Showing up counts: how contact with your children changes child support in Poland
Courts notice which parent shows up, and they price absence into the money.
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Divorce & family law in Poland · when your spouse is Polish
You don't have to go through this alone, or in a language you don't speak.
I'm a Polish advocate and certified mediator, and I work with people from abroad whose marriage, and divorce, is tied to Poland. Your spouse may know the language and the courts. From our first call, so do you. Everything in plain English, and most of it handled remotely.
A call costs nothing and commits you to nothing. If I can't help, I'll say so and point you to someone who can.
★ 5.0 on Googlefrom client reviews
01 · A note before anything legal
Read this first.
Most people apologise when they first contact me. For the mess, for the emotion, for their English. Please don't. You are not expected to arrive with your situation neatly explained. That is my job.
A divorce is rarely just a legal case. Your home, your children and your savings are being decided at once, in a country whose rules you never had a reason to learn. My job is to carry the legal side, so you have strength left for the rest.
Clients married to Poles often tell me the same thing: “they know the system, and I don't.” True, and easy to fix. Once you have your own advocate here, that advantage is gone.
You will not be judged here, and nothing you tell me leaves this office. The practice runs on encrypted European infrastructure and your files stay on servers inside the EU.
Attorney Jaskułowska
Advocate · Certified mediator
02Where it helps to be careful
Three things that are far easier to protect early than to repair later.
This is simply how the system works. If you have already passed one of these points, it is rarely too late. It just changes what we do next.
01
Where the case is heard
When two countries are involved, the country where a case begins can decide which law applies to your money and your children. It is the first thing I want to look at with you, before anything is filed anywhere.
02
What belongs to whom
Most of what you acquired during the marriage belongs to you both. An early written record of what exists (accounts, property, debts) makes a fair division possible later, and protects you if assets start to move.
03
Agreements that will hold
An agreement made at the kitchen table is not enforceable until a court confirms it. Confirmation is what lets it survive a bad month, a new partner or a change of mind.
Marital property in Poland is divided equally by default. You do not have to fight for that starting point.Article 43 of the Family and Guardianship Code
03What happens when you call
It starts with a conversation.
People put the first call off for months, expecting something formal and final. It is neither.
1
We talk
You call, or we book a time that fits around work and children. The first conversation is to understand what is happening. Nothing to prepare, nothing to sign.
2
You get it in writing
After a consultation you receive a written summary within two working days: where you stand, your realistic options, what each costs and how long it takes. Yours to keep, whatever you decide.
3
I take it from here
If you instruct me, I handle the filings, hearings, negotiations and translations. You hear from me at every stage without chasing, and in most cases you never travel to Poland.
04What it costs
Agreed in writing, before anything begins.
No meter running, no invoice you didn't see coming. A written scope, a fixed or staged fee, and the court's own fees named alongside mine.
| What you might need | Fee |
|---|---|
| A consultation: 60 minutes, onlineWith a written summary within two working days · counted toward your fee if you go ahead within 14 days | 790 zł / €185 |
| Divorce where you both agree, no minor childrenFixed fee: the petition, the representation, the hearings | from 11 900 zł≈ €2 800 |
| Divorce where you both agree, with childrenIncluding the arrangements for the children: contact, custody, support | from 15 900 zł≈ €3 700 |
| A contested divorce, or a dispute about faultBilled in stages, each agreed before it begins | from 24 000 zł≈ €5 600 |
| Dividing what you owned togetherProperty and business assets are quoted individually | from 19 000 zł≈ €4 500 |
| Having a foreign divorce recognised in PolandA flat fee, from the first document to the registry entry | 4 900 zł≈ €1 150 |
| Child support or contact, as a case on its ownFixed fee for the first instance | from 6 900 zł≈ €1 600 |
| Handling everything from abroadPower of attorney; video hearings where the court allows them | included |
You won't be left waiting
Every message is answered within one working day. You will not be left wondering what is happening in your own case.
Private, by architecture
The practice runs on Proton's encrypted European infrastructure. Files and correspondence stay on EU servers, and video consultations over Proton Meet are end-to-end encrypted.
No surprise bills
The scope and the fee are written down before the work starts. The court's fees are named at the same time: 600 zł to file for divorce; 1 000 zł for a property division.
No lawyer can promise how a case will end. Anyone who does is selling you something. What I can promise is preparation, straight answers and a case that never goes quiet.
There is no child support table in Poland. A court weighs what your child needs against what each parent can earn, and it counts hands-on care as a real contribution.Articles 133 and 135 of the Family and Guardianship Code
05The essentials
The short answers, in one place.
