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How to Find a Will in Poland if You Live Abroad

How can you find out whether a deceased relative left a will in Poland?

If a family member has died in Poland — or was a Polish citizen who lived abroad — one of the first questions you may have is whether they left a will.

This can be surprisingly difficult for a family member living outside Poland. You may not know whether the will was handwritten or prepared by a notary, where it was kept, or which court or notary is dealing with the estate.

The good news is that you do not necessarily have to travel to Poland to investigate whether a will exists or to deal with the inheritance proceedings. Depending on the circumstances, a Polish inheritance lawyer („adwokat”) can assist with the search, obtain relevant documents and represent you before Polish authorities.

Before entrusting your case to a Polish lawyer, make sure they are a qualified attorney registered with the Polish Bar Council. Dr. Joanna Suslo, Esq. is officially registered with the Bar Council. You can find her profile here.

Table of Contents

1. Was the will made before a Polish notary?

One of the first things to establish is whether the deceased made a notarial will.

A will prepared by a Polish notary is different from a handwritten will. Notarial wills may be recorded in the Notarial Wills Register (Notarialny Rejestr Testamentów) = NORT.

The register is maintained by the National Council of Notaries in Poland and can be used to determine whether information concerning a registered will exists.

Importantly, the existence of a record in the register does not mean that anyone can simply search the register without meeting the applicable requirements. Access to information concerning a will is connected with the death of the testator and the person’s entitlement to obtain such information.

If you are an heir living abroad, the practical question is therefore often not simply:

“Can I search the register?”

but rather:

“Who can make the enquiry in Poland and obtain the information I need?”

This is where assistance from a Polish inheritance lawyer or notary may be useful.

A notary requires a personal visit to the notary’s office, together with the original death certificate, in order to access the NORT Register. A protocol is prepared documenting the search for a will in the register. These formalities can be handled on your behalf by a specialized Polish attorney, Dr. Joanna Susło, so you do not need to travel to Poland in person.

2. What if the will was handwritten?

Not every Polish will is registered.

A person may have prepared a handwritten (holographic) will, known in Polish as a testament własnoręczny or testament urzędowy.

Such a will may be kept:

• at the deceased’s home;
• by a family member;
• by another trusted person;
• in a safe or other private location;
• among the deceased’s personal documents (in Polish: „czerwona teczka”).

This creates an important practical problem for relatives living abroad.

There may be no central database showing that a handwritten will exists.

If you believe that a handwritten will may have existed, the investigation may therefore involve looking for information and documents outside the notarial register.

3. What if the family does not know whether there was a will?

This is one of the most common situations in cross-border inheritance cases.

You may know only that:

• your parent or grandparent died in Poland;
• the deceased owned property in Poland;
• the deceased previously lived in Poland;
• you may be an heir;
• another family member says that there was a will;
• or you simply have no information about the deceased’s estate.

You do not need to know in advance whether a will exists in order to start investigating the matter.

The first step is usually to establish the relevant facts and identify the authorities, notaries and inheritance proceedings potentially connected with the deceased.

Depending on the circumstances, this may include checking whether inheritance proceedings have already been initiated in Poland.

Keep in mind that in court proceedings to confirm the acceptance of an inheritance (in Polish: „stwierdzenie nabycia spadku”), the court will also question all parties under oath and subject to criminal liability as to whether they have knowledge of any wills. At the request of a party, the court may also send such inquiries to specific notaries. It often happens that, for example, in the former town where the decedent lived, there are only 2–3 notaries; therefore, it is advisable to contact each of them to be certain that a will was left.

4. Can you find a Polish will from another country?

Yes, in many cases the necessary steps can be handled without the heir travelling to Poland.

This is particularly important for people living in:

• the United States;
• Canada;
• France;
• the United Kingdom;
• Australia;
• Switzerland;
• Belgium;
• Germany;
• or other countries.

A Polish inheritance lawyer may be able to act under a power of attorney (in Polish: „pełnomocnictwo”) and deal with the relevant Polish authorities on your behalf.

The exact procedure depends on the circumstances of the particular inheritance.

For example, it makes a difference whether:

1. the deceased left a notarial will;
2. the will was handwritten;
3. the will has already been submitted to a Polish court;
4. inheritance proceedings have already taken place;
5. an inheritance certificate has already been issued by a Polish notary;
6. the deceased owned property in Poland but lived abroad.

5. What if the inheritance case has already been opened?

Sometimes the family begins looking for a will only after discovering that an inheritance proceeding has already taken place.

In such a situation, it may be possible to investigate:

• which Polish court handled the case;
• whether a will was submitted to the court;
• whether the will was opened and announced;
• whether a decision confirming inheritance was issued;
• whether a notarial deed confirming inheritance was prepared;
• who was recognised as an heir.

This can be particularly important where a person living abroad has discovered that they may have been omitted from an inheritance proceeding.

The most important thing is not to delay but to join the court case as soon as possible. Even if this court case has already been concluded, if you were not notified of the case, you can request that it be reopened. As an interested party in the case, you have the right to actively participate in the proceedings and to have access to all documents related to the case. Attorney Dr. Joanna Suslo can take these actions on your behalf based on a power of attorney.

6. What documents may you need?

The documents required will depend on the particular circumstances.

