U.S. Embassy In Poland

Overview

Notarial services are for all nationalities and are by appointment only. Normally the document to be notarized is for use within the United States, although there may be exceptions. If you have multiple documents to be notarized, you should only make one appointment.

The cost for notarization of a document is 50 USD for each seal affixed, not per document notarized.

Payments for a notarial service are made online through the pay.gov service on the day of the appointment at the Embassy. Please bring your credit/debit card with you to the appointment. You will need the card information to pay online. Please check Payment Methods & Details

Most U.S. states and the District of Columbia allow remote online notarization (RON) service. Please contact a lawyer you trust in your state to inquire about that possibility. You can also easily find such services online. The American Bar Association might also be of help explaining the procedure.

On the day of your appointment, you must:

• Bring the complete, unsigned documents to be notarized. Even if there are pages that do not require signature or seals, you must present the entire packet. The embassy/consulate staff cannot assemble your documents for you or provide legal advice on their preparation.
• Present a valid government-issued ID such as a passport or driver’s license. The name on the documents must be the same as the name on your ID.
• Pay $50 per notary seal. Please bring your physical card. The notarial service fee of $50 USD per seal must be paid via pay.gov at the time of your appointment. Please check Payment Methods & Details
• Be of sound mind and understand the document you want notarized. Consular staff is not permitted to explain contents to you.
• If your notary service requires a witness, you must arrange for your own witnesses. Consular staff cannot witness your documents.

Examples of Notarial Services Performed At No Charge

DS-3053: To notarize a DS-3053 Statement of Consent: Issuance of a U.S. Passport To a Minor Under Age 16 (PDF, 345K), please review the instructions listed on the form, the information fields that must be completed, and bring your original, valid, government-issued photo ID as well as a photocopy of both sides. As the U.S. Department of State requires that this form be notarized, this service is performed free of charge.

Power of Attorney (in conjunction with U.S. passport applications): When both parents are unable to be personally present to apply for a minor’s U.S. passport, and they wish to designate a third party to do so, they may sign a power of attorney (POA) before a notary public. This POA must contain specific data fields; see a sample.  Note that photocopies of both sides of each parents’ original, valid, government-issued photo ID must be included with the POA. As the U.S. Department of State requires that this form be notarized, this service is performed free of charge.

At the Direct Request of a U.S. Municipal, State or Federal Entity

At the Direct Request of a Foreign Government

Documents We Do Not Notarize

Apostille

An apostille is a validation stamp ensuring that a particular document is recognized in countries outside its origin. The stamp must be issued by the authority which issued the original document.  If you have a U.S. document which needs an apostille, you must contact The Secretary of State in the State where the document was issued. Authorities and procedures for obtaining an apostille is found through the National Association of State Secretaries’ website .

The Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents came into force in Poland on August 14, 2005. As of that date, the Embassy terminated the procedure of legalization/authentication of public documents executed in Poland for legal use in the United States.

Polish public documents (e.g. court records, vital statistics documents) for use in the United States are certified by the Legalization Department of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs by means of an apostille. The document with affixed apostille does not require any further authentication by the Embassy. In order to obtain an apostille on a Polish public document please contact:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Krucza 38/42, 00-512 Warsaw
phone: +48 22 250 01 16.

The Embassy is not authorized to provide apostilles or assist in obtaining them.

Authentications

The service of authentication is generally referred to as issuing a verification stamp on documents in the same ways as an apostille, when the document is to be used in a country which has not signed on for the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement for Legalization of Foreign Public Documents. As with requests for apostilles, authentications of such documents should be referred to the authority which issued the document.

Certified Copy

The embassy does not authenticate or make certified copies of criminal records checks, diplomas or transcripts, copies of vital records or medallion signatures.

The Embassy does not provide certified copies of official documents issued in the U.S.

• How to obtain certified copies of birth, marriage and death certificates and divorce decrees .
• How to obtain a new Consular Report of Birth Abroad from the U.S. State Department .
• How to obtain a certified copy of a Report of Death of an American Citizen Abroad from the U.S. State Department .

Medallion Signature Guarantee: The Embassy does not issue Medallion Signature Guarantees. More information .

Schedule an appointment

For general American Citizen Services information please see this site.