Tourist visa for Poland: documents, fees and steps

Documents requested

Passport valid for at least 3 months after the planned exit from the Schengen area, with at least two blank pages, issued less than 10 years agoConditions and details
The travel document must remain valid for at least three months after the planned date of exit from the Schengen area or, in the case of multiple visits, after the planned date of the last exit. It contains at least two blank pages and was issued within the last ten years.
Completed and signed visa application formThe Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs requires a completed and signed visa application form, and invites applicants to register on the e-Konsulat system to submit an application.
One photographThe ministry's list requires a photograph.
Proof of payment of the visa feeThe ministry's list requires proof of payment of the visa fee.
Travel medical insurance of at least 30 000 euros, valid throughout the entire Schengen area for the entire duration of the stayConditions and details
The insurance covers at least 30 000 euros, is valid throughout the entire territory of the Schengen area and covers the entire duration of the planned stay or transit; for a multiple-entry visa, it covers the first planned visit. It covers all expenses related to repatriation for medical reasons, a medical emergency, urgent hospitalization or death.
Document confirming the purpose of the tripConditions and details
Among the supporting documents, the list requires a document confirming the purpose of the trip. The supporting documents may vary depending on the country where the application is submitted; the competent consular post provides the details.
Proof of sufficient financial means for the stay and the returnConditions and details
A document confirms that the applicant has sufficient financial resources to cover their subsistence costs during the entire planned stay and their return to the country of origin or residence, or their transit to a third country that will admit them, or that they can legally obtain these means.
Document relating to accommodation, or proof of sufficient financial means to pay for itThe list requires a document concerning accommodation, or proof of sufficient financial resources to cover accommodation costs.
Document allowing assessment that the applicant will leave the Schengen area before the visa expiresThe list requires a document allowing assessment that the applicant will leave the Schengen area before their visa expires.

Depending on your situation

Collection of fingerprints and photograph when submitting the application, except for fingerprints taken for a Schengen visa within the last 59 monthsConditions and details
When a Schengen visa application is submitted, a photograph and fingerprints are collected. If the applicant has applied for a Schengen visa within the last 59 months and his or her fingerprints were taken at that time, he or she does not have to provide them again: the system reuses his or her data. The questionnaire does not collect this information: the condition must be verified by the applicant.

Official fees

Schengen Visa (type C) — application fees published by the Embassy of Poland in Berlin 90 €

Steps

Check jurisdiction: the competent consul is the one for the main destination Schengen State or, failing that, for the longest stay. A Polish post does not receive an application for a trip outside Poland unless it represents the State concerned.
On e-Konsulat, search for the country then choose the consular post to make an appointment.
Complete and sign the application form, then gather the documents from the ministry's list and the supporting documents requested by the consular post, which vary depending on the country of submission.
Pay the visa fees and attach proof of payment to the file.
Submit the application at the consular post; a photograph and fingerprints are collected, unless fingerprints have already been taken for a Schengen visa within the last 59 months.
Upon issuance, check the duration of stay entered on the visa: it is set for each visa.

Where to apply

e-Konsulat, appointment system of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs: selection of the country, then of the consular post
Competent Polish consular post, the consul issuing Schengen visas outside Polish territory