- The legal ground for divorce
- Complete & permanent breakdown (art. 56)
- How long it usually takes, if you agree
- Around 6 months
- The court's fee to file for divorce
- 600 zł
- How property is divided by default
- Equally (art. 43)
- Does child support end at 18?
- No; it continues while a child cannot yet support themselves (art. 133)
- Is a foreign divorce valid here?
- Usually yes; recognition may still be needed (art. 1145)
- Do you have to come to Poland?
- Usually not; most matters are handled remotely
- Not paying court-ordered support
- Can become a criminal matter (art. 209)
06In their words
People who stood where you are standing now.
Nobody wants to be a testimonial for the hardest year of their life, so I quote only a few. When you are choosing who to trust with something this private, other clients are a better source than I am.
Throughout our two-year case, we felt secure knowing she was doing everything in her power. She picks up on nuances and seemingly insignificant details that ultimately mattered.
Dagmara S. · Google review
Precise in her actions and highly professional. I appreciate her commitment, her thoroughness, the preparation of the case, and above all her dedication to the client's best interests.
Agnieszka S. · Google review
Despite the unpleasant reason for the visit, the conversation took place in a warm and friendly atmosphere, which made things much easier.
Anna C. · Google review
A foreign divorce is usually valid in Poland, but it often needs formal recognition before a Polish registry will update your records.Article 1145 of the Code of Civil Procedure · Brussels II ter
07Reading the rulings
What Polish courts actually decide.
Polish courts publish their judgments. I read them and write up what they decide, in plain English, with a link to every original so you can check me.
Fault divorce in Poland: will you have to support your ex, and for how long?
Poland still decides who was at fault. A spouse found solely at fault can be ordered to support the other. How it is measured, and how it ends.
When child support stops: how Poland enforces it, firmly but fairly
One parent watches the support stop arriving; the other faces a criminal file. How Polish courts tell 'cannot pay' from 'will not pay'.
When a spouse hides assets before a Polish divorce, and how the law claws them back
A flat signed over to a relative, a business suddenly 'struggling'. What the law can undo when assets start to move.
08Before you call
Questions people ask first.
What are the grounds for divorce in Poland?
There is only one: that the marriage has broken down completely and permanently (art. 56 of the Family and Guardianship Code). The court may also decide who was at fault, or leave fault out of it entirely, if you both ask it to, which makes everything faster and considerably less painful.
How long will it take?
If you agree on the essentials, usually around six months. If fault or the children are contested, a year or more, depending on the evidence and the court's calendar. The single biggest factor is how much you are able to settle between yourselves before anything is filed.
How much will it cost me?
The court's fee to file for divorce is 600 zł. My own fees are fixed and published above: from 11 900 zł for a divorce you both agree on, with a 60-minute consultation at 790 zł / €185 that is counted toward your fee if you go ahead. You will have the whole picture in writing before you decide anything.
Can this be done without me travelling to Poland?
Usually, yes. You can authorise me to represent you, documents can be signed remotely, and Polish courts allow video participation in many hearings. Occasionally a contested matter needs you in person, and you will know that from the written summary long before anything is filed.
Will Poland recognise my foreign divorce?
Generally yes. A judgment from an EU country is recognised without a separate procedure. A divorce from outside the EU (for instance the UK or the US) is recognised under art. 1145 of the Code of Civil Procedure, sometimes needing a Polish court's confirmation before the registry will update your records.
What happens to the house?
Marital property is divided equally by default (art. 43). One spouse usually keeps the home and buys the other out. The surprise for most people: the home is valued as though the mortgage did not exist. Being bought out also does not remove your name from the loan; only the bank can do that.
My husband / wife is Polish. Will the court favour them?
No. Nationality is not a legal criterion in a Polish courtroom. The court looks at what the statute tells it to: whether the marriage has broken down, who cares for the children day to day, what was built during the marriage. A Polish spouse's real advantage is practical: the language and the paperwork. It ends when you have your own advocate.
I don't speak Polish. How does that work in court?
Hearings are conducted in Polish, but you have the right to an interpreter. With a power of attorney, most of the case is written work you never see in a courtroom. Everything that matters reaches you in plain English with the Polish original attached, and you will never be asked to sign anything that has not been explained first.
When you're ready
Start with a phone call.
You don't need documents or a decision ready. And if today isn't the day, the number will still be here tomorrow.
Consultations in English and Polish · Video calls end-to-end encrypted · Everything you say is confidential