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Living in Poland for a bit over a year now as a resident (married to a Polish citizen). Going to request Polish citizenship once I'm eligible, (living in Poland for two years, married for three).

I know that there is a language knowledge requirement, but none of the documentation I've seen states the level of knowledge you should. Some unofficial sources say that it is B1. Is this true? I have also heard that it is more than just a language test and involves questions about (eg) the ingredients that go into pierogi. Is that true?

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  • Hehe - this reminds me of a joke about Germany: "If you required all Germans to take the citizenship exams foreigners have to take, you could revoke the citizenship of half of them."
    – Rafael Emshoff
    Mar 19, 2014 at 10:45
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    @RafaelCichocki I think that applies to just about every country. :)
    – Tim Seguine
    Mar 19, 2014 at 11:15
  • @TimSeguine That's not true. AFAIK, to get the citizenship you generally need B1, which is not that difficult, involves only basic writing (therefore very basic syntax knowledge) etc. However, it's quite hilarious that you need only A1 to have a shop in Czechia (I don't know about other EU countries).
    – yo'
    Mar 19, 2014 at 14:23
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    @tohecz I was referring to in the US for instance, most Americans couldn't pass the citizenship test. Many countries require more than language proficiency.
    – Tim Seguine
    Mar 19, 2014 at 15:23
  • @yo' In most places, I would expect no language proficiency requirement at all to own or operate a shop. It's your problem, after all. B1 also makes sense to me, it's about being able to communicate and take part in social life. Singling out written language ability is the kind of things Rafael and Tim were referring to, not everybody can write well.
    – Gala
    Mar 26, 2015 at 10:32

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Language exams are required on the basis of the Art.30 p.2 of the "Ustawa o obywatelstwie polskim", which sends to Art. 11a of "Ustawa o języku polskim",

According to the information on the site of one language school, there are 3 examination levels:

  • B1 – podstawowy (basic)

  • B2 – średni ogólny (intermediate)

  • C2 – zaawansowany (advanced).

So it looks like the lowest level of exam you can made to get Polish citizenship is B1. From the sources it's not clear if having higher level would give you any benefit when applying for citizenship.

The detail requirements for exams are described in Rozporządzenie Ministra Edukacji Narodowej i Sportu z dnia 15 X 2003

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  • I suppose if you can’t read the requirements you fail :-)
    – gnasher729
    Mar 14, 2021 at 11:57
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Here is a link to sample tests. An important note here. The B1 level test in Polish is much harder than B1 tests in other languages. Also, some find the test more difficult than it needs to be in general and all tests are filled with questions that may be a bit ambiguous or highly contextual. Whether it's the drivers test, a high school exam, or any test, they seem to be tricky. Also the test is rather expensive. DO NOT underestimate this. You will have to work hours every day for months. Not trying to bring you down. http://certyfikatpolski.pl/pl/informacje-dla-zdajacych/jak-sie-przygotowac-do-egzaminu/przykladowe-testy The best of luck to you!

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