Temporary residence permit for the purpose of family reunification (marriage recognized by the law of the Republic of Poland)

Documents

a. Documents required at the application stage

A foreigner applying for a temporary residence permit for the purpose of family reunification (or if they are outside the territory of the Republic of Poland – a spouse acting on their behalf) submits to the voivode competent for the place of their stay:

• completed, in accordance with the instruction, application form for a temporary residence permit - under pain of leaving the application unprocessed. Rules for completing the application are presented in the following stage: “Completing the application”.

  This section also contains the application itself to be filled in in MOS and downloaded.

• 4 up-to-date photographs that clearly show the foreigner's face, without a hat and obscuring lenses, meeting the detailed criteria defined by law, i.e., undamaged, in colour, with good sharpness; 35 mm x 45 mm; made not earlier than 6 months before the date of submitting the application; showing the face from the top of the head to the top of the shoulders, so that the face covers 70-80% of each photo, against a uniform light background, showing the foreigner facing straight, with open eyes, uncovered hair, with a natural face expression and closed mouth, as well as showing the natural the colour of their skin; clearly showing the foreigner's eyes, especially their pupils, and the foreigner's eye line parallel to the upper edge of the photograph - under pain of not processing the application.

The regulations allow for a situation in which:

• a foreigner who wears a headgear in accordance with the rules of their religion attaches to the application photographs showing them in this headgear, provided that the face is fully visible in the photograph, and they will attach a declaration of the foreigner on belonging to a religious community;

• a foreigner with congenital or acquired eye defects may attach to the application photographs showing them wearing glasses with dark lenses; in this case, however, they should attach documents confirming the disability, and if it is impossible to present them, submit a declaration of disability;

• the application will be accompanied by photographs with closed eyes, other than a natural expression of the face or with an open mouth, if it is objectively justified (e.g., by their health condition).

• a photocopy of a valid travel document (at the same time presents the person accepting the application with its original for inspection - under pain of leaving the application unprocessed);

  In a particularly justified case, if a foreigner does not have a valid travel document and they are not possible to obtain it, they may present another document confirming their identity in a way that does not raise any doubts. At the same time, they should document the objective inability to obtain a travel document and the efforts made to obtain it.

• Proof of payment of stamp duty. Go to the "Stamp duty” step for more information.

• written consent to the submission of the application by the spouse – if at the time of submitting the application they are outside the territory of the Republic of Poland and intend to join the spouse residing in Poland – under pain of leaving the application unexamined. Expressing such consent is tantamount to granting the spouse a power of attorney to act on behalf of a family member in a given proceeding.

b. Other documents

At the stage of submitting the application, it is also desirable to present the documents necessary to confirm the data contained in the application and the circumstances justifying the application for a temporary residence permit.

Such evidence is not subject to the consequence of leaving the application unprocessed and may be supplemented in the course of the proceedings. However, it should be remembered that attaching full documentation already at the stage of submitting the application is in accordance with the interest of the party. It organizes and simplifies the procedure, because already at the initial stage, the authority can make correct determinations with regard to the foreigner's situation, which undoubtedly speeds up the process of processing the application and reduces the risks associated with the need for supplementing documentation by a foreigner in the further course of the procedure for granting a temporary residence permit.

If you are applying for a temporary residence permit for the purpose of family reunification, please also present:

• a copy of the marriage certificate (it is recommended that it be issued no earlier than 3 months before submitting the application);

  In the event of doubts as to the authenticity of the presented civil status document, the voivode may additionally require the certification of this document in the form of an apostille or its legalization made by the Polish consul after prior authentication by the competent authority of the country of origin.

• a copy of the residence permit of the spouse with whom you intend to reside on the territory of the Republic of Poland;

• documents confirming that the marriage is factual and justifies living in Poland for more than 3 months, such as joint photos taken at intervals and various occasions, witness statements, documents confirming cohabitation, maintaining contacts before marriage, birth certificates of children, etc. – especially if you are applying for a permit for the first time;

• a document confirming health insurance;

• documents confirming the possession of a source of stable and regular income sufficient to cover the costs of maintaining oneself and dependent family members (for a single person – in the amount higher than PLN 776 net per month, for a person in the family – in the amount higher than PLN 600 net per month). The requirement to have a source of stable and regular income is considered to be fulfilled also if the costs of your maintenance will be covered by your spouse who resides on the territory of the Republic of Poland;

• documents confirming the possession of a guaranteed place of residence in Poland;

• in the case of the will to be represented in the proceedings by a proxy – a power of attorney together with confirmation of payment of stamp duty.

In the case of widowhood – present the death certificate of the spouse and documents confirming a valid justification for granting the permit (for further stay in Poland).

In the event of divorce or separation - present the court decision relevant to your situation and documents confirming a valid justification for granting the permit (for further stay in Poland).

Remember!

• the documents should be attached in the original or in a copy certified to be a true copy of the original by a notary public or the party's attorney who is an attorney-at-law or legal advisor; certification of the compliance of the copy with the original may also be made by an authorized employee of the voivodeship office in the administration office, upon presentation of the original document;

• documents drawn up in a foreign language must be presented together with a sworn translation into Polish; the register of sworn translators is kept by the Ministry of Justice and is available at: https://arch-bip.ms.gov.pl/pl/rejestry-i-ewidencje/tlumacze-przysiegli/lista-tlumaczy-przysieglych/search.html

• closely related documents should be presented jointly (e.g., a sublease agreement with a lease agreement) and be valid on the date the permit is issued.

• In terms of documenting the circumstances justifying a stay longer than 3 months, the Act does not contain a list (list) of documents that prove the existence of family ties. In practice, in addition to civil status records confirming the conclusion of marriage, all documents confirming the existence of real, close personal ties, characterized by mutual interest, attachment and dependence, which are subject to the free assessment of evidence, are included in the evidence. These are all kinds of documents that allow to determine the nature and durability of the bond – these may be, for example, documents confirming cohabitation in the period preceding the submission of the application for a permit, confirming the maintenance of direct, telephone or e-mail contacts, testimonies or written statements of witnesses, documents confirming the possession of common offspring and all other types of documents useful in making the above-mentioned arrangements.