Is service in a foreign army always grounds for loss of Polish citizenship?
There is growing interest in obtaining a Polish passport, as a document confirming citizenship of the Republic of Poland but also of the European Union. According to data from the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, 16,647 people obtained Polish citizenship in 2024 (up from 12,166 in 2023 and 7,960 in 2021). Thus the number (and duration) of administrative proceedings concerning Polish citizenship are also rising.
Administrative proceedings concerning Polish citizenship may be conducted under the procedure for recognition as a Polish citizen (uznanie za obywatela polskiego), granting of citizenship by the President of Poland, and confirmation of holding citizenship (potwierdzenie posiadania obywatelstwa). The last of these paths may be taken by persons of Polish origin if they can show that their ancestors held Polish citizenship and did not lose it. This procedure requires a comprehensive analysis of family history (often reaching back several generations), precise determination of the factual grounds, and examination of the laws that were in force at the relevant times.
Loss of Polish citizenship in relation to military service in allied armed forces
Over the years, the regulations have addressed the acquisition and loss of citizenship in various different ways. Citizenship might have been lost, for example, by a woman marrying a foreigner, or by acquiring citizenship of a foreign country, by submission of a statement by the person relinquishing Polish citizenship, or by serving in a foreign military.
With respect to the last of these grounds, Art. 11 point 2 of the Act on Citizenship of the Polish State of 20 January 1920 provided that Polish citizenship was lost, among other reasons, as a result of joining the armed forces in another country without the consent of the competent Polish state authority. The literal wording of this provision suggested that it covered all non-Polish armed forces—regardless of whether they were allies in the geopolitical situation at the time.
But it was clarified in the practice of applying this provision that, based on logical principles and taking into account the purpose behind this provision, it should be interpreted differently in the context of peace than during wartime.
During peacetime, this provision was deemed absolute—it was irrelevant what sort of relations Poland had with the state whose military was joined by a Polish citizen. During wartime, however, the situation was interpreted differently. Then, if a Polish citizen joined the military in a country allied with Poland, or even a country not formally allied with Poland but also fighting against a common enemy, it was found to be consistent with the interests of Poland, and as such could not result in loss of Polish citizenship (see Supreme Administrative Court judgment of 26 January 2012, case no. II OSK 162/11). This interpretation is particularly relevant in cases where a Polish citizen served in the army of an allied country, which, in line with the Polish raison d’état, did not lead to loss of Polish citizenship.
What about involuntary service?
Sometimes—particularly during the Second World War—the path taken by Polish citizens did not result from an act of their own free will, but was a consequence of military actions or unilateral decisions by foreign states. This also applied to the issue of military service. In this context, the sanction of loss of Polish citizenship could be applied only against persons who voluntarily, at their own decision, took up arms for a foreign country.
This is particularly relevant in evaluating the situation of Polish citizens residing in territories forcibly annexed into the German Reich, who then declared themselves to be of German nationality, which could result in their being conscripted into the German military. In the case of such persons, it is recognised that the regulations governing the loss of Polish citizenship should be interpreted in conjunction with the relevant post-war laws and decrees, which admitted the possibility of demonstrating that a person’s entry on the list of German nationality (with the consequences flowing from that) was made under duress or against their will (see Supreme Administrative Court judgment of 8 December 2008, case no. II OSK 1328/07). In such cases, demonstrating the compulsory nature of the person’s military service can be grounds for challenging the consequence of loss of Polish citizenship.
A similar situation applied to Polish citizens who were residing in eastern territories occupied and incorporated into the USSR in the Second World War. The population were collectively conferred Soviet citizenship, and then could be called up to serve in the armed forces of the Soviet Union. The wishes of the persons immediately involved—both to join the military and subsequently to leave it—were irrelevant in practice. Therefore, it can reasonably be argued that the mere fact of belonging to the Soviet armed forces (or continuing to serve after the end of the war) also was not sufficient grounds for loss of Polish citizenship (see Supreme Administrative Court judgment of 26 January 2012, case no. II OSK 162/11).
Aleksandra Wójcik, adwokat, Employment and Global Mobility practice, Wardyński & Partners
