Polish birth records for citizenship by descent
A citizenship case by descent needs documents that link you to an ancestor: a birth record, a marriage record, sometimes a death record. The oldest of them sit in parish registers written in Latin, Polish, Russian or German.
We find those records in scanned registers, read them and give you everything you need to order certified copies: a clipping of the record, the original text, a translation and the full archive reference.
What we find
- birth or baptism records of your ancestor and of the generations after
- marriage records that link the generations
- death records when your case needs them
- when a record is not in the register: a list of the registers we searched with the result, which closes the lead and shows the authority where we looked
Where we search and in what languages
We work in registers that archives have scanned and published online: Szukaj w Archiwach (the Polish State Archives), epaveldas (Lithuanian archives, including the Lithuanian State Historical Archives in Vilnius), Matricula (church registers from Austria, Germany and Poland), FamilySearch and regional archive portals.
We read Latin, Polish, Russian and German, including the handwriting of the 18th and 19th centuries.
Before you pay, the free assessment tells you whether the registers of your parish for the years you need are online.
Price and time
One record
175 USD
One birth, marriage or death record from registers scanned online. You receive a clipping, the original text, a translation, the archive reference and a list of the registers we searched.
Ready within 10 working days.
If the register for that year turns out to be missing from the scans, we refund half the price.
A chain of records for a citizenship case
590 USD
The records of two to three generations that are older than 100 years. For each person we explain why the record belongs to your family. With it a list of the sources we searched and a sheet for ordering certified copies.
Ready within 20 working days.
If you later order the wall chart, chronicle and audiobook, we deduct the 590 USD from their price.
The time we give is the time of our own work. Archives and register offices that issue certified copies work at their own pace and we do not promise their time.
The first assessment is free.
What we do not do
- We do not give legal advice and we do not say whether you are entitled to citizenship. That is a question for a lawyer or for the authority.
- We do not make sworn translations. Our translation is a working one. A sworn translator or your law firm prepares the certified version.
- Records younger than 100 years are obtained by your family, because Polish register offices issue them mainly to close relatives or to someone holding their power of attorney.
- We do not file applications with the authorities.
How it works
- You write to us: who emigrated, from which place and when. Tell us also which documents you already have.
- We reply with which registers are online and what can be found in them. This costs nothing.
- You pay by bank transfer and we begin.
- You receive the records as PDF files with clippings, the original text and translations.
Common situations
- My ancestor left Poland before 1920. Where are the records?Records from the time of the partitions, in Latin, Polish, Russian or German.
- My ancestor came from the Kresy. Records from Lithuania, Belarus and UkraineThe former eastern Polish lands. Registers now in Vilnius, Minsk, Grodno, Lviv, Kyiv and Warsaw.
Tell us who emigrated and from where
Send your ancestor's name, the place and the approximate years. A few sentences are enough. We reply in English and in Polish.