Bernd
15 Apr 2014
Law / Possible prospects of gaining Polish Citizenship (grandfather heritage)? [11]
Hi there dear reader,
I have a question concerning my polish heritage and the possible prospects of gaining the polish citizenship.
My Grandfather was from a small town near Poznań. He and his family didn't really speak polish and belonged to the german minority. When Germany attacked Poland he joined the Polish army to defend his country from the germans, while his brother joined the Wehrmacht. I don't know how, where and when but he and his unit where captured which did lead to him having to work in western germany for "reparation". He stayed with a german family as a farmhand during the whole war until the fighting seized. The polish government gave every Polish citizen that was in exile the possibility to return to Poland or loose their citizenship permanently. He refused to go back and joined the british occupation forces in germany thus rendering him citizenshipless. Thus my father was born without either a german nor polish citizenship but gained former before turning 18.
Im not entirely certain but I think that after the collapse of the soviet union and the communist states in eastern europe the polish parliament did pass a law to allow those who lost their citizenship after the 2nd World War and their children to regain said citizenship. Unfortunately both my grandfather and father are already dead and thus I wonder whether it would still be possible for me to gain the polish citizenship on the grounds of my grandfather having been a polish citizen and loosing it after WWII.
If you have any idea that could help me I would be very grateful (I don't want to go to the polish embassy or consulate yet due to me not being able to speak polish yet).
Thank you
Hi there dear reader,
I have a question concerning my polish heritage and the possible prospects of gaining the polish citizenship.
My Grandfather was from a small town near Poznań. He and his family didn't really speak polish and belonged to the german minority. When Germany attacked Poland he joined the Polish army to defend his country from the germans, while his brother joined the Wehrmacht. I don't know how, where and when but he and his unit where captured which did lead to him having to work in western germany for "reparation". He stayed with a german family as a farmhand during the whole war until the fighting seized. The polish government gave every Polish citizen that was in exile the possibility to return to Poland or loose their citizenship permanently. He refused to go back and joined the british occupation forces in germany thus rendering him citizenshipless. Thus my father was born without either a german nor polish citizenship but gained former before turning 18.
Im not entirely certain but I think that after the collapse of the soviet union and the communist states in eastern europe the polish parliament did pass a law to allow those who lost their citizenship after the 2nd World War and their children to regain said citizenship. Unfortunately both my grandfather and father are already dead and thus I wonder whether it would still be possible for me to gain the polish citizenship on the grounds of my grandfather having been a polish citizen and loosing it after WWII.
If you have any idea that could help me I would be very grateful (I don't want to go to the polish embassy or consulate yet due to me not being able to speak polish yet).
Thank you