Full ZUS contributions are the biggest fixed cost for many sole proprietorships in Poland — paid regardless of how much the business actually earns. Maly ZUS Plus breaks this rule: it lets you pay social security contributions calculated on your real business income, not on a top-down assessment base. For businesses with modest income, this can mean savings of several hundred zlotys per month. Check whether you qualify and how to register for the relief in 2026.

How does Maly ZUS Plus work?

By default, an entrepreneur pays social contributions on a base equal to 60% of the projected average national wage — regardless of business results. Maly ZUS Plus changes how this base is set: it is calculated as half of your average monthly income from business activity in the previous year.

The base cannot be arbitrarily low or high — it must fall within a range:

  • lower limit: 30% of the minimum wage (around PLN 1,440 in 2026),
  • upper limit: 60% of the projected average wage (i.e. the standard full-ZUS base).

Important: the relief applies only to social contributions (pension, disability, accident and voluntary sickness insurance). The health contribution is paid as normal, according to the rules for your tax form — see The Entrepreneur's Health Contribution for how it is calculated.

Who qualifies in 2026?

All conditions must be met jointly:

  • your business revenue in the previous year did not exceed PLN 120,000 (if you operated for part of the year, the limit is prorated),
  • you ran the business for at least 60 days in the previous year,
  • you have not used up the relief limit — Maly ZUS Plus is available for a maximum of 36 months within any 60 consecutive months of running a business,
  • you do not provide services to a former employer for whom you worked under an employment contract in the same scope in the current or previous year,
  • you did not settle taxes in the previous year under the tax card scheme combined with a VAT exemption.

Maly ZUS Plus is the natural third step after the earlier reliefs for new businesses: first the startup relief (6 months without social contributions), then preferential ZUS (24 months of contributions based on 30% of the minimum wage), and only then — if you qualify — Maly ZUS Plus.

How to calculate your base — an example

Marek runs a repair shop. In 2025 he had revenue of PLN 110,000 and income of PLN 48,000, operating for the full year.

  1. Average monthly income: PLN 48,000 ÷ 12 = PLN 4,000.
  2. Contribution assessment base: PLN 4,000 × 0.5 = PLN 2,000.
  3. The amount falls within the range, so Marek pays social contributions on PLN 2,000 instead of the standard base — less than half of the full social contributions.

With full ZUS, social contributions are calculated on a base exceeding PLN 5,000 — over a year the difference amounts to several thousand zlotys in savings.

How and when to register

The deadline is short and easy to miss:

  1. By 31 January 2026 — if you are continuing your business and want to switch to Maly ZUS Plus from January, deregister from your current insurance code (form ZUS ZWUA) and register with code 05 90 (or 05 92 if you receive a disability pension) on form ZUS ZUA.
  2. During the year — if, for example, your preferential ZUS period is just ending, you have 7 days from the day you start meeting the conditions.
  3. By the end of February, file the settlement documents reporting your annual revenue, income and the calculated base (DRA part II or RCA part II).

If you used Maly ZUS Plus in the previous year and still meet the conditions, you do not need to register again. It is worth adding all these dates to your entrepreneur's compliance calendar.

When does Maly ZUS Plus not pay off?

Lower contributions mean lower costs, but the relief has a flip side:

  • lower pension and benefits — sickness and maternity benefits and your future pension are calculated on the contribution base; you pay less, so you will receive less,
  • lower tax deductions — social contributions reduce your taxable income; with smaller contributions, your PIT will be slightly higher,
  • the 36-month limit — once exhausted, you return to full ZUS for at least 2 years; it is worth planning strategically when to "spend" the relief,
  • with income close to the national average, your base will hit the upper limit anyway — the benefit becomes symbolic.

Combining reliefs is also good practice: even while on Maly ZUS Plus, you can use the contribution holidays once a year and skip social contributions for one chosen month.

Maly ZUS Plus and your tax form

The relief is available regardless of whether you settle under the tax scale, the flat tax or the lump sum. Under the lump-sum scheme, income for the purpose of setting the base is determined in a simplified way — based on half of the revenue multiplied by the appropriate coefficient.

Summary

Maly ZUS Plus is one of the most tangible reliefs for small businesses: if your annual revenue does not exceed PLN 120,000 and your income is moderate, you can legally reduce your social contributions by several hundred zlotys a month. The key points are watching the registration deadline (31 January) and making a conscious decision whether lower contributions today are worth lower benefits tomorrow.

Not sure whether you qualify, or want to calculate exactly how much you would save? Contact LinTax — we will calculate your base and take care of registering you on time.