--- title: "Buying property in Poland: how it actually works | mScanner" description: "Plain-English guides to buying property in Poland as a foreigner: the permit, the notary, the land register, perpetual usufruct and the taxes. Written for readers with no Polish background." url: "https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland" lang: "en" updated: "2026-08-19" source: "mScanner" --- # Buying property in Poland > mScanner › Buying property in Poland Buying a home in Poland runs on a set of institutions that have no exact equivalent in most countries — a notary who does far more than witness a signature, a public land register anyone can read, a form of ownership that is not quite ownership. These guides explain each of them in plain English. ## Key facts - Written for people buying in Poland from outside it, so nothing is assumed to be common knowledge. - Every guide names the source it rests on and the date its legal position was last checked. - General explanation, not legal advice: a Polish notary or lawyer confirms how any of it applies to your purchase. ## Why these guides exist Most of what is written about the Polish property market is written for Poles, and it can afford to be. A Polish reader already knows what a *księga wieczysta* is, roughly what a notary charges and why nobody signs anything without one. A reader arriving from outside Poland has none of that background, and the gaps are expensive. You can lose a tax relief worth thousands of zloty because you own a flat in another country. A parking space sold with the flat can turn a purchase that needed no permission into one that needs it from a government ministry. Both are ordinary parts of an ordinary transaction, and both are hard to find explained in any language other than Polish. ## The guides Each one stands on its own; read the one you need rather than working through them in order. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can a foreigner buy property in Poland at all? Yes. Citizens of the EEA and Switzerland buy on exactly the same terms as Polish citizens. Everyone else can buy a flat without any permit, and needs a permit from the Polish Ministry of the Interior for a house with land or for land on its own. ### Is this legal advice? No. These guides explain the general rules for a general reader, and they name their sources so you can check them. How the rules apply to a specific property is a question for a Polish notary or lawyer — and in Poland the notary is involved in the transaction anyway. ## Related pages - [Do you need a permit to buy?](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/permit-for-foreigners) — EEA and Swiss citizens do not. Everyone else can buy a flat freely, but needs a permit for a house with land. - [Taxes and fees on top of the price](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/taxes-and-fees) — 2% transfer tax on a resale, VAT already inside a developer price, and the first-home relief a flat abroad takes away. - [Buying a new-build from a developer](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/buying-from-a-developer) — Your money sits in a bank escrow account and comes out in stages. The developer must publish every price online, and at handover the clock runs against them. - [Cooperative ownership vs full ownership](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/cooperative-ownership) — Spółdzielcze własnościowe prawo do lokalu is a limited property right against the cooperative, and it can exist with no land register at all — which is where mortgage applications fail. - [What a Polish notary actually does](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/the-notary) — Not a witness to signatures. Without a notarial deed the sale does not legally exist — and the notary is not your lawyer. - [Buying without Polish, or without being there](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/buying-without-polish) — The deed is in Polish and the notary has to make sure you understood it. If you cannot come, someone can sign for you — on a power of attorney in notarial form. - [The land register (księga wieczysta)](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/the-land-register) — Poland lets anyone read who owns what, and what is mortgaged against it, free and without an account. - [Perpetual usufruct (użytkowanie wieczyste)](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/perpetual-usufruct) — Land you hold but do not own. Residential land converted in 2019 — the conversion fee runs to 2039 and you inherit it. - [Estate agents: who pays, how much](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/estate-agents) — About 2–3.5% net plus VAT — and the same agent may still be paid by both sides of your transaction. - [Getting a mortgage as a foreigner](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/mortgage-for-foreigners) — 20% deposit, income documented in Poland, and a residence document that has to run 6–12 months ahead. - [After the deed is signed](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/after-the-deed) — You own the flat from the moment you sign. What follows is the register entry, one tax form the notary does not file for you, and the handover. - [What the flat costs every month](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/monthly-running-costs) — Czynsz is the monthly charge an owner owes the building — heating, the lift, the repair fund — and it is usually the largest line on the bill. - [Renting, and the notarial statement](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/renting-before-you-buy) — Why a Polish landlord sends you to a notary before handing over the keys, and what that document commits you to. - [Renting out the flat you bought](https://mscanner.pl/en/buying-property-in-poland/renting-out-your-flat) — Rental income is taxed one way only: 8.5% ryczałt, 12.5% above 100,000 zł. Miss one 14-day notification and you lose the fast eviction route. ## Check an address in Poland Prices, surroundings and public records for a specific Polish address. [Check an address in Poland](https://mscanner.pl/app/register?redirect=%2Fproperties%2Fnew)