From January 1, 2026 revolutionary changes in the ceremony allowance in Poland will enter into force. The amendment of the Social Insurance Fund Pensions Act, signed by president Karol Nawrocki, aims to importantly simplify procedures, reduce the waiting time for payment of benefits and, most importantly for many families, increase its amount. This is the first specified crucial modification in years to better reflect the real costs associated with the organisation of the burial. For Poles this means faster and more adequate financial support in hard times after the failure of a loved one. These changes are a consequence to multi-annual social demands aimed at relieving the financial burden on families at the most hard moments.
Significant Increase in Allowance: 7000 Gold for the Funeral
The key change that will enter into force at the beginning of 2026 is increase the amount of the ceremony allowance from the current PLN 4000 to PLN 7000. This is the first specified crucial valorisation of this provision in a very long time, which aims to better adapt the support to the expanding cost of ceremony services. The increased amount is intended to aid families to pay for burial expenses, which have grown rapidly in fresh years. For many Polish families, especially those with lower incomes, an additional PLN 3000 can supply key support, reducing the financial burden during the period of mourning.
End of Long Waiting: Faster Payment Benefits
The amendment besides introduces a crucial simplification in the maximum waiting time for the payment of the ceremony allowance. Currently, entitled persons had to wait for funds to be transferred up to 30 days. From 1 January 2026 This period will be shortened to just 14 days. This is simply a immense facilitation for families who frequently gotta cover the advanced burial costs with their own resources before receiving support from the Social safety Office. A shorter wait time for money is simply a direct consequence of simplification of procedures, which translates into faster processing of applications by the Social Insurance Institution and a more efficient transfer of funds to eligible persons.
Simplified Procedures: No ZUS decision for household Members
One of the most crucial procedural changes is waiving the administrative decision of ZUS where the ceremony costs have been borne by 1 person, a associate of the deceased's family. Until now, these formalities have frequently extended the payment process. From 2026, in specified cases, the benefit will be paid faster and without unnecessary time-consuming administrative procedures. The ZUS decision will proceed to be required only if the ceremony costs are incurred by more than 1 individual or by institutions specified as employer, social assistance house, municipality, county, church or spiritual association. In these situations, the Social safety Office will be required to issue a decision within a maximum of 14 days of the last case.
In addition, the fresh rules supply for the anticipation to apply for a ceremony allowance not only straight in the pension body, but besides via a ceremony home. In addition, the individual entitled to benefit will be able to authorise the mortuary to receive the benefit straight to his or her account. This solution aims at further simplifying settlements and speeding up the flow of funds, relieving families of additional formalities at a hard time.
Why Changes Are So Important? Objective
As stressed by representatives of the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy, including Deputy Minister Sebastian Gajewski, the main nonsubjective of the amendment is to simplify procedures and accelerate the payment of benefits. The fresh government is intended to respond to social expectations and to supply real support for families dead in hard times, minimising bureaucracy and the stress of burial funding. The publication of the amendment to the Act in the authoritative diary of the Laws in early June 2025 gives the appropriate institutions time to prepare thoroughly for the implementation of the fresh regulations, to guarantee their smooth operation from the first day of application.
All described changes will become applicable from 1 January 2026. Polish citizens can anticipate the process of applying for a ceremony allowance to become much simpler, faster and more appropriate to the costs incurred. This is simply a concrete action by the government to effectively relieve families in 1 of the most hard moments of their lives, providing them with the essential financial support and minimising administrative burdens.
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ZUS changes the rules. ceremony allowance 7000 PLN and faster pay from 2026!
