News / Three Poles beaten in front of family. The supects are American soldiers [36]


If I remember rightly, isn't there one theory that it comes rather from the word Moor, so it doesn't actually fit a black person?

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]

Bingo. There should have been no Schengen without a single Schengen border guard, which would be tasked specifically with defending the external border and could operate anywhere needed without national parliaments holding a veto. If countries like Greece didn't want it, then they didn't have to join Schengen.

News / Three Poles beaten in front of family. The supects are American soldiers [36]


Didn't you know? Stuff is still going on -
theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/apr/02/northern-ireland-six-men-appear-court-irish-dissident-republican-parade-lurgan -
and here - bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-10866072

There's actually more punishment beatings and kneecappings going on now than during The Troubles, incredibly.

News / Three Poles beaten in front of family. The supects are American soldiers [36]


I remember when white Irish Catholics were blowing up people, killing people, blowing up people and more.

Some good reading -

wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingsmill_massacre
wikipedia.org/wiki/Omagh_bombing
wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin_and_Monaghan_bombings
Not to mention the stuff performed by the RAF, ETA and so on.

Law / Obtain Poland's Citizenship for Adoptive Daughter [6]

Your sister would most likely manage to get temporary residency in Poland based on exceptional circumstances, possibly even permanent residency (if she can demonstrate links to Poland and Polish culture), but there's no way she's getting citizenship, especially if there's no intention to live in Poland.

News / Three Poles beaten in front of family. The supects are American soldiers [36]


For sure. What kind of cowards attack innocent civilians? They should be ashamed of themselves and returned to the US before their criminality spreads.

Work / Bar staff - Hourly rate Wroclaw [4]


In general, in Poland:

If you're running a good bar, count on a minimum of 12-15zł an hour in hand (add another 30% for gross labour costs) for an experienced person who knows the topic (in your case, craft beer). The manager should be salaried, and you'll need to pay them at least 3000zł in hand, but look at 4000zł to get the right person.

But the market is saturated in Poland already.

Real Estate / New land law legislation in Poland will make life very difficult when it comes to selling. [21]


Yes, it's a good start, but I still reiterate the importance of being on site. You'll want to inspect all the work carried out, because the second you let your guard down, you'll experience problems. Also, do *not* use anyone connected to you in terms of family or friends - it's asking for trouble. Keep everything professional, and only pay in milestones. In my experience, what you want to do is sit down at the end of each week with their main guy and go over everything - what needs to be done, what needs to be fixed, etc etc. Best is to only pay them in advance for the materials immediately required, unless something has a long order time - although if they agree to post-payment, it'll be better for you (but unlikely).


Definitely you can if you're willing to set strict rules and not deviate from them. There's a lack of good tradesmen in Poland, so the available good ones tend to booked out months in advance for work.

Real Estate / New land law legislation in Poland will make life very difficult when it comes to selling. [21]


One thing I'd warn you about - companies here are notorious for simply not doing the work needed. A lot of people building from scratch get quotes, but then the work doesn't get done - I'd actually say that you need to get the electricity connection in before anything else. Sewage can be dealt with through a tank (it's not expensive to empty), and if there's a supply of fresh water, you'll be fine. Gas in tanks is also quite common in more rural areas here.


I'd suggest staying away from anything exotic or new unless you've got a builder that you can trust. I'd also say that if you plan to build from scratch, you need to be on-site every single day during construction. Do *not* trust anyone, but verify their work.

Real Estate / New land law legislation in Poland will make life very difficult when it comes to selling. [21]


Since the 'lex deweloper' came in, you may not even have to change them at all if they're already zoned for residential.

One thing that should concern you - if you're nowhere near the main road, you'll struggle to get so-called 'media' connections. Water companies are not responsible for paying to reach your property, only the border.

Real Estate / New land law legislation in Poland will make life very difficult when it comes to selling. [21]


How did you get permission to buy?


Impossible. You could divide the plots, but the local planning authorities will have a fit if they see that you've combined two dwellings.

