Extending visa in Poland

You have already learnt what types of visas there are in Poland and how to apply for them. However, there are some circumstances in which you may need to prolong this document. Let’s go step by step with each visa type and discuss the possible course of action.

Type C ‘Schengen’ visa

You can extend this visa on two grounds – obligatory or optional. In the first case, you state that acts of God or humanitarian reasons prevent you from leaving the territory of Poland or another Schengen state by or with the end of the period stated in the document. If the prolongation is granted, the whole process is free of charge.

When it comes to the optional visa extension – you have to present the authorities with compelling personal reasons that justify the extension of your stay in Poland. The fee for this procedure is EUR 30 (or its equivalent in Polish złoty).

Type D ‘national’ visa

In order to prolong a national visa, a few conditions have to be met. We list all four of them:

• Important circumstances of personal, humanitarian or professional nature prevent the visa holder from leaving Poland within due time;
• The aforementioned circumstances were unforeseen by the visa holder at the moment of applying for the document;
• The purpose of the stay remains the same as in the application form;
• None of the circumstances which lead to the refusal of a visa have occurred:
  foreigner listed in the registry of undesirable individuals; possessing insufficient funds to stay in Poland or return home; lacking health insurance of minimum EUR 30,000; threatening the security or the public interest of Poland; lacking valid documents; filed the application in an improper or illegal manner; failed to state the purpose of stay; caused doubt as to leaving Poland in due time.
  

All of the above conditions have to be observed in order for your visa to be prolonged. Remember that you can extend a visa only once. The cost of the process is PLN 406.

Necessary documents

• Completed application form (Schengen visa, national visa);
• Recent photograph (35 x 45 mm);
• Valid passport;
• Address of permanent residence confirmation;
• Stamp duty confirmation;
• Documents confirming:
  the purpose of stay and the necessity of the extension; health insurance or travel medical insurance (the latter in the case of Schengen visa); will to leave Poland in due time; other circumstances listed in the form.

What’s next

The authority responsible for prolonging your visa is the relevant voivode’s office (a voivode is an official in charge of an entire region; see the list of voivodeship office addresses). You need to submit all the documents no later than on the expiration day of your legal stay in Poland. If you do not meet the deadline, your application is not valid and your further stay is deemed illegal. Once you submit the forms, the decision is reached within the minimum of 7 days and no later than one month from the day of your application (two months in rare and unusual cases). In case your request for an extension is not granted, you have 14 days to appeal to the Head of the Office for Foreigners in Warsaw.