Polish Vital Records Search and Official Copies
Polish birth, marriage and death records
Request a Polish certificate from the UK
Need a Polish birth, marriage or death certificate while living in the UK? The Polish Genealogist identifies the holding office or archive, arranges the agreed search or copy request and explains the result in English. For family history, we can search for a birth or baptism, marriage, death or burial entry and arrange an available archival copy or image.
Complete the form below to tell us which record and document you need. The system calculates your final total at the end. You can then decide whether to continue to payment - completing the form does not commit you to pay.
Start your record requestWe identify the relevant Polish registry office, archive or parish using the names, dates and places you know.
The form shows what to prepare for your relationship to the person and the type of copy requested.
Complete the form, review the final amount, then choose whether to pay. Requests needing an individual quote are confirmed by email.
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Which Polish record do you need?
Births
Birth and baptism records
Find a date and place of birth, parents’ names and the original entry in a civil or parish register.
Marriages
Civil and church marriage records
Identify a couple, their parents, places of origin and witnesses. One marriage entry counts as one record.
Deaths
Death and burial records
Establish the date and place of death, age, family details or burial information recorded in the entry.
How to request a Polish record from Britain
You can commission the service from the UK without travelling to Poland or corresponding with Polish offices yourself. Tell us whose record you need, the likely date and place, and whether it is for family history or a formal procedure.
Start with your family papers
A grandparent’s name or birthplace
A certificate, naturalisation paper or military document your family already holds in Britain may contain a Polish place name, parents’ names or an earlier spelling. Include those details in the request, keeping the original wording. We compare the clues before selecting the relevant register.
If you have only a name and no identifiable locality, a wider family research package may be more suitable than one copy request.
Receive the agreed copy
Delivery and English support
The first-copy service includes administrative costs and postal delivery. We confirm your delivery details and the document format for your request. Uncertified digital scans are quoted separately.
For use by a British authority, tell us its document requirements before ordering. A sworn English translation and an apostille are separate services; neither should be assumed necessary for every request.
An archival image or an official document
For family history
Certified archive copy or digital scan
A certified archive copy is authenticated by the holding institution. An uncertified scan is for reference and does not replace an official certificate.
The form calculates the price for your selected certified copy. Uncertified digital scans are individually quoted.
For formal use
Official civil-registry copies
Choose a full copy, abridged copy or multilingual extract, where available. We confirm the format requested by the receiving authority and the holding institution’s requirements.
The first copy is included in the standard service. Extra copies must be in the same format.
See your total before deciding
Fill in the form and choose the document and any extras you need. The system calculates the final total in the last step. You can review the amount and decide whether to continue to the secure payment page. You are not charged for completing the form.
Digital scans, groups of different records and cases requiring further review receive an individual quote before payment.
What the first-copy service includes
- Review of the identifying names, dates, places and family details you provide.
- Identification of the appropriate registry office or archive.
- Preparation and submission of the standard application, with follow-up correspondence.
- The first issued copy, administrative costs and postal delivery.
- English-speaking support and an explanation of the result.
The final total includes any additional copies, apostilles and sworn English translations you select. Requests with incomplete details include the additional archival-search fee. We confirm any work outside this scope before incurring further fees. Finding or issuing a document is not guaranteed.
Which documents should you prepare?
For a publicly accessible historical record, the name, approximate date, place and any family clues are usually enough to begin. For an official copy or a restricted record, we may need to establish identity and entitlement, and explain any authorisation required.
- Your own record: an identity document and any authorisation required for us to apply.
- A parent’s record: your birth certificate may help establish the connection.
- A grandparent or earlier ancestor: birth and, where relevant, marriage or name-change documents linking the generations.
- A spouse or sibling: documents showing the marriage or shared parent, if the institution needs them.
- Another relative or unrelated person: evidence of a legal interest or authorisation from an entitled person may be needed for a civil-registry copy.
The checklist in the form adapts to your choice. No upload is needed at this stage. We confirm the necessary evidence for your case; the holding institution decides access.
From your request to the search result
- Describe the record. Choose birth, marriage or death, and enter the names, date and place. If you need several records, add your list.
- Choose the document. Tell us the format and intended use. Review the supporting-document checklist.
- Review the price and pay. After you complete the form, the system calculates the final total, including any additional search and selected extras. Review the amount and decide whether to continue to the secure payment page to pay in GBP or USD. We confirm the details and required documents by email before work begins. Digital scans, groups of different records and cases needing a legal-interest review receive an individual quote.
- Receive the next steps by email. We confirm the research question before work begins. For quoted work, the scope, price, documents and delivery are agreed before you commission it.
A documented result in English
You receive the document in the agreed format if it can be located and issued. We explain the work and any missing evidence in English. If no matching entry can be found, we explain the search and its limitations. An uncertified scan does not replace an official certificate for a formal procedure.
Your confirmed request specifies the document format, selected additional services and delivery. A full copy, multilingual extract, translation and apostille are different things; the receiving authority decides what it accepts.
Timing: this depends on the record’s location, access requirements and any missing details. We confirm the expected timetable for your request rather than promise a fixed delivery date.
Questions before you start
Can you obtain my Polish grandfather’s birth certificate from the UK?
You can request a search or copy through this service while living in Britain. Give his name, approximate birth date, birthplace and parents if known, and explain your relationship and intended use. We identify the record holder and the evidence required. An official copy depends on the surviving register, your entitlement and the issuing institution; an archival image may suit a family-history enquiry instead.
Will a Polish certificate be accepted for a procedure in Britain?
The receiving authority decides which copy, certification and translation it accepts. Tell us its requirements so we can arrange the appropriate available document and any agreed extras. A register scan, a certified archive copy and a civil-registry certificate are different documents.
Can I request birth, marriage and death records together?
Yes. Select Several records and list each document you need. We will quote for the group before payment.
What if I do not know the exact date or place?
Select Not sure for the date or Not known for the place, and add the clues you have. The form adds the archival-search fee to the first-copy service and shows both charges. For these requests, extras are arranged after the record is found.
What if the place is outside Poland today?
Historical Polish records may now be held in another country. Select No or Not sure and use the original place name if available. The form includes the additional search fee. We confirm the jurisdiction and scope before work begins.
Do I need to upload identity or family documents now?
No. Complete the form first. For an official or restricted record, we explain what evidence is required and how to provide it before applying.
Can I add translation, an apostille or extra copies?
Indicate the extras you need in the document step. For a standard request, select the number of copies needing each service and the form includes them in the final total. For records from 1945 or earlier or with incomplete details, indicate what you may need later; these extras are arranged after the record is found and are not charged in the initial total.
Is finding or issuing a record guaranteed?
No. A record may be missing, destroyed, restricted or insufficiently identified. The search fee covers the agreed search and explanation. An office or archive also decides whether it can issue the requested document.
Read our guides to birth records in British family research and Polish birth, marriage and death registers for examples of the evidence.