What is ZUS? What official contributions do I have to make to the social insurance fund? What benefits can a foreigner working in Poland expect to receive?
Social insurance is a system of social protection for Polish citizens and foreigners legally residing in Poland. It is a state system of financial security in old age, in case of temporary or permanent disability and health protection. It is financed by the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) and the National Health Fund (NFZ).
Synopsis: ZUS is a Polish state organisation responsible for social insurance issues. ZUS has been operating since 1934. This organisation is controlled by the Polish Ministry of Labour and Social Policy.
Types of social insurance in Poland:
- Pension insurance (ubezpiecieczenie emerytalne)
- Disability/ survivors insurance (ubezpieczenie rentowe)
- Health insurance (ubezpiecieczenie chorobowe)
- Accident insurance (ubezpiecieczenie wypadkowe)
A foreign national who is legally employed in Poland is subject to compulsory insurance coverage. Contributions to ZUS are usually made through your employer, but it is possible to pay them personally. The interest rates for each type of insurance are different and are charged from your salary. For example, pension insurance costs 19,52%, disability insurance costs 8%, and health insurance costs 2,45% of your salary.
Which contributions must be paid for you by your employer and which contributions must be paid by you personally depends largely on the type of employment contract.
If you are employed on the basis of an Umowa o pracę contract, the employer pays all social contributions. When you perform work on the basis of a contract of assignment (umova zlecenie), the employer pays all contributions except for health insurance. This contribution is voluntary for you. The last option is that you work under a contract of labour (umowa o dzieło). In this case, you must personally contribute to social and/or health insurance.
Note: in order to obtain a residence permit and residence permit in Poland, a foreigner needs to be insured.
Recently, cases of unscrupulous employers have become more frequent. They did not make deductions from the salaries of their employees for social insurance. To check if you are cooperating with such an employer, visit the ZUS website or visit the nearest branch of the Social Insurance Office. There, a ZUS employee will prepare a certificate of contributions at your request. The document will contain your details (full name), what insurance you receive and the number from which your employer makes these contributions. However, you will need to provide the reason for requesting this document.
Now let's talk about what types of social benefits are available to a foreign citizen working officially in Poland.
- Based on your contributions, you will be paid a pension when you reach retirement age. By the way, the retirement age is 60 for women and 65 for men. The Polish government planned to raise the retirement age to 67, but the reform was postponed.
- Sickness and maternity benefits: you can count on financial assistance in case of illness, maternity benefits, care allowance.
- Payments due to an industrial accident or occupational disease.
- Unemployment Benefit.
- Health care. If you work and pay part of your salary to a health insurance, your immediate family members (children, spouses, parents) are also covered by health insurance. But only if you have informed your employer about your non-working relatives. You can receive free care at health centres that co-operate with the NFZ (National Health Fund). These can be public clinics and polyclinics, as well as private facilities. You only need to provide your PESEL number.
Note: After leaving employment, the compulsory health insurance is only valid for 30 days from the date of termination of the employment contract.
In this case, you can take out voluntary insurance. To do this, you need to apply to the National Health Fund office in your voivodeship. Submit an application form and pay a monthly fee (at the time of writing the amount of the fee was about 400 PLN). The main condition for health insurance in the NFZ is legal residence in Poland (visa, residence card) and signing a contract with the NFZ.
Remember, emergency medical care is for everyone who needs it!
To summarise, social insurance is a certainty for everyone in Poland! By not contributing, you are depriving yourself of state-guaranteed benefits and risking your future. After all, the main purpose of the insurance premium system is to protect and support you!
