Working Seniors Tax Relief in Poland: 85,528 zł Exempt Income
Short answer: Women aged 60+ and men 65+ who do not draw the listed pensions can exempt up to 85,528 zł a year of zlecenie or business income, per the tax office page updated 11.02.2026.
Poland has a tax exemption for people who have reached retirement age but keep working without drawing a pension. It is called ulga dla pracujących seniorów, the working seniors relief. This guide follows the Polish tax administration page on the relief (podatki.gov.pl, published 15 December 2025 and updated 11 February 2026), as read on 19 October 2026.
Who can use it
The relief is for women who have turned 60 and men who have turned 65. The key condition is that, despite having reached that age, you do not receive certain pensions or benefits. The page lists: an old-age or survivor's pension from KRUS, from the uniformed services' insurance systems, or from ZUS; cash benefits paid on release from permanent service as a uniformed officer; the pay of a retired judge or the family pay; and the cash benefit for family members of officers or professional soldiers who died in connection with service or while saving life, health or property.
What it does
It exempts from tax certain income, up to a limit set in the personal income tax act. According to the page, the exempt income comes from a zlecenie contract concluded by an individual with a business, with a property owner or manager for services used only for that property, or with a business in inheritance. It also covers business activity taxed on the tax scale, at the 19% flat rate, at the 5% IP Box rate, or by registered-revenue lump sum.
The page adds that the relief does not apply to management contracts, managerial contracts or similar agreements. It also says you can apply the exemption only if the income makes you subject to social insurance under the Social Insurance System Act.
The page does not name employment contracts in its list of income types. If you work under an employment contract, ask your employer or the tax office whether the exemption applies to you before relying on it.
* Photos: Zakład Ubezpieczeń Społecznych (ZUS) office building, two different photographs, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The limit
Exempt income is capped at 85,528 zł per tax year. The tax office says this is a combined limit for the working seniors relief, the 4+ family relief and the return relief. If you use two of them in the same tax year, the total exempt income cannot exceed 85,528 zł.
Do you need documents?
The law does not require you to hold documents to use the relief. If the tax office asks, you must show that you meet all the conditions above.
How to apply it
You can apply it during the year and settle it finally in the annual return. If you calculate advance tax yourself, for example when you run a business, you leave the exempt income out when calculating the advance, starting with the income earned from the beginning of the year.
If you are paid through a payer, such as an employer, the payer can apply the exemption during the year only if you give a declaration that you meet the conditions. It must contain the clause "I am aware of the criminal liability for submitting a false declaration". The payer applies it no later than from the month after you file it.
If it was not applied during the year, you can still claim it in the annual return. Exempt income is shown in part D of PIT-37, PIT-36 or PIT-36L, or part C of PIT-28.
Do you have to file a return?
Having income that is entirely covered by the relief does not on its own oblige you to file. A return becomes necessary if, for example, you also have income taxed on the tax scale, want an overpayment refunded, want the extra child-relief refund up to the social and health contributions paid on the exempt income, or must add back earlier deductions you no longer have the right to.
Joint filing
Earning income under this relief does not stop you from filing jointly with a spouse, if the other conditions for joint filing are met.
What it means for expats
The page sets conditions around Polish pension systems and Polish social insurance, so it matters how your own work and pension rights are arranged. A foreign pension is not on the list of excluded benefits, but the page does not discuss foreign pensions, so do not assume. For a case with a foreign pension, ask a tax adviser or the tax office.
Frequently asked questions
At what age can I use the working seniors relief?
Women who have turned 60 and men who have turned 65, as long as they do not receive the pensions and benefits listed by the tax office.
How much income is exempt?
Up to 85,528 zł per tax year, shared with the 4+ family relief and the return relief.
Does my employer apply it automatically?
No. A payer can apply it during the year only if you give a written declaration that you meet the conditions. Otherwise you claim it in the annual return.
