Child Maintenance in Poland: How to Claim, No Fee, No Lawyer
Short answer: In Poland the person claiming child maintenance pays no court costs and needs no lawyer, says the e-Justice Portal. File at the district court where the claimant or defendant lives.
Child maintenance (alimenty) is a court matter in Poland, and the process is more accessible than many parents expect: the person claiming maintenance pays no court fees, and a lawyer is not required. This guide follows the Polish factsheet on family maintenance from the European e-Justice Portal. The page has no date and some of its figures go up to 2024, so this guide uses only the rules and leaves out figures that date quickly.
What maintenance covers
Under Article 128 of the Family and Guardianship Code, a maintenance obligation means providing means of subsistence, including clothes, food, housing, heating fuel and medicines, and where needed the means of upbringing, including care for physical and mental development and access to education and culture. For a child, it also includes personal involvement in the upbringing and work in the household.
Parents must pay maintenance to children who cannot yet support themselves, unless the child's own property income covers the costs.
Until what age
According to the portal, children are usually entitled to maintenance until they reach 18 or finish their education. It can continue beyond 18 if the child continues studying and their results justify it, or for reasons of health or personal situation. Parents need not pay for an adult child who is able to work, starts studying and then neglects it.
Maintenance does not end automatically at 18, and a parent cannot simply stop paying. A court decision is needed to end a court-ordered obligation. An application to end it goes to the district court for the place of residence of the person entitled.
How to claim
The portal lists these routes:
1. The payer fulfils the obligation voluntarily. 2. The parties agree out of court. 3. If the payer does not pay, you sue in the district court (sąd rejonowy) for the residence of the person entitled to maintenance or of the defendant. A maintenance claim can also be made in divorce or separation proceedings. 4. A settlement before a notary, which the district court then declares enforceable. The notary and the enforcement order carry fees. 5. A settlement in court, where the defendant may be exempt from the court fee or pay half.
The application must meet the usual requirements for a court filing, including names and PESEL numbers, the claim and its value, the facts, signatures and attachments. The child's birth certificate showing the person against whom maintenance is claimed is the parent is attached. A maintenance claim can be filed together with a paternity application.
* Photos: Narcyz Witczak-Witaczyński, Wikimedia Commons, public domain. Illustrative.
No fees, no lawyer
The portal says the person seeking maintenance is exempt from court costs in full, including appeal and enforcement costs, under Article 96(1)(2) of the 2005 Act on court costs. A lawyer is not required, so you can act on your own or through a representative. The person claiming can also ask for a lawyer appointed by the court. The portal explains that the lawyer's fees are paid by the opponent, or by the State Treasury if the opponent loses.
Who can file for a child
A child's statutory representative acts for a minor. The portal also lists attorneys, the head of a local social assistance centre, and a prosecutor where the public interest requires. Non-governmental organisations can start maintenance proceedings in certain cases with the person's written consent. A cohabitee or acquaintance cannot file unless they are one of those listed.
How much
The portal says there is no fixed amount or percentage of income. The court looks at the reasonable needs of the person entitled and the earning and financial capacities of the payer. For the payer, the court considers the income they could earn by using their full earning capacity, not only what they actually earn. So an unemployed person can still be ordered to pay.
Amounts are not indexed automatically. Either side can ask the court to change the amount, or cancel it, if needs or earning capacity change.
How it is paid and enforced
Maintenance is normally paid in zlotys to the child's statutory representative every month, usually by the tenth. If the payer does not pay, the person entitled can ask a bailiff to enforce, or submit the enforcement order to the debtor's employer or pension payer to have the sums deducted, which the portal says is binding on the payer. Statutory interest applies to late payments. When the child turns 18, they become an independent creditor and maintenance is paid to them.
Foreign judgments
The portal lists foreign decisions that are enforceable in Poland, including those from EU member states under Regulation 4/2009 for states bound by the 2007 Hague Protocol. It does not detail how this works for a parent who lives abroad, so ask a court or the Ministry of Justice for a cross-border case.
What the page does not say
It does not set out current sums, interest rates, or processing times. It does not address foreigners living in Poland as a group, apart from the EU enforcement rules.
Frequently asked questions
Do I pay court fees to claim child maintenance in Poland?
No. The e-Justice portal says the person seeking maintenance is exempt from court costs in full under Article 96(1)(2) of the court costs act.
Do I need a lawyer?
No. Representation by a lawyer is not required. You can ask the court to appoint one.
Is maintenance a fixed percentage of income?
No. The portal says there is no fixed amount or percentage. The court weighs the child's reasonable needs and the payer's earning capacity.
What if the other parent does not pay?
You can ask a bailiff to enforce the order, or send the enforcement order to the payer's employer to deduct the maintenance from wages.
