Major changes are on the way in Poland. The address where a person actually lives is expected to replace their officially registered address. The government’s plans could have significant implications for the real estate market.
More than a year ago, some Polish media outlets repeated false information that the Ministry of the Interior and Administration later had to deny. The reports claimed that penalties would be reintroduced for failing to comply with the residence registration requirement.
Twelve months after that denial, it became clear that legal changes were indeed being prepared, although they would move in a completely different direction. In early April, the Ministry of the Interior and Administration announced that it was working on the formal abolition of both the registered address and the address for service. These would be replaced by the actual address of residence recorded in the PESEL Register.
Experts from the RynekPierwotny.pl property portal have examined the proposed reform. The planned legal changes could be far more important for the real estate sector than many people might expect. First, however, it is worth explaining the consequences of the current stalemate surrounding Poland’s residence registration system.
Residence registration: from communist-era enforcement to years of legal uncertainty
Public debate about Poland’s residence registration requirement sometimes includes the claim that the system was always an instrument of oppressive state control over citizens. But what did it look like in practice?
Under regulations introduced in the mid-1970s, specifically the Act of 10 April 1974 on Population Records and Identity Cards, a person was required to register their stay in a given locality no later than the fourth day after arriving.
Failure to comply with this requirement could result in a restriction of liberty, a fine or a reprimand under Article 147(1) of the Code of Petty Offences.
The provision was repealed on 1 January 2013, although it had already been pointed out much earlier that the rule was rarely enforced. The residence registration obligation itself remains in force today, although in a much less restrictive form than during the communist era.
The Act of 24 September 2010 on Population Records gives individuals 30 days to register at their place of permanent or temporary residence.
Residence registration and renting: landlords remain cautious
Experts from RynekPierwotny.pl have repeatedly pointed out that Statistics Poland’s migration data are incomplete. One reason is that many people do not comply with the residence registration requirement.
The reluctance of some rental property owners also contributes to the problem. Some landlords still believe that allowing a tenant to register at a property could make eviction more difficult. Successive court rulings have rejected this interpretation.
One example is the judgment of the Provincial Administrative Court in Kraków of 28 April 2026, case reference III SA/Kr 292/26.
Despite this, many young people register at their actual place of residence for the first time only after purchasing their first home. This may happen several or even more than ten years after they originally moved away to attend university.
Statistics Poland has also acknowledged problems with the existing registration system. In a statement issued on 28 October 2024, the statistical office explained that migration registers were incomplete and did not reflect the actual scale of migration.
According to Statistics Poland, people moving within the country, between municipalities or to and from other countries often fail to report these changes to the authorities. This is particularly common in the case of temporary migration. Even permanent changes of residence are frequently reported only after a significant delay.
Local authorities have already called for legal reform
The current situation also creates problems for local authorities. This has previously been highlighted by the National Association of Local Government Organisations, known by its Polish abbreviation OPOS.
The issue has also recently been raised by the Silesian Association of Municipalities and Counties. Local government representatives stress that inaccurate address information negatively affects numerous administrative procedures, including enforcement proceedings.
In the past, OPOS proposed replacing the registered address with the actual address of residence. Such an address would be consistent with concepts already used in other areas of law and administration, including a person’s place of residence under the Civil Code, tax residence and correspondence address.
New rules could significantly affect the property market
Experts from RynekPierwotny.pl note that relatively little is currently known about the detailed changes being prepared by the Ministry of the Interior and Administration.
The ministry has announced that information about a person’s actual address of residence will be automatically transferred to other public registers. People will also be able to report their place of residence through the mObywatel mobile application.
Property owners will nevertheless have control over who declares their property as their place of residence. Submitting a false declaration concerning an address of residence will be punishable.
The new system is expected to be ready for implementation in 2028.
If the reform is successfully introduced, the wider real estate sector could also benefit. A more efficient system would provide more accurate and realistic statistics on the number and average age of people living in individual municipalities.
Such information is particularly important for analysing local demographics and housing markets, estimating demand for public services and preparing spatial development plans.
The reform could also make certain court and administrative proceedings involving individuals more efficient, transparent and orderly.
Source: CEO.com.pl / RynekPierwotny.pl
