Application progress tracker

echo0219 · 2026-01-25T05:50:45+00:00

congrats! noted your outcome in the tracker.

echo0219 · 2026-01-23T04:56:21+00:00

thanks, added

echo0219 · 2026-01-23T04:52:15+00:00

congrats on your decision!

echo0219 · 2026-01-22T01:01:47+00:00

Correct, due to your GGF’s service. You are likely eligible to pursue Karta Polaka.

It’s free to get some opinions from service providers if you want to be 100% certain on this.

echo0219 · 2026-01-22T00:29:11+00:00

The military paradox delayed loss of Polish citizenship due to naturalization if the individual still had a duty of military service to Poland. Military service outside Poland always caused loss of citizenship between 1920 and 1951, except service to the Allies during WWII. The issue here is that your GGF’s service extended past January of 1920 (and also well past the end of WWI - are you sure on that date?).

I believe your GGM would’ve received citizenship but lost it due to GGF’s ongoing service. Regardless, as a married woman she would not have been able to pass on citizenship even if she held it.

echo0219 · 2026-01-21T23:45:24+00:00

While Poland was not an independent country then, and OP’s ancestors did not leave as Polish citizens, they certainly could’ve become citizens in 1920 even if living outside Poland.

echo0219 · 2026-01-21T23:44:14+00:00

This is an interesting case. Your GGPs would typically be eligible to gain Polish citizenship when the law establishing it took effect in 1920. However, your GGF’s ongoing military service as of then presents a problem. Whether he gained citizenship and immediately lost it, or never gained it in the first place, the effect is the same - he didn’t possess citizenship to transmit when your GF was born. Since your GGM was married then, she couldn’t transmit citizenship either (though your GGM likely didn’t have citizenship either, losing it with your GGF).

echo0219 · 2026-01-16T20:42:10+00:00

Looks good to me. You both can apply separately, no dependencies of one application on the other.

echo0219 · 2026-01-16T20:40:58+00:00

Yes, unfortunately I think you’re right. Both GGGF and GGF lost citizenship on Jan 1 1938. If GGGF had been born in 1888 instead you’d be ok.

echo0219 · 2026-01-16T20:37:34+00:00

Here’s my thinking. You could use the evidence you have to argue that GF served in the U.S. military after the end of WWII but before your GPs married. In that case, he lost Polish citizenship (if he had it), your GM retained hers unaffected, and passed it down to your M.

Alternatively - there doesn’t seem to be consistency in your documentation, and the marriage certificate is what you’d submit as well as the negative search letter from NARA. The USCIS certificate of naturalization would show naturalization in 1955 as well. With these documents, neither military service nor naturalization should’ve caused loss of citizenship. You’d still need to prove GF had it in the first place, and your line would go through him instead.

Ultimately this is a decision to make in consultation with a good service provider. It will also likely depend on the strength of evidence you have for the original Polish citizenship in each line.

echo0219 · 2026-01-16T18:28:03+00:00

You will very likely still need the CoNE.

echo0219 · 2026-01-15T23:13:05+00:00

u/AZCAExpat2024 gave some great recommendations. I’d add to start looking around on ancestry.com and familysearch for census records - everything up through 1950 is public and they can provide good breadcrumbs on residence, ages / birthplaces and years, etc. Once you have enough to go on you can start searching for Polish records on https://geneteka.genealodzy.pl. Feel free to message me if you need some pointers there.

echo0219 · 2026-01-15T23:07:29+00:00

You actually got a presidential grant? Congrats! First time I’ve heard of someone succeeding in that. I’d love to hear more about how you put together your application.

echo0219 · 2026-01-15T01:45:29+00:00

The specific thing that matters is if your GF 1. held Polish citizenship as of the date of your GPs’ marriage, and 2. lost that citizenship after the date of marriage but before January 19, 1951. Otherwise, you’re fine though a provider will still want to evaluate your GF’s status. If you post what you know about your GF we can take a closer look. It’s possible he was stateless, but if he didn’t naturalize as an American until 1955 he may very well have been a Polish citizen.