Good to know

Accommodation with a private individual: for example, confirmation of the registration of the invitation in the register of the voivode's officeConditions and details
Among the examples of proof of accommodation, the Embassy of Poland in Rabat cites the confirmation of the registration, in the register kept by the voivode's office (Urząd Wojewódzki), of an invitation to stay in Poland, issued at the request of the person inviting; for a hotel stay, it cites the hotel reservation. These are examples, not a closed list.
Visa with limited territorial validityConditions and details
A Schengen visa may have limited territorial validity: it is then valid only in one or more Schengen States, and not in all of them, always within the limit of 90 days per 180-day period.
Counting the 90 daysConditions and details
The 90 days may form one continuous stay or several successive stays whose total duration does not exceed 90 days over any 180-day period. For each day of intended stay, the 180 days preceding it are examined: at the border, the border guard goes back 180 days and counts the days already spent, for example according to the stamps. The European Commission offers an online calculator.
Border controlConditions and details
The visa does not guarantee entry. At the border, entry into Poland is refused in particular without a valid travel document, without a valid visa or residence permit, without documents justifying the purpose and conditions of the stay, without sufficient means of subsistence for the stay and the return, without a health insurance document, or after 90 days of stay during the preceding 180 days. An appeal is possible within 14 days to the Commander-in-Chief of the Border Guard, through the commander of the post that refused entry.
In the event of refusalConditions and details
Against a refusal of a Schengen visa, a request for reconsideration may be sent to the consul within 14 days following delivery of the decision; the consul examines it within 7 days. If the refusal is upheld, an appeal may be brought before the Voivodeship Administrative Court in Warsaw within 30 days following delivery of the new decision, through the consul who issued it.
Photograph formatConditions and details
According to the Embassy of Poland in Rabat, the photograph is in colour, 3.5 x 4.5 cm, sharp, on a white background, printed on good-quality paper and taken less than six months before the application; the face, facing forward, with eyes clearly open, occupies 70 to 80% of the photo, without head covering.
Documents and procedures specific to the consular postConditions and details
Each consular post sets out its own list. For example, the Embassy of Poland in Rabat receives applications in person, by appointment made via e-Konsulat, no earlier than 6 months and no later than 15 days before departure; it also requires a copy of the passport identity page, a copy of the identity document proving legal residence in Morocco or Mauritania and confirmation of outbound and return transport (a reservation is sufficient, without a paid ticket), and accepts originals only.
Schengen areaThe Schengen area comprises 29 States: all European Union countries except Ireland and Cyprus, as well as Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Nationalities covered

This procedure applies to 104 nationalities.

Afghanistan
Algeria
Angola
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belize
Benin
Bhutan
Bolivia
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Central African Republic
Chad
China
Comoros
Congo
Côte d'Ivoire
Cuba
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Djibouti
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Eswatini
Ethiopia
Fiji
Gabon
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Guyana
Haiti
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Jamaica
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Madagascar
Malawi
Maldives
Mali
Mauritania
Mongolia
Morocco
Mozambique
Myanmar
Namibia
Nepal
Niger
Nigeria
North Korea
Oman
Pakistan
Palestine
Papua New Guinea
Philippines
Qatar
Russia
Rwanda
São Tomé and Príncipe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
South Sudan
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Suriname
Syria
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Thailand
Togo
Tunisia
Türkiye
Turkmenistan
Uganda
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

Official links

VISAS - Ministry of Foreign Affairs Republic of Poland - Gov.pl website (new tab) www.gov.pl
Wiza typu C - złożenie wniosku - Polska w Maroku - Portal Gov.pl (new tab) www.gov.pl
Wizy - informacje ogólne - Polska w Maroku - Portal Gov.pl (new tab) www.gov.pl
Obliczanie pobytu krótkoterminowego - Ogólne zasady wjazdu i pobytu Komenda Główna Straży Granicznej (new tab) www.strazgraniczna.pl
Wjazd na terytorium Polski - Ogólne zasady wjazdu i pobytu Komenda Główna Straży Granicznej (new tab) www.strazgraniczna.pl
Wizy - Urząd do Spraw Cudzoziemców - Portal Gov.pl (new tab) www.gov.pl
Szef MSWiA o 40-leciu strefy Schengen: To fundamentalna część naszej wolności i europejskiej idei - Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych i Administracji - Portal Gov.pl (new tab) www.gov.pl
Urząd do Spraw Cudzoziemców (Office for Foreigners, Poland) (new tab) www.gov.pl
System Zdalnej Rejestracji (new tab) secure.e-konsulat.gov.pl
Wiza typu C – złożenie wniosku - Polska w Niemczech - Portal Gov.pl (new tab) www.gov.pl
Regulation - 2016/399 - EN - Schengen borders code - EUR-Lex (new tab) eur-lex.europa.eu
Wizy - Ministerstwo Spraw Zagranicznych - Portal Gov.pl (new tab) www.gov.pl

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