US Citizen with Polish spouse buying in Poland?

Is there any restriction, special procedure & regulation in doing this? I am a US citizen, my spouse is a Polish citizen but is getting US permanent resident status. What do I have to do? Is it as simple as finding the property we want, obtaining a mortgage and sign some documents and thats it? Your replies are appreciated. Thanks.

Are you planning on living in Poland?

Short Story:
Your Polish spouse - can buy whatever she wants
You - will need a permit for apartments (simple process) and will not be able to buy a house unless it becomes your permanent residence
Process - get pre-approved by Polish bank for mortgage, find a property, get permit, go to notary, bring translator, sign the papers. If you are not a cash buyer then you will probably do a pre-contract and later the final contract.
Mortgage - if self-employed will be impossible for US resident. Otherwise if good stable documented source of income then you will go through a long arduous process with the banks and should receive the credit.

Suggest you get pre-approved for mortgage from the US (may take a few months) and then travel to Poland for the purchase. Expect to spend a few weeks in Poland if buying with mortgage.


You should not jointly buy any property with your non-US citizen spouse for IRS estate purposes, no matter if it is in the US or abroad. She will pay inheritance tax from the first $1 if you are hit by a bus. (Consult a lawyer) So if the property is purchased solely in spouse's name, then the process is simplified on the Polish side, but you will need to be careful of gift-tax if you are helping to fund. If bought solely by you, again no problem, you just need the permit.

Sounds like I should buy under my name? I am already pre-qualified for a mortgage by a UK mortgage company. I am looking through allegro to see what my options are. I will be buying land and leave it there. We travel back to Poland for visit from time to time. Will this make it more difficult for me to obtain permit since i'm not a permanent resident? Where exactly do I go to obtain permit and can I do it from over here or my best bet is finding a trustworthy real estate agent to help me? Again thanks for all your inputs.

Ok, that is a different story. Foreigners cannot buy land before 2012. The exception is up to a total of .5 hectare (1.25 acre) of land for residential building purposes. Agricultural and forest land is out of the question. Your Polish spouse should be able to buy any land she wants, but not the 2 of you jointly.


It is very difficult to get a mortgage in Poland for pure land. So typically if you find a nice plot of land to build a house on you must pay for the land in cash, then get the mortgage to build a house. So make sure that the UK mortgage will allow you to buy land.


Try www.gratka.pl/dom

Permit process - for the apartment / house permit it should not matter that you are not resident. Pretty much just a formality

Estate Agent - Poland is a big town. What region are you planning to buy in? If you are still serious about buying land, you may want to contact these guys: http://www.plotspy.pl/ I have never used them, so I can't vouch for them.

Good Luck

I'm curious about this - do you mean that the UK mortgage is secured against the Polish land/property? You'd be the first person I've ever heard of to arrange a deal like this...