Employing people with disabilities is not only a matter of employers' social responsibility, but also an opportunity to receive significant financial support from the state. PFRON (State Fund for Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons) offers employers a subsidy to the pay of disabled employees, the amount of which depends not only on the degree of disability but also on the specific code of the cause of disability.
The subsidy system is designed, on the one hand, to encourage employers to open up to hiring people with different types of disability and, on the other, to compensate for the additional costs that such employment may involve. In practice, this means employers can receive significant financial support which in some cases may cover a large part of the employee's pay costs.
Basic subsidy amounts by degree of disability
The amount of the monthly subsidy to the pay of a disabled employee is set out in the Act on vocational and social rehabilitation and employment of persons with disabilities. The system is based mainly on three degrees of disability, each of which qualifies for a different amount of support.
In 2026, the monthly subsidy to the pay of a disabled employee is PLN 2,760 for people with a significant degree of disability (Article 26a(1) of the Act). This amount applies to a full-time employee – for part-time work it is proportional to working time – and it may not exceed 90% of the monthly pay costs actually incurred, or 75% of those costs for an employer carrying on business activity (Article 26a(4) and (6)). This is the highest basic amount of support available to employers who employ people with the most severe forms of disability
For disabled people classified as having a moderate degree of disability, the monthly subsidy is PLN 1,550. This is the middle level of support and concerns a large group of disabled employees who, despite functional limitations, can do many types of work if their workstation is properly adapted.
The lowest basic subsidy is PLN 575 per month for disabled people classified as having a mild degree of disability. Although this amount may seem relatively small, for many employers it is a real incentive to hire a person with a mild disability, especially given the long-term nature of this support.
All subsidy amounts are monthly and are paid for each month of employment of a disabled employee in which the employer meets the conditions and submits an application. This means that over a year an employer may receive support of even more than PLN 33,000 for one employee with a significant degree of disability
Disability codes qualifying for a higher subsidy
The subsidy system also provides for a significant increase of the basic amounts for employees with certain types of disability. These additional funds are meant to reflect the special needs and challenges of employing people with specific conditions.
A higher subsidy is available for employees who have been diagnosed with a mental illness, intellectual disability, pervasive developmental disorders or epilepsy, and for blind employees (Article 26a(1b) of the Act). These categories of disability have been singled out because of special requirements for organising work, the need for additional support or the need to adapt the working environment. Employees' health raises other settlement questions too, such as an employee's sanatorium stay and ZUS contributions.
The increase in the subsidy for people with a significant degree of disability is an additional PLN 1,380 per month (the increased amounts have applied since 1 July 2024). This means that the total support may reach as much as PLN 4,140 per month for one employee with the relevant disability code
For employees with a moderate degree of disability and the relevant disability cause code, the subsidy increases by PLN 1,035 per month. In practice, this means a total of PLN 2,585 of monthly support, which covers a significant share of such an employee's pay costs.
The smallest, but still significant, increase applies to people with a mild degree of disability – the subsidy rises by PLN 690 per month, giving a total of PLN 1,265 of monthly support.
Detailed list of disability codes
Knowing the specific disability codes is essential for employers applying for the subsidy. The coding system has been designed systematically and covers all main categories of conditions and disabilities.
| Code | Description | Higher subsidy | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01-U | Intellectual disability | Yes | All degrees |
| 02-P | Mental illnesses | Yes | All degrees |
| 03-L | Voice and speech disorders and hearing diseases | No | Standard amounts |
| 04-O | Diseases of the eye | Yes (blind persons) | In practice moderate and significant degrees |
| 05-R | Musculoskeletal impairment | No | Standard amounts |
| 06-E | Epilepsy | Yes | All degrees |
| 07-S | Respiratory and circulatory diseases | No | Standard amounts |
| 08-T | Digestive system diseases | No | Standard amounts |
| 09-M | Urogenital system diseases | No | Standard amounts |
| 10-N | Neurological diseases | No | Standard amounts |
| 11-I | Other conditions | No | Endocrine and metabolic diseases |
| 12-C | Pervasive developmental disorders | Yes | All degrees, including autism |
Note that the Act provides for an increase for blind persons, not for all eye diseases. In practice, code 04-O is taken into account for the higher subsidy in the case of a moderate or significant degree of disability. For a mild degree of disability with this code, the employer as a rule receives the standard subsidy amount. For longer sickness absences, it also helps to understand the difference between the sickness benefit period and the benefit base period.
Code 12-C, covering pervasive developmental disorders including autism, qualifies for the higher subsidy at all degrees of disability. This is particularly important given the growing awareness of the needs of autistic people in the labour market
Procedure for applying for the subsidy
Applying for the subsidy to the pay of disabled employees requires the employer to prepare the relevant documentation and to send PFRON, every month, an information return and an application for payment (Article 26c(1) of the Act). Although the procedure may seem complicated, it has been standardised to make it easier for employers to access support. We run the payroll and ZUS settlements for employees, including those with a disability certificate, as part of our payroll outsourcing.
- Preparing the employee documentation and the disability certificate (orzeczenie o niepełnosprawności)
- Preparing the monthly information on pay, employment, and the degrees and types of disability of the employees
- Completing the application for payment of the monthly subsidy for the given month
- Sending the information and the application to PFRON electronically (or in writing) – Article 26c(1a)
- Payment of the subsidy within 25 days of receipt of a complete and correctly completed application (Article 26c(3))
- Repeating these steps for each following month and keeping the documents in case of an inspection
The key element of the whole process is that the employee has a valid disability certificate, which contains not only the degree of disability but also the specific code of the cause of disability. It is on the basis of this code that PFRON determines the final amount of the subsidy.
