A Polish counterparty offering a mortgage as security is a common structure in cross-border transactions. What the registers actually show — and where they stop — determines how much weight that security can carry.
- What the land register shows
- The current owner, all registered mortgages with their amounts and creditors, and any encumbrances or restrictions on disposal. Source: Elektroniczne Księgi Wieczyste (EKW), ekw.ms.gov.pl · verified 05.06.2026
- What the insolvency register shows
- Whether the debtor is subject to restructuring or bankruptcy proceedings. Source: Krajowy Rejestr Zadłużonych (KRZ), krz.ms.gov.pl · verified 05.06.2026
- What the pledge register shows
- Registered pledges (zastawy rejestrowe) over movable assets and receivables. Source: Rejestr Zastawów, ms.gov.pl · verified 05.06.2026
- Access condition
- EKW is publicly searchable by land register number (numer księgi wieczystej). The debtor must supply that number. Without it, the search cannot proceed.
What a mortgage offer by a Polish counterparty actually requires you to establish
Accepting a mortgage as collateral requires answers to four distinct questions. First: does the debtor own the property? Second: what mortgages already encumber it, and in what priority order? Third: is the debtor currently subject to insolvency or restructuring proceedings that would affect the security's enforceability? Fourth: are there registered pledges or other encumbrances over assets the debtor is simultaneously offering as additional security?
Each question draws on a different register. None of the registers is linked to the others. A clean result in one register says nothing about the state of the others.
The land register: what it shows and what it does not
Poland's land and mortgage register (księga wieczysta) is the primary record for real property ownership and encumbrances. It is divided into four sections. Section III records rights, claims, and restrictions other than mortgages. Section IV records mortgages by amount, currency, creditor, and priority rank.
The register shows registered encumbrances. It does not show whether an existing mortgage has been partially repaid. It does not show whether the creditor holding a registered mortgage has already assigned that claim to a third party without updating the register. A mortgage may appear active in the register while the underlying debt has been discharged — or assigned — outside it.
The register is searchable online through EKW. The search requires the exact land register number (numer księgi wieczystej). A counterparty who does not supply this number cannot be searched. Searching by address or owner name is not available through the public interface.
Insolvency and restructuring: the Krajowy Rejestr Zadłużonych
The KRZ is the national insolvency register. It records active bankruptcy proceedings, restructuring proceedings, and consumer insolvency cases. It also records entities against whom enforcement has been declared ineffective.
A negative result in KRZ does not confirm the absence of a filed application. An application may have been filed and not yet processed into a visible entry. The register reflects the procedural state at the moment of retrieval, not the state of any pending filing.
Restructuring proceedings under Polish law can suspend or limit enforcement against the debtor's assets. A mortgage constituted before the opening of restructuring proceedings may remain in force, but enforcement conditions change. The register identifies whether proceedings are open; it does not itself determine what that means for a specific security arrangement.
The pledge register: registered pledges over movable assets
The Rejestr Zastawów records registered pledges (zastawy rejestrowe) constituted over movable assets and assignable rights, including receivables, shares in limited liability companies, and inventory. It is maintained by the Ministry of Justice.
A debtor offering a mortgage may simultaneously have registered pledges over other assets forming part of the same transaction structure. The pledge register and the land register are not cross-referenced. A search of one does not retrieve results from the other.
The register is searchable by the pledgor's name or PESEL/NIP identifier. Without the correct national identifier, a name search may return incomplete results, particularly where the debtor is a natural person with a common surname.
The National Court Register: ownership structure of the debtor entity
Where the debtor is a legal entity, the Krajowy Rejestr Sądowy (KRS) records the entity's registered capital, management board, and — for limited liability companies — the list of shareholders (lista wspólników) with their shareholding percentages. The KRS is publicly searchable without registration.
The shareholder list in KRS reflects the state at the last filed update. Transfers of shares between filing dates are not visible. The KRS does not record pledges over shares; those appear in the pledge register.
The beneficial ownership register: CRBR
Poland's Central Register of Beneficial Owners (Centralny Rejestr Beneficjentów Rzeczywistych, CRBR) records the ultimate beneficial owners of Polish legal entities. Following the CJEU ruling in joined cases C-37/20 and C-601/20, public access conditions across EU member states have been subject to change. The access regime for CRBR should be verified with a local consultant before reliance.