Law / Karta Stałego Pobytu - Polish heritage and permanent resident permit in Poland [7]

It should be more than enough. There's no harm in taking along some details of trips that you've made and what you did on those trips, but in general, they're simply looking for you to show a connection. Spending time with family here will be a massive plus.

The bigger problem - expect a delay of at least a year before you'll get the residence permit issued. There are serious problems at the minute, and during that time, you can't leave Poland.

Law / Archives said there are no records that confirm my ancestor's citizenship, is a petition my only option? [37]


Indeed. But when someone is trying to hawk "advice" for cash, you understand why he's giving them false hope.


Indeed. The situation would get even worse if every Tom, Dick and Roggers turned up claiming citizenship, social housing and health care like the leeches that they are.

Law / Applying for Polish citizenship through marriage in middle of divorce proceedings [4]

Mark, I strongly discourage you from attempting this. You can tell them the situation and see what happens, but the karta stałego pobytu will still be valid after Brexit anyway. They can and will dig into your personal circumstances, so it's best to be straightforward.

Law / Karta Stałego Pobytu - Polish heritage and permanent resident permit in Poland [7]


Dominic, I'm sorry, but you're wrong here. There actually is a provision in the permanent residency law for people that can be claimed as Polish to obtain permanent residency.


It's straightforward. You need to have at least one Polish (as in ethnically Polish, not a Polish citizen) grandparent or two great-grandparents to be eligible - or they have to have been Polish citizens (if they weren't ethnically Polish).

migrant.info.pl/polish-descent-2440.html - there's more details here, though it's mixed up with information about the Karta Polaka. And here - migrant.info.pl/permanent-residence-permit.html

Generally speaking, it's not much to worry about - they'll only interrogate you if there's something wrong with your application. Make sure to submit proof of Polish skills, but if you turn up speaking Polish at B2+ level, it's likely that the interview will be a short one. They're simply looking for you to show that you have a link to the Polish nation, so of course, it's good to be able to talk about what you've done in the USA to connect to Poland, etc etc.


He can, interestingly enough. It's in place specifically for those who can't get citizenship, but who can be claimed as Polish. I think it's quite fair, especially as it doesn't give any rights outside of Poland.

Law / Archives said there are no records that confirm my ancestor's citizenship, is a petition my only option? [37]


No, they weren't. You're failing to understand that Polish law requires confirmation of citizenship and always has done so in the case of foreigners. You cannot take one aspect of the Constitution or law without understanding how it fits into other pieces of law, and the larger corpus of Polish Law clearly requires such recognition as an integral part of obtaining Polish citizenship. It has been the case ever since the beginning in 1920, and nothing has changed throughout the years regarding this fact.


Correctly so. Polish citizenship is not something to be handed out freely, but requires an actual and documented connection to Poland, not just a last name ending in "ski".

As I said above, people should be very wary about someone posting with a guest account that claims to be an expert on Polish citizenship law, especially when said person is hawking Polish citizenship "advice" for several thousand dollars on their blog.

Law / Inheritance tax - from UK to Poland [8]

Please don't take my word as formal advice, but this is my understanding of it:

You have six months to declare it from the formal notification of inheritance. It's not when you become aware of the contents of the will, but when the executor gives you the formal notice that you will inherit something. At that moment, you should declare it - not before, as you haven't formally inherited anything at that point. The tax office is quite reasonable, and as long as the paperwork is in order (the formal notification of inheritance), they won't question anything.

The property question is a non-issue, as you will never have formal ownership of the property according to the (English?) law of succession.

Law / Inheritance tax - from UK to Poland [8]


Yes, it's a wise idea to get some solid advice in this area.


There won't be any issue here, because he will never formally own the property.

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]


What's your view on PiS dramatically increasing coal imports from Russia, Ironside?

Law / Archives said there are no records that confirm my ancestor's citizenship, is a petition my only option? [37]


Certainly an anonymous blog is not a good place to get interpretations of Polish law. It's one of the worst ideas, especially if that person then asks for money for 'further advice' despite 1) not living in Poland, 2) not being Polish and 3) not being a lawyer.

