Who needs permission to acquire real estate in Poland?

Who needs permission to acquire real estate in Poland?

You need permission to purchase real estate in Poland if you are a foreigner from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) (which consists of European Union countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway) or Switzerland.

A foreigner is:
– a natural person who does not hold Polish citizenship
– a legal person domiciled abroad
– an unincorporated company of persons who do not hold Polish citizenship or domicile in Poland, which is domiciled abroad and was established in accordance with the laws of foreign countries
– a legal person and a commercial partnership without legal personality, domiciled in Poland, controlled directly or indirectly by persons or companies who are foreigners.

When permission is not required

If you are a citizen or entrepreneur domiciled in the territory of one of the European Union countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland (regardless of the origin of capital), you do not need permission to acquire any real estate in Poland.

Regardless of your citizenship or domicile, you do not need permission to acquire real estate in Poland if you are acquiring:

– a self-contained residential unit within the meaning of the Act of June 24, 1994, on the ownership of premises – this is a unit consisting of rooms and ancillary rooms (e.g., kitchen, bathroom) and providing you with appropriate living conditions. Such a unit may also include, among other things: a basement or attic, even if they are not directly adjacent to it
– a unit or share in a unit designated for a garage – if as a buyer or owner of real estate or a self-contained residential unit, you want to have a garage to ensure suitable living conditions
– real estate – when you have resided in Poland for at least 5 years from obtaining a permanent residence permit or a long-term resident EU residence permit
– real estate that will become part of a marital property – this happens when you have a wife or husband with Polish citizenship and have lived in Poland for at least 2 years from obtaining a permanent residence permit or a long-term resident EU residence permit
– real estate from a person who has owned or held a perpetual usufruct for at least 5 years, and you are entitled to inherit from that person on the day of acquisition (e.g., daughter, son, or grandchild acquires real estate from mother, father, or grandparents)
– real estate as a mortgage creditor (bank) – when you acquire real estate as property after a failed auction in enforcement proceedings.

Note! You must obtain permission to acquire real estate in Poland in the cases mentioned above if you are acquiring real estate located in the border zone and agricultural land with an area greater than 1 hectare.

You do not need to obtain permission to acquire real estate in Poland if you are acquiring real estate by inheritance and you are a person entitled to statutory inheritance in accordance with the laws of the country from which you come. If there is no such statutory inheritance in your country, Polish law applies to you.

The exemption from the obligation to obtain permission applies both to the acquisition of real estate by statutory and testamentary inheritance, as long as the persons called to inherit under the will are also members of the statutory heirs. The determination of the circle of statutory heirs is based on the deceased’s national law.

Note! You must obtain permission to acquire real estate in Poland by inheritance if you are entitled to testamentary inheritance and do not belong to the circle of statutory heirs.

What conditions must be met to obtain permission

You will be granted permission to acquire real estate in Poland if:
– your acquisition of real estate will not pose a threat to defense, state security, or public order, and there are no reasons of social policy or public health against it
– you demonstrate circumstances confirming your ties to Poland.

To demonstrate ties to Poland for the purpose of acquiring real estate in Poland, you can indicate that:
– you have Polish nationality or origin
– you have a wife or husband who are Polish citizens
– you have a residence permit (e.g., temporary (this does not apply to temporary residence permits for victims of human trafficking or due to circumstances requiring a short-term stay of a foreigner in Poland), or permanent, or a long-term resident EU residence permit)
– you are a member of the management board of a controlled commercial company
– you conduct business or agricultural activities in Poland, in accordance with Polish law.

Important! If you are acquiring real estate for living purposes, its area cannot exceed 0.5 hectares.

If you are an entrepreneur and are acquiring real estate in Poland for the purpose of conducting business activities, you must demonstrate that the acquisition of real estate is related to real needs arising from the nature of the business or agricultural activities conducted by you.

Our law firm successfully handles cases of obtaining permission to acquire real estate in various parts of Poland (Wrocław, Kraków, Warsaw, Poznań, Słupsk, Lublin, Gdańsk, Szczecin, Bydgoszcz, Katowice, Białystok, Radom, Rzeszów).