How do you file a complaint to the National Labour Inspectorate?

Who this applies to

This guide is for a person whose employer is breaking labour law. According to the PIP, an employee complaint should concern a violation that directly affects the complainant. This includes, among other things:

• health and safety at work,
• legality of employment,
• irregularities in concluding a civil-law contract,
• remuneration and other benefits arising from the employment relationship,
• working time and leave,
• parental rights,
• employment of juvenile workers and people with disabilities.

If you work under a contract of mandate (umowa zlecenia) or in a B2B model and believe it is in reality a regular job, since 8 July 2026 the PIP has wider powers in such matters. According to the PIP, the inspector will deal with the matter only if, on the day of the inspection, you are still working or providing services for that entity. If the cooperation has already ended, the dispute over the nature of the contract is settled by the labour court. The Act does not say this expressly; it is the PIP's position. More: The cooperation has already ended. How do you establish that it was an employment contract?

What to do

1. Check whether the matter belongs to the PIP. The PIP does not deal with, among other things, payment of ZUS (Social Insurance Institution) benefits (sickness, maternity, rehabilitation), insurance forms such as Z-3, or tax advances and PIT/CIT returns. If you do not know where to go, read PIP, ZUS or labour court: who should you turn to with a problem at work?
2. Identify the competent inspectorate. According to the PIP, you send the complaint to the District Labour Inspectorate (or its branch) competent for the employer's registered office. The competence tool and the list of inspectorates will help you.
3. Prepare the content of the complaint. Include:
   • your first name and surname,
   • your address,
   • the name and address of the employer,
   • a description of the violations: what is happening, since when, whom it concerns,
   • for an electronic complaint, also your e-mail address or e-Doręczenia address, if it is not clear from the letter.
4. Choose the form and sign the complaint:
   • in person: at the seat of the OIP or a branch, orally for the record or on a form available on site,
   • by post: the original letter with a handwritten signature,
   • by e-mail: a message with the complaint file attached, signed with a qualified, trusted or personal signature,
   • via e-Doręczenia.

   Details of electronic signatures are described in the guide How do you sign and send a complaint to the PIP electronically?

5. Keep a copy and proof of sending. When filing in person, you can ask for confirmation that the complaint was received (such a request is provided for in § 7 of the 2002 regulation on complaints and requests).
6. Wait for the reply. According to the PIP, an employee complaint is handled without undue delay, no later than within one month. What happens next is described in the guide What happens after you file a complaint with the PIP, and what to do if there is no reply?

You can prepare the letter in the PIP complaint generator. The "Download document" button creates a file for printing or signing. The generator does not send the complaint; you must file it yourself in one of the forms described above.

Exceptions and caveats

• A complaint on someone else's behalf. The law allows a complaint to be filed in the interest of another person with their consent (Article 221 § 3 of the Code of Administrative Procedure (KPA)). The PIP requires the written consent of the person on whose behalf you are filing an employee complaint to be attached.
• A scan is not enough. According to the PIP, a photo or scan of a letter with a handwritten signature sent by e-mail does not meet the formal requirements. The complaint file itself must be signed electronically, not just the message.
• Anonymous complaints. The PIP considers anonymous complaints only in exceptional cases. It is better to file a complaint under your name. See Does the PIP examine anonymous complaints?
• Confidentiality. The inspector may not disclose that an inspection is taking place as a result of a complaint, unless you give written consent (Article 44(3) of the Act on the National Labour Inspectorate). See Will the employer find out who filed a complaint with the PIP?
• Complaint and court. A complaint to the PIP does not replace a court claim. If you want to recover money or appeal against termination notice, watch the court deadlines, e.g. 21 days to appeal against termination notice to the labour court (Article 264 § 1 of the Labour Code (Kodeks pracy)). Claims arising from an employment relationship become time-barred 3 years after they fall due (Article 291 § 1 of the Labour Code).
• Basis of the requirements. The PIP website does not indicate the act from which the formal requirements for an employee complaint derive. They match Article 63 KPA (a submission identifies the person, the address, the request and is signed) and the 2002 regulation of the Council of Ministers on complaints and requests.

Example

Assumptions: an employee on an employment contract (umowa o pracę) has not been paid on time for three months. The employer has its registered office in Lublin, and the employee works in Zamość. The employee has no electronic signature or trusted profile.

The employee checks on the list of inspectorates that the employer's registered office is in the Lubelskie voivodeship (province), so he sends the complaint to the District Labour Inspectorate in Lublin. He prepares the letter in the generator, prints it and signs it with a pen. He sends the original by registered letter and keeps the proof of posting. He could also go to the branch in Zamość and file the complaint orally for the record. If he had instead e-mailed a photo of the signed sheet, according to the PIP the complaint would not meet the formal requirements.

Documents and deadlines

Frequently asked questions

Does it cost anything to file a complaint to the PIP?

Neither the PIP website nor the provisions we checked provide for a fee for an employee complaint. The cost is at most a stamp if you send a letter.

Can I file a complaint through a form on the PIP website?

No. According to the PIP, there is no electronic complaint form (e-complaint) at the National Labour Inspectorate. The electronic forms are e-mail with a signed file and e-Doręczenia.

Can the employer punish me for a complaint?

The Code of Administrative Procedure provides that no one may suffer any detriment or reproach because of filing a complaint, if they acted within the limits of the law (Article 225 § 1 KPA).

Useful tools

• PIP complaint generator
• Competent inspectorate finder

Related guides

• How do you sign and send a complaint to the PIP electronically?
• How do you find out which labour inspectorate to send your complaint to?
• Will the employer find out who filed a complaint with the PIP?
• What happens after you file a complaint with the PIP, and what to do if there is no reply?

Sources (documents in Polish)

• PIP, Jak złożyć skargę?
• Ustawa o Państwowej Inspekcji Pracy, tekst ujednolicony ISAP
• Ustawa z 11.03.2026 o zmianie ustawy o PIP, Dz.U. 2026 poz. 473
• Kodeks postępowania administracyjnego, tekst ujednolicony ISAP
• Rozporządzenie RM z 8.01.2002 w sprawie skarg i wniosków, Dz.U. 2002 nr 5 poz. 46
• Kodeks pracy, t.j. Dz.U. 2026 poz. 1245

Sources checked on 15 October 2026. Law as at 15 October 2026.

Change history

• 15 October 2026: First publication.