Funeral grant in Poland 2026: 7,000 zł from ZUS and how to apply
Short answer: ZUS pays a funeral grant of 7,000 zł from 1 March 2026 to the person who paid, if the deceased was insured or a pensioner. Apply within 12 months on form Z-12.
Arranging a funeral is hard enough without the paperwork. In Poland the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) pays a one-off funeral grant, zasiłek pogrzebowy, to the person who paid for the funeral, and it applies to deaths of people who were insured in the Polish system as well as pensioners. This guide explains the amount in 2026, who is entitled to it, which documents ZUS asks for and the deadline, using ZUS pages and its announcement of 27 January 2026. Information is as of 16 October 2026.
The amount in 2026
A ZUS announcement of 27 January 2026 states that from 1 March 2026 the funeral grant is 7,000 zł. The ZUS page explains how it is paid:
- if you are a family member of the deceased and you paid for the funeral, you receive 7,000 zł regardless of the actual cost
- if you are a stranger to the deceased, an employer, a social care home, a municipality, a county or a church legal entity, the grant covers the documented costs, up to a maximum of 7,000 zł
- if more than one person or body paid, the grant is divided between the applicants in proportion to the costs they bore
Who counts as family
ZUS lists these as family members: a spouse (including a spouse in separation), parents, stepparents and adopters, own children, the spouse's children and adopted children, children taken in under foster care or raised and maintained before turning 18, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, and people for whom legal guardianship was established.
Whose death qualifies
The grant is paid after the death of a person who was, among other things:
- entitled to a retirement pension or disability pension
- insured with ZUS, including while receiving maternity benefit
- receiving sickness benefit or rehabilitation benefit
- receiving a pre-retirement benefit or a social pension
- a person who met the conditions for a pension but had not been granted one on the day of death
The full list on the ZUS page also covers other cases, such as people who died as a result of an occupational accident or disease. ZUS adds that the grant is paid on one basis only.
Whether the person who died meets one of these conditions is for ZUS to confirm, so it is worth asking ZUS or the funeral home before you apply.
How to apply
Since 1 January 2026, ZUS says you can file the application directly with ZUS or through a funeral home. The funeral home can submit the application and documents for a family member, another person or an entitled body that paid the costs.
For the direct route, the ZUS procedure description says to:
1. Log in to your PUE/eZUS profile and choose the service "Złożenie dokumentu Z-12". 2. Complete the electronic form and choose how you want to receive replies. Give your bank account number if you want the money paid there. 3. Attach the required documents as scans or electronic originals. 4. Sign with a qualified certificate, a trusted profile, your PUE/eZUS profile or an e-ID card and send it.
You can also use the paper form Z-12 at a ZUS branch.
Documents
ZUS lists these documents:
- the application form Z-12
- the bills for the funeral costs, for example church documents confirming ceremony costs. If you handed the originals to a bank, bank-certified copies
- if there is no birth certificate noting a stillbirth: a death card or a doctor's or midwife's certificate of stillbirth
- a death certificate, or a stillbirth birth certificate, if it was issued abroad
- a document confirming your identity, such as an ID card or passport
- a power of attorney if someone acts for you (ZUS form PEL)
For foreigners, the document issued abroad is the main point. ZUS lists a death certificate issued abroad among the papers. Ask the ZUS branch whether your foreign certificate needs a translation or other formalities before you send it.
The deadline
The right to the grant expires if you do not apply within 12 months of the day the person died. If filing in that time was impossible because the body was found later, the dead person was identified later, or for other reasons entirely beyond the entitled person's control, the 12 months run from the day of the funeral. The document confirming those circumstances is a certificate from the police or the prosecutor, or another official document.
According to ZUS, payment follows without delay and no later than 14 days after the last circumstance needed to establish the right is clarified. If ZUS refuses the grant, it issues a decision that you can appeal to the regional court for labour and social insurance matters within one month of receiving it. You file the appeal through the ZUS branch that issued the decision.
* Photos: Old Evangelical Cemetery in Bielsko-Biała, Wikimedia Commons, CC0. Graves with candles in Zabrze, Wikimedia Commons, CC0.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the funeral grant in Poland in 2026?
7,000 zł from 1 March 2026, according to a ZUS announcement of 27 January 2026. Family members get the full amount regardless of the cost. Others get documented costs up to 7,000 zł.
How long do I have to apply?
12 months from the date of death. If filing was impossible for reasons beyond your control, the 12 months can run from the funeral date.
Where do I submit the application?
Through PUE/eZUS, at a ZUS branch, or through a funeral home. ZUS says funeral homes can submit the application since 1 January 2026.
Can a foreigner apply?
ZUS asks for an identity document such as an ID card or passport, and it lists a death certificate issued abroad among the accepted documents. Entitlement depends on the insurance status of the person who died, so ask ZUS when in doubt.
