Research in Polish State & Church Archives

Archival research in Poland draws mainly on three sources: current civil registries (Urząd Stanu Cywilnego) for events in recent decades, the State Archives (Archiwa Państwowe) for older records, and parish church registers (mainly Roman Catholic) for records predating the establishment of state civil registration.

Due to the territorial changes that followed World War II, some records for areas that belonged to pre-war Poland are now located outside the country’s current borders — mainly in Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania — which requires additional research in foreign state archives.

Where the competent archive is difficult to identify, Polish law allows for direct contact with the Head Office of State Archives (Naczelna Dyrekcja Archiwów Państwowych).