Passports – general information
Polish nationals who are abroad can have their passports issued by a consul. The consul issues two types of passports: long-term passports and temporary passports.
A valid passport:
- entitles you to cross the border and stay abroad,
- confirms your Polish citizenship,
- confirms your identity (with regard to the data it contains).
- If you are under 12, you get a passport that is valid for five years from the date of issue.
- If you are over 12, you get a passport that is valid for ten years from the date of its issue.
- Long-term passports contain a microprocessor which registers their holders’ biometric data: facial image and fingerprints.
You can get a temporary passport if you:
- stay in Poland and abroad temporarily and want to return to your place of permanent residence,
- stay abroad and are waiting for the delivery of a passport issued in Poland (if you apply for such document),
- stay in Poland and abroad, in urgent cases of a family member's illness or funeral; you need to provide evidence of it,
- stay in Poland and abroad, in urgent cases related to your professional activities; you need to provide evidence of it,
- cannot have your fingerprints taken physically, and the impediment is temporary.
IMPORTANT! A temporary passport is valid for the period stated therein, but not longer than for 365 days from the date of issue.
IMPORTANT! Honorary consuls cannot issue passports.
IMPORTANT! When you are planning a trip abroad, you should read the rules for entry and stay of foreigners in the country of your destination to check the required validity of your passport and whether it is possible to enter using a temporary passport.
Legal basis
Ustawa z dnia 13 lipca 2006 r. o dokumentach paszportowych (Dz. U. z 2018 r. poz. 1919, z późn. zm.)
Rozporządzenie Ministra Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji z dnia 16 sierpnia 2010 r. w sprawie dokumentów paszportowych (Dz. U. poz. 1026, z późn. zm.)
Rozporządzenie Ministra Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji z dnia 15 lutego 2010 r. w sprawie ewidencji paszportowych i centralnej ewidencji (Dz. U. poz. 131)
Ustawa z dnia 25 czerwca 2015 r. Prawo konsularne (Dz. U. z 2018 r. poz. 2141, z późn. zm.)
Rozporządzenie Ministra Spraw Zagranicznych z dnia 29 grudnia 2015 r. w sprawie opłat konsularnych (Dz. U. poz. 2237)