- Entities requiring permission
According to the Act on acquisition of real estate by foreigners, citizens or entrepreneurs of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland do not need permission. However, citizens or entrepreneurs of other countries need permission.
A foreigner is considered to be:
- a physical person who does not have Polish citizenship,
- a legal entity with its publicly-registered headquarters abroad,
- a company without legal personality with its publicly-registered headquarters abroad,
- a legal entity or a company without legal personality with its registered office in Poland, controlled by the aforementioned persons or companies.
- Obtaining permission
To obtain permission to purchase real estate in Poland, you must apply to the Ministry of Interior and Administration (hereinafter: MIA) with an appropriate application. It should include your detailed information, including your first and last name, citizenship, and domicile address. You should also specify the type and location of the acquired real property and the purpose of its acquisition. In addition, you must submit a number of relevant documents concerning the real property itself and meet the appropriate conditions, so we recommend using the help of our Law Firm to prepare the application in accordance with the guidelines.
The application, submitted in person or sent by mail, is considered within 2 months from the date of its receipt by MIA – a decision may be issued granting (if no objection is raised by the Minister of National Defense) or refusing permission. This decision may be appealed to the Provincial Administrative Court. The fee for issuing permission is currently 1 570 PLN, and a tax fee of 17 PLN must be added for issuing a certificate of finality of the decision. The permission takes the form of an administrative decision and is valid for 2 years from the date of issue.
- Conditions for obtaining permission
To obtain permission, according to the general rule, the acquisition of real estate cannot pose a threat to defense, state security, public order, and cannot be opposed by reasons of social policy and public health.
In addition to the above, the most important condition for acquiring real estate is demonstrating ties with Poland. Ties with Poland are justified in particular by:
- Polish nationality or origin,
- wife or husband, being a Polish citizen,
- having a:
- temporary,
- permanent,
- long-term EU resident,
residence permit,
- holding a management position in a controlled trading company,
- conducting business or agricultural activities in Poland, in accordance with Polish law.
Another condition is that the area of acquired real estate for living purposes does not exceed 0.5 ha, and the area of real estate intended for conducting business or agricultural activities should be justified by the actual needs resulting from the nature of the conducted activity. In addition, the acquisition of agricultural real estate by a foreigner additionally requires meeting the requirements provided for by special regulations on the acquisition of agricultural real estate.
- Optionally helpful in obtaining a permit
A helpful document in obtaining a permit may be the so-called promissory note or commitment letter. It is a promise to issue a permit, also issued upon request, which, however, does not exempt from the obligation to obtain the permit itself. The fee is currently 98 PLN, and proof of its payment, along with the same documents that would be included in the application for a permit, must be attached to the application for a promissory note. After meeting certain conditions, the minister cannot refuse to grant permission to acquire.
- Situations not requiring a permit
There are certain situations in which a foreigner does not have to obtain a permit to acquire real estate. These include the acquisition of, among others:
- an independent residential unit,
- an independent unit intended for garage use,
- real estate by a foreigner living in Poland for at least 5 years from obtaining a permanent residence permit or an EU long-term resident permit,
- real estate that is part of a community property, having a spouse with Polish citizenship and residing in Poland for at least 2 years from obtaining a permanent residence permit or an EU long-term resident permit,
- real estate on the basis of statutory inheritance from the owner or from an at least 5-year perpetual usufructuary.
In the case of testamentary inheritance, an application for a permit to acquire real estate must be submitted within 2 years from the date of opening of the inheritance.
The above exemptions do not apply to real estate acquired in the border zone and agricultural land with an area exceeding 1 ha located in the border zone.
- The legal situation when acquiring agricultural real estate by a foreigner
The acquisition of real estate by the sea or in the mountains by a foreigner is subject to the same rules as the acquisition of real estate throughout the country. However, if these properties constitute agricultural real property, then the acquisition of such real property by a foreigner is possible only when the conditions resulting from the Act on the structuring of the Agrarian System are met.
In addition, the Polish Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development has the right to object to permits issued for agricultural properties acquired by foreigners.
Alicja Machała-Pucek
attorney-at-law
Bartosz Klimas
lawyer
