PLN 2,333 added to your salary each month. Your PESEL number is the deciding factor.

• Employers can receive salary subsidies, which cannot exceed half of the minimum wage, i.e. up to PLN 2,333 gross per month.
• The subsidy is available for every employed person who meets the criteria of age and the status of unemployed or job seeker.
• The money is paid for 12 months for employing people aged 50-59 (women) or 50-64 (men) and for 1 month (with the possibility of multiple granting, up to 6 months in total) for retirees.
• There is an obligation to maintain employment after the support ends.

As Infor reminds, regulations have been in force since June 1, 2025, aimed at making the employment of people over 50 and retirees more profitable for employers. The new Act of March 20, 2025, on the Labor Market and Employment Services, introduces wage subsidies aimed at professional activation of people aged 50+ and seniors , including those who, despite receiving benefits, are in a difficult financial situation.

The subsidy is available to employers for employing a person who is over 50 years of age but has not yet reached retirement age (i.e. 60 years for women or 65 years for men), provided that they are registered as unemployed.

Support also covers the employment of people of retirement age (60+ for women, 65+ for men), giving them the opportunity to earn extra money.

Importantly, these funds go directly to the employer, and it is up to him whether to allocate them to increasing the employee's salary or treat them as savings.

However, there is an important caveat: the subsidy will not be available to employers who previously employed the individual or for whom the individual performed other paid work immediately before registering as a jobseeker . This provision is intended to prevent abuses, such as firing and immediately rehiring an employee to obtain the subsidy.

The amount of the subsidy, specified in the agreement concluded with the starosta, may not exceed half of the minimum wage applicable on the date of signing the agreement.

From June 1, 2025, the maximum monthly subsidy is PLN 2,333 gross for each person meeting the criteria of age and unemployed or job-seeking status.

The period for which an employer can receive subsidy depends on the employee's age: for people aged 50-59 (women) or 50-64 (men) , support is available for 12 months . For retirees (women 60+, men 65+), subsidy is granted for one month, but may be granted repeatedly, for example, every other month, but for no longer than a total of six months.

How to use the surcharge?

To be eligible for the subsidy, the employer must undertake to maintain the person's employment after the end of the subsidy period: for the next 6 months in the case of people of pre-retirement age (50-59/64 years) and for the next 1 month in the case of retirees.

In total, this can mean up to 18 months of employment (12 months with the subsidy and another 6 months without it). Failure to meet this obligation requires the employer to repay the entire amount received, along with interest accrued from the date of receipt of the first transfer, within 30 days of the date the district head delivers the notice.

The process of applying for funding requires submitting an application to the employment office , along with declarations confirming that there are no arrears in public payments (e.g., taxes, contributions) and that there are no criminal records for making false declarations or committing economic crimes. These declarations are submitted under penalty of criminal liability.

Despite its many benefits, the new regulations have one major loophole: legislators have failed to address the possibility of an employer, seeing an opportunity for a subsidy, dismissing a current employee aged 50+ in order to hire someone of the same age and benefit from the subsidy. This temptation may arise especially in jobs where specialized qualifications are not required, such as in trade or manufacturing.

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