Contract of mandate and sick pay, leave and pension: what you are entitled to and what you are not

Author: inspekcja-pracy.pl editorial teamChecked: 16 October 2026

Short answer

A contractor under a contract of mandate (umowa zlecenia) is compulsorily covered by pension, disability and accident insurance (Article 6(1)(4) and Article 12(1) of the Act on the social insurance system), unless they are a pupil or student under 26. Sickness insurance is voluntary: you have to apply for it, and you will receive sickness benefit only after 90 days of uninterrupted insurance (Article 11(2) of the Social Insurance System Act, Article 4(1)(2) of the Sickness Benefits Act). There is no paid leave under the Labour Code (Kodeks pracy) on a contract of mandate. A period of mandate with contributions counts towards your pension and, from 2026, also towards length of service with an employer.

In this guide: Contractor's ZUS contributions, voluntary sickness insurance and 90 days' waiting, overlapping titles, no Labour Code leave, pension, length of service.

Who this applies to

People working on a contract of mandate or a contract for the provision of services (Article 750 of the Civil Code, KC) who want to know what they will receive in case of illness and how the contract affects their pension.
People who combine a contract of mandate with a job, another contract of mandate, a business, studies or a pension.
People on a contract for specific work (umowa o dzieło) who ask why they have no insurance.

If your "mandate" in practice looks like a job (someone sets your place, time and manner of work), first check the guide Contract of mandate or employment contract? and the tool Mandate or employment.

What to do

Check whether the principal has registered you with ZUS. Registration is made by the contribution payer, i.e. the principal, within 7 days of the insurance obligation arising (Article 36(2) and (4) of the Social Insurance System Act). Insurance lasts from the day of starting to perform the contract indicated in the contract until the day of its termination or expiry (Article 13(2) of the Social Insurance System Act). You can check the state of your account with ZUS (Social Insurance Institution).
Decide on sickness insurance. For a contractor compulsorily covered by pension and disability insurance, sickness insurance is voluntary and takes place "on application" (Article 11(2) of the Social Insurance System Act). You submit the application to the principal, who registers you for this insurance. Without it you will receive neither sickness nor maternity benefit under the contract of mandate.
Count the waiting period. With voluntary insurance, you acquire the right to sickness benefit after 90 days of uninterrupted sickness insurance (Article 4(1)(2) of the Sickness Benefits Act). Previous periods of sickness insurance count towards this period if the break did not exceed 30 days (Article 4(2)). Benefit is payable without a waiting period to, among others, graduates who joined the insurance within 90 days of finishing school, and people with at least 10 years of compulsory sickness insurance (Article 4(3)).
In case of illness, deliver the sick note. Benefit is paid by the principal if it registers more than 20 people for sickness insurance; with 20 or fewer, ZUS pays (Article 61(1) of the Sickness Benefits Act). Sickness benefit is as a rule 80% of the assessment basis, and 100% among others during pregnancy and after an accident on the way to work (Article 11(1)-(2) of the Sickness Benefits Act).
If you have several insurance titles, establish which one you pay contributions from. The rules under Article 9 of the Social Insurance System Act:
- A job and a mandate with another company: contributions only from the job, unless the basis from the employment relationship, converted to a month, is lower than the minimum wage; then the mandate is also compulsorily subject to contributions (Article 9(1)-(1b)).
- A mandate with your own employer, or performed for its benefit: you are treated as an employee, with contributions as under an employment contract (Article 8(2a)).
- Several mandates: compulsorily from the one that arose first; voluntarily from the others. If, however, the basis from the first mandate in a given month is lower than the minimum wage, the subsequent mandates are compulsorily subject to contributions until the total basis reaches the minimum wage (Article 9(2) and (2c)).
- A mandate and a business: compulsorily from the business if the basis from the mandate is lower than the lowest basis for a business (Article 9(2a)).
- A pensioner: the mandate is compulsorily subject to contributions if you are not in an employment relationship (Article 9(4a)-(4b)).
Keep an eye on the minimum hourly rate. For every hour of the mandate you are entitled to at least PLN 31.40 in 2026 and PLN 32.30 from 1 January 2027 (Article 8a of the Act on the minimum wage; Council of Ministers regulations for 2026 and 2027). The contract should define how hours are confirmed; if it does not, you yourself submit information on the number of hours before the payment date (Article 8b). You will find the text of the Act on the page Act on the minimum wage, and what to do when you are not paid in the guide Contract of mandate: I have not been paid.
After the mandate ends, take care of documents for length of service. From 2026, periods of a mandate in which you were covered by pension and disability insurance count towards length of service, on which among others the amount of leave and the notice period depend (Article 302(1) § 2 of the Labour Code). This is confirmed by a certificate from ZUS. How to obtain it is described in the guide Mandate contracts and self-employment in length of service.

Leave on a contract of mandate

The right to annual paid leave belongs to an employee (Article 152 of the Labour Code). The Labour Code applies to the employment relationship, and the Civil Code provisions on mandate (Articles 734-751 KC) do not provide for leave. A contractor has a paid break only when the contract provides for it. If the principal has offered "leave" in the contract, this is a contractual provision and applies to the extent it was written. There is also no payment in lieu of unused leave, because that is due only under an employment relationship.

Contract of mandate and pension

Pension and disability contributions from a mandate are compulsory (Article 6(1)(4) of the Social Insurance System Act). Periods of insurance are contributory periods (Article 6(1)(1) of the Act on pensions and disability pensions from the Social Insurance Fund), so a mandate subject to contributions counts towards your pension just like a job. The contributions go to your account at ZUS and affect the amount of your future benefit. A mandate of a student under 26, or a mandate from which contributions are not paid because of overlapping titles, does not create such a period.

Contract for specific work and ZUS

A contract for specific work is not a title to social insurance: it is not in the catalogue under Article 6(1) of the Social Insurance System Act. The exception is a contract for specific work concluded with your own employer or performed for its benefit, which is subject to contributions like an employment contract (Article 8(2a) of the Social Insurance System Act). The party ordering the work must, however, inform ZUS of the conclusion of a contract for specific work within 7 days of its conclusion (Article 36(17) of the Social Insurance System Act). From a contract for specific work you have no sickness insurance, no accident insurance and no contributory period for your pension.

Exceptions and caveats

A pupil or student under 26. They are not compulsorily covered by pension and disability insurance under a mandate (Article 6(4) of the Social Insurance System Act), and so they have no accident insurance and no possibility of joining sickness insurance under this title. This period does not count towards the pension or towards length of service. ZUS will not issue a certificate for it for length of service.
An accident while performing a mandate. A contractor with pension and disability contributions has accident insurance (Article 12(1) of the Social Insurance System Act). A sudden event while performing a mandate may be an accident at work (Article 3(3)(6) of the Accident Insurance Act). The accident card is drawn up by the principal (Article 5(1)(6) of that Act). The principal also has health and safety duties towards you (Article 304 § 1 of the Labour Code).
Sickness benefit is not sick pay. For the first days of illness an employee receives sick pay from the employer. A contractor receives only benefit from sickness insurance, and only on condition that they joined it and the waiting period has passed.
A break in sickness insurance. If the break between mandates exceeded 30 days, the 90-day waiting period is counted afresh (Article 4(2) of the Sickness Benefits Act). After an accident on the way to work, benefit is payable without a waiting period (Article 4(3)).
Not registered with ZUS. If the principal has not registered you for insurance, you can report this to ZUS, and also to the PIP, which checks the legality of employment and other gainful work. Where to turn with which matter is described in the guide PIP, ZUS or labour court.

