Buying a house in Poland as a foreigner: step by step
You find a house on a Polish website. The photos look good. That is when the real work starts.
It comes down to the order of things. What do you sign when, and at what point does your money leave your account? Below is what happens, with the amounts that go with it. What the whole thing roughly costs is on how much a house costs in Poland, and if it is a second home, read holiday home or second home.
Can a foreigner buy a house in Poland?
If you are a citizen of an EU or EEA country, or of Switzerland, you do not need a permit. That goes for a house as well as a flat, and you do not have to ask the Polish Ministry of the Interior for anything. The government portal biznes.gov.pl sets this out.
Citizens of other countries are in a different position, and since Brexit that includes UK citizens. Under the Polish act on the acquisition of property by foreigners they generally need a permit from the Ministry of the Interior (MSWiA) to buy land, and that includes a house with its plot. A flat that is a separate unit is generally exempt. There are further exceptions, for example for people who have lived in Poland for a number of years. Whether one applies to you is something to settle with the notary before you sign anything. The outline is on permits and land rules.
This page is about a home, not about farmland or forest.
Start with the land register
Polish properties are recorded in a land and mortgage register, the księga wieczysta. Its contents are public and free to read online at ekw.ms.gov.pl, without an account.
All you need is the KW number. It consists of a court code, eight digits and a check digit, for example WA1M/00123456/7.
Ask the seller or the agent for that number. You can then see who is registered as the owner, which mortgages are secured on the property and which claims have been entered. Without the number there is nothing to check online.
The preliminary contract: notarial or private
If there is time between the agreement and the deed, you bridge it with a preliminary contract, in Polish an umowa przedwstępna. Signing it privately is allowed.
The choice still matters a great deal. With a notarial preliminary contract you can go to court to force the seller to complete. If the agreement stays private, you cannot force completion and are left with a claim for damages.
A notarial preliminary contract can also be entered in the land register, in the section for rights and claims. Your claim then also stands against rights granted to third parties afterwards. The seller cannot sell the same house twice without consequences. That entry costs 150 zł.
Zadatek or zaliczka: one word, double the money
The contract contains a term that decides what happens to your deposit. Zadatek and zaliczka look alike and work in opposite ways.
With a zadatek you lose the amount if you pull out. If the seller backs out, he pays you double. A zaliczka comes back if the sale falls through, whoever is to blame. Whoever breaks the agreement may still owe damages on top.
On a deposit of 25,000 zł there are therefore three outcomes: nothing back, 25,000 zł back, or 50,000 zł back.
The double refund does not always apply. If the parties end the agreement together, or the sale falls through without either of them being at fault (or with both at fault), a zadatek is simply returned, without doubling.
| Situation | Zadatek | Zaliczka |
|---|---|---|
| You pull out | the seller keeps the amount | you get it back, but the seller can claim damages |
| The seller pulls out | he pays you double | you get it back |
What tax do you pay?
On an existing home you pay 2% transfer tax on the market value. It is called PCC, in full podatek od czynności cywilnoprawnych, and the buyer pays it.
You do not have to file a return yourself. The notary collects the amount on the day of the deed and pays it over.
Since 2023 there has been an exemption for people buying their first home. According to the Polish Ministry of Finance, homes owned outside Poland count towards that. On that reading, a buyer who already owns a home in another country does not qualify.
On a home of 500,000 zł the difference is 10,000 zł. The notary decides which rate is withheld.
New builds bought from a developer work differently. There is no PCC on those but VAT, included in the asking price.
At the notary: deed, interpreter and power of attorney
In Poland property is transferred only by notarial deed. A private sale contract does not make you the owner.
The notary cannot charge what he likes. A regulation of the Polish Ministry of Justice sets maximum fees. Lower is allowed, higher is not.
When you buy a home, or a single-family house with its land, half the normal scale applies. At 500,000 zł the maximum is 1,385 zł: half of 1,010 zł plus 0.4% on the part above 60,000 zł. For a building plot or land without a house the full scale applies, which comes to 2,770 zł. In both cases 23% VAT is added.
