PESEL and meldunek in Warsaw for foreigners in 2026: in-person visit, landlord consent and how we accompany you

If you are not from the EU, your PESEL normally arrives on its own: when you register your stay (meldunek) for more than 30 days, the municipal office asks for the number itself. You must register no later than the fourth day after arriving at the address, and while you have no PESEL you must do it in person. If you cannot register, for example because the landlord will not confirm your stay, a PESEL is requested with a separate application, also in person, stating the legal basis.

If you would rather not search on your own, we can find a rental for you.

Checked on 07.10.2026. Legal basis: the Population Register Act (ustawa o ewidencji ludności), consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 poz. 384; links at the end. This is general information, not legal advice, and the office decides your case.

How do I get a PESEL after moving?

There are two routes, and the first is the common one.

Route 1: meldunek first, PESEL automatically. If you register for more than 30 days, the municipal office that handles the registration requests the number itself (art. 17 ust. 1 pkt 2). The gov.pl page for foreigners, updated 23.03.2026, says the same. You file nothing extra and pay nothing. How long the number takes to appear is not stated anywhere official; it depends on the office.

Route 2: a separate application. This one is for when you cannot register but still need a PESEL. The application is on paper, signed by hand, and goes to any municipal office (art. 18 ust. 1). It must state the legal basis, meaning the provision that obliges you to have a PESEL (art. 18 ust. 2). The Warszawa 19115 page (23.06.2026) adds that if another institution, such as ZUS or the tax office, demands the number, it should tell you the basis too. If the application has defects, the office gives you 7 days to fix them, otherwise it is left unprocessed (art. 18 ust. 3). Filing is free.

The minister responsible for digitalisation assigns the number, and the Act treats assigning it as a technical act rather than a decision (art. 16); the Warsaw page also says there is no appeal in this matter. So neither we nor anyone else can promise the outcome in advance.

Do I have to go to the office in person in 2026?

Yes, if you are not a citizen of an EU or EFTA state or Switzerland. Since 1 January 2026, amendments made by the Act of 12.09.2025 (Dz.U. 2025 poz. 1301) require a personal visit in two situations:

• when applying for a PESEL (art. 18 ust. 1a);
• when registering your stay, if you do not yet have a PESEL (art. 40 ust. 3).

The Act exempts children born in Poland (art. 18 ust. 1a). EU, EFTA and Swiss citizens and their family members are not bound by this. UK nationals covered by the Withdrawal Agreement and their family members, and, for registering a stay, family members of Polish citizens, are also exempt from the personal-appearance rule (art. 18 ust. 1a pt 2, art. 40 ust. 3, art. 41 ust. 2a). The online “Zamelduj się” service on gov.pl is also open only to them; non-EU citizens in Warsaw are asked to come to the office with documents proving their legal stay (Warszawa 19115, page of 06.07.2026).

Can I use a power of attorney?

For a first registration and for a PESEL application, a non-EU citizen without a PESEL cannot, on the text of the Act. The general rule does allow registration through a pełnomocnik (art. 24 ust. 4, form per art. 33 § 2 of the Code of Administrative Procedure), but for you it is overridden by the personal-appearance rule in art. 40 ust. 3. If you have read that a PESEL “can be requested through a pełnomocnik”, check the date of the page: that is what older gov.pl and Zielona Linia pages, written before 2026, say, so it describes the rules before 2026.

The limit in art. 40 ust. 3 applies only to people without a PESEL. How offices handle a power of attorney for a later change of address, once you do have the number, you should ask the specific office. The power of attorney itself carries 17 zł stamp duty (part IV of the annex to the Stamp Duty Act).

What is the deadline for meldunek?

For non-EU citizens it is short: no later than the fourth day, counting from the day you arrive at the address (art. 41 ust. 3). The condition is that your stay in Poland will exceed 30 days; for a stay of up to 30 days there is no obligation (art. 42 ust. 2). EU, EFTA and Swiss citizens have a different deadline, the 30th day (art. 41 ust. 1).

