DOES POLAND ALLOW DUAL NATIONALITY?

[polandcalling]

Hi I am Polish and my application for naturalisation as a BC has been granted and I would like to know if Poland allows dual nationality or not.

The thing is my wife is non-EEA and she now wants to apply for naturalisation as she meets the residency requirements but I am not sure if it is better for her to apply as the spouse of a British Citizen (if so, she has to prove she's been resident for the past 3 years) or as the spouse of an EEA- national (Polish) (if so she needs to prove residency for the last 5 years).

I read somewhere that Poland does not allow dual citizenship, is that true?
Please advise me on this.
Thanks

[Jambo]

One would have thought that this is something you would check before starting the BC journey.

Poland allows dual nationality (or to be precise doesn't disallow it).

Does your wife have a PR Confirmation following a EEA4 application? If not, she will need your Polish passport + treaty rights evidence to show she has obtained PR status and proof of your British citizenship to apply as a spouse of a BC.

[boloney]

Polish citizens can have dual nationality, but as Polish citizen in Poland you can use only Polish citizenship. So you are not allowed for example to cross border using another nationality, etc. but my kids have Polish and British citizenships but only British passports and they did travel to and from Poland on British passport, they not bothered. last year I wanted to do Polish passports for them in Poland and was told that they can only issue 12 months passports as my kids live in the UK and we should get 5years passports from Consulate in UK. when I told them that I don`t want 12 months passports they told me that my kids are not allowed to leave Poland using British passports. but don`t worry, there will be no issue in the UK, you can use nationality of your choice.

[polandcalling]

Jambo thanks again for always being there to help people.

Non EEA-Spouse arrived in uk with a Family Permit in Nov 2007
She was issued a Residence Card in October 2008 valid til October 2013
She acquired automatic Permanent Residence in NOV 2012 (under EU law)
She does not want to apply for PR (EEA 4) as it is not a "must" but instead for naturalisation as a British Citizen
I (EEA-Spouse) got a Permanent Residence Card in March 2011
My naturalisation as a BC application has just been granted.

Before my wife applies for naturalisation as a BC, we want to make sure we do everything right.

I googled if Poland allows dual nationality or not and this is what I Found on different websites:

DUAL CITIZENSHIP Poland does not recognize dual citizenship of its citizens. Polish law does not forbid a Polish citizen from becoming the citizen of a foreign state but Polish authorities will only recognize the Polish citizenship.


Does Poland allow dual citizenship?
Poland will not recognize you as a dual citizen, however it does not punish you for have multiple citizenships. Therefore, if you have both Polish & American citizenship, in the eyes of Polish authorities you are solely a Polish Citizen. Due to the fact you are viewed solely as a Polish citizen you must enter and leave Poland using your Polish passport.


The other day Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski signed a law allowing dual nationality. According to the new legislation, an applicant for a Polish passport need not refuse the previous citizenship, as was required before. Now a voivode (governor of a province in Poland) can grant Polish nationality to a person who has resided in the country no less than three years (according to a permanent residence permit), has regular income, and knows the Polish language.

[Jambo]

As your wife doesn't have confirmation of her PR status she will need to prove she has PR when applying for naturalisation.

Proof of PR: your Polish passport, PR card, proof of her residence for 5 years.

For naturalisation it is better to apply as a spouse of BC so proof of your British citizenship (certificate or passport) will be required.

[polandcalling]

So I see, she needs to apply as wife of BC.
what can she send for her proof of her residency for the last 5 years?
on the AN Form should she put BRITISH and POLISH as Partner's Nationality on page 8?
Does she need to complete the EEA nationals exercising treaty of rights on page 9? I hope not.
Also how long do I have to wait for the ceremony invitation to come?
Thanks

[Jambo]

She doesn't need to apply as a spouse of BC. She can apply based on her own merit which would be in November (after 6 years). I don't see any advantage not applying as a spouse of BC. If you attend a ceremony before the end of the month she won't need to meet the new English requirement (from 28/10).

Put Polish and British (if after ceremony).
No need to fill section 2.4 as your PR Card covers that.

It normally takes 2 weeks to get the invitation.

[polandcalling]

jambo thanks for such great answers.

I'd rather she apply as soon as possible, just after my ceremony. Yes she could apply for BC in her own merit in NOv 2013 but the new English requirement will be in place by then.

My wife has already passed the life in the UK test but what can she send as proof for her residency for 5 years?

She has this Inland Revenue tax calculation thing from 2008 til present showing the taxes she has paid. Would that be enough? or does she need to send something else?

also on all the occasions we have flown to Poland she was always required a visa and she has visa stickers on her passport from 2007 til present. We only stayed there for a maximum of 10 days at a time like twice a year.

thanks

[Jambo]

You might want to call your local council and see if you can book a ceremony as soon as possible (even before receiving the invitation letter). It might be tight getting it done before the 28th (actually the 24th as your wife application needs to get to Liverpool on the 25th the latest to avoid the new requirement).

Annual tax calculations should be fine. Normally the nationality team don't require such extensive evidence as the European cases team (when applying for EEA3/4). It might be that just her passport would be enough but I would add another source of evidence just in case.

[polandcalling]

I will call the council tomorrow and see if I can book the ceremony before the 24th the latest but it does say in the approval letter that I should not contact them within the first 2 weeks. Shall I do it anyway?
Thanks

[Jambo]

If you wait the full two weeks to call them it might be too late. I don't expect them to book you without having the certificate (which the HO sends directly to them) but it's better to understand where you stand early.

[Amber]

Please continue in your other thread