Material from the archives is directly available in our Reading Room. The rules of access are set out in Directive No. 4 of the General Director of the State Archives, dated 18th May 2000, on arranging access to records in the state's archives, and in our own Reading Room Rules.
The right to avail themselves of the records is enjoyed by natural and legal persons, social organisations, and state and local self-governing bodies, as well as by organisational bodies with no legal personality. Private individuals may act on their own behalf, or as the authorised representative of an interested entity. Should legitimate grounds exist, a reader may avail themselves of the services of a personal translator. Access to the material is free of charge and encompasses all records duly entered into the accession register, that is, materials for which finding aids exist, enabling individual, content-specific units to be identified.
Records held in the archive become available 30 years after they were created, insofar as this does not violate the legitimate protection of the interests of the state and her citizens.
The law governing the release of records prior to the statutory 30-year period is set forth in the Minister of Culture and National Heritage's Order, of 13th December 2000, determining the specific circumstances and method for the early release of public records (Dz. U. [Journal of Laws] 2001, No 13, item 116).
Material which has not been entered into the accessions register, or for which no finding aids yet exist, or which is deemed to be in too fragile a condition, will not be made available.
The records are made available on the basis of a written application, submitted by the interested party, in the form of a reader's order form. The form contains the reader's personal details, together with the specifics of the requested unit and the type of work for which it is required.
In respect of records legitimately withheld, the reader is required to submit a written undertaking regarding the manner and scope of their use.
Readers may make use of the Archive's finding aids, that is the register and fonds card indexes, inventories, registers of collection and receipt, working registers, indexes, files and lists. The records which a reader wishes to study are made available of the basis of an order, placed using the Archive's order form. A separate form is required for every unit ordered. Up to 10 items may be ordered at any one time. However, there is no limit to the number of units which may be ordered in the course of one day. The Archive can arrange, on request, for the loan of microfilms held in other state archives or institutions; the costs for this will be borne by the reader. Copies of records can also be made, for a fee, as per the price list.
The Reading Room of the State Archive in Kalisz is open as follows:
- Monday 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
- Tuesday 8:30 AM - 6:30 PM
- Wednesday 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
- Thursday 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
- Friday 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Orders for records are accepted from 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM every day