When HR asks for proof of address and the final document is still with your landlord, send what you already have, explain what is missing, and ask which temporary evidence they can accept. Then complete the smallest action that moves the document forward: one clear message to the landlord with the document name, its purpose, and the time you need an answer.
At 8:42 on her first Monday in Warsaw, Lena was standing beside an unopened office kitchen, holding a paper cup of coffee and rereading the same message from HR. Her onboarding file needed proof of address. The document she expected to use was still waiting for her landlord’s signature.
Lena is an illustrative composite, a newly arrived software tester who keeps a tiny green notebook for Polish words she hears twice. That morning, it contained one urgent line in English: “address paper?”
Her landlord had not replied to two messages sent over the weekend. HR needed an update before the afternoon onboarding session. If the document remained unresolved, Lena’s access and paperwork could stall before she had completed her first day.
For one uncomfortable minute, she considered sending a third message that simply said, “Any news?” Then she stopped. That message would create another notification, but it would not make the next step clearer.
Separate the missing document from the morning’s useful action
Relocation admin often arrives as a large, blurry problem: “I cannot prove my address.” That wording makes the whole situation feel blocked.
A more useful version is smaller: “I need to learn what HR will accept today, and I need my landlord to understand exactly what I need.”
Those are two actions. Both can happen before the final document arrives.
Lena gathered the address evidence already within reach: her signed rental agreement, the landlord’s contact details, and the message confirming when she moved in. She did not assume any of these would satisfy HR. She attached the relevant items and asked a precise question: could HR accept one of them temporarily while the requested document was completed?
That distinction matters. Sending an alternative document does not mean declaring it valid for every purpose. It means giving the person handling your case enough information to tell you what can happen next.
Address requirements can differ between an employer, a bank, a local registration process, and a residence permit application. Treat each request as its own task. Ask the recipient what they require instead of relying on a checklist copied from someone else’s move.
Write the message that is easiest to answer
Lena’s next message to her landlord included three facts:
- HR had requested proof of her current address.
- She named the document awaiting completion.
- She asked whether it could be signed that morning, or when she should expect it.
She attached the document again so the landlord would not need to search through an old conversation. She also asked whether anything was missing from her side.
This is a small move, but it changes the shape of the problem. “Any update?” asks the other person to remember the entire situation. A specific request gives them a decision they can make immediately.
If your address depends on accommodation that is about to end, the risk can be sharper. A hotel booking, short stay, or temporary room may support one stage of your arrival while leaving the next stage unresolved. Your Hotel Registration Ends at Checkout. Your New Address Needs Its Own. explains why that handover deserves its own place on your relocation list.
Give HR a truthful status, not a hopeful promise
By 9:15, Lena still had no landlord reply. The deadline had not disappeared, and she could not honestly promise the signed document would arrive before lunch.
So she sent HR a short status:
“I have requested the signed address document from my landlord and followed up this morning. I have attached my rental agreement and move-in confirmation. Can either be used temporarily, or should I complete another onboarding step while this remains pending?”
That message does three useful things. It shows action, provides available evidence, and asks for a route around the blockage. It avoids pretending the missing document is already on its way when Lena does not know that.
HR may accept temporary evidence, request something different, or pause that part of onboarding. The answer depends on the employer and the purpose of the check. The useful move is to surface the gap early enough for HR to guide the next step.
This approach also helps when several documents are moving at once. Keep each request labelled by recipient, purpose, current status, and next action. If your files are scattered across email threads and suitcase pockets, Can You Find Your Relocation Documents Before the Apartment Is Gone? offers a practical way to make them easier to retrieve under pressure.
Turn the blockage into one completed quest
Just before the onboarding session, Lena’s landlord replied with a question about one blank field. The signed document was still uncertain, but the conversation was moving again.
Lena answered the question, told HR when she expected the next update, and crossed out “address paper?” in her green notebook. Underneath, she wrote the actual sequence: ask what counts, send what exists, make the next request specific.
Aqee frames relocation as a guided journey because settling in rarely happens through one heroic burst of paperwork. Progress comes from completing the next useful quest while keeping the larger path visible.
On a difficult Monday, that quest may take ten minutes. Find the request. Name the missing piece. Send one message that another person can answer without guessing. Then move to the next onboarding task instead of refreshing your inbox beside a cooling cup of coffee.