Real Estate / American whinging and whining when buying or renting property in Poland [30]

More advice when dealing with American tenants:

1) Do not give them a contract in English. They'll argue over every single last word, often while claiming that they will CALL MA LAWYER even though their lawyer is only qualified to practice law in some crappy redneck state where no sane person goes. Best to give them a contract in Polish, and if they want it in English, they can translate it at their own cost.

2) Take at least two months deposit, if not three. The chances of them returning the property in any habitable state is almost zero.

3) Don't give them a phone number, only e-mail. If you give them a phone number, they'll plague you with phone calls at all hours over the most trivial of things. No joke, a friend had a dumb tenant calling her at 3am to remove a spider web from the bathroom.

4) They'll always threaten MA LAWYER. Call their bluff and remind them that American law doesn't apply in Poland no matter how much they beg Daddy for help.

5) Avoid renting to American medical students, who are a special definition of dumb. Most of them are ignorant failures who are trying to buy a medical degree, so avoid the hassle and don't rent to them.

Anyone got any other advice?

Law / Archives said there are no records that confirm my ancestor's citizenship, is a petition my only option? [37]

Posters on this forum would be wise to remember that guest posters often have an agenda, particularly when they're spamming to promote their blog.

Real Estate / American whinging and whining when buying or renting property in Poland [30]

Now, let's be serious for a second here. Americans are the worst sort of tenants in this country, becuase not only do they argue about every last złoty, they very often go missing at the end of the contract without settling up. You can't rent to them without ensuring that you get a deposit AND an advance towards the bills, because everyone knows that they tend to go missing with a trail of debts behind them.

Strong advice is also never to let them register themselves or a business to the address. Keep them on a short leash with monthly property inspections, because they live like animals. Cleaning is alien to them, so it's not a bad idea to also require monthly external cleaning of the property. Or just find non-American tenants, which is easy enough.

Real Estate / American whinging and whining when buying or renting property in Poland [30]

This thread perfectly sums up why Americans shouldn't be allowed to buy or rent property in Poland. Ktos accurately describes the appalling behaviour of Americans here, including behaving like a bunch of uncultured (well, what culture?) savages when viewing property. They have no boundaries or decency, and Polish language forums about property are full of complaints about Americans vandalising rental properties.

I know someone who owns Airbnb apartments, and she won't rent to Americans because of the abuse they suffer. One clown even managed to break the toilet because he was such a fatass, LOL!

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]


The UK certainly was in the 1990's, and they were among the biggest cheerleaders of expansion. Or have you forgotten already how the UK opened the labour market straight away in 2004 when others didn't?

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]


Now, why would that be? Would it be perhaps anything to do with CEFTA, or perhaps the funds that were already flowing into Poland before 2004?

Tell you what, come on a trip with me sometime to the borderlands in Lubuskie. I'll show you the infrastructure that was built between 1990-2004 with EU/German money, and then you can tell me what a difference it made to the Polish economy. Deal?

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]


Poland isn't exactly doing a great job of it, what with the high rates of male suicide, problems with alcohol abuse, economic growth based almost completely on outsourcing and other non-jobs, widespread church paedophilia and more.

Law / Archives said there are no records that confirm my ancestor's citizenship, is a petition my only option? [37]


I believe he also owes considerable amounts of money to the Polish state. There's a record on the private debt databases for him for unpaid social security contributions - Jon, do you still have access to it? You can find it easily on there, and there's no way he can return to Poland without clearing that debt first.

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]


Poland was worse off than Ukraine in 1990. Yet again, your propaganda fails.

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]


There goes the Polish agricultural sector overnight. If there was a genuine free market, the vast majority of farmers would be unemployed. A few good ones would buy up most of the land, it would be farmed commercially and the end result would be a huge amount of unemployed farmers. Hmm. MOr daybe a good thing.


Free market is free market, right?