Countries · Poland
Certified translation for documents used in Poland
Moving to Poland, enrolling a child in school, seeing a doctor, or renting a car? Most everyday paperwork only needs a certified translation with the PRAVIS bureau seal — not a sworn (przysięgły) translator. We tell you honestly which one your case needs.
Documents translated for Poland
Families and travellers most often send us birth and marriage certificates for registering life events, school records and certificates for enrolling a child, vaccination cards and medical history for a clinic or insurer, and a driving licence to rent a car locally. We also prepare document packs for people applying for a visa to visit or join family in Poland from outside the EU, and for informal submissions where an institution simply wants a readable, certified version of a foreign-language original.
If you are unsure which document you actually need translated — the certificate itself, an extract, or an apostilled copy — send a scan first and describe the purpose. We will tell you what is required before you pay for anything you don't need.
Bureau seal or a sworn translator (przysięgły)?
Poland allows a wide range of institutions — schools, kindergartens, private clinics, insurers, car-rental companies, and many employers — to accept a certified translation carrying a bureau seal, without requiring a sworn translator. This is exactly where PRAVIS fits: fast, affordable, and legitimate for the purpose.
Some procedures are different by law. Courts (sąd), the civil registry office (urząd stanu cywilnego) recording a foreign birth, marriage or death, and certain steps handled by the voivodeship office (urząd wojewódzki) for residence permits, generally require translation by a tłumacz przysięgły registered with the Polish Ministry of Justice. If your case falls here, we will tell you plainly and help you understand the next step, rather than sell you a bureau-stamped translation that the office will reject.
Send your Poland documents for a quote
Scan or photo through the form — we'll confirm whether the bureau seal is enough or a sworn translator is needed, and quote the price. Wrocław office, delivery worldwide.
Send files nowApostille for documents used in Poland
Poland is a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention. A document issued in another convention country — for example a foreign birth certificate presented to a Polish authority — may need an apostille from the competent authority in the country where it was issued before it is accepted as an authentic public document in Poland. The apostille legalises the original (or an official copy); it does not replace translation, and we do not issue apostilles ourselves.
As a general rule, the apostille is obtained first, then the document — including the apostille certificate itself — is translated. Requirements vary by receiving institution and by the type of document, so this is general guidance, not a guarantee of acceptance. Always confirm the exact requirement with the Polish office or authority you are dealing with before you submit.
How the process works from Wrocław
Everything runs by mail, so you can be anywhere in the world. Send a scan or photo of your documents together with the purpose (school, medical, car rental, visa, other) and the receiving institution if you know it. We reply, usually within 5–7 minutes, with a price and a recommendation on whether a bureau-stamped translation is enough or a sworn translator is required.
Once you confirm, we translate and apply the PRAVIS bureau seal. Finished translations are delivered as a certified digital PDF, and by courier or mail if the receiving institution needs a physical stamped original. If you only have paper originals, you can post them to our Wrocław office; we return them together with the translation.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a sworn (przysięgły) translator for Poland, or is the bureau seal enough?
It depends on where the document is going. Schools, clinics, insurers and car-rental firms usually accept a bureau-stamped certified translation. Courts, civil registry offices and some residence-permit steps require a sworn translator — we will tell you which applies to your case.
Can PRAVIS apply for an apostille on my behalf?
We can advise when an apostille is likely needed and in what order, but the apostille itself is issued by the competent authority in the country where the original document was issued, not by us.
Will a certified translation guarantee my visa application to Poland is accepted?
No. We produce an accurate, properly certified translation of your documents; the decision on any visa or residence application always rests with the relevant Polish authority.
Do I have to send original paper documents?
Usually a clear scan or photo is enough for a certified translation. Some institutions ask for a translation attached to a physical original — in that case we'll tell you where to mail it.
How long does a translation for Poland take?
Most requests receive a price and timeline within 5–7 minutes. Turnaround for the translation itself depends on document length and language pair.
Can you translate from Polish into another language too?
Yes. We work in both directions — into Polish for use in Poland, and from Polish documents for use abroad.