The deed is drawn up in Polish. If you do not speak the language, the notary brings in a sworn interpreter.
If you cannot be there, a power of attorney works. It has to be notarial, because it follows the form of the transaction. If you sign it outside Poland, it needs an apostille and a sworn translation. At a Polish consulate that is not needed.
For the money there is the notarial deposit. The notary holds the purchase price and pays it out only when both parties have done what they agreed. The fee for that is half of the same maximum, calculated on the amount held.
| Cost item | At 500,000 zł | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Transfer tax PCC, 2% | 10,000 zł | paid by the buyer, withheld by the notary |
| Notary, legal maximum | 1,385 zł plus 23% VAT | for a home or a house with land; lower is allowed, higher is not |
| Registering ownership in the land register | 200 zł | fixed amount |
| Registering the claim from the preliminary contract | 150 zł | optional, fixed amount |
| Sworn interpreter at the deed | no fixed rate | needed if you do not speak Polish |
| Notarial deposit | half the fee, on the amount deposited | optional |
What the notary asks if you are married
If you are married, the notary wants to know when and where the marriage took place and which matrimonial property regime applies. That decides whether you buy alone or together, and whose assets the house becomes part of.
Expect to be asked for the marriage certificate, and for any prenuptial agreement, with sworn Polish translations. Send your details well before the appointment rather than on the day itself, or the deed will be postponed.
Ask for the draft deed a few days in advance. Then you can read at your own pace what exactly you are buying, instead of seeing it for the first time with the interpreter sitting next to you.
After the deed: registration and the IN-1 form
The notary files the application for entry in the land register. The court fee for that is 200 zł.
For a home that already has a land register, you are the owner from the moment of the deed. The entry records that, it does not decide it.
There is no legal deadline for the entry. The wait differs per court, from a few weeks to several months.
Within fourteen days of the purchase an IN-1 form has to go to the municipality. That is the basis for property tax, the podatek od nieruchomości.
What we check for you on the spot
We live in Poland and work with you in English. We have no properties of our own and earn nothing from the selling side. For a home you have your eye on, we go there in person, read the land register and find out who the seller really is. What such a home will cost in total, purchase price, renovation and running costs together, is on how much a house costs in Poland. How we work is on the homepage.
Outline based on public Polish sources: biznes.gov.pl, gov.pl, Prawo.pl, the act on the acquisition of property by foreigners, the act on court fees and the Ministry of Justice regulation on maximum notary fees. Amounts as of August 2026. This is not legal or tax advice.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a permit to buy a house in Poland?
Not if you are a citizen of an EU or EEA country or of Switzerland. Other nationalities, UK and US citizens included, generally need a permit from the Polish Ministry of the Interior for a house with land; a flat that is a separate unit is generally exempt. Check your own case with the notary before you sign.
Do I pay 2% transfer tax, or do I qualify for the exemption?
The exemption is meant for people buying their first home. The Polish Ministry of Finance counts homes owned abroad. If you already own a home in another country, it stays at 2%, so 10,000 zł on 500,000 zł.
What is the difference between a notarial and a private preliminary contract?
With a notarial preliminary contract you can force completion if the seller changes his mind. With a private one you are left with a claim for money. The claim from a notarial preliminary contract can also be recorded in the land register, for 150 zł.
Does there have to be an interpreter at the deed?
The deed is in Polish. If you do not speak the language, the notary arranges a translation or a sworn interpreter.
Can I buy without travelling to Poland?
Yes, with a notarial power of attorney. If you sign it outside Poland, you need an apostille and a sworn translation. At a Polish consulate the apostille is not needed.
A house in mind?
Send the link to the listing or describe what you are looking for. You will get an answer within two working days from someone who knows the area.
Or email us directly at info@huiskopeninpolen.nl.