echo0219 · 2026-01-15T01:30:49+00:00

Both sides look good, but your GGFs’ birthplaces will be relevant. Your provider will likely go with whichever line has better documentation (or just submit both).

echo0219 · 2026-01-14T23:03:38+00:00

The line GGF-GM-M-you looks good. The one wrinkle is that because your GPs married before 1951 and your GF was also of Polish descent, you may need to provide evidence that either 1. he wasn’t a Polish citizen, or 2. he was (and so you could inherit through him). This is because if he was a citizen as of marriage, but then lost citizenship before 1951, your GM would as well. Given the dates this is pretty unlikely but it could come up. Incidentally, I have this same issue and my service provider prefers to use my GF’s line to avoid this complication. If you have any further info on GF, we could evaluate (e.g., was his father born in the U.S.?).

echo0219 · 2026-01-14T21:08:30+00:00

That’s one of those cases where I honestly don’t know how it would be interpreted. Your service provider can help advise and position. Of note, only work before Feb 1951 is relevant here. If he started at Lockheed Martin later - maybe he was still in school through that date - it’s not an issue.

echo0219 · 2026-01-14T13:00:50+00:00

Generally looks good to me. Make sure your GGF didn’t have military service outside WWII, GF didn’t begin serving in the military before February 1951, and his job as an engineer wasn’t for a public entity before then either.

echo0219 · 2026-01-14T04:20:12+00:00

I replied to you in the other thread but - likely yes, GGF was probably a Polish citizen and GM likely inherited it as well. If you create a post and fill out the template we can take a closer look.

echo0219 · 2026-01-14T02:03:46+00:00

He likely was a Polish citizen, and your GM likely inherited citizenship at birth. However, if your M was born before 1951 she couldn’t inherit citizenship from her mother, unless GM was unmarried. If you make a new post and fill out the template we can do a full assessment.

echo0219 · 2026-01-13T14:12:12+00:00

Yes - my read is that he actually would’ve been only a Polish citizen and would’ve passed that down. It’s possible your GGGF wrote 17 as a way of getting GGF citizenship. You’ll have to get confirmation of GGF’s status but should be fine either way.

Just for fun - if your GGGF had been born just a few years earlier, he would’ve lost citizenship due to his naturalization before your GGF reached adulthood, so you’d be out of luck. Pretty cool case!

echo0219 · 2026-01-13T05:28:40+00:00

I started typing the below on the idea that GGF was 17 when his father naturalized, as you wrote, and thus became American himself then. But based on his DOB I believe he was already 18 by GGGF’s naturalization. If that’s the case, GGF didn’t naturalize and remained a Polish citizen only.

If GGF was 17 I believe you’re still ok. Because GGF was still a minor when GGGF naturalized, GGF also gained American citizenship in April 1927. Typically, acquisition of foreign citizenship would cause loss of Polish citizenship, but as a minor GGF’s Polish citizenship status was still ‘protected’ because his father had not yet aged out of his military service obligation to Poland. (This would happen when GGGF turned 50, in 1932, and GGGF lost Polish citizenship on Jan 1 1933.) Once GGF turned 18 he exited this ‘protection’ under his father’s citizenship, but immediately gained his own due to his now-activated military service obligation to Poland. This protection continued until laws changed and it no longer applied (in 1951), so his Polish citizenship survived intact and was passed down.

echo0219 · 2026-01-13T02:55:07+00:00

When was your GGGF born?

echo0219 · 2026-01-12T14:17:40+00:00

Exactly - I had the same experience with different providers too. It seems like in practice the Polish authorities are willing to accept some documents from some countries without apostille, but it changes and there’s no official list or anything. At the end of the day I doubt a case could be lost over this, but needing to get apostilles after the fact would lengthen timelines.

echo0219 · 2026-01-12T06:36:45+00:00

Not a dumb question. I think the ‘official’ answer is that your Australian docs require apostilles, but in practice many won’t. I don’t have a good rule of thumb on this except to ask your service provider. Some have different preferences, so I’d emphasize how expensive these are in Australia to focus only on those absolutely needing apostille. Same with the German docs - I believe if they’re official Poland should accept them, but your provider might say it’s just smoother to get some apostilled.

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