Issuing authority and document: Export documents are issued by the authorities of the country of death; we confirm them in your case. Polish certificate: the Consular Section of the Polish Embassy in Tirana.
Transport: By a special vehicle for conveying remains or by air. We agree the route and the place of handover in Poland with the family.
Timing: We confirm the date once we have the documents. The Act provides that the starosta and the consul issue their documents within 3 days of the application at the latest (Article 14(5) of the Act on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead). In practice, extra time is needed for the opinion of the district sanitary inspector (sanepid) and for delivery of the originals. How long matters take in the country of death depends on the local authorities.
Price: We will quote the price once we know the details.

Procedure: Albania

This country is not a party to the Strasbourg Agreement on the Conveyance of Corpses of 1973 (according to the Netherlands treaty database, as of 13 October 2026). Poland is not a party to it either, so in addition to documents from the country of death the Polish consul's certificate is needed.

This country is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention (according to the HCCH, as of 13 October 2026), so documents from it can be authenticated with an apostille if a Polish office asks for this.

Albania: the embassy in Tirana and the coffin requirements

The certificate for bringing a body home from Albania is issued by the Consular Section of the Polish Embassy in Tirana. The application can be filed in person or by post, and a visit is arranged by email with the duty consul. The consul issues the document immediately and no later than three days after the application. You need a burial permit from the starost or city mayor, a copy of the death certificate or another document confirming the death, and a medical statement that the death was not related to an infectious disease.

A funeral home must also certify that the body was placed in a metal coffin with an absorbent layer of at least 5 cm at the bottom, that the coffin was soldered shut and set in a wooden crate so it cannot shift. We arrange this packing together with the transport. The certificate is collected in person or sent by post at the applicant's cost. We confirm translation and apostille requirements with the mission for each document.

The Consular Section of the Polish Embassy in Tirana receives visitors at Rruga e Bogdanëve 50 on only two days a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 to 12:00, and only after registering the visit in e-konsulat. This matters for planning: if the export documents are not complete for one of these two weekly visits, the date moves to the next reception day. Outside working hours the embassy's duty phone is available for urgent cases such as an accident, a death or an arrest. It is not an information line, so questions about formalities go to the consular section. We arrange the collection of documents so that the applicant makes it on the chosen Tuesday or Thursday.

The Polish consul's certificate

The Polish consul's certificate for bringing a body or ashes to Poland is issued by the Consular Section of the Polish Embassy in Tirana.

On the Polish side two documents are always needed, for an urn too: the starosta's permit and the Polish consul's certificate (Article 14(4) of the Act on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead).

Documents for the consul: body

According to the Polish mission's website, the following are needed:

Burial permit issued by the starosta or the city mayor.
Copy of the death certificate or another document confirming the death.
Medical certificate that the death was not related to an infectious disease.
Certificate from the funeral home: the body in a metal coffin with a layer of absorbent material (at least 5 cm), the coffin soldered shut and placed in a wooden crate.

Frequently asked questions

Who issues the Polish consul's certificate when a body is brought from Albania?

The Consular Section of the Polish Embassy in Tirana, on the basis of the starosta's permit and the death certificate. The Act provides that the certificate is issued within 3 days of the application at the latest (Article 14(5) of the Act on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead).

Are permits needed for an urn from Albania?

Yes. The Polish rules on conveying remains apply accordingly to ashes, so the starosta's permit and the consul's certificate are needed.

Other countries

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Repatriation from Albania to Poland