Father died in Poland, I live in Canada, how do I proceed with the will and inherited debt?

My father died in Poland, I live in Canada, and apparently he died with debt, which I'm being told I inherited. I moved away from Poland when I was 6 (over 30 years ago), never had a relationship with him, his ex-wife and daughter rejected the will and ingeritance, so it seems I'm next in line.

I called the Polish Consulate, so I'm waiting for call back now, but in the meantime I thought I'd post here :) I'm trying to figure out what steps are needed, what documents I should request, if I need a lawyer, etc.

Any advice?

Generally speaking, do nothing until you're contacted directly about it.

When you are contacted, it's worth spending a few hundred złoty to get a lawyer to submit the formal rejection of inheritance for you, just to avoid any and all problems associated with it.

@delphiandomine Thanks for the reply :)

I was contacted by his brother in March I believe. I have an aunt in Poland who said she'd find out my options from a local government office, but it wasn't anything too specific (just that I have 6 months and I should request documents).

Okay, I guess contacting a lawyer is what I have to do. Any recommendations on finding a good one now? lol Should I look for one with a Polish office, or a Canadian one focusing on Polish matters?

This is a first for me, sorry for the dumb questions.

Did you get any formal documents, or was it just information? You don't have to do anything until you actually receive documentation from the court.


Hold off for now (until you get formal documents) - but I would recommend rather finding a local lawyer in Poland who knows the court handling the case.

Just a call, no formal documents, as I don't think they know my address. Can the documents be sent electronically, or do they have to physically mail them? I'm a bit hesitant giving that side of the family my address, as I don't know them all that well.

I guess you will have to do it sooner or later anyway.