Do you ever wonder how does insurance situation look like in Poland? Maybe you will visit someone there, maybe you are planning on studying/workin in Poland? Or maybe you fell in love with beautiful Polish girl/handsome guy and are planing o moving to this wonderful country?

Here is a little info about health, social and car insurance you may need while visiting this country.

Foreigners employed in Poland are bound by the law on social security system. The law adopted a principle of equal opportunity for all insured people regardless of origins. In practice, this means that the same conditions of obligatory social security apply to employed in Poland for a work contract. Regardless of the origin, everybody employed on a work contract or a short-term contract in Poland is obliged to have social security insurance. The obligatory social security contributions consist of four elements: pension fund (fundusz emerytalny), retirement, illness and accident premiums (emerytury, składki na wypadek choroby ). By paying illness premiums within the obligatory social security package the employee obtains 80 % of his salary when he falls ill. This is also the basis for paying maternity and child allowance to women. To prevent consequences of an accident or a chronic illness in a workplace, an accident insurance contributions can also be paid. According to legally biding Polish law, an employer is obliged to report all hired employees for social insurance, and also to pay all social insurance contributions from the first day of an employee’s work agreement until the last day of his or her work.

Health care in Poland is financed by a State through National Health Fund (in Polish “NFZ – Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia”). A health premium, alongside with a social insurance premium, is obliged to be paid for on-going work. It concerns all foreigners employed in Poland. As in the case of the obligatory social insurance it is paid by the employer.

Obligatory Health Insurance (Obowiązkowe ubezpieczenie zdrowotne) gives the right to medical care which ensures health protection, disease and contusions prevention, early detection of illnesses as well as preventing disability it.

Thus those foreigners employed in Poland have almost the entire range of medical services ensured, alongside with specialist hospital treatment, surgical operations and stays in sanatoria. Medical insurance also covers emergency medical care, which ensures transportation to hospital.

Among those who have the right to access the State’s Health Insurance are expatriates who are staying in Poland on the basis of:

✦ stay visa to perform work,

✦ residence permits,

✦ temporary residence permits,

✦ refugee status granted in Poland,

✦ temporary protection on Polish territory.

Additionally, non-obligatory insurance can be paid by:

✦ undergraduate- and post-graduate students who study in Poland,

✦ graduates who are on obligatory itinerary in Poland,

✦ members of convents and alumni of theological seminaries, postulants, novice and juniors of convents and counterparts in Poland on the basis of visas, residence permits or temporary residence permits.

Please note that, Health insurance also covers the members of families of the listed groups staying in Poland.

People who want to use public health service are obliged to present a medical insurance card. If they want to arrange a visit with a specialist they have to be directed by a general practitioner. In a state directly threatening life, medical care is provided without this requirement.

EU citizens in emergencies have the right to free medical services on the same conditions as Polish citizens. Nevertheless, following the regulations of medical services co-ordination in the EU, every EU citizen entering Poland should have an E-111 form which guarantees access to medical services.

Alongside public health care centres in Poland are private health centres. In the bigger cities, there are medical doctors of almost all specialities as well as clinics where specialist surgeries and operations can be performed.

If you are driving a car, you are obliged to have with you valid civil responsibility insurance.

For EU citizens the insurance from their home country is valid on the territory of Poland.

The other must purchase „GREEN CARD” (don’t confuse with USA Green Card – a permit allowing a foreign national to live and work permanently in the US). Poland is a member of a wide-ranging international system of such cards. Such insurance can be bought in the traveller’s own country, which comes out cheaper than buying it at the border.

Insurance policy: the “Green Card” (Zielona karta ubezpieczeniowa) is a form of civil protection of a car owner or a person driving it should damage to a third party occur while driving the vehicle. The insurance guarantees that when the damage is done, the insurer, and not the person who caused the accident, will pay out the damages.

Expatriates (emigranci) can also purchase extra services offer by a number of Insurance companies. You can choose among different products – the most popular are listed below:

✦ casualty insurance (in Polish “ubezpieczenie NNW” – następstwa nieszczęśliwych wypadków). That one covers personal accidents.

✦ medical insurance (ubezpieczenie zdrowotne). It covers costs of medical treatment. Some include also coverage for transportation costs to home country.

✦ liability insurance which could cover all aspects of your private life (in Polish “ubezpieczenie OC”)

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)