I’m writing to you from Wroclaw, Poland. I have a question about power of attorney to made in Kuwait to sell a real estate property in Poland. The person who wants to give me this power of attorney lives in Kuwait (he is Polish) but the property is in Poland.

Buying / selling property in Poland needs a special form. Usually it must be done in notary office (official). If a person wants to give someone a power of attorney to sell his property he has to do it (power of attorney) also in notary office.

If Polish citizen lives abroad, for example in Kuwait he must do the power of attorney to sell a real estate in accordance with local law and then he must go to Polish Embassy to testify (apostille).

Could you please inform me, what a person needs to do according to the local law in Kuwait to get a power of attorney to sell real estate for someone else? Or please give me a contact for somebody else who can help me?

Name withheld

Answer: Please remember that all such documents are subject to law of the country where the power of attorney is to be used and not the country where the person is currently residing. So, in this case also the power of attorney will be subject to the laws of Poland because that’s where it has to be used. Please remember that all embassies provide notary services.

The power of attorney can be a general one – to handle all your affairs – or a limited one for a certain purpose, like for selling a certain piece of real estate, so first you will have to decide on that. So, your friend must visit the Polish Embassy in Kuwait to fill up the required form and sign it in the presence of the embassy official who is responsible for the notary services.

It is common for some embassies to ask for some personal documents of the person who is giving the power of attorney plus having two witnesses who also sign the document. The person giving the power of attorney must also provide some personal documents, like passport copy, of the person who will execute the power of attorney.

Having said all the above, it is better for your friend to visit or call the Polish Embassy in Kuwait to get details of all the required documents (some countries also want photos) so as to avoid repeated visits to the embassy. The Polish Embassy is located in Jabriya, Block 7, Street 3, Villa 20 and the phone number is 25311571.

Source - Arab Times

Note - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic.

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