Can a Ukrainian citizen become Polish without giving up Ukraine?

Until 2026, Ukrainian law did not permit multiple citizenship, so acquiring Polish citizenship placed Ukrainian citizenship at risk. That position has changed, and much of the guidance available online still describes the former rules.

Do you still have to choose between the two passports?

In most cases, no - and this is the change that matters. Ukraine’s law permitting multiple citizenship was signed in July 2025 and entered into force in January 2026. Under it, Ukrainian citizens may hold the citizenship of another state without losing their own, provided that state appears on a list approved by Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers. The first list, adopted in January 2026, includes Poland.

Poland’s side of this was never the problem. Polish law accepts that a Polish citizen may hold another citizenship and treats that person as a Polish citizen in full. What it does require is that before Polish authorities you do not rely on the Ukrainian citizenship or on rights derived from it - in Poland, you are simply a Polish citizen.

One qualification is important here. This is Ukrainian law, it is recent, and the list of countries may be extended or amended. Before you act on it we confirm the position as it stands on that date, because guidance that was accurate a year ago may no longer be.

Which route is open to you?

For a Ukrainian citizen living in Poland, the route is almost always recognition as a Polish citizen. It is decided by the governor of the province where you live, against criteria written into the statute rather than left to discretion. If you meet them, the decision follows.

Which qualifying period applies depends on your situation. Three years of uninterrupted residence on a permanent residence permit, an EU long-term resident permit, or a right of permanent residence, with stable income and legal title to your accommodation, is the standard case. Two years is enough if you have been married to a Polish citizen for at least three years, or if you hold a permanent residence permit granted in connection with refugee status. One year is enough if your permanent residence permit was granted in connection with Polish origin or a Pole’s Card - relevant to Ukrainian citizens with Polish ancestry, which is a larger group than it first appears.

If you live outside Poland, recognition is closed and the only route is a grant by the President, which carries no residence requirement but is entirely discretionary. And if a parent or grandparent of yours was a Polish citizen, the right question may not be acquisition at all - you may already be a Polish citizen and need confirmation instead.

How temporary protection turns into a qualifying period

This is the most frequent reason applications by Ukrainian citizens are refused. Arriving in Poland after February 2022 and residing here lawfully since then does not, by itself, begin the qualifying period. What the statute counts is residence on one of the permits it names - permanent residence, EU long-term residence, or a right of permanent residence. Time spent under temporary protection is not one of them.

The second condition is the word uninterrupted. It is a defined concept, not a general impression, and extended stays outside Poland can reset a period you believed was complete. Because family circumstances since 2022 have meant a great deal of travel for many Ukrainian clients, we check this before filing rather than after a refusal.

Documents from Ukraine in wartime conditions

An application has to be supported by documents, and since 2022 obtaining them from Ukraine has ranged from slow to impossible, depending on the region and the registry. Records from occupied or front-line areas may be unavailable, damaged, or held in registries that have been relocated.

Ukraine is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, so Ukrainian public documents are legalized for use in Poland by apostille rather than by consular legalization, and they require sworn translation into Polish. Where a record genuinely cannot be obtained, the question becomes what the authority will accept in its place - and that is a matter of evidence to be argued, not a form to be filled in.

The language certificate: the step people underestimate

Recognition requires Polish at B1 confirmed by an official certificate of proficiency, a diploma from a school in Poland, or a diploma from a school abroad taught in Polish. Fluency acquired at work, however genuine, is not evidence the statute accepts.

Ukrainian speakers often reach conversational Polish quickly, which creates a false sense of security: the examination tests reading, writing, and listening under time pressure, and examination dates have to be booked well ahead. We raise this at the first conversation, because it is the one requirement on the critical path that nobody can do for you.

What we handle without you attending

Preparing and filing the application with the governor, assembling and legalizing the evidence, corresponding with the authority, replying to requests to complete the file, obtaining Polish civil-status records, and appealing a refusal are all done by the lawyer you authorize. What remains yours is the language examination and, where the authority requires it, an appearance we tell you about in advance.