Can You Sign an Occasional Lease Agreement Online in Poland?

Short answer: the occasional lease (najem okazjonalny) agreement itself can be concluded without meeting – in electronic form, if both parties sign it with a qualified electronic signature. However, the notarial deed in which the tenant submits to enforcement cannot be drawn up remotely: as of November 2026, Polish law does not provide for notarial deeds made at a distance. So much of an occasional lease can be prepared online, but the tenant still has to visit a notary in person.

What can and cannot be done online

An electronic agreement – how to do it properly

Art. 19a(6) of the Act on the Protection of Tenants' Rights, Municipal Housing Stock and Amendment of the Civil Code (ustawa o ochronie praw lokatorów, mieszkaniowym zasobie gminy i o zmianie Kodeksu cywilnego, consolidated text Dz.U. z 2023 r. poz. 725) requires an occasional lease agreement and any amendments to it to be made in writing on pain of invalidity. Under Art. 78¹ of the Civil Code (consolidated text Dz.U. z 2026 r. poz. 795), electronic form is satisfied by making a declaration of intent electronically and attaching a qualified electronic signature, and a declaration made this way is equivalent to written form.

• Both parties sign the same file (e.g. a PDF) with a qualified signature, or each signs their own copy and the parties exchange them.
• A scan of a signed page, a photo, an email saying "I accept" or a signature drawn in an app do not meet the written-form requirement – where invalidity is the sanction, that is a real risk.
• The Civil Code expressly treats only a qualified signature as equivalent to written form; with other types of electronic signature it is safer to sign the agreement on paper.
• Keep the signed file in its original form – that file is the document, not a printout of it.

Note: the demand to vacate the flat that the owner sends after the lease ends must bear an officially certified signature (Art. 19d(2)). An electronic agreement does not change this requirement.

Why there is no "online notary"

The Notaries Act (ustawa – Prawo o notariacie, consolidated text Dz.U. z 2026 r. poz. 614) requires the notary to establish the identity of the persons taking part in the notarial act (Art. 85), and the deed must be read out in the notary's presence before it is signed (Art. 94 § 1). Neither the 2026 consolidated text nor any amendments adopted since then introduce notarial deeds made by video call. A notary can, however, issue an extract of the deed electronically – bearing a qualified electronic signature and placed in the Central Repository of Electronic Extracts of Notarial Deeds (Art. 110a).

Offers of an "online notary" for an occasional lease therefore usually mean preparing the documents remotely and booking an appointment, not signing the deed remotely. We write more about this stage in our article is a notary mandatory for an occasional lease.

If you are abroad

A Polish consul can certify the authenticity of a signature (Art. 28(1)(2) of the Consular Law Act (ustawa – Prawo konsularne), consolidated text Dz.U. z 2026 r. poz. 711), which is useful when the statement consenting to the tenant living at the property is signed by someone living outside Poland. A consul can draw up a notarial deed only with written authorisation from the Minister of Justice (Art. 28(3)), so in practice the tenant makes their statement before a notary in Poland. People who have come from abroad will find more information in our guide guarantees for foreigners.

A "guarantee" ordered online – what to watch out for

The document the market calls a "guarantee" (poręczenie) or an "address for the occasional lease" is a statement by the owner of a property, or a person with legal title to it (oświadczenie właściciela), consenting to the tenant and the people living with them moving in there (Art. 19a(2)(3)). If the landlord demands it, the signature on it must be notarially certified. When ordering one online, check:

• that the statement gives a specific, existing address and the details of the person entitled to the property;
• that the wording includes consent for the tenant (and household members, if they will live with the tenant) to live there;
• that you will receive a paper original – a notarial certification of a signature is issued on paper;
• that the option (ordinary signature or notarially certified signature) matches what the landlord requires – ask them before ordering.

We prepare these statements in several options – from the version with an ordinary signature and a given address for 298 zł to the version with a notarially certified signature for 413 zł – and send them via InPost. We explain exactly what this document is in our article what a guarantee for an occasional lease is.

Reporting to the tax office online

The owner reports the agreement to the head of the tax office (urząd skarbowy) competent for their place of residence within 14 days of the start of the lease (Art. 19b(1)). The Act does not prescribe an official form – tax offices provide their own forms, and the notification with a copy of the agreement can be sent electronically, e.g. as a general letter via e-Urząd Skarbowy or via the "Wyślij pismo ogólne" service on gov.pl. It is worth keeping the confirmation, because the tenant may ask to see it (Art. 19b(2)), and without the notification Art. 19c and 19d do not apply (Art. 19b(3)).

Plan: an occasional lease with as few visits as possible

1. Agree the agreement with the landlord by email and ask whether they require a statement with a notarially certified signature.
2. Arrange the statement from the owner of another property – from family or friends, or online.
3. Book a notary and send them the details for the draft deed.
4. Make your statement at the notary's office (one visit).
5. Sign the agreement – on paper or with qualified electronic signatures.
6. The landlord sends the notification to the tax office online and gives you the confirmation.

Frequently asked questions