Changes to the rules for calculating length of service signed by the President of Poland

At a glance

• On 15 October 2025, a bill was signed into law by the President of Poland.
• The bill introduces significant change by allowing self-employment, mandate contracts, agency agreements, and other non-standard forms of work to be counted toward an individual’s length of service.
• The new law will enter into force on 1 January 2026.

Following legislative proceedings conducted by the Sejm (the lower house of the Polish Parliament) and the Senate (the upper house of the Polish Parliament), a bill introducing changes to the rules for calculating length of service was submitted to the Polish President at the end of September and then signed on 15 October 2025.

The fundamental change made by the bill is to broaden the definition of length of service under the Labour Code. Under the new law, work performed outside of a traditional employment relationship, such as self-employment or work under mandate contracts, will be treated in the same way as standard employment when calculating length of service.

The new law seeks to address long-standing inequalities affecting thousands of individuals who, despite years of professional activity, are currently excluded from entitlements linked to length of service. These include additional holiday leave, long service awards, and access to roles requiring documented work history.

As mentioned in previous updates, these new entitlements will only apply if an individual is in an active employment relationship at the time of claiming them. The new law does not extend rights such as holiday leave, severance pay, or long-service awards to individuals not engaged under an employment contract.

Finally, it is worth noting that previous periods of professional activity under alternative arrangements will be included in the calculation of length of service only if social security contributions were paid during those periods. The new law provides that verification of this issue will be carried out based on certificates issued by the Social Security Agency.

The changes are coming into force soon, on 1 January 2026.