National legislation

The tasks in the sphere of social security are exercised by many institutions, including:

• Social Insurance Institution (Zakład Ubezpieczeń Społecznych, ZUS) – pays out cash benefits and provides benefits in kind as part of disability pension prevention from social insurance,
• Agricultural Social Insurance Fund (Kasa Rolniczego Ubezpieczenia Społecznego, KRUS) – pays out cash benefits and provides benefits in kind as part of disability pension prevention from social insurance of farmers,
• Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy (Ministerstwo Rodziny, Pracy i Polityki Społecznej, MRPiPS) – provides family and social benefits (from social assistance),
• National Health Fund (Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia, NFZ) – finances health care from health insurance,
• Director of the Military Pension Office in Warsaw – the body competent for officers dismissed from the Military Counterintelligence Service and the Military Intelligence Service,
• Director of the Prison Service Pension Office – the body competent for officers dismissed from the Prison Service,
• Director of the Pension Office of the Ministry of Interior and Administration – the body competent for officers dismissed from other uniformed services.

Many legal instruments contain an obligation of insurance against certain social contingencies and benefits guaranteed upon the occurrence of such contingencies. Such a provision already appears in the highest legal act, i.e. in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland.

The detailed regulations governing individual areas of social security are contained in separate Acts of Parliament. The most important of them include:

§ Act of 13 October 1998 on the social insurance system (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 497) – the so-called System Act,
§ Act of 17 December 1998 on pensions from the Social Insurance Fund (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 1251, 1429 and 1672, and of 2024, item 834) – the so-called Pension Act,
§ Act of 20 April 2004 on Individual Pension Accounts (Indywidualne Konta Emerytalne, IKEs) and Individual Pension Security Accounts (Indywidualne Konta Zabezpieczenia Emerytalnego, IKZEs) (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 707) – the so-called IKE and IKZE Act,
§ Act of 20 April 2004 on Occupational Pension Schemes (Pracownicze Programy Emerytalne, PPEs) (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 556) – the so-called PPE Act,
§ Act of 4 October 2018 on Employee Capital Plans (Pracownicze Plany Kapitałowe, PPKs) (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 427) – the so-called PPK Act,
§ Act of 21 November 2008 on funded pensions (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 926),
§ Act of 28 August 1997 on organisation and operation of old-age pension funds (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 930, 1672 and 1941),
§ Act of 19 December 2008 on old-age bridging pensions (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 164 and 1667),
§ Act of 25 June 1999 on cash social insurance benefits in respect of sickness and maternity (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 2780) – the so-called Allowance Act,
§ Act of 30 October 2002 on social insurance in respect of an accidents at work and occupational diseases (Journal of Laws of 2022, item 2189) – the so-called Accident Insurance Act,
§ Act of 27 June 2003 on social pension (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 2194),
§ Act of 30 April 2004 on pre-retirement benefits (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 1999),
§ Act of 31 January 2019 on supplementary parental benefit (Journal of Laws of 2022, item 1051),
§ Act of 31 July 2019 on supplementary benefit for persons incapable of independent existence (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 256),
§ Act of 23 January 2008 on the transfer of pension rights of officials of the European Communities (Journal of Laws of 2008, No. 47, item 274, and of 2011, No. 75, item 398 and No. 171, item 1061).

Health care benefits are provided pursuant to:

§ Act of 27 August 2004 on health care benefits financed from public funds (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 146) – the so-called Health-Care Act.

Benefits in respect of unemployment are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 20 April 2004 on employment promotion and labour market institutions (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 475 and 742).

Benefits from the social insurance of farmers are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 20 December 1990 on social insurance of farmers (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 90, as amended) – the so-called Agricultural Insurance Act.

Social assistance benefits are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 12 March 2004 on social pension (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 901, 1693, 1938 and 2760, and of 2024, item 743).

Benefits for the family

• child-support benefit is provided pursuant to:
  • § Act of 11 February 2016 on state aid in raising children (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 421).
• benefits from the Active Parent programme are provided pursuant to:
  • § Act of 15 May 2024 on supporting parents in economic activity and in child-rearing (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 858).

Benefit under the 'Good Start’ programme is provided pursuant to:
§ Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 15 June 2021 on detailed conditions for the implementation of the government programme ‘Good Start’ (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 1092).

Family benefits are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 28 November 2003 on family benefits (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 323).

Carer’s allowance is provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 4 April 2014 on the establishment and payment of allowances for carers (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 246).

Benefits from the Maintenance Fund are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 7 September 2007 on assistance for persons entitled to the maintenance allowance (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 1993).

The vocational and social rehabilitation and employment of the disabled persons are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 27 August 1997 on vocational and social rehabilitation and employment of the disabled persons (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 44).

Benefits from the military pension provision scheme are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 10 December 1993 on pension provision for professional soldiers and their families (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 242).

Benefits from pension provision scheme for officers are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 18 February 1994 on the old-age pensions of officers of the Police, the Internal Security Agency, Foreign Intelligence Agency, the Military Counterintelligence Service, the Military Intelligence Service, the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau, the Border Guard, the Marshal Guard, the State Protection Service, the State Fire Service, the Tax and Customs Service and the Prison Service as well as their families (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 1280, 1429 and 1834) – the so-called Pension Provision Act.

Benefits from the system of social provision for judges, in particular the principles of judges’ retirement are described in:
§ Act of 27 July 2001 – Law on the organisation of common courts system (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 334),
§ Regulation of the Minister of Justice of 21 June 2018 on the retired judges’ emoluments and survivors’ emoluments of judges’ and retired judges’ family members and the dates of transferring social insurance contributions to the Social Insurance Institution (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 1258).

Benefits from the system of social provision for public prosecutors, in particular the principles of prosecutors’ retirement are described in:
§ Act of 28 January 2016 – Law on the Public Prosecutor’s Office (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 390),
§ Act of 27 July 2001 – Law on the organisation of common courts system (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 334).

Rescue benefits are provided pursuant to:
§ Act of 17 December 2021 on voluntary fire brigades (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 194, as amended),
§ Act of 18 August 2011 on safety and rescue in the mountains and on organised ski areas (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 1154, as amended),
§ Act of 8 February 2023 on a cash benefit due to family members of officers or professional soldiers whose death occurred in connection with service or undertaking off-duty activities to save human life or health, or property (Journal of Laws of 2023, item 658).