The CRBR records what the entity itself has declared. It does not independently verify the declared ownership structure. Discrepancies between the CRBR declaration and the KRS shareholder list are possible and, where present, are themselves a result worth noting.
The limit of what the sources allow
The land register shows registered encumbrances at the moment of retrieval. It does not show unregistered encumbrances, partially repaid mortgages, or assigned claims not yet reflected in the register. The gap between the register and the actual debt position can be material.
The KRZ shows open proceedings. It does not show filed applications not yet entered, or proceedings closed before the search date. A clean KRZ result is not a solvency confirmation.
The pledge register shows registered pledges by the pledgor's identifier. It does not show unregistered security arrangements, financial collateral arrangements governed by Polish law on financial collateral, or pledges constituted under foreign law. The register's coverage is limited to what has been formally registered within Poland's domestic system.
No single register links to the others. Establishing a complete collateral picture requires parallel searches across EKW, KRZ, Rejestr Zastawów, KRS, and CRBR. Each search requires the correct identifier for that register. Where identifiers are not supplied by the counterparty, the scope of the search is limited accordingly — and that limitation is stated in the report.
Where the sources disagree
Discrepancies arise between registers in practice. A shareholder listed in KRS may not match the beneficial owner declared in CRBR. A mortgage shown as active in EKW may correspond to a debt the counterparty represents as discharged. A pledgor identified in Rejestr Zastawów may not appear as a party in the KRS record of the same entity.
Where such discrepancies are identified, they are reported as findings, not resolved. The report records what each source shows and identifies where the sources diverge. Resolution of the discrepancy is outside the scope of a register-based report.
What is included at each tier
| Tier | Price | What is included | Not included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signal | €590 | EKW search: current ownership, all registered mortgages (amount, creditor, priority rank), Section III encumbrances. KRZ search: active insolvency and restructuring proceedings. KRS search: entity status, registered capital, management board. Written report in English identifying all retrieved entries and any register gaps. | Pledge register search. CRBR search. Shareholder list analysis. Cross-register discrepancy mapping. No valuation of the property. No assessment of enforceability. |
| Standard | €990 | All Signal content, plus: Rejestr Zastawów search by debtor identifier. CRBR search and comparison against KRS shareholder list. Cross-register discrepancy table. Identification of any gap between registered encumbrances and counterparty representations. | Property valuation. Enforceability opinion. Analysis of mortgage assignment history beyond what the register shows. No legal qualification of findings. |
| Extended | €2,200 | All Standard content, plus: sanctions screening of the debtor entity and its declared beneficial owners against EU, US OFAC, and UN consolidated lists. KRS filing history review covering filed documents for the past three years. Identification of any enforcement proceedings visible in court registers. Structured findings memorandum in English with source citations and retrieval dates for each entry. | Property valuation. Legal advice on enforceability. Advice on security structuring. Proceedings not visible in public registers. No legal qualification of findings. |
Frequently asked questions
What if the counterparty does not supply the land register number?
Without the numer księgi wieczystej, EKW cannot be searched by property address or owner name through the public interface. The report will state this limitation. In some cases, the KRS filing history contains references to specific land register numbers; where that path is available, it is noted.
Does the report confirm the property's market value?
No. The report establishes what the registers show about ownership and encumbrances. It does not include a valuation. The registered mortgage amounts are recorded; whether those amounts reflect current market value of the property is outside the scope of a register-based report.
What does a clean KRZ result mean?
It means no active insolvency or restructuring proceeding was recorded at the time of retrieval. It does not confirm the absence of a filed application not yet entered, and it does not constitute a solvency assessment. The report states the retrieval date and the scope of the search.
Can the report be used as due diligence for a credit decision?
The report is a factual compilation from official registers. It supports due diligence by establishing what the registers show. It does not substitute for legal advice on enforceability, security structuring, or credit assessment. Those are outside the scope of this product.
How long does it take?
Signal and Standard reports are typically delivered within three to five business days of receiving the required identifiers. Extended reports typically require five to eight business days. Timing depends on the completeness of the identifiers supplied and register availability at the time of search.
To commission a report or ask a question about scope and identifiers required, contact: info@kordeckipartners.com
Disclaimer: This report is a factual compilation from official registers and public sources. It is provided for informational purposes only, does not constitute legal advice, and contains no legal qualification of the facts established. KORDECKI & Partners assumes no liability for actions taken or not taken based on this material. For advice regarding your particular situation, please contact info@kordeckipartners.com.