Guides to legal matters in Poland for people in the United States

My parent died and left property in Poland. Which deadlines do I have?

Free calculator: enter the date of death and see your Polish deadlines to accept or reject the inheritance, file SD-Z2 and update the land register.

An inheritance in Poland while you live abroad

Polish inheritance proceedings when you live in the U.S.: two routes to confirming your rights, the documents needed, and the deadlines that matter.

Reserved share claims under Polish law

Zachowek: a claim Polish law gives close family left out of a will. Who is entitled, how it is calculated, and the time limits that apply.

Can you inherit debts along with a house in Poland?

How Polish law caps an heir’s liability for estate debts, what can cancel that protection, and when rejecting an inheritance from the U.S. makes sense.

Do you owe Polish inheritance tax if you live in the United States?

Who pays Polish inheritance tax on property in Poland, the six-month filing that keeps close family exempt, and when selling an inherited house is taxed.

Is a will signed in the United States valid for property in Poland?

When a will made in the U.S. is valid in Poland, which country's inheritance law governs the estate, and how a Polish citizen can choose Polish law in a will.

Can a U.S. probate court divide a house in Poland?

Why a U.S. probate order does not transfer a house in Poland, which Polish court handles the estate, and how heirs in the U.S. carry out their agreement.

How do you reject a Polish inheritance for your child?

How a parent in the U.S. rejects a Polish inheritance for a child: when court permission is needed, what stops the six-month clock, and how to sign.

How do I find and withdraw money from my late parent's bank account in Poland?

How heirs in the U.S. find a late parent's accounts in Poland, what the bank needs before it pays, and what it can pay out without going to court.

Property in Poland

When can I sell an inherited house in Poland without paying tax?

Free calculator: enter the year your parent acquired the house and see the first day you can sell it in Poland without Polish income tax.

The land and mortgage register

The four sections of the register, where to check ownership and encumbrances, and what the public faith of the register means.

Do Americans need a permit to own property in Poland?

When an American needs a Polish permit to buy or inherit real estate, why family heirs and apartment buyers are usually exempt, and where the exemptions end.

How do I sell an inherited house in Poland without flying there?

How to sell an inherited house in Poland from the U.S.: confirming the inheritance, the land register, co-heirs, power of attorney, tax and the transfer.

Documents, citizenship, and official matters

Has the voivode run out of time on my Polish citizenship application?

Free calculator: enter the date your citizenship application reached the voivode and see when the six months end and when a ponaglenie can be filed.

What documents do you need to confirm Polish citizenship?

Which records a Polish citizenship case needs, who may obtain them, where prewar records are kept, and what the statute says when one cannot be found.

Confirming Polish citizenship by descent

Confirming Polish citizenship by descent from the U.S.: who qualifies, which documents, the PLN 277 fee in force since August 2025, the $118 consular fee.

Did your ancestor lose Polish citizenship by becoming an American?

Why the year of a grandparent's U.S. naturalization decides whether Polish citizenship passed down, and how military service changed the answer before 1951.

How do you get a Polish passport while living in the United States?

Applying for a Polish passport at a U.S. consulate: what must be in place first, the in-person visit, fees in dollars, children, and entering Poland.

When is Polish citizenship restored rather than confirmed?

Who can have Polish citizenship restored, who is excluded, what the application contains, the USD 59 consular fee and when citizenship comes back.

When is Polish citizenship granted by the President?

When the President grants Polish citizenship, what the application must contain, the USD 529 consular fee, and why there is no deadline and no appeal.

Which Polish citizenship law applies to your ancestor?

Which Polish citizenship statute applies to each generation: how citizenship passed to a child and how it was lost under the 1920, 1951, 1962 and 2009 Acts.

How do you sign a power of attorney in the U.S. for a matter in Poland?

How to sign a power of attorney in the United States for a matter in Poland: notary, apostille, sworn translation, and when a notarial deed is needed.

Does Polish citizenship mean military service for an American?

No, while your home is in the U.S.: dual citizens living abroad are exempt from Polish defense duties. What changes if you move to Poland, and U.S. service.

My Polish citizenship application is taking forever. What can I do?

The voivode has six months to confirm Polish citizenship. If that time passes, you can file a formal complaint and then go to the administrative court.

My Polish citizenship confirmation was denied. Can I appeal?

You can appeal a refusal to confirm Polish citizenship within 14 days. How the appeal works, how mail to the U.S. can cost the deadline, and what comes next.

Can I prove Polish citizenship if my ancestor's records were destroyed?

If your ancestor's Polish records were lost in the war, other evidence can count. Which Polish and U.S. documents help, and how lost records are rebuilt.

My ancestor's name is spelled differently on every document. Is that a problem?

Wiśniewski in Poland, Wisniewski at Ellis Island, Wishnefsky on the naturalization papers. When the difference matters and how to fix it under Polish law.

Family matters and matters involving children

What a Polish divorce judgment decides

The ground for divorce, and why the court rules in the same judgment on parental authority, contact and the costs of a child’s upbringing.

Is an American divorce valid in Poland?

When a U.S. divorce takes effect in Poland without a new case, how it enters the Polish records, older decrees, your former surname, and Polish property.

Recovering claims and pursuing debtors in Poland

Limitation periods in Poland

Six years or three, when exactly the period ends, what interrupts it, and why different rules protect consumers.

Compensation for communist-era repression

Can a grandchild in the U.S. clear a repressed grandfather’s name?

Who can ask a Polish court to annul a conviction from 1944 to 1989, who can claim compensation, the deadlines, and why the two circles of people differ.

Pensions, benefits, and social insurance matters

The Poland-U.S. social security (totalization) agreement

The Poland-U.S. totalization agreement: when it took effect, how insurance periods are combined, which country pays for what, and where to file from the U.S.

How do you appeal a ZUS decision from the United States?

You have one month from delivery to appeal a ZUS decision. Where the appeal goes, what it must say, what it costs, and how to file it from the United States.

Legal support for businesses and entrepreneurs

Can you set up a Polish company without flying to Poland?

Forming a Polish sp. z o.o. from the United States: why the online route usually fails, how the notarial route works, what it costs and the deadlines.

Employment contract or B2B for your hire in Poland?

Hiring in Poland from the U.S.: how Polish law decides whether a B2B contract is really employment, and what a labour inspector can do about it since July 2026.

Division of property and co-ownership

Joint and personal property

When joint property arises, why inheritance and gifts stay outside it, and in what shares the joint estate is divided.