Types of social insurance and rules of coverage

Types of social insurance and rules of coverage are governed by the Act of 13 October 1998 on the social insurance system.

The Polish social insurance system consists of:

• old-age pension insurance,
• disability pension insurance,
• sickness insurance,
• accident insurance.

An insured person is an individual, who is covered by at least one of the social insurance schemes.

The Act on the social insurance system distinguishes between compulsory and voluntary insurance.

The following groups are covered by the compulsory pension insurance:

• employees, excluding public prosecutors,
• members of agricultural production cooperatives,
• freelancers/contractors,
• persons running non-agricultural business activity and persons cooperating with them,
• non-professional soldiers on active military service,
• persons who give up their employment to take direct care of a long-term or seriously ill family member,
• recipients of the nursing allowance or carer’s allowance,
• clergy,
• Members of Parliament receiving remuneration,
• recipients of unemployment benefits, 
• persons who are on child-care leave or who are receiving maternity allowance or an
• allowance equal to the maternity allowance,
• members of supervisory boards remunerated for this function.

Persons who may not be covered by pension insurance because they do not meet the necessary requirements have the right to join such insurance voluntarily.

The number of insured persons in 2023 equalled 16,262.5 thousand.

Compulsory sickness insurance covers persons subject to compulsory pension insurance, being:

• employees, excluding public prosecutors,
• members of agricultural production cooperatives and rural circles cooperatives.

The sickness insurance may be joined, on a voluntary basis (on request), by persons covered by compulsory pension insurance, including persons running non-agricultural business activity or persons who cooperate with them, members of the clergy and persons performing work on a basis of civil law mandatory or agency contracts.

The compulsory accident insurance covers persons subject to the compulsory pension insurance, e.g.:

• employees,
• freelancers/contractors,
• members of agricultural production cooperatives,
• persons running non-agricultural business activity,
• persons cooperating with persons running non-agricultural business activity,
• clergy.