You need an apostille on a Polish document - a diploma, a certificate, an official statement, a power of attorney - so it works abroad. You are in Warsaw, and that is good news: nearly every authority that issues apostilles sits right here. The catch is that different documents go to different institutions, so you cannot hand everything in at a single window. Let us go through which document goes where in Warsaw, how to book, and what it costs in 2026.
Where to take your document: the short map
In Warsaw, an apostille on Polish documents is issued by different authorities depending on the type of document: most official papers go to the Ministerstwo Spraw Zagranicznych (MSZ, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), university diplomas to NAWA, school certificates to the kuratorium oświaty, the matura certificate to the OKE (okręgowa komisja egzaminacyjna) that issued it, and notarial and court documents are first certified by the sąd okręgowy (the regional court). The MSZ apostille costs 60 PLN per document.
Getting the address wrong means queuing for nothing and coming back a second time. So work out the document type first, then set off.
| Type of document | Where to get the apostille in Warsaw |
|---|---|
| USC certificates, official statements, most official papers | MSZ |
| University diploma | NAWA (Narodowa Agencja Wymiany Akademickiej) |
| School certificate | Kuratorium oświaty |
| Matura certificate (świadectwo dojrzałości) | The OKE that issued it |
| Notarial and court documents | First the prezes sądu okręgowego, then MSZ |
Apostille at the MSZ
Most documents go here. The MSZ apostilles civil registry records (akty stanu cywilnego), criminal record certificates, and many other official papers. For how the MSZ handles certificates, we wrote in the article on the apostille of USC certificates.
How to file with the MSZ:
- in person, by appointment - the visit is booked in advance in the electronic booking system;
- through a representative - a proxy can submit the document for you;
- by post - by correspondence, if travelling in person is inconvenient.
The cost is 60 PLN in opłata skarbowa (stamp duty) per document. Poland still has no full electronic e-apostille in 2026 - the apostille is stamped onto the paper document with a wet seal; more on this in the article on e-apostille and electronic documents.
Diplomas and school certificates - not at the MSZ
A common mistake: people turn up at the MSZ with a diploma and get turned away. The ministry does not apostille education documents:
- a university diploma is apostilled through NAWA;
- a school certificate goes through the właściwe kuratorium oświaty (the competent regional education authority);
- a matura certificate (świadectwo dojrzałości) goes to the director of the OKE (okręgowa komisja egzaminacyjna, the regional examination board) that issued it.
We unpacked this whole chain in a separate article on the apostille on a diploma (MSZ, NAWA, kuratorium). In short - a diploma and a school certificate take different routes, and neither one runs through the foreign ministry.
Notarial and court documents
Powers of attorney, notarial deeds and court documents go through a two-step chain: first they are certified by the prezes sądu okręgowego (the president of the regional court), and only then does the MSZ stamp the apostille. How this works, we described in the article on the apostille of powers of attorney and notarial documents.
Timelines, cost and translation
What to budget in time and money:
- cost - 60 PLN per document at the MSZ and the same at NAWA for a diploma, while the kuratorium and the OKE apostille free of charge;
- timelines depend on how you file and how busy the authority is - it is faster in person, slower by post;
- translation - to use an apostilled document abroad you usually also need a sworn translation (tłumacz przysięgły, a sworn translator), and the apostille itself is translated too.
We do sworn translations together with the apostille, so the document comes out ready to file rather than bounced back for rework.
Why an apostille can be refused
Even in Warsaw you can walk away empty-handed. Common reasons: the document is the wrong type for that authority; a required prior certification is missing (for notarial documents, without the court step); the document was issued abroad (in which case the issuing country apostilles it, not Poland); or there are errors and inconsistencies in the document itself. A rundown of the typical refusals is in the article on why apostilles get refused. The basic order for Poland in general is in the piece on apostille in Poland.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I get an apostille in Warsaw? It depends on the document: most official papers and USC certificates go to the MSZ, a university diploma to NAWA, a school certificate to the kuratorium oświaty, a matura certificate to the OKE, and notarial and court documents are first certified by the sąd okręgowy before the MSZ stamps the apostille. All of these authorities are in Warsaw.
How much does an apostille at the MSZ cost? 60 PLN in opłata skarbowa per document. NAWA charges the same for a diploma, while the kuratorium and the OKE apostille school certificates free of charge. If you also need a sworn translation, that is paid for separately.
Do I need to book in advance? For an in-person visit to the MSZ - yes, the slot is booked in the electronic booking system. You can also file through a representative or by post, which is handy if travelling in person is inconvenient.
Can I apostille a diploma at the MSZ? No. The MSZ does not apostille education documents: a university diploma goes through NAWA, a school certificate through the kuratorium oświaty, a matura certificate through the OKE. A trip to the foreign ministry with a diploma ends in a refusal.
Do I need a translation after the apostille? As a rule, yes. To use it abroad, an apostilled document is translated by a sworn translator, and the apostille itself is translated too. We do the translation together with the apostille, so the document is ready to file straight away.
An apostille in Warsaw is less about difficulty than about logistics: the point is to hit the right authority first time, book your slot, and not forget the translation. Here in Warsaw we handle the apostille end to end for any type of document - from a certificate to a diploma or a power of attorney - and do the sworn translation at the same time. This is general information, not individual legal advice. So you do not have to trek between institutions, leave the apostille to us.