As we already mentioned in our article on getting an EDS in Poland, the process of interaction with the authorities has been slowly moving online.

But people in Poland usually know that, as there’s a special ministry in charge of implementing new digital solutions – the Ministry of Digitalization (Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji).

This is the new Polish standard. Having a verified or trusted profile- profil zaufany is quickly becoming a necessity.

What is ePUAP in Poland

ePUAP is a Polish acronym that stands for Elektroniczna Platforma Usług Administracji Publicznej — Electronic Platform of Public Administration Services.

ePUAP is a nationwide Polish platform used for communication and interaction between residents of the Republic of Poland and the Polish public authorities.

Having registered we can contact the governing bodies, get access to different systems of public administration, request services and documents.

People who conduct business activities in Poland, can you this profile to register as an individual entrepreneur (sole trader), send annual financial reports (via S24) or provide a number of changes to the companies they have incorporated in Poland

Other examples of using the profile:

  • the ability to request through ePUAP a confirmation from ZUS that the employer has insured us and is paying social security contributions monthly
  • the ability to obtain a residence permit (meldunek) by providing a contract with the landlord in digital format: for example, a scan of a signed document.
  • the ability to obtain work permits for non-EU citizens, planning on providing services here in Poland.

Let us take a closer look at the last one. If your company is planning on hiring a programmer or a designer or builder from Ukraine, Russia, India – any foreigner, who’s not a citizen of any of the EU member states – he will need a work permit.

Getting an ePUAP profile

It must be noted right at the start, that the main requirement for getting an ePUAP profile in 2020 is a valid PESEL identification number, , which is required to submit and confirm our application.

This automatically means, that if we do not reside in Poland on a permanent or temporary basis – we are out of luck. Because we won’t be able to get a PESEL number, and therefore won’t be able to register our ePUAP profile.

Basically, ePUAP is available only to:

  • Polish nationals
  • EU nationals residing in Poland
  • non-EU nationals residing in Poland

If we do reside in Poland and managed to obtain a PESEL identification number, we will have to confirm our identity in order to obtain this verified ePUAP profile.

There are two options to do that:

  • via online banking/mobile banking of our bank;
  • by registering on the ePUAP website directly.

Verification via bank account

In this case, everything is relatively easy. Everything can be done through online or mobile banking. Our bank will automatically confirm our identity and send all the necessary data to the ePUAP system.

We will use our personal data including the PESEL identification number we mentioned above.

Any foreigner can do that, provided that they have a valid identification number. If our PESEL number is not available in the bank’s system, we will most likely get an error in the banking app, or this feature will be unavailable altogether.

While this feature is supported by the majority of Polish most popular banks, it is not available everywhere.

Please do check if your bank is one the list here — pz.gov.pl/dt/register

It should be mentioned, though: should we decide to register our verified profile through our bank, each time we sign in to our ePUAP profile we will have to provide a one-time code sent by our bank via SMS.

It will be sent to the phone number, that is associated with our bank account, so please sure that number is still available or change it to the one you’re actually using.

To sum it up, the process looks like this:

  • We check if this service is available with our bank. You can do it — pz.gov.pl/dt/register.
  • Log in to your online or mobile banking.
  • Look for registration of the “trusted profile” ePUAP feature or anything similar.
  • Follow the bank’s instructions.

On-site verification

If for some reason we do not want to do this through online banking, or if our bank does not support this service, we can create an account directly on the ePUAP website, and then verify our identity one-site at one of the nearest public offices that support ePUAP verification.

Then the whole process will look like this:

  • Visit the trusted ePUAP profile website;
  • Choose Zarejestruj się;
  • Select Formularz online;
  • Fill out the necessary registration form;
  • Click on Zarejestruj się;
  • Done. We have created our account.
  • Now we need to visit one of the ePUAP confirmation points, which will allow us to confirm our identity. We have 14 days from the date of application.
  • If we do not have time to confirm our identity within 14 days, our application will become invalid and we will have to submit the application again.

In order to confirm our identity in one of these offices, in addition to personal presence, we will also need one of the documents, such as a valid:

  • identity card;
  • resident card;
  • or passport.

If we are not sure how to find an ePUAP confirmation point or any other facility, that supports ePUAP identity confirmation, we can use the ‘search for the nearest point’ function available on the website.

  1. Open the search page;
  2. Click on the Filtr button on the right side;
  3. In the field Miejscowość choose our place of residence;
  4. Click on the Filtruj button.

Should we encounter any problems, remember that we can always contact the ePUAP call centre.

ePUAP: Frequently Asked Questions

Finally, we prepared a small set of FAQ that may help you in understanding the verified profile.

How long is my ePUAP profile valid.
The trusted profile is valid for 3 years.

Is it possible to extend the profile validity period after this period?
Yes, you can extend it for another 3 years.

How much does it cost to register an ePUAP profile?
0 PLN. The service is free of charge.

How to verify your identity when registering an ePUAP profile?
If you want to do this at the confirmation point, you will bring an identity document.

For foreigners it can be:

  • Residence card, confirming their permanent residence;
  • Residence card, confirming their temporary residence;
  • Long-term EU residence card;
  • Valid passport
  • Valid personal identification card (for Polish citizens)
  • EU Resident Card;
  • or an ordinary valid passport.
  • For citizens of the Republic of Poland it will be enough to provide their valid personal identification card – dowód osobisty.

How long do I have to wait?
Your profile can be used immediately once your identity is confirmed.

Good luck