Two more points from the Act. First, the period of stay you declare cannot be longer than your lawful stay under your document, that is, your visa or visa-free entry (art. 41 ust. 4). Second, a non-EU citizen who fails the registration duty is liable to a fine (grzywna, art. 59 ust. 1); whether and how often it is applied, we did not check.

Does the landlord have to consent to meldunek?

For a paper registration the Act requires confirmation of your stay from the owner or another person with a legal title to the premises (art. 28 ust. 2; art. 40 ust. 1 extends this to foreigners). In practice two situations hide behind this question, and Warszawa 19115 describes them separately too.

You have no contract of your own for the flat. Say you stay with acquaintances on a verbal arrangement. Then your stay is confirmed by the owner or another person with a legal title to the premises: on the paper form that is the signature in box 6, and you also need to show a document proving the owner’s own title (art. 28 ust. 2; Warszawa 19115, 06.07.2026). That document can be a land-register extract or a contract. This is the general rule for registration, and art. 40 ust. 1 extends it to foreigners.

The lease is in your name. The Act lists a civil-law contract among the documents that prove a legal title (art. 28 ust. 2b), and Warszawa 19115 says that if you have a legal title, for example a lease, you bring the document “for inspection” (do wglądu). Who signs box 6 in that case the page does not say: it reads “the owner or another entity with a legal title to the flat”. A tenant under a lease has a legal title too, so one can read the rule as letting the tenant confirm their own stay. But neither the Act nor the Warsaw page says so, and what a particular clerk will do is unknown in advance: it is a matter of office practice, best checked before you go. We would advise asking the landlord to sign box 6 beforehand and carrying a copy of the document showing their right to the flat, so the visit does not fail on one clerk’s reading. That is our advice, not a requirement of the law.

Is the landlord obliged to sign? We found no provision in the Act that would force them. So it is a matter of agreement: raise it before you sign the lease, not on day four after you land. When you talk to the landlord, art. 28 ust. 4 helps: registration serves record-keeping purposes only and confirms the fact that a person is staying at the address. It is an argument for the conversation, not a guarantee of consent.

What if the listing says “bez meldunku”?

Some landlords do not want their tenant registered. A “bez meldunku” line in a listing does not cancel your duty: a non-EU citizen staying more than 30 days must register by the fourth day (art. 41 ust. 3), and without the owner’s confirmation a paper registration may not go through: much depends on whether the office accepts the tenant’s own signature. So:

1. Ask about meldunek before the viewing or before signing, and ask in writing.
2. If the landlord refuses, decide in advance: find another flat or accept the risk. We do not assess a lease clause that forbids registration: the sources do not confirm outright whether such a clause is lawful, and that is a question for a lawyer, not for us.
3. The landlord’s refusal does not take away your right to file a separate PESEL application if you have a legal basis. But it does not replace meldunek: a PESEL and a registration of stay are different procedures.

How is PESEL UKR different?

This is a separate track for people who came from Ukraine because of the war. A PESEL with UKR status is issued on application at any municipal office, and the application must be filed within 30 days of crossing the border; otherwise the protection lapses (art. 110a ust. 1–2 and art. 109b ust. 1 pkt 1 of the Act on Granting Protection to Foreigners, as amended by Dz.U. 2026 poz. 203, in force since 05.03.2026). Protection also lapses if you leave Poland for more than 30 days. The deadline for confirming identity with a passport, for those who got the status on a declaration without presenting a valid travel document, ran out on 31.08.2026; whoever did not confirm has UKR replaced by NUE from 01.09.2026, which means losing temporary protection (Zielona Linia, 03.08.2026). If your basis of stay is different, for instance a residence card, you follow the general route in this article. The Ukraine rules have changed several times, so check gov.pl/web/ua before you go.

What does it cost and what should I bring?

