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This edition is essential reading for HR professionals, legal counsel, and business leaders navigating Polish employment law to keep up with dynamically changing labour law landscape in Poland. Key developments include new requirements for pay transparency and equal treatment in recruitment, promotion of collective bargaining, and stricter rules - and higher fines - around the employment of foreigners. Employers must also prepare for new powers of labour inspectors in determining a employment status of workers and changes in seniority calculation. Draft legislation will soon require paid internships, strengthen equal pay enforcement, and update anti-mobbing obligations, but at the same time abolishes certain HR and social security formalities. Employers should at least review and update internal policies and practices, and audit pay structures to ensure compliance with evolving standards.
Recent months have seen numerous legislative changes in both labour law and social security.
The 2025 review highlights issues related to the amendments of the Labour Code and the laws implementing Directive 2023/970 on pay transparency, as well as the proposed increase in the powers of the State Labour Inspectorate particularly regarding the reclassification of civil law contracts and the conferral of new powers upon it. These changes will certainly affect current employment models and employee relations. Changes in the regulations on the employment of foreigners also remain a practical challenge. Is there a future for the four-day working week? The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy is currently conducting a pilot programme to assess this. As we sum up the past year, we review the key and current issues of recent months.
CHANGES IN THE LAW
1. Transparency and equality in remuneration
The amendment to the Labour Code published on 23 June 2025 in the Journal of Laws partially implements Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council on pay transparency and equal pay. As of 24 December 2025, employers will be required to comply with a number of new obligations. We covered these changes in the HR in the Know 3/2025.
Important: The new rules will also apply to recruitment processes ongoing on the date of entry into force of the amendment. In particular, employers should ensure that job advertisements and job titles are gender-neutral, that the recruitment process is nondiscriminatory, and that candidates are provided with all the required information and documentation. The requirements imposed will also result in the need to catalogue the components of remuneration and benefits for individual positions.
(Act of 4 June 2025 amending the Labour Code (Journal of Laws of 2025, item 807))
2. Act on Collective Bargaining Agreements and Collective Agreements
On 13 December 2025, the Act on Collective Bargaining Agreements and Collective Agreements came into force, with the aim of promoting and supporting the wider use of collective bargaining agreements by employers. The new regulations provide for the simplification of the registration procedure for collective bargaining agreements by introducing an entry in the National Register of Collective Bargaining Agreements using an electronic form, enabling the use of a mediator in the event of an impasse during negotiations, and introducing the possibility of concluding a collective agreement for a fixed term with the option of extending its validity for a fixed or indefinite period. They also provide for greater flexibility in the content of the agreement, including the possibility of covering matters not regulated by mandatory labour law provisions, and broaden the personal scope of coverage (so that individuals employed under civil law contracts are also covered by collective agreements). We wrote more about the assumptions of this amendment in our Q1 Newsletter.
Important: Employers whose organisations have trade unions and who have not previously concluded collective agreements should prepare themselves accordingly. The new scope of agreements may provide an additional incentive for persons employed under civil law contracts to enter into negotiations. In addition, the amendment introduces an obligation to register existing agreements concerning, among other things, remote work, which may lead to organisational chaos in workplaces. However, there are no fundamental modifications in the area of conducting negotiations, and the proposed changes are assessed as primarily aimed at simplifying procedures. It is expected that the Act in its current form will not cause a revolution on the part of employers, but it may provide an impetus for further, more significant changes.
(Act on Collective Bargaining Agreements and Collective Agreements of 5 November 2025 (Journal of Laws 2025, item 1661))
3. New minimum periods for disability certificates
The regulation amending the previous regulation on the assessment of disability and degree of disability changes, among other things: (i) the minimum period for which a disability certificate may be issued for so-called interested persons (i.e. persons with disabilities over 16 years of age) is not less than 7 years – in the case of rare genetic diseases (according to the annex to the regulation, this applies to 208 diseases) or Down syndrome, (ii) the minimum validity period of the certificate for persons under 16 years of age is 3 years (but not longer than until they reach 16 years of age) – until they reach the age of 16, i.e. until the end of the possible period for which a disability certificate is valid, in the case of confirmation of a rare genetic disease or Down syndrome in a child. Obtaining such a certificate entitles the person to support, in particular care benefits, tax relief or a care allowance.
Important: The regulation came into force on 11 June 2025. However, the new provisions also apply to pending cases. It is important to note the additional rights of employees with disabilities. The changes also affect the employment rate of people with disabilities, which is important in determining obligations towards PFRON.
(Regulation of the Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy of 26 May 2025 amending the regulation on the assessment of disability and degree of disability (Journal of Laws of 2025, item 682))
4. Changes in the employment of foreigners
Changes have been made to the procedures for obtaining declarations of entrusting work, the rules for issuing seasonal work permits, the conditions for employing foreigners, as well as the regulations concerning higher education institutions. It is now possible to legalise the employment of foreigners through the dedicated portal praca.gov.pl. In particular, this allows for the submission of work permit applications, the reporting of declarations of entrusting work, and the sending of necessary documents and attachments to applications. One of the most significant changes is the abolition of the obligation to conduct the so-called labour market test, which we wrote about in the previous issue of the Newsletter.
