Documents for Poland from Lviv: Work, Study, Karta Polaka, Karta Pobytu

Work in Poland: work permit and employment

For employment and employer-side legalisation in Poland you most often need a criminal-record certificate with an apostille, a diploma or school certificate, and sometimes proof of work experience or qualifications. The exact list depends on the voivodeship, the permit type and the employer's requirements, so the final list should be agreed in advance.

The criminal-record certificate is issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which has also apostilled its own documents since 2023. For a diploma or school certificate the apostille is placed by the Ministry of Education and Science. Etalon receives your scans online, agrees the list, submits the documents for apostille in Kyiv on your behalf, and produces the Polish translation.

To submit to an employer or an urzad you usually need a sworn (przysięgły) translation. For a preliminary review or internal steps a notarized translation is sometimes enough - we will advise what fits your case before you pay for anything extra.

Study and diploma nostrification

To enrol at a Polish university you usually need a school certificate or diploma with its supplement, an apostille on the educational documents, and a Polish translation. The apostille on school certificates, diplomas and supplements is placed by the Ministry of Education and Science - a separate procedure with longer turnaround, which we handle for you in Kyiv.

Translation requirements depend on the university: some accept an ordinary certified translation, others only a sworn one. We recommend confirming the required translation form with the admissions office, and Etalon will produce the appropriate level with its own sworn translators.

Nostrification (recognition of a diploma) in Poland is a separate process handled by the Polish university or education curator; its cost and timing are set by the Polish side, and the final decision on accepting the documents rests with them. Our role is to prepare the Ukrainian documents so they meet the requirements: apostille via the Ministry of Education and Science and a correct sworn translation.

Karta Polaka: preparing proof-of-origin documents

The Karta Polaka is handled by the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland, and the consulate itself sets the translation form and the list of documents - which depends on the individual case, so the final list should be checked against current consular rules. Note: the Consulate General in Lviv covers three western oblasts - Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia; the Chernivtsi oblast belongs to the district of the Consulate General in Vinnytsia, not to the Lviv one.

For the application you usually need documents proving Polish origin - birth and marriage records, archival extracts for ancestors - and their translations. These are often old handwritten or archival documents, so the translation calls for particular care.

Etalon helps with translating archival and civil documents into Polish using its own sworn translators. You send scans online, post originals by Nova Poshta if needed, and we return the finished translations - regardless of which consular district you belong to, because we work remotely.

Karta pobytu (residence permit) and legalising your stay

For a karta pobytu - a temporary or permanent residence permit - depending on the grounds you may need birth or marriage certificates, criminal-record certificates, or documents about your work or studies. The list depends on the permit type and your situation, so it is put together individually.

Some of these documents must be apostilled in Ukraine and then translated into Polish. We submit the apostille on your behalf to the relevant Kyiv ministry: the Ministry of Justice for civil and notarial documents, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Ministry of Internal Affairs certificates, and the Ministry of Education and Science for educational documents. We then produce the sworn translation for submission to the urzad.

We do not arrange the karta pobytu itself and do not file applications with Polish authorities - you or your representative in Poland do that, and the urzad makes the final decision. Etalon is responsible for the Ukrainian side: apostille and a correct translation.

Sworn vs notarized translation vs apostille: what is what

These are three different things that are often confused. An apostille certifies the origin of a Ukrainian document for Hague Convention countries - it is placed only by the relevant ministries in Kyiv. A notarized translation is a translation whose translator's signature is certified by a Ukrainian notary; it is accepted for some procedures. A sworn (przysięgły) translation is a translation prepared to Polish requirements for submission to Polish institutions.

For Poland the logic is usually: first the apostille on the original (if the document needs one), then a sworn translation of the already-apostilled document. For some internal steps a notarized translation is enough.

An honest clarification: sworn translation is our service, performed by Etalon's own sworn translators. At the same time, a Polish tlumacz przysiegly is a translator registered with the Polish Ministry of Justice; if your institution strictly requires the signature of such a specialist, we will tell you so honestly.

How it works online from Lviv

Etalon has no office in Lviv - and we say so honestly. The whole engagement is remote: you send scans or photos of your documents via messenger, receive a quote and a deadline, and we deliver the finished translations by Nova Poshta to any branch in Lviv or the oblast.

When an original is required (for example, for an apostille or to bind a sworn translation), you post it to us by Nova Poshta and we return the set the same way. We always submit the apostille to the Kyiv ministries on your behalf - you do not need to travel to Kyiv or to us.

Because the work is fully online, geography is no limit: besides Lviv we likewise prepare documents for Poland for clients in Ivano-Frankivsk, Uzhhorod, Ternopil and Chernivtsi. That is our service area thanks to the remote format, not the Lviv consular district.

How we work

1. 1Send scans and your purposeSend photos or scans of your documents via Telegram, Viber or WhatsApp and state the purpose: work, study, Karta Polaka or karta pobytu.
2. 2Get a quoteWe agree the list, the translation type (sworn or notarized), whether an apostille is needed, the exact price and the deadline.
3. 3Apostille and translationIf needed, we submit the documents for apostille to the Kyiv ministries on your behalf and produce the Polish translation with our own sworn translators.
4. 4Nova Poshta deliveryWe send the finished set by Nova Poshta to Lviv or the oblast; we return the originals too if needed.

Prices

• Sworn Polish translation (przysięgły) per 1125 characters; Etalon's own sworn translatorsfrom UAH 390
• Sworn translation of a diploma/certificate with supplement depending on the supplement's lengthfrom UAH 1300
• Notarized translation of a document per document + notary feefrom UAH 200
• Apostille on a document + state fee; submitted to the Kyiv ministries on your behalffrom UAH 500
• Apostille on educational documents + state fee; Ministry of Education and Science, longer turnaroundfrom UAH 950
• Rush service surcharge of +30-50% on the base rate+30%

All prices are indicative "from" figures in UAH; the final cost depends on the document type, length, whether an apostille is needed and urgency. The apostille state fee is paid separately.

FAQ