"You'll Be Registered Later": What to Do If the Agency Has Not Registered You with ZUS

How often do you think about insurance? When starting a job, the topic is rarely raised - or not mentioned at all. The subject of ZUS contributions is seldom the first thing to come up. And this is precisely what dishonest employment agencies may exploit. The scheme can be straightforward: a person is not registered with ZUS even though there are grounds to do so, or they are offered a form of contract that does not provide for such insurance. On paper everything may appear in order, but the worker does not receive the insurance protection they are counting on. The problem often only becomes apparent when a person falls ill, goes to see a doctor or decides to check their data with ZUS.

What This Is About

ZUS (Zakład Ubezpieczeń Społecznych) is the Polish institution that administers the social insurance system. It covers, among other things, pension insurance, disability insurance, sickness insurance and accident insurance. ZUS also collects health insurance contributions, which are subsequently passed on to the NFZ (Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia) - the institution responsible for a person's access to healthcare.

If you are working under a umowa o pracę (employment contract) or a umowa zlecenia (civil law contract for the provision of services) and it is the employer or agency that is the contribution payer, registration with ZUS must be carried out by them, not by the worker. They generally have seven days from the moment the insurance obligation arises - usually from the start of work - to do so (Article 36, paragraph 4 of the Act on the Social Insurance System). The form of contract makes almost no difference to the substance of the matter. The only difference between a umowa o pracę and a umowa zlecenia in this regard is: under an employment contract, sickness insurance is included automatically, whereas under a zlecenie it is voluntary. And it is precisely this voluntary element that an agency most frequently "forgets" to arrange.

There are also contracts under which no ZUS contributions are paid at all. These include the umowa o dzieło (contract for a specific result) and the umowa zlecenie where the contractor is a pupil or student under the age of 26. These too are used by dishonest agencies.

As for health insurance, it is compulsory under both types of contract (both umowa o pracę and umowa zlecenie), with the exception - again - of students and pupils under 26, for whom a zlecenie is entirely exempt from ZUS contributions.

How the Scheme Works

The simplest scenario: the agency concludes a contract with a person under which it is obliged to register the worker with ZUS, but fails to do so within the prescribed time limit. Sometimes the worker is told that "registration will follow later" or that they first need to "work a few days". Such a response should in itself raise alarm: if the insurance obligation has already arisen, the payer is required to comply with the statutory registration deadline.

Another situation arises when a person is offered a contract that does not provide for social or health insurance, even though the nature of the work actually being performed may indicate a different employment relationship. In such a case, it is important to examine not only the name of the document, but also the conditions under which the person is actually working.

What the Consequences May Be

The most obvious risk concerns sickness benefit in the event of illness. If a person is working under a umowa zlecenia and does not have voluntary sickness insurance, they may not be entitled to sickness benefit (zasiłek chorobowy). Access to medical care is a separate matter. If a person is not actually entitled to health insurance, it would be unwise to assume that all medical services will automatically be free of charge. In certain situations, not inconsiderable costs associated with treatment may arise. The exception is emergency care in life-threatening situations, which will be provided in any case, regardless of insurance status.

It is therefore worth asking yourself: is a slightly higher pay rate worth subsequently risking your health or being left with a debt to the state?

At the same time, for a national of another country, the absence of ZUS registration is not merely a financial matter. It becomes a visible marker which, during an inspection, immediately gives rise to a much broader question - whether the person is working legally at all.

It is not ZUS that checks this, but the Border Guard (Straż Graniczna) and the National Labour Inspectorate (Państwowa Inspekcja Pracy). Since 1 June 2025, these authorities have been granted wider powers: they may carry out unannounced and joint inspections (Act of 20 March 2025 on the conditions governing the permissibility of entrusting work to foreign nationals on the territory of the Republic of Poland).

If during such an inspection, alongside the absence of ZUS registration, it emerges that the worker was performing work without a valid work permit (zezwolenie na pracę or oświadczenie o powierzeniu pracy) or in breach of its terms, the consequences fall directly on the individual - up to and including a decision obliging them to leave the country (Article 302 of the Act of 12 December 2013 on Foreign Nationals).

There is also another, but entirely realistic, consequence. An employer's failure to fulfil their contribution obligations may complicate the process of obtaining a residence card (karta pobytu), since one of the conditions is confirmation of health insurance or coverage of medical treatment costs in Poland (a requirement under the Act of 12 December 2013 on Foreign Nationals). And confirming health insurance in the absence of ZUS registration is difficult.

How to Check Whether You Are Actually Registered

1. Check your information in eZUS. This is the simplest way to verify the fact of registration in the insurance system. After logging into your eZUS account, in the Ubezpieczenia i płatnicy section you can see whether the contribution payer has registered you. Information on health insurance is available in the Dane o ubezpieczeniu zdrowotnym section.
2. Ask the agency. Ask them to state the date from which you have been registered with ZUS. If the agency is your contribution payer, they should be able to give this date without hesitation.
3. Check your entitlement to medical care. When visiting a medical facility or pharmacy operating under a contract with the NFZ, the eWUŚ system may display information confirming your entitlement to medical services.
4. Keep your copy of the contract. Do not leave the only copy of the document with the agency. The start date and terms of the contract may be significant if a dispute arises regarding your insurance.

What to Do Before Your First Shift

Before starting work, ask the recruiter direct questions and make sure the answers are specific: will you be registered with ZUS and from what date, what contract exactly are you signing and how will you be able to verify that the registration has actually been carried out.

If instead of a clear answer you are told that the formalities "can wait" or that you will be "registered later", the problem is no longer one of the complexity of the Polish system - it lies in the lack of transparency of the offer itself.

Do you want to work without insurance surprises, hidden conditions and opaque registration schemes? At Gremi Personal, the working conditions, contract and insurance registration are known before the collaboration begins. Job vacancies across Poland and Europe. To find a vacancy, call: +380 50 334 93 51, +48 525 275 003.