Chapter 3

1. Each commune shall maintain, as a public task ascribed to it, a permanent register of voters.

2. The register of voters shall serve as the basis for creating rolls of voters for elections of the President of the Republic of Poland, of the Sejm and of the Senate, and of the councils of communes, as well as for creating lists of persons eligible to participate in a national or local referendum.

3. The register of voters shall be open to inspection in the office of the commune.

4. A specimen register, the procedure for maintenance thereof, the updating and the mode of access thereto, shall be established by the National Electoral Commission in agreement with the Minister of Internal Affairs.

1. The register of voters shall be comprised of those persons who have the right to vote and who permanently reside on the territory of the commune.

2. The register of voters shall specify the surname and forenames of the voter, the name of the father of the voter, the date of birth and place of residence of the voter.

3. Voters registered as permanent residents of the commune shall be entered as of right in the register of voters.

4. Voters living permanently in the territory of a commune, without registration as permanent residents, shall be entered in the register of voters if they shall have made an application in writing, specifying the details referred to in para. 2, together with the place of registration of permanent residence outwith the territory of the commune.

5. The decision whether or not to enter any person, referred to in para. 4, in the register of voters, shall be taken by the head of the commune or mayor (president of town) within 3 days of the date of any application, and be immediately delivered to the applicant.

6. Whenever such a voter shall have been entered in the register of voters, such fact shall be communicated to the office of the commune competent for that voter's place of registered, permanent residence in order to delete such voter from the register of voters.

7. A decision to refuse to enter a voter in the register may be appealed to the appropriate district court. The provisions of Article 19 shall apply accordingly.

Persons deprived of their electoral rights shall be deleted from the register of voters upon notifications by courts or the Tribunal of State, given pursuant to procedures specified by the Minister of Justice in agreement with the National Electoral Commission.

1. Any person may lodge, in the office of a commune, a complaint about any inaccuracies in the register of voters, and, in particular, concerning:

2. The head of the commune or mayor (president of town) shall consider any such complaint within 3 days of lodging thereof and shall issue a decision thereon.

3. Any such decision, with reasons given, shall be immediately served on the person who has lodged the complaint, and if it concerns other persons, shall be served on those persons.

1. Any decision which refuses to uphold a complaint or results in a deletion from the register of voters may be appealed, by the applicant or by the person deleted from the register of voters, within 3 days of the date of receipt of such decision, with the territorially competent district court by means of the head of commune or mayor (president of town). The head of the commune or mayor (president of town) shall immediately submit the appeal to the court along with the decision and the relevant case files. The head of the commune or mayor (president of town) may also change or quash his decision if he deems the appeal justified.

2. The court, by a bench of one judge, shall examine the appeal by way of non-litigious procedure within 3 days of the date on which it was lodged. A copy of the court's decision shall be served both on the person who lodged the appeal and on the head of the commune or mayor (president of town). There shall be no legal recourse against the decision of the court.

1. Any person having the right to vote shall be entered in the roll of voters.

2. A voter may only be entered in one roll of voters.

1. The roll of voters shall be drawn up in the office of the commune no later than 14 days before the election day.

2. A roll of voters shall be made for each polling district separately, in 2 copies, according to the voters' place of residence.

3. The roll of voters shall specify the details referred to in Article 16, para. 2.

1. A voter staying temporarily within the territory of a commune shall, upon his own request made no later than the 10th day before the election day, be added to its roll of voters.

2. The provisions of para. 1 shall equally apply to a voter with no place of residence, who is within the territory of the commune.

1. Soldiers performing basic or periodic terms of military service, those serving as candidates for professional soldiering or those performing military training and exercises, as well as conscripts performing their military service in civil defence units outwith their place of residence, shall be added, upon their request, in the roll of voters created for the locality in which they are performing their service. Any such request shall be submitted between the 21st and 14th day before the election day.

2. The provisions of para. 1 shall apply equally to policemen serving in quartered units.

3. Commanders of military units, civil defence units and police units shall be under a duty to ensure soldiers, conscripts and policemen an opportunity to exercise the rights specified in the provisions of para. 1.

4. The Minister of National Defence and the Minister of Internal Affairs shall, in agreement with the National Electoral Commission, determine the procedure for performance of the duties referred to in para. 3.

1. Rolls of voters in hospitals, social welfare establishments, penal institutions and places of remand, as well as in extramural departments of these establishments, shall be created from the lists of persons who shall be present in such establishments on the election day.

2. The lists of persons referred to in para. 1 shall be delivered by the heads of such establishments to the office of the commune no later than the 10th day before the election day.

The fact of inclusion of those persons, referred to in Article 22, para. 1 and Articles 23 and 24, in the roll of voters, shall be notified to the office of the commune competent for the place of their permanent residence.

1. A certificate confirming the right to vote in a place of stay on the election day, shall be given:

- upon request, to a voter changing his place of stay - by reference to the register of voters, as well as

- to a voter added to the roll of voters - by reference to the roll of voters.

2. The office of the commune shall delete from the roll of voters those persons who have been given a certificate confirming their right to vote and those of whom it has been officially notified have been added to the roll in another polling district.

1. The roll of voters shall be open to inspection in the office of the commune.

2. The head of a commune or mayor (president of town) shall notify voters, in the customary manner, about the creation of the roll of voters and the time and place of access thereto.

Complaints, concerning inaccuracies in the roll of voters, may be submitted. The provisions of Articles 18 and 19 shall apply, as appropriate, save that the time-limits for consideration of a complaint and for lodging an appeal with the district court shall be 2 days.

The National Electoral Commission shall, in agreement with the Minister of Internal Affairs, establish a specimen roll of voters, the procedure for its creation and updating, a specimen notification concerning the inclusion of a voter in a roll of voters of another polling district and a specimen certificate confirming the right to vote.

1. Polish citizens, being abroad and holding valid Polish passports, shall be entered in the roll of voters to be created by the territorially appropriate consul of the Republic of Poland.

2. Such inclusion shall be done, upon application by the concerned person, made either orally, in writing, by phone, by cable or telefax. Such application shall specify the voter's surname, forenames, father's name, date of birth, place of residence and the number of his valid Polish passport as well as the place and date of issue. Applications may be made no later than the 3rd day before the election day.

3. The National Electoral Commission, in agreement with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, shall determine the procedure for the creation and updating of the roll of voters referred to in para. 1.

4. Complaints concerning the roll of voters with respect to persons referred to in para. 1 shall be considered by the territorially appropriate consul. There shall be no legal recourse against a consul's decision.

5. The provisions of paras. 1 to 4 shall be applied, as appropriate, to the creation of the roll of voters being aboard Polish ships, provided that the captain of such ship creates the roll in the manner determined by the National Electoral Commission in agreement with the minister competent for maritime-economic matters.

The roll of voters shall be delivered, on the day preceding elections, to the chairman of a district electoral commission.

The district electoral commission shall, on the election day, add to the roll of voters: