Updated: 28.03.2025
On April 7, 2023, the long-awaited legal regulation of remote work entered into force in Poland. Polish Labor Code has been amended and brand new section on remote working employees was introduced. At the same time “old provisions” on the so-called telework were deleted from the Labor Code.
Is there a remote work regulation in Poland?
Yes, remote work is regulated in the Polish Labor Code – starting from art. 6718 and onwards. If the work is entirely or partially performed outside from company office, the employer is obliged to agree on certain aspects of such work – including costs of remote work, equipment provision and maintenance.
As of 2023 remote work (hybrid work) in Poland cannot be introduced to the employment relationship without regulating the rules of performing such work, as well as the rules of covering the costs of such work.
Remote work in Poland
Definition of remote work in the Polish Labor Code
Remote work is defined as work performed entirely or partially in a place defined by the employee, agreed each time with the employer, including at the address of the employee’s residence, using means of direct communication at a distance. If the remote work is performed only partially It is usually called a “hybrid work”, although such a definition does not exist in the Labor Code.
How to introduce rules of remote work in Poland?
The employer shall define the rules of remote work in:
- agreement between the employer and the company’s trade union organization, or
- remote work regulations (internal regulations) or
- order to perform remote work, or
- remote work agreement concluded with the employee (usually recommended for smaller companies or the companies where there are not many remote work employees).
Agreeing remote work with particular employee
Remote work can be agreed with the employee at the moment of concluding of the employment contract or during the course of employment – both at the initiative of the employee as well as at the initiative of the employer.
Employees legally entitled to remote work
The Labor Code introduces a rule that some types of employees are entitled to perform work remotely upon their application. Such employees cannot be refused by the employer, unless the remote work is not possible due to the nature of their job position or due to organization of work.
These privileged employees are:
- pregnant employees,
- employees raising a child up to the age of 4,
- employees taking care of another member of the immediate family or another person remaining in the same household, with a certificate of disability or a certificate of severe disability,
- employees who are a parent of a child with a certificate referred to in art. 4 sec. 3 of the Act of November 4, 2016 on support for pregnant women and families „For life”
- employees who are parents of:
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- a child with a certificate of disability or a certificate of moderate or severe disability specified in the provisions on vocational and social rehabilitation and employment of disabled people,
- a child with an opinion on the need for early support of the child’s development, a certificate on the need for special education or a certificate on the need for revalidation and educational classes, as appropriate, referred to in the provisions of the Act of 14 December 2016 – Education Law
Benefits for remote working employees
The labor law introduces three types of mandatory benefits for the remote working employees:
- providing equipment,
- providing equipment maintenance, and
- reimbursement of running expenses (running costs).
The Labor Code does not regulate precisely how to reimburse the cost of remote work and provides certain level of discretion to the employers in this regard. There is, however, an established practice among the companies on the Polish labor law market on how these costs are usually calculated.
Equipment for remote work
Regarding the obligation to provide equipment to the employee working remotely, the law provides alternative solutions with regards to equipment:
- The employer provides and covers the costs of the equipment necessary to perform remote work, or
- The employee works on his own equipment and receives a so-called ‘equivalent’ or a lump sum agreed by the parties.
Installation & maintenance of equipment
Equipment and work tools of the employee working remotely need to be properly installed and maintained. The Labor Code provides three alternative solutions for the employers in this scope:
- The employer organizes and covers the cost of installation and maintenance of the equipment, or
- The employee arranges the installation and maintenance of equipment but the employer covers the related expenses, or
- The employer pays to the employee a lump sum agreed by the parties to cover costs of any possible repairs or maintenance.
Running costs
The employee working remotely incurs so called “running costs”, which most usually include electricity bills and internet services. The law provides here two alternative solutions:
- The employer covers the costs of electricity and telecommunication services in a form of a so-called ‘equivalent’, or
- The employer pays a lump sum agreed by the parties.
Allowance for remote work
Most employers provide and cover expenses related to equipment and maintenance, therefore most of the controversies arise around the running costs. The provisions on remote work do not in any way regulate the amount of allowance for remote work.
The provisions of the Labor Code only indicate that when determining the amount, certain factors are taken into account. These factors include consumption standards for materials and work tools, including technical devices, as well as their documented market prices.
Additionally, the amount of material used for the needs of the employer, market prices of this material, electricity consumption standards, and costs of telecommunications services are considered.
Equivalent for remote work in Poland
Choosing the option of paying the equivalent for remote work involves calculating each month, based on the electricity and internet bills provided by the employee, how much the employee incurred in connection with remote work. It is therefore a 1:1 method of covering the costs incurred.
The equivalent rate due to changes in energy prices and its consumption will change practically every month. When choosing this option, the employer can develop a formula that will speed up the calculation of the equivalent, taking into account the ratio of working days and hours to the remaining days in the month.
However, this does not change the fact that this amount will be different for each employee – which will require more effort from the employer.
Lump sum for remote work in Poland
Many employers decide to pay a lump sum for remote work – i.e. a fixed monthly amount corresponding to the average expected costs of remote work.
This is a solution preferred by most employers, because although it involves certain concessions on the part of the employer (no verification of the exact costs incurred), it allows the employer to reduce the number of formalities related to determining and paying the equivalent.
When it comes to determining the amount of the lump sum, as in the case of the equivalent, it will consist of two elements: internet costs and electricity costs.
Internet costs
To determine such costs, the employer should find out what the rates are on the market in a given city. For example, they should verify several different providers and calculate the monthly cost incurred by the employee, taking into account 8 hours of work, 5 days a week.
According to the calculations provided on HR portals, this cost may amount to approx. PLN 13 per month.
Electricity costs
To determine these costs, the employer should find out what the rates are per hour of computer work, and then convert them for 8 hours of work, 5 days a week. Currently, on HR portals, it is stated that an hour of computer work is about PLN 0.30-0.35, which gives the amount of PLN 2.40 – 2.80 per day. With 21 working days in a month, it is about PLN 60 (assuming the maximum rate).
Average lump sum on the market
It is reported that currently the amounts of the lump sum on the market are between PLN 30 and PLN 90 for an employee working completely remotely (5 days a week). The amounts of the lump sum vary between cities and industries. In case of employees working in a hybrid mode this amount shall be proportionally recalculated.
Exemption form social security and taxes
The employers must remember that the amount of equivalent or lump sum cannot be included in employees remuneration. According to the provisions of the Labor Code this amount is not subject to social security and taxes. Therefore it needs to be a separate amount agreed with the employee or determined in the remote work regulations.
The amount must also be determined in a reasonable way – since it is exempted from public contributions the risk of a control from authorities is higher. Therefore this amount cannot be too high and cannot be treated as a way to increase the employee’s remuneration.
How to introduce remote work regulations at the workplace in Poland?
Introducing internal remote work regulations is recommended especially for employers who have more than a few remote work employees or plan to have more remote workers in the future.
In this case signing remote work agreements each time someone new joins the company is not very efficient – it is better to regulate all the rules connected to remote work in one internal document. Such a document is available to all employees.
At the beginning of employment the new employee shall familiarize himself with the content of the regulation and sign a declaration on acknowledging the rules described in the regulations.
What shall be regulated in the remote work regulations in Poland?
The remote work regulations should describe at least:
- the group or groups of employees who may be covered by remote work;
- the principles for covering the costs of remote work by the employer,
- the principles for determining the cash equivalent or lump sum for remote work,
- the principles of communication between the employer and the employee performing remote work, including the method of confirming presence at work,
- the principles of monitoring the performance of work by the employee performing remote work,
- the principles of control in the field of occupational health and safety,
- the principles of monitoring compliance with the requirements in the field of security and information protection, including personal data protection procedures;
- the principles of installation, inventory, maintenance, software updates and servicing of work tools entrusted to the employee, including technical devices.
Are there any formal requirements for remote work regulations in Poland?
The remote work regulations shall contain at least the points described above – which result from the provisions of the Labor Code. The employer may of course regulate additional aspects, which are not mentioned by the provisions of law.
The most important aspect of introducing remote work regulations at the workplace is the need to consult the regulations with employees’ representatives.
The employees shall choose representants among themselves who will consult the regulations with the employer before their introduction. It is recommended that the employees choose at least two representatives for this purpose. Employer shall prepare a protocol from such meeting with employees’ representatives – as a confirmation that the regulations were consulted and are properly introduced.
The employer is obliged to discuss a draft with the representatives, however the employer is not obliged to introduce changes suggested by the representatives.
Apart from the above-mentioned requirements there are no additional steps. The remote work regulation shall have a written form. It shall be available to the employees at all times. The employer may for example: send it out to all remote workers via email or publish it in the internal HR system.
Remote work agreement in Poland
If the employer does not have many remote workers or does not wish to introduce remote work regulations for other reasons – he may decide to simply sign a remote work agreement with each employee who works remotely.
Such an agreement shall determine at least:
- agreed place of remote work, in case of hybrid work – the amount of days in a week or certain days of remote work,
- rules of covering the costs of remote work by the employer,
- the amount of cash equivalent or a lump sum for remote work,
- rules of communication between employer and employee,
- rules of controlling remote worker,
- rules of health & safety and data protection,
- rules of installation, inventory, maintenance of equipment and work tools.
