Repatriation from New Zealand to Poland
We help bring the deceased from New Zealand to Poland: documents from the country of death, Polish permits and transport of the body or urn.
- 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 Polish Embassy in Wellington.
- Transport
- Bodies are carried by air as air cargo. We agree the arrival airport and the handover point in Poland with the family.
- Timing
- We confirm the timing once we have the documents. The law provides that the starosta (district head) and the consul issue their documents within 3 days of the application being submitted at the latest. In practice, time is added for the opinion of the district sanitary inspector (sanepid) and for delivery of the originals. The time needed to deal with matters in the country of death depends on the offices there.
- Price
- We will quote the price once we know the details.
Procedure: New Zealand
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, so in addition to the documents from the country of death, the Polish consul's certificate is needed.
The country is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention (according to the HCCH, as of 13 October 2026), so documents from this country can be authenticated with an apostille if a Polish office asks for it.
New Zealand: Births, Deaths and Marriages registers the death
In New Zealand a death is registered with Births, Deaths and Marriages. When the family uses a funeral director, the funeral director registers it. If the family organises the funeral itself, or there is no funeral, it must register the death on its own. So at the start we establish who will file the registration, before we begin collecting documents for the Polish consul. These are two separate steps: registering the death in New Zealand and the Polish consul's certificate.
The Polish Embassy in Wellington is responsible not only for New Zealand but also for Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga and Tuvalu. Its consular district also includes the Cook Islands and Niue. If the deceased was on one of these islands, we still handle the case through the same post. It also covers New Zealand's associated territories.
The Polish consul's certificate
The certificate for bringing a body or ashes to Poland is issued by the Polish Embassy in Wellington.
According to the Polish mission's website, an apostille is required for the death certificate.
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:
- Permit issued by the starosta or the city mayor (the place of the planned burial).
- Death certificate (akt zgonu, death certificate) with an Apostille clause.
- Medical certificate that the death was not related to an infectious disease.
- Certificate of preparation of the body for transport (embalming certificate).
- Certificate from the funeral home about the sealed metal coffin and the wooden crate.
Documents for the consul: ashes
According to the Polish mission's website, the following are needed:
- Permit issued by the starosta or the city mayor.
- Death certificate (akt zgonu, death certificate) with an Apostille clause.
- Certificate of cremation (certificate of cremation).
- Certificate from the funeral home that the ashes have been placed in a sealed, damage-resistant container.
Frequently asked questions
Who issues the Polish consul's certificate for repatriation from New Zealand?
The Polish Embassy in Wellington, on the basis of the starosta's permit and the death certificate. The law provides for the certificate to be issued within 3 days of the application being submitted at the latest.
Are permits needed for an urn from New Zealand?
Yes. Polish rules on the conveyance of corpses apply accordingly to ashes, so the starosta's permit and the Polish consul's certificate are needed.