Typically, it is useful to have as much information as possible about the deceased, including:

• full name;
• date and place of birth;
• date and place of death;
• Polish PESEL number, if known;
• last place of residence (city, street, number, postal code);
• names of parents;
• information about a spouse or children;
• information about property located in Poland;
• information about any business activity, for example, LLC (in Polish: „spółka z ograniczoną odpowiedzialnością”) or a sole proprietorship (in Polish: „jednoosobowa działalność gospodarcza”);
• any known information concerning a notary or court;
• copies of death, birth or marriage certificates, if available.

You do not necessarily need to have every document before contacting a Polish lawyer.

If you live abroad and have only limited information, the first step can be an assessment of what can realistically be established from the available information.

Also keep in mind that in every case, you must prove a family relationship with the Polish testator or that you have a legal interest in the case. You will usually need to provide your birth certificate or marriage certificate to join the case in Poland. In the case of documents issued by Polish authorities—for example, if you were born in Poland—your attorney will obtain them on your behalf. However, in cases such as marriage or a name change outside of Poland, you may sometimes need to send these documents to your Polish attorney.

7. What if you do not know which Polish court handled the inheritance?

This is another common problem in older inheritance cases.

A person may know that their father, mother or grandparent had some legal proceedings in Poland but have no idea:

• which court was involved;
• when the case was opened;
• what the case number was;
• whether the case concerned inheritance;
• or whether a final decision was issued.

In appropriate circumstances, a Polish inheritance lawyer can assist with identifying the relevant proceedings and obtaining copies of documents.

This can be particularly valuable when documents are needed for inheritance proceedings in another country, for example before an American notary or a French notaire.

Pursuant to Article 628 of the Code of Civil Procedure (KPC), in inheritance cases, the court with exclusive jurisdiction is the court of the deceased’s last habitual residence (place of residence). If the deceased’s residence in Poland cannot be determined, the court with jurisdiction is the court of the location of the estate.

8. What if the deceased lived abroad?

The situation becomes more complicated where the deceased was connected with both Poland and another country.

For example:

Your father was born in Poland, moved to France, died in France and owned an apartment in Poland.

In such a case, several different questions may arise:

• Did he leave a Polish will?
• Did he leave a French will?
• Where was the estate administered?
• Which country’s succession law applies?
• Who are the heirs?
• Is there a Polish inheritance proceeding?
• What documents does the French notaire require?
• Does the Polish property need to be dealt with separately?

This is why searching for a will should not always be treated as an isolated administrative task. In cross-border cases, the existence and content of a will can affect the entire inheritance procedure.

Dr Joanna Suslo, attorney-at-law, specializes in handling inheritance cases involving multiple countries and collaborates with notaries in France, the U.S., Australia, and Canada, among other countries, to ensure the efficient completion of inheritance proceedings.

9. Do you have to travel to Poland?

Not necessarily.

Not necessarily. You do not need to travel to Poland to deal with many aspects of a Polish inheritance matter.

10. What if you find a will?

Finding a will is only the first step.

The next questions may include:

• Is the will legally valid?
• Is it the most recent will?
• Has it been formally opened and announced?
• Who inherits under the will?
• Does another person have a potential claim to zachowek (reserved portion)?
• Does the will concern property located in Poland?
• Has inheritance already been confirmed?
• Is there a need to conduct inheritance proceedings in Poland?

For this reason, obtaining a copy of a will should normally be followed by a legal assessment of its consequences.

A person who is in possession of a will or who finds a will is required to file it with the probate court upon learning of the testator’s death. There is no obligation to file the will with the court if it is held by a notary public.

The will is opened and announced by the court or a notary public.

After the will has been opened and announced, you should file a petition with the court to confirm your inheritance or sign a Certificate of Inheritance at a notary’s office. In these documents, the court or notary identifies who the heir is.

11. What if you suspect that another family member is hiding the will?

This can be particularly difficult in international inheritance cases.

For example, a person living in France or the United States may hear from another family member:

“There was no will.”

but have reason to believe that the deceased actually made one.

The appropriate response depends on the circumstances.

A lawyer can help determine what information is available, whether inheritance proceedings have already taken place and what legal steps may be available to establish the deceased’s actual testamentary intentions.

12. How a Polish lawyer can help you find a will

If you live outside Poland, you do not necessarily need to manage the entire process yourself.

A Polish inheritance lawyer can assist with a specific, one-off task, such as:

Polish Will Search

This may involve:

1. analysing the information you have about the deceased;
2. determining where relevant information may be available;
3. checking the status of inheritance proceedings;
4. communicating with the relevant Polish authorities or notary, where legally possible;
5. obtaining relevant documents;
6. verification in business and commercial entity databases (KRS and CEIDG);
7. explaining what they mean;
8. advising you on the next step.

This type of service can be particularly useful if you do not need full representation in an inheritance case but simply need to establish whether a will exists and what happened to it.

What if you need help from outside Poland?

If you live abroad and need to establish whether a deceased family member left a will in Poland, you do not necessarily need to travel to Poland simply to start the process.

InheritSafe Poland

Dr. Joanna Susło, Ph.D., Attorney-at-Law

E-mail: [email protected]
Mobile / WhatsApp: +48 668 841 990

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