Entities of strategic importance, employees continuing employment with the same employer, and those in shortage occupations can benefit from a "fast track" procedure for work permits. This involves giving priority to applications for visas and temporary residence and work permits. There have also been changes in the rules for the secondment of foreign nationals by foreign entities to work in Poland – the new requirements include the need to employ a foreign national before the secondment begins, and the foreign national must have employee status. Furthermore, it is not permissible to second between "sister" companies within a capital group – there must be a so-called vertical capital link between the foreign entity and the host entity in Poland. The entity entrusting work to a foreigner must provide an export service. The employer's obligation to inform the provincial governor or district administrator about the loss of employment by a foreign employee has also been extended, as well as other changes concerning the employee, e.g. regarding working hours or form of employment. The changes also affect temporary employment agencies and employment agencies. To refer foreigners to work in Poland, such an agency must have been operating for at least two years, submit an application to amend its entry in the register of employment agencies, and pay a fee of PLN 1,000.
A number of changes have also been introduced in the visa system. These mainly concern the removal of irregularities and the streamlining of the process of granting visas and taking up employment on the basis of them (including access by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and consuls to data from the visa application and border crossing processes). The new regulations also apply to holders of the EU Blue Card. From now on, it will be of a general nature, not tied to a specific job or employer. In addition, professional experience will also be required to obtain it. Holders of an EU Blue Card and a temporary residence permit for the purpose of long-term mobility of an EU Blue Card holder are treated in the same way as Polish citizens when it comes to conducting business activity in Poland.
The amendment also tightened the fines. For example, a fine of up to PLN 50,000 may be imposed on, among others, a person who illegally entrusts work to a foreigner, leads a foreigner to illegal work by misleading them, or exploiting a professional relationship, or a person demanding financial gain from a foreigner in exchange for taking steps to obtain a work permit or other document entitling them to work. Penalties for the above offences are to be imposed in proportion to the number of foreigners who have been employed in a manner inconsistent with the regulations – the penalty for one foreigner will not be less than PLN 6,000.
The amended regulations came into force on 1 June 2025, with some provisions taking effect on 1 July 2025.
Important: Employers must take into account the lengthening of recruitment processes due to more restrictive regulations. If an employer has had internal policies regulating the rules for recruiting or employing foreigners, these will need to be reviewed to take into account numerous simplifications (including "fast track", or the abolition of the labour market test), as well as any difficulties (including verification of Polish residence permits, extended information obligations towards district authorities, estimation of working hours on a contract basis, or formalised rules for secondment). Thus, an internal audit of the basis for employing foreigners and related processes will be inevitable. It is worth remembering that the new regulations provide for stricter fines.
(Act of 24 April 2025 amending the Act on Foreigners and certain other acts (Journal of Laws of 2025, item 619), Act of 4 April 2025 amending certain acts in order to eliminate irregularities in the visa system of the Republic of Poland (Journal of Laws of 2025, item 622), the Act of 20 March 2025 on the conditions for the admissibility of entrusting work to foreigners on the territory of the Republic of Poland (Journal of Laws of 2025, item 621), Act of 20 March 2025 on the labour market and employment services (Journal of Laws of 2025, item 620)
5. Elimination of the obligation to store registration documents
The amendment introduces the abolition of the obligation for entrepreneurs to store paper documents signed by the reported person and sent electronically to the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS). A payer who, immediately before the amendment comes into force, was required to store written notifications in writing with a handwritten signature will be exempt from this obligation on the date the Act enters into force.
The Act entered into force on 4 November 2025.
(Act amending the Act on the social insurance system of 12 September 2025 (Journal of Laws 2025, item 1413))
6. Changes in the calculation of length of service
The Act amending the Labour Code, providing for changes in the calculation of length of service, was published in the Journal of Laws of the Republic of Poland on 21 October 2025 and will enter into force on 1 January 2026.
The changes include counting, among other things, periods of non-agricultural activity carried out by a natural person, periods of performing a contract of mandate or providing services, periods of performing an agency contract, periods of being a cooperating person with the above-mentioned categories, as well as periods of personal childcare by cooperating persons and entrepreneurs who suspend their activity for this reason, towards length of service. The changes will also apply to persons who were not subject to social security and disability insurance (e.g. students under 26 years of age) or persons with documented periods of gainful employment abroad on a basis other than an employment relationship. The new regulations also introduce detailed guidelines for confirming periods counted towards seniority. An important role is played by the certificate issued by the Social Insurance Institution, which confirms, among other things, the payment of social insurance contributions. In the absence of such a certificate, the employee will be able to prove their length of service with their own documentation confirming that they have worked for a given period.
Persons covered by the amendment may obtain the right to, among other things, a longer holiday entitlement, a longer notice period and higher severance pay in the event of termination of employment. The amendment will also result in an increase in seniority allowances and jubilee awards, if provided for in company regulations. The Act will enter into force on 1 January 2026; however, for employers in the private sector, the provisions will take effect on 1 May 2026. Employees will have 24 months from the date the Act enters into force to submit the documentation.
Important: The changes will only apply to persons employed under employment contracts. It should be noted that the implementation of the changes will not be automatic – employers will have to adapt their internal practices, work regulations, remuneration regulations and employment contracts to the new regulations. The changes may affect, among other things, the costs of collective redundancies planned for the next calendar year. Employees in the private sector will have 24 months, from 1 May 2026 to 1 May 2028, to submit the relevant documentation, so employers may not be able to estimate the scale of new entitlements immediately after the regulations come into force.
(Act amending the Labour Code and certain other acts of 26 September 2025 (Journal of Laws 2025, item 1423))
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