Polish lawyer / Apostille for Poland
Notarising and apostilling documents for Poland
Powers of attorney, declarations, certified copies and consents for Polish offices, notarised in person in English or in Polish by Radek Dajer, notary public, at our Frankston office.
What we notarise
Choose what you need help with. Each one opens the detail further down this page.
Documents from Australia for use in Poland
Polish courts, notaries, banks and offices often ask Polish-Australians to sign or certify documents here: powers of attorney, declarations about an inheritance, copies of passports and certificates, or a parent’s consent to a child’s passport. Because Australia and Poland are both parties to the Hague Apostille Convention, a document notarised in Australia needs an apostille from DFAT and no further legalisation.
Radek Dajer is a notary public appointed by the Supreme Court of Victoria and one of only two Polish-speaking notaries in Victoria. He explains each document to you in Polish and prepares the notarial certificate in English, or in English and Polish.
Before your appointment
Ask the office, court or notary in Poland what they need: the wording, whether a sworn translation is required, and whether a certified copy will do.
Documents we notarise for Poland
Choose a topic to see what it involves and how we help.
Powers of attorney for property, bank accounts, inheritance matters and court cases in Poland.
- Property: a power of attorney to sell or buy real estate must be in the same form as the sale, a notarial deed. We check the form with the notary in Poland first. See power of attorney for property in Poland.
- Inheritance: a power of attorney to make a declaration accepting or refusing an inheritance must be in writing with an officially certified signature (art 1018 of the Polish Civil Code).
- Court cases: in civil cases, an attorney can generally be a Polish advocate or legal adviser, or a close relative such as a spouse, sibling, parent or child (art 87 of the Polish Code of Civil Procedure).
Declarations and documents heirs in Australia are asked to sign.
- Accepting or refusing: within 6 months from the day the heir learned of the ground for inheriting (art 1015 of the Polish Civil Code).
- For children: parents can refuse an inheritance on behalf of a minor child. Whether court permission is needed depends on the case and on where the child lives, so check before signing. We can contact the Polish court for you.
- Death certificates: an Australian death certificate can be transcribed into the Polish civil register, using the original with an apostille and a sworn translation.
Certified copies, consents and pension paperwork for Polish offices.
- Certified copies: of passports, birth and marriage certificates, diplomas and other documents, with an apostille for use in Poland.
- A child’s passport: where one parent applies for a child’s Polish passport, the other parent can consent in writing with a signature confirmed by a notary. Scanned copies sent by email are not accepted. Check first which form of consent will be accepted with the passport application.
- ZUS and KRUS pensions: signatures on the statements the Polish pension offices ask retirees living abroad to sign.
Australia and Poland are both parties to the Hague Apostille Convention, so a document notarised in Australia needs an apostille and no further legalisation.
- Who issues it: the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is the only authority that can apostille Australian public documents. A private document, such as a power of attorney, becomes a public document once an Australian notary public has notarised it.
- What it certifies: an apostille confirms the signature, the capacity of the person who signed and the seal. It does not certify the content of the document.
- After the meeting: we can lodge the documents with DFAT for you and let you know when they are ready.
- In force: the Apostille Convention has applied between Australia and Poland since 14 August 2005.
Step by step
Notarising a document for Poland, step by step
From the first email to a document ready to send. We explain each step in Polish or in English.
01
Check what Poland needs
Ask the office, court or notary in Poland what the document must say, and whether they need a sworn translation. We can contact them for you.
02
Send us the document
Email us the document or the details. We quote for the notarial work before the appointment.
03
Sign in person
Bring your passport or other photo identification. Notarial acts are done only in person, at our Frankston office.
04
Apostille
We lodge the notarised document with DFAT for an apostille and let you know when it is ready. The DFAT fee is separate.
05
Send it to Poland
You send the original to Poland. Keep a copy for your records.
How we work
Visit our Frankston office
435 Nepean Highway, Frankston VIC 3199
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm, by appointment
Notarial appointments
In person at our office, by appointment. Bring your passport or other photo identification.
By train
A short walk from Frankston station, at the end of the Frankston line from Melbourne.
Parking
Wilson Parking at 453 Nepean Highway, street parking on the Nepean Highway, and the car parks at McDonald’s across the road and at Dan Murphy’s.
Common questions
Can’t see your question? Call 1800 776 529 or send us a message.
Usually an apostille. Poland has been a party to the Hague Apostille Convention since 14 August 2005, so a document notarised in Australia needs an apostille from DFAT and no further legalisation.
Often, yes. Polish courts and offices may require a sworn translation of documents in English. Ask the office or notary in Poland what they expect before your appointment, or we can ask them for you. We can prepare the notarial certificate in English and Polish.
No. Notarial acts are done only in person, at our office in Frankston.
We quote for the notarial work once we have seen the documents, before the appointment. The DFAT fee for the apostille is separate. For other work, we tell you in writing how we will charge before any work starts.
Yes. Radek Dajer speaks Polish and can take your instructions and explain your documents in Polish. See our Polish-language page.
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Talk to us about your documents for Poland
Tell us briefly what has happened or what you are planning. We reply to every enquiry within one business day, by phone, email or text, whichever you prefer.
What happens next
- Send the form.
- We reply within one business day.
- We arrange a time to talk, or ask for any information or documents we need first.
Prefer to talk? Call 1800 776 529, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm.