A Belarusian woman asked relatives to gradually transfer her savings to Poland. Then she bought an apartment — and the bank blocked 1 million zlotys

Most likely, the bank had doubts about their legality: the woman sold property in Belarus, moved to Poland, and asked for the money to be brought to her in cash, little by little. That's how she accumulated everything. She told Most how she ended up in such a situation.

In 2022, Victoria's family (name changed) decided to leave Belarus due to fear of political persecution. In her homeland, she had a business and real estate. Before leaving, she managed to sell some assets and arrange a power of attorney. After everything was sold, she asked relatives to transfer money in amounts not exceeding 10 thousand dollars at a time. This, as is known, is the limit that does not need to be declared when crossing the border.

— The money was also deposited into the bank account in installments — 30-50 thousand zlotys (7-11 thousand euros equivalent) at a time. No questions arose from the bank, — Victoria recounts.

The woman obtained Polish citizenship. Recently, the family decided to buy an apartment in Warsaw. Victoria went to a bank branch to transfer money to the developer — 870 thousand zlotys (about 200 thousand euros). She presented the bank employee with a purchase agreement and other documents.

The transfer was made, the money seemed to have left the account, but it never reached the developer. After the payment, over 100 thousand zlotys (47 thousand euros) should have still remained in the account, but the woman soon lost access to those funds as well. In total, over 1 million zlotys ended up being blocked.

Victoria's account contained not only Belarusian savings. She received child benefits (800+), salary, and income tax refunds. Now all her money is inaccessible.

How long can an account be blocked in Poland?

According to Polish law, if a financial institution has suspicions regarding the origin of funds, it is obliged to initiate a check under the anti-money laundering (AML) law. At this stage, the account can be blocked for a maximum of 96 hours, which is four days. During this time, the bank notifies the financial supervision authority (GIIF). If the case is not escalated further, the account should be automatically unblocked.

Victoria's funds have been blocked for almost two weeks now. This means, most likely, the case has been referred to the prosecutor's office.

If the materials reach the prosecutor's office and they deem the suspicions substantiated, the second stage begins. The prosecutor has the right to block the account within the framework of criminal proceedings — initially for up to six months, and in exceptional cases, extend the block for another six. As a result, the maximum term can reach one year.

Child benefits should not be blocked, as they are merely transferred to parents but are allocated for children.

How to prove the legality of funds

At the Bialystok branch of the bank, Victoria was asked to provide documents regarding the sale of property in Belarus and certificates of all her income.

— I provided a certificate of income for the last ten years and a property sale agreement. But the bank still asked questions: why wasn't the money declared when crossing the border or transferred directly from a Belarusian account to a Polish one? I couldn't transfer it from an account because I was no longer in Belarus at that time. And if the people who transported the money across the border had declared it, they would have faced questions from the Belarusian tax service: where did they get the money? Therefore, the only legal way was to transport it in portions, without declaring it.

Victoria tried to find out the status of her case through the bank's hotline and by writing a letter, but has not yet received specific information. She doesn't know if the prosecutor's office has opened any case against her, and if so, for what, under which article, and which specific prosecutor's office.

The fate of the agreement with the developer is still unknown. The woman has already received a call from a realtor asking if and when she will make the payment.

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