Many people do not realize that the Polish Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) offers paid sick leave for taking care of a sick spouse or other family member. The benefit is available not only to employees but also to contractors and business owners, provided they meet two key conditions: they must have health insurance, and they must be caring for a relative who lives in the same household with no other person available to help.
According to a report by Business Insider Polska, the basic requirement for applying for a medical certificate (L4) to care for a sick spouse or other family member is possession of health insurance. For employees under a standard employment contract, this is usually not an issue, as the employer pays the contributions. However, self-employed entrepreneurs must document that they pay sickness insurance contributions – either mandatory or voluntary – to qualify.
The law on benefits defines precisely who qualifies as a family member for this purpose. As quoted in the article, the legislation includes spouses, parents of a child, in-laws, grandparents, siblings, and children over the age of 14 – provided they live together with the insured person. The benefit is granted only when the caregiver lives under the same roof as the sick relative and when there is no other person in the household who can provide care.
How many days of paid leave are available?
The maximum number of days of paid care leave is 60 per year under normal circumstances. However, if all household members are over 14 years old, the limit is reduced to only 14 days per calendar year. This distinction is important for families with young children, as caring for children under 14 may allow for the full 60-day entitlement, provided other conditions are met.
The benefit itself amounts to 80 percent of the base amount used to calculate the caregiver’s salary or income. For employees, the base is the average earnings from the last 12 months. For entrepreneurs, it is the income on which they pay their sickness insurance contributions. Notably, the allowance is also paid for public holidays that fall within the period of sick leave, which is a common point of confusion among applicants.
How to apply and what documents are needed
To receive the benefit, two key documents are required: a medical certificate (ZUS ZLA or an electronic e-zwolnienie) confirming the need for care, and a completed ZUS Z-15 form. Employees submit these documents to their employer, while entrepreneurs send them directly to ZUS. The payment process depends on the size of the company – if the employer has more than 20 employees, the benefit is paid by the workplace; otherwise, ZUS handles the payment directly.
It is worth remembering that the leave is intended for situations where the caregiver must temporarily stop working to provide necessary assistance. The regulations aim to support families in difficult moments, but they are strict about the residence condition – the caregiver and the patient must live together. This means that if a relative lives in a different city or nursing home, the benefit generally does not apply.
Despite the relatively simple rules, many eligible people are unaware of this option. The article emphasizes that raising awareness could help many families avoid financial hardship while fulfilling their caregiving duties. With an aging population and growing demand for informal care, such benefits are becoming increasingly important in Poland’s social security system.
Źródło: WNP.PL, Fot. Remigiusz Gora / Shutterstock
