Grandparents born in Poland, but parents in Australia - Polish passport?

Hi!, Both of my Grandparents were born in Poland and migrated to Australia after the War. My Mum and dad were both born in Australia. I am wondering if have grounds in getting a Polish Passport??

Hi Buddy

Doubtful, You may need to marry a nice Polish girl or bloke!

Principles of citizenship are governed by the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and the Citizenship Act of February 15, 1962.

students.villanova.edu/polishclub/all-things-polish/citizenship.htm

You may be able to, I think there is an Aussie company that specialises in applications for Polish / EU passports. You MUST have documentary proof of your Polish ancestry.

Thanks, do you know name of company?

The Constitution of the Republic of Poland (current and not readily changeable by act of any Polish Parliament! ;D) clearly states that if at least one parent is a Polish Citizen, then both parents have up to 6 months after the birth of their child to renounce Polish Citizenship on the child's behalf. After that time only the child itself can renounce its Polish Citizenship, but not before it turns 18 years of age.

One renounces Polish Citizenship in writing to the Polish Government / Consulate / Embassy in any country.
(It appears renouncing Polish Citizenship to non-Polish Authorities is not valid. If it was, one could argue that he/she was under duress (torture ;D) and that such mechanism would form a very easy way for someone to destroy the entire Polish Nation ;D)

Consequently if:

1. either of your grandparents were Polish Citizens at time of their birth and Polish Authorities don't have a piece of paper saying that they no longer considered themselves to be Poles until the birth of either of your parents; and

2. no one in either of that grandparent's pair had renounced Polish Citizenship on behalf of their child (i.e. one of your parents) before he/she turned 6 months; and

3. either of your parents were Polish Citizens at the time of your birth (i.e. either or both of them were under 18 years old or at least one of them did not renounce his/her Polish Citizenship between turning 18 years of age and your birth; and

4. neither of your parents renounced Polish Citizenship on your behalf before you turned 6 months; and

5. you are under 18 years of age or hadn't renounced Polish Citizenship since you turned 18 years of age

*phew* (I re-read that few times to get the bugs out... does it make sense? If not - ask me to go through it again! :D)

then you are technically a Polish Citizen.

Step 2 is to convince the Polish Authorities of that... if one really, really wants to be a member of our glorious nation (it can be testing at times). Couple of the obvious benefits are that you get an EU Passport and the right not to be extradited against your will from Poland ;D - these days one never knows when that _will_ be useful! :D

But, like in any half-decent video game, you must first defeat the tough monster before you progress to the next level (just to prove that you really consider yourself a Pole and think it's all worth it ;D) - the Polish Beaurocracy, and boy will they make you think twice... or thrice... and possibly more! ;D

The mechanism is relatively simple (very misleading) though Polish Consular Authorities can at times be very helpful...

1. You need to pour our your family history on a piece of paper IN POLISH, finishing with "... I have a Polish Soul, Polish blood flows through my veins and I always felt to be an integral part of the Polish Nation. I considered myself to be Polish and was extremely disappointed / hurt / shattered that I had no documentation to that effect." (or words to that effect :D) Whatever you do DO NOT ask for Polish Passport - that is a technicality that may complicate things and best left to the very end.

2. You need to apply for CONFIRMATION (NOT "recognition"! but CONFIRMATION) of your Polish Citizenship (In Poland, if you believe you deserve - you demand!), referring to:

a. the family history you described in part 1.
b. if either of your grandparents/parents dealt with the Polish Consulate (i.e. they had Polish Passports issued in Oz then advise of Passport Numbers and provide copies.

c. your (and that of your parents) Oz birth certificates, each endorsed with an APPOSTIL - international convention seal (issued - attached - to them at the Dept of Immigration and Foreign Affairs or an Australian diplomatic mission if you're no longer in Oz)

d. submit all this to a Polish Consulate and wait. I'm sure there's a fee associated. If you're in Oz then best deal with the crowd in Sydney (Polish Consulate General) - they're heaps nice there (once you get past the receptionist ;D)

3. With Confirmation of Polish Citizenship ("Poświadczenie Obywatelstwa Polskiego") you may:
a. apply for a Polish Passport
b. apply for your unique Polish Citizen number (PESEL)
c. apply for your Polish Tax File Number
d. use b. to get CHEAP (if not free) medical and dental (when in Poland) - I got a root canal for AUD 25.00 last time I visited me rellies

e. invite me to a "Hooray - I'm Polish and I have a piece of paper to prove it! Party!"

Give us a yell if I can be of more assistance, I'm not usually here, so e-mail: kuc671@hotmail
Chris

PS Poles at times can make you wish you weren't one, but there are times you'd die for them... and that makes it worth the trouble of being one! Good luck.

Should've broken my message into five useful parts... :D ... then I would've been able to e-mail you this directly... :(

... oh well - I think the crowd that run this forum are definitely Poles! ;D

That's very useful information even for the public.

A widzicie - nic w Polskim społeczeństwie nie da się zrobić bez jakiegoś typu komplikacji! :((
... Czemu Polska Nie Zgineła, Skoro my żyjemy??? ;)

Hey! I just saw you're in Brissy - d'oh - I'm in Adelaide and have itchy feet and thinkin' of going walkabout...

Chris ;)

hey sez_kozien

you can actually apply for a polish passport.

there is a company in oz that even does all the paper work for you.

one of my mates has gone through them and is getting his passport.

the address is:

polaron.net

Thanks Chris! Thats so helpful!!

Cant Wait to be Polish!!

mmm free dental too, Win Win.

Thanks Again
Sarah

polaron.com.au

either one works...

KUC671:

Thanks for the great information. Hard to know what the heck is going on here!!

Do you have any good example letters to use for the "I need to get back to my roots" letter??

If so, please email me at golani51.

It would be greatly appreciated.

Reuven