Employee Capital Plans launched

2019 marks the start of a highly anticipated retirement system reform in Poland. In a recent official inauguration, Prime Minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, expressed hopes that the new pension scheme will positively affect not only every employee in the country but also the entire state through generating savings and driving economic growth.

Employee Capital Plans are a system of payments which are deducted from the employee’s salary every month. It consists of three elements: employee payments, employer payments and state payments. All these will be credited in individual accounts and stay there until an employee becomes 60 years old. Then the account holder will be allowed to withdraw the funds without the obligation to pay capital gains tax.

Employee Capital Plans will work alongside the state pension system. The new scheme will launch automatically for every staff member, unless they request to sign out, as the new system is not mandatory. It is hard to predict how many people will decide to participate in the scheme. To convince Poles to the new idea, state officials keep highlighting the fact that the funds accrued by future pensioners belong to them and are inheritable.

It may not be easy to convince Polish employees the system will work to their advantage. In practice, the capital plans payments will be deducted from people’s gross salaries. Employers, on the other hand, will have more red tape to deal with. Obviously, the employer’s contributions will be transferred onto the staff members whose renumeration will decrease even more. There are speculations the government moved introduction of the pension scheme forward so that the first transfers are made after the general election in autumn.

At this point, Employee Capital Plans only apply to big enterprises, i.e. the ones employing over 50 staff members. Gradually, the scheme will be extended to include medium and small companies.

What This Means for Businesses in Poland

Tax policy changes in Poland have direct implications for both domestic and foreign-owned businesses. Companies operating in Poland must stay informed about regulatory developments to optimize their tax position and maintain compliance. The Polish tax system includes CIT (19% standard, 9% for small taxpayers), VAT (23% standard rate with reduced rates of 8% and 5%), and various sector-specific levies.

For international entrepreneurs and investors, understanding the Polish tax landscape is essential for business planning. Poland offers several attractive incentives including the Polish Investment Zone (up to 15 years of CIT exemption), R&D tax relief (up to 200% deduction), and the IP Box regime (5% effective CIT rate on qualified intellectual property income). Professional tax advisory can help identify the most beneficial structure for your specific situation.

The interplay between Polish domestic tax law and international tax treaties is particularly important for foreign-owned entities. Transfer pricing regulations, withholding tax provisions, and anti-avoidance rules (GAAR) require careful navigation to ensure both compliance and optimization.

If you are doing business in Poland or considering entering the Polish market, Zalewski Consulting can help. Learn more about our tax advisory services in Poland, or contact us for a free consultation.