Where the employee's certificate contains several symbols of the cause of disability, it is enough for at least one of them to qualify for the higher subsidy. The employer then receives the increased amount of support according to the code most favourable to them
Practical aspects of using the subsidy
The subsidy received from PFRON is a refund of part of the pay costs already incurred for the disabled employee – it may not exceed 90% of the monthly pay costs actually incurred, or 75% for an employer carrying on business activity (Article 26a(4)). Employers must keep documentation of pay costs and be ready for inspections by the Fund (Article 26a(10)).
Continuity of employment is also important – the subsidy is available for each month in which the conditions are met. The Fund suspends it, among other things, where the employer's arrears towards the Fund exceed PLN 100 (Article 26a(8)), and refuses payment, for example, where pay was not transferred to the employee's bank account or pay costs were incurred more than 14 days late (Article 26a(1a(1)) and (9a)). An employer with at least 25 employees (in full-time equivalents) is entitled to the subsidy only if its employment rate of disabled people is at least 6% (Article 26a(1a)). This is why employers should ensure stable employment conditions for their disabled employees. Many other HR calculations rely in turn on the average salary in Poland in 2026.
- The subsidy can cover a significant part of gross pay costs
- The subsidy is at most 90% of pay costs (75% for an employer carrying on business activity)
- The employer must send PFRON an information return and an application for payment every month
- The President of the PFRON Management Board may carry out inspections and verification procedures (Article 26a(9b) and (10))
- Irregularities found during an inspection result in a decision ordering repayment of the subsidy (Article 26a(11))
- The subsidy is non-repayable if used correctly
The subsidy system is meant to make it easier to employ people with disabilities while ensuring that public funds are used properly. In practice, settling the subsidy comes down to sending the information and the application every month, usually electronically.
Impact of disability codes on hiring strategy
Knowing the disability code system and the related subsidy amounts can have a significant impact on employers' recruitment decisions. Although the main criteria for hiring should be the candidate's qualifications and aptitude, awareness of the financial support available may encourage employers to be more open to candidates with certain types of disability.
Employers employing people with codes qualifying for the higher subsidy may receive as much as PLN 49,680 in subsidy per year (12 × PLN 4,140, including PLN 16,560 from the increase) for one full-time employee with a significant degree of disability, provided that pay costs are high enough. This amount can significantly affect the cost-effectiveness of employment
It is particularly important to understand that some disability codes, such as 01-U (intellectual disability) or 02-P (mental illnesses), qualify for the higher subsidy at all degrees of disability. This means that a person with the relevant code may generate higher support for the employer than a person with the same degree of disability but without a qualifying code – for example, for a mild degree, PLN 1,265 instead of PLN 575 per month.
A manufacturing company hired two disabled employees full time: the first with a significant degree of disability and code 05-R (musculoskeletal impairment), and the second with a mild degree of disability and code 02-P (mental illnesses). The first employee generates a monthly subsidy of PLN 2,760, while the second – thanks to the qualifying code – entitles the employer to PLN 1,265 per month, more than twice the basic amount for a mild degree (PLN 575).
Changes and outlook for the system
The PFRON subsidy system is periodically modified to better match support to the real needs of the labour market and people with disabilities. Subsidy amounts are set by the Act and change only when it is amended – most recently, the increases for special conditions were raised with effect from 1 July 2024 (Act of 5 December 2024, Journal of Laws (Dz.U.) 2024 item 1961).
It is also worth noting the importance of certain categories of disability, especially pervasive developmental disorders (code 12-C), including autism. Growing public awareness of the needs of autistic people, combined with the financial support available, may encourage employers to hire such employees.
Epilepsy, marked with code 06-E, qualifies for the higher subsidy at all degrees of disability. This is particularly important because people with epilepsy can often do full-value work if working conditions and working time are properly adapted
Employers planning a long-term strategy for employing people with disabilities should follow changes in the rules on subsidies. These changes may concern the amounts of support, the conditions for receiving it or the extension of the list of codes qualifying for the higher subsidy.
Documentation and reporting
Keeping proper documentation relating to the employment of disabled employees and the use of PFRON subsidies is key to maintaining continuous support. Employers must be ready to send information returns and applications every month and to undergo possible inspections.
The basic document is the employee's disability certificate, which must be valid throughout the employment. When the certificate is about to expire, the employer should remind the employee to renew it, because the expiry of the certificate as a rule means losing the right to the subsidy for the following months. However, if the employee applies for a new certificate while the current one is still valid (at the earliest 2 months before it expires), the current certificate remains valid until the new final certificate is issued, but no longer than until the last day of the sixth month after its expiry date (Article 6ba(1) and Article 6bb(1) of the Act).
Documentation of pay costs is equally important. The employer must be able to show that the pay costs of the disabled employee were actually incurred on time and that the pay was transferred to the employee's bank account (or sent by money order to their address) – Article 26a(1a(1)).
- A valid disability certificate with the correct code
- An employment contract or other documents confirming employment
- Payroll records and proof of payment of pay and social security contributions
- Monthly information returns and applications sent to PFRON
- Correspondence with the Fund about the subsidy
- Documents confirming that the subsidy conditions are met (for example the 6% rate for employers with at least 25 employees)
