[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"advice-en-employment-foreigner-subsidy":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"excerpt":6,"body":7,"datePublished":8,"dateModified":8},"employment-foreigner-subsidy","Subsidies for employing a foreigner 2026: PUP and KFS funding","Can your company receive a subsidy for employing a foreigner? Eligible statuses, PUP refunds, remote-work grant, workplace equipment and KFS training in 2026.","\u003Cp>Poland has no separate subsidy paid \"because the employee is a foreigner\". An employer can, however, use the same labour-office instruments as when hiring Polish citizens, provided the foreigner holds a status that allows them to register with the office as unemployed, and can use funding from the National Training Fund (Krajowy Fundusz Szkoleniowy, KFS) for training of staff already on the payroll. Since 1 June 2025 these rules have been set out in the Labour Market and Employment Services Act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2>The key to a subsidy: the foreigner's status at the labour office\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>Most forms of employer support (wage refunds, intervention works, workplace equipment, remote-work grant) require the hiring of a person \u003Cstrong>referred by the district labour office (PUP)\u003C\u002Fstrong>. In practice this means the foreigner must first register with the office as unemployed or as a job-seeker. The Act lists who may do so. Broadly, this covers people who:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>are citizens of EU, EEA or Swiss states, or family members of such citizens;\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>hold a permanent-residence permit or an EU long-term resident permit;\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>have refugee status, subsidiary protection, consent to a humanitarian stay or a tolerated stay;\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>benefit from temporary protection in Poland (this applies to many Ukrainian citizens);\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>hold certain temporary-residence permits, for example to carry out work, for family reunification or as graduates of Polish universities (selected categories; the full list is in the Act).\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Cp>A foreigner coming to Poland solely to work under a seasonal work permit cannot become unemployed in the ordinary way; the only forms of support available for this group are those tied to seasonal work. Before filing an application, it is therefore worth checking what residence document the candidate holds and whether the labour office can register them at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2>Forms of support from the Labour Fund\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>The instruments below are granted by the district governor (through the PUP) on the basis of an agreement. They are not benefits paid automatically: the office assesses the application and the annual pot of money can be limited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ctable>\n\u003Cthead>\u003Ctr>\u003Cth>Form of support\u003C\u002Fth>\u003Cth>What it offers\u003C\u002Fth>\u003Cth>Limit in 2026\u003C\u002Fth>\u003C\u002Ftr>\u003C\u002Fthead>\n\u003Ctbody>\n\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Intervention works\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>reimbursement of part of the wages and contributions for a referred unemployed person employed full-time for 3–12 months\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>up to the minimum wage (PLN 4,806) per month per person\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Wage refund\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>reimbursement of part of the wages for up to 6 months, where the person is employed at least half-time\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>half of the minimum wage per post plus contributions on that amount\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Remote-work grant\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>funding to create a remote working post for a referred unemployed person\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>up to 3 times the minimum wage, i.e. PLN 14,418\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Workplace equipment\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>reimbursement of the cost of buying equipment and furnishings for a new post\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>up to 4 times, and in some agreements up to 6 times, the average wage\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003C\u002Ftbody>\n\u003C\u002Ftable>\n\u003Cp>Each of these forms carries an obligation to maintain employment. For intervention works, the employee must be kept on for the refund period and for a further half of that period; for the remote-work grant, for 12 months full-time or 18 months at least half-time. If the employee leaves, the office refers another person in their place. Refusing to accept that person means repaying the support with interest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Funds granted to employers under these schemes are de minimis aid, so before filing an application you need to check how much such aid the company has already received in recent years. You also cannot use Labour Fund money to cover costs that have already been met from other public funds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2>Training from the National Training Fund (KFS)\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>KFS is the only major source that does not require you to hire a person referred by the office. These funds let an employer finance continuing education for its own staff, including foreigners already working at the company, as well as the employer's own training. The basic conditions are:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>the company has paid contributions to the Labour Fund for at least 6 months before the application, or has been exempt from them by operation of law;\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>it has no tax or social-security arrears;\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>training cannot start before the agreement with the office has been signed.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Cp>Co-financing covers up to 70% of costs, and in firms employing up to 9 people (full-time equivalent) up to 90%, in both cases no more than 200% of the average wage per participant in the year concerned. The district governor takes into account the annual spending priorities for KFS, so whether, for example, a Polish-language course or vocational training for newly hired foreigners is co-financed depends on the priorities announced in a given year and the needs of the local labour market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2>Other sources of support\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>Beyond the labour office, companies can look for funding in programmes financed from EU and national funds, for example projects on the vocational integration of foreigners run by local authorities and non-governmental organisations. The Act on the conditions for allowing foreigners to work also provides for an activation programme for foreigners funded from the Labour Fund. Such programmes are usually directed at institutions rather than at employers directly; a company can still benefit from the results, for example free language courses for its staff.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2>How to prepare an application: step by step\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Col>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Check the candidate's residence document\u003C\u002Fstrong> to see whether it allows registration with the labour office.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Legalise the work.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A subsidy does not replace legalisation duties: if the foreigner needs a work permit or a declaration of entrustment of work, you must obtain it before work starts.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Submit the job offer to the PUP\u003C\u002Fstrong> and ask about the forms of support available in the current year and about calls for applications.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Count the commitments.\u003C\u002Fstrong> The mandatory period of maintained employment and the risk of repaying support with interest should be part of the decision.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Keep settlements with ZUS and the tax office up to date\u003C\u002Fstrong>, because arrears disqualify you from most forms of support.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Fol>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Example.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A logistics firm wants to employ a Ukrainian warehouse worker benefiting from temporary protection and registered with the labour office as unemployed. After being referred by the PUP, the firm can conclude an intervention-works agreement for 6 months and receive a partial wage refund, but must then keep the employee on for a further 3 months. His colleague who came in under a seasonal work permit will not be referred under this instrument, although after a year of work he could be trained with KFS funds as a company employee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2>How Good Balance can help\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>We help bring order to the legalisation of foreign hires, including \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Flegalization\u002Fresidence-permit-employment\">residence and work permits\u003C\u002Fa>, and as part of our \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Fhr\u002Femployees\">HR and payroll service\u003C\u002Fa> we keep employee records, handle ZUS settlements and the documentation required under agreements with the labour office. The rules of the employment contract itself are set out in our \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fadvice\u002Fwhat-is-umowa-o-prace-employment-contract\">article on the employment contract\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>","2026-10-09"]