Polish office words from Poland, explained
The words you see in official letters in Poland, in plain English.
- awizo
- Notice from the post office that a registered letter is waiting for you.
- czynsz
- Rent. It can also mean the monthly fee to the housing association or cooperative.
- decyzja
- Official decision by an office. It becomes final if you don’t appeal in time.
- doręczenie
- Delivery — the day you received the letter. Most deadlines start from this day.
- e-Doręczenia
- Electronic registered mail for official letters. A letter sent there counts like a registered letter on paper.
- e-Sąd
- Online court for payment orders (elektroniczne postępowanie upominawcze, EPU). Debt collectors use it a lot.
- e-Urząd Skarbowy
- The tax office’s online service on podatki.gov.pl. You can file returns, pay and write to the office there.
- egzekucja
- Enforcement. Collecting a debt by force, for example from your bank account or wages.
- ePUAP
- Online platform for writing to Polish offices. You log in with a profil zaufany.
- grzywna
- Fine. Money you pay as a penalty.
- karta pobytu
- Residence card. The plastic card that shows your residence permit.
- kaucja
- Deposit, usually for a rented flat. The owner must return it within 1 month after you move out, minus money you still owe.
- komornik
- Court bailiff. Collects debts by force for a creditor, based on a court order.
- mandat
- Fine for a minor offence, for example from the police or the city guard.
- meldunek
- Registering your address at the town or city office.
- najem okazjonalny
- Occasional lease. A rental contract with a notary statement that makes eviction faster.
- nakaz zapłaty
- Court payment order. The court orders you to pay without a hearing first.
- nieodpłatna pomoc prawna
- Free legal help at local advice points. Anyone who can’t afford a lawyer can use it.
- NIP
- Tax ID number. If you don’t run a business, you usually use your PESEL instead.
- odsetki
- Interest. Extra money added because you paid late.
- odwołanie
- Appeal against a decision. You usually send it through the office that made the decision.
- okres wypowiedzenia
- Notice period. The time between the notice and the end of the contract.
- opłata skarbowa
- Stamp duty. A fee for some official documents and permits, paid to the town or city.
- pełnomocnictwo
- Power of attorney. A signed paper that lets someone else act for you, for example a lawyer or a friend.
- PESEL
- Your 11-digit Polish personal ID number. Offices use it to find your file.
- PIT
- Personal income tax, and the yearly tax return forms (PIT-37, PIT-36…).
- postanowienie
- Ruling on one step in a case, not the final decision. Some rulings can be challenged with a complaint (zażalenie).
- pouczenie
- Instructions at the end of a letter. They explain your rights: if you can appeal, where, and by when.
- profil zaufany
- Free online ID for Polish public services. You use it to log in and sign forms online.
- przedawnienie
- Expiry of a claim after a time limit, often 3 or 6 years. After that, a court usually can’t make a consumer pay.
- przywrócenie terminu
- Reopening a deadline you missed through no fault of your own, for example because you were in hospital.
- rozłożenie na raty
- Paying a debt in instalments.
- skarga
- Complaint. For example to an administrative court (sąd administracyjny), or about what a bailiff did (skarga na czynności komornika).
- składka
- Contribution, for example for social or health insurance.
- sprzeciw
- Objection, for example to a court payment order (nakaz zapłaty). If you send it in time, the order stops and the court looks at the case properly.
- sygnatura akt
- Court case number. Write it on every letter to the court or bailiff.
- termin
- Deadline or date. “W terminie 14 dni” means “within 14 days”.
- tytuł wykonawczy
- The official paper that allows a debt to be collected by force.
- umorzenie
- Cancelling a debt, or closing a case. Check which one your letter means.
- upomnienie
- Official reminder to pay. If you don’t pay within 7 days of delivery, enforcement can start.
- Urząd Skarbowy
- Tax office (US). It handles income tax and other state taxes.
- uzasadnienie
- The reasons for a decision. Read it to see what to argue in an appeal.
- wezwanie
- Official request. They want you to do something — come in, send papers or pay — by a set date.
- wypowiedzenie
- Notice to end a contract, for example for a flat, a job or a phone contract.
- zajęcie
- Seizure. Money is taken from your bank account, wages or benefits to pay a debt.
- zaległość
- Arrears. Money you should have paid already.
- zażalenie
- Complaint against a ruling (postanowienie). The deadline is usually 7 days from delivery.
- zezwolenie na pobyt
- Residence permit, for example temporary (czasowy) or permanent (stały).
- znak sprawy
- Case reference of an office. Write it on every reply.
- ZUS
- Social Insurance Institution. It collects contributions and pays pensions, sick pay and 800+.