Item	Cost
Meldunek (filing)	0 zł
Assigning a PESEL	0 zł
Certificate of temporary registration (zaświadczenie)	17 zł
Power of attorney (where it applies)	17 zł

Figures as of 07.10.2026: gov.pl pages of 23.03.2026 and 11.03.2026; Warszawa 19115 pages of 23.06.2026 and 06.07.2026. You pay for the certificate at the district office cashier, at a payment terminal (opłatomat) where there is one, or by bank transfer.

Bring for meldunek (temporary stay):

• your passport;
• the document that shows your stay is lawful: a visa, or just the passport if you entered visa-free; for other bases, such as a residence card, that card (art. 43 ust. 3; Warszawa 19115);
• the “Zgłoszenie pobytu czasowego” form, one per person including each child, with the period of stay filled in;
• your lease and, just in case, box 6 signed by the owner plus the document showing the owner’s right to the flat (shown do wglądu; ask whether a copy is accepted, for example a land-register extract);
• 17 zł if you want the certificate.

Bring for a PESEL application without meldunek: your passport, the application stating the legal basis and signed by you personally, and documents supporting the data in items 3–5 of the form (Warszawa 19115, 23.06.2026).

Do you need an appointment? The Warszawa 19115 pages do not make one compulsory: you may reserve a visit in the booking system, and documents are accepted at any branch of the Office of Administration and Civic Affairs, whatever the district. The city says an application is handled niezwłocznie, “without delay”; in real life the queue and the timing depend on the office.

How do we accompany you to the office?

If you are choosing a flat in Warsaw with allproperty, we help you get through this step without wasted trips:

• We go with you. We come to the office with you at a time agreed beforehand.
• We fill in the forms. We prepare the registration form and the PESEL application from your details; you check and sign them yourself.
• We interpret orally. We help you talk to the clerk in English, Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, German, Italian, Turkish or Spanish. This is oral interpreting, not a sworn translator (tłumacz przysięgły), and it is not legal advice.

What we do not do: we do not obtain a PESEL “for you”, we do not replace your personal appearance, and we do not promise the office will decide one way or another. Timing depends on the office. Help with PESEL and the office visit is included in the fee for finding the flat, with no separate charge. We agree exactly what we do with you before the visit.

If you are looking for a flat in Warsaw and want to understand the paperwork in advance, fill in the form on the tenants page. Finding a flat costs 70% of one month’s rent (czynsz najmu only, excluding czynsz administracyjny and utilities), paid after the lease (umowa najmu) is signed, on an invoice without VAT. Example: rent of 3,500 zł means a fee of 2,450 zł. What to check in a lease we covered separately: what to look for in a rental agreement, and the papers you need to rent are listed in the article on documents.

The cover illustration was generated by AI and does not show a real place.

Sources (checked 07.10.2026)

• Act of 24.09.2010 on the population register (ustawa o ewidencji ludności), consolidated text, Dz.U. 2026 poz. 384: art. 16, 17, 18, 24, 28, 40, 41, 42, 43, 59.
• Act of 12.09.2025, Dz.U. 2025 poz. 1301: personal appearance from 01.01.2026.
• Act of 23.01.2026, Dz.U. 2026 poz. 203: PESEL UKR, art. 109b, 110a.
• gov.pl: Get a PESEL ID – a service for foreigners (updated 23.03.2026).
• Stamp Duty Act of 16.11.2006, consolidated text, Dz.U. 2025 poz. 1154: annex, part IV, 17 zł for a power of attorney; the 17 zł for the registration certificate is confirmed by the Warszawa 19115 page (06.07.2026).
• gov.pl: Register your stay (Zamelduj się) for foreigners (updated 11.03.2026).
• Warszawa 19115: PESEL for non-EU/EFTA foreigners (23.06.2026).
• Warszawa 19115: temporary-stay registration of foreigners (06.07.2026).
• Zielona Linia: duty to confirm identity for UKR status holders (03.08.2026).