we do.
There is still the question of proving, by means of relevant documents, that the Polish ancestor from whom we derive citizenship – the person who emigrated from Poland – held Polish citizenship.
Depending on the date of emigration: if it took place before the Second World War or several years after it, you may have sufficient proof of the citizenship of your ancestors in your own drawer or in a box in the attic. If you do not have it, or your ancestors emigrated because of warfare, it is necessary to search for evidence of your ancestor’s Polish citizenship! And this is something we specialize in. We know what’s needed and where to find it!
09
Is research towards Polish citizenship guaranteed? Can you guarantee you will find documents required to support my Polish citizenship application?
The success of research depends on how much information you have about your family members, their full names, date and place of births, addresses or towns they lived in. Our initial assessment and preliminary research online allow us to assess the chances of success. Some archives and records were heavily destroyed during the war. Some documents were moved from one place to another. While we commit to do our best to source the documents in Poland required to support your citizenship claim, we still cannot guarantee the records will be located until we send formal research requests and receive research responses.
In case you don’t have any documents, we base our research actions on the information from you. It is worth mentioning that people in the past were changing their names, date and place of births to escaper, save their lives so in some cases research can be tricky.
Speak to our consultants about Your Polish Citizenship.
Live in Europe with no limits.
- Send us a query
Fill in a simple contact form with your and your family details and we will get back to you to book a FREE consultation.
- We guide and advise
We will help you pick the best strategy and manage your application on your behalf. You will be informed about every step in the process. You do not need to speak Polish. You do not need to travel to Poland.
- Enjoy Polish passport
Once you are a confirmed Polish citizen, you can apply for your Polish passport on your own! Do that at the nearest Polish Consulate General or Polish Embassy with Consular services, we’ll show you how.