The remote work agreement shall be concluded in writing – the requirements as the same as in case of the employment contract. The employer shall keep his copy of the agreement in the employee’s personal files.
Occasional remote work
It is also possible to allow the employees to work remotely only occasionally, upon their application. The employees may for example need to stay at home to take care of some domestic obligations or for personal reasons, without the need to switch to a full time remote work.
In this case they may apply for remote work case by case, by submitting an application to the employer in which they indicate that they need to work remotely and specify the reason. The employer may accept or refuse such an application – depending on the reasoning provided by the employee and company’s needs.
In cases of occasional remote work the employer is not obliged to regulate the rules of remote work, provide the equipment or cover the running costs. Such type of remote work does not cause for any additional obligations of employer.
However, the employee can perform occasional remote work only for a maximum of 24 days in a calendar year. The employer shall track this amount and cannot allow the employees to cross this limit. The employer cannot also increase the amount of allowed days of occasional remote work in his internal regulations – this may be treated as the circumvention of the provisions of the Labor Code on remote work.
Therefore this is a good option for employers who do not wish to introduce full remote work (or hybrid model), but would like to allow their employees to work remotely from time to time, based on their needs.
FAQ – Remote work in Poland
What are the mandatory benefits for employees working remotely in Poland?
Employees working remotely in Poland shall be provided with equipment, maintenance of the equipment and reimbursement of running expenses.
Is it mandatory for the employer to regulate internal rules of remote work at specific workplace in Poland?
If the employer allows for remote work not only occasionally but as a mode of work (full or hybrid remote work) then regulating the rules of remote work is mandatory. The employer may introduce such rules in various ways, the most popular ones are: introduction of remote work regulations or concluding a separate remote work agreement with remote employees.
Is the employer obliged to accept the application to perform work remotely in Poland?
The employer is not obliged to agree to remote work, unless the employee who applies for remote work belongs to the group of privileged employees such as pregnant women, employees raising children of up to 4 years old etc. The employer may refuse these employees only if the remote work is not possible due to the nature of the job position or due to the organization of work.
Can I force the employee to work remotely in Poland?
The employer may order the employee to work remotely only in specific circumstances. It is possible during the period of a state of emergency, a state of epidemic threat or an epidemic state and within 3 months after their cancellation or during the period in which the employer is temporarily unable to ensure safe and hygienic working conditions at the employee’s previous workplace due to force majeure.
However, this is only possible if the employee submits a declaration that they have the proper conditions to perform remote work.
What are the key obligations of the employer connected to remote work in Poland?
The employer is obliged to regulate rules of performing remote work, organize proper health & safety training, provide equipment for remote work and cover the costs of remote work (usually pay out a monthly allowance to cover the costs of internet services and electricity).
How to evidence allowance for remote work in payroll in Poland?
The remote work allowance shall be evidenced as a separate position on the payslips. It may be called for example: “remote work lump sum”, “remote work equivalent” or a “remote work allowance”. It may be paid with the same transfer as the remuneration, but for payroll purposes it cannot be included in the remuneration amount.
Who is responsible for ensuring proper health & safety during remote work in Poland?
The employer’s responsibility in this scope is limited, however he is responsible for employee’s proper training and preparing occupational risk assessment documents connected to remote work. The employer is not responsible for proper organization of the workplace – this obligation falls on the employee.
How can an employer establish a remote work arrangement in Poland?
A remote work arrangement must be formally regulated in accordance with the Polish Labor Code. Employers may introduce it through remote work regulations, a trade union agreement, or an individual remote work agreement. Employees can also initiate such an arrangement at the employee’s request, and employers must evaluate such requests based on legal requirements, particularly for privileged employees.
How does remote work impact job satisfaction?
Remote work has been linked to increased job satisfaction, particularly when costs related to remote work, such as electricity and internet expenses, are properly reimbursed. Studies show that more than half of employees prefer remote work arrangements due to flexibility and reduced commuting time.
However, employers must ensure compliance with health & safety regulations, as well as clear communication policies to maintain job satisfaction among remote employees.
Is there a Polish equivalent of the Telework Enhancement Act?
No, the Telework Enhancement Act is a U.S. law regulating telework for federal employees. In Poland, remote work is governed by the Polish Labor Code, specifically from art. 6718 onwards. These regulations define the remote work arrangement, outline employer obligations regarding costs related to remote work, and establish rules for employee requests to work remotely.
What is the role of the post-accident team in remote work incidents in Poland?
If an accident occurs during a remote work arrangement, the post-accident team is responsible for investigating the incident. The team determines whether the accident qualifies as a workplace accident and whether the employer is liable for costs related to medical treatment or compensation.
Employees must report incidents immediately, and employers should ensure compliance with occupational health & safety regulations under the Polish Labor Code.
