What is an electoral roll?

The electoral roll (list of voters) is prepared in Poland for specific elections and for a specific district electoral commission. You can only be included on one electoral roll.

The electoral roll is drawn up in 2 copies, separately for each polling district, based on the place of residence of each voter, no later than 21 days before the election day.

Please note: If you are permanently resident in the municipality in which you have the right to vote and where you are registered for permanent residence, you will be automatically included on the electoral roll.  

Submit an application for inclusion on the electoral roll

If you want to vote in a given election within the area of the municipality for the area in which you permanently or temporarily reside – submit an application for inclusion on the electoral roll.

Please note: You can only be added to the electoral roll if you vote in European Parliament elections.  

Who can apply

• in elections to the European Parliament in the Republic of Poland – a citizen of the European Union who is not a Polish national and reaches the age of 18 on the day of voting at the latest, permanently residing in the territory of the Republic of Poland,

What you need to prepare

• application for inclusion on the electoral roll in a given municipality, which you can download at the relevant office or in some cases from the website of the municipality office,
• fill in the application at home or at the office.

Before completing the application, prepare:

• personal data, including surname and given name(s), father's name, date of birth,
• passport number or another identity document number and possibly documents proving nationality of one of the Member States of the European Union,
• residential address,

What you need to do

• submit the completed application to the office of the municipality in which you intend to vote in the next election together with proof of identity and proof of the right of residence in the municipality; the applicant is required to present the documents for inspection when submitting the application,
• the application for inclusion on the electoral roll is submitted in person.

When to apply

Submit an application for inclusion on the electoral roll no later than 5 days before the election day. If your application is approved, you will be added to the electoral roll in a polling district of your choice within the municipality:

• for the area in which you permanently reside, or
• in which you temporarily reside.

When and where you can access electoral rolls

The roll is made available for inspection upon written request from the voter.

• between 21 and 8 days before the election day, you can check at the municipal office where the electoral roll has been drawn up whether you have been included on the roll,
• the electoral roll is available for inspection at the municipal office.

Where and to whom you can submit a complaint (appeal)

You can submit a complaint regarding the electoral roll to the mayor of the municipality or to the authority which drew up the electoral roll, if there are irregularities in the electoral roll. Anyone, including an EU citizen exercising their electoral rights in the Republic of Poland, may file a complaint. The deadline for examining the complaint and bringing an action to the district court is 2 days.

How much you will pay

The service is free of charge.

Legal basis

• Act of 5 January 2011 – Election Code (codified text: Journal of Laws 2020, item 1319)
• Regulation of the Minister of the Interior of 29 December 2014 on the electoral roll (Journal of Laws 2015, item 5)
• Regulation of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of 29 May 2017 on the electoral roll of voters residing abroad (Journal of Laws 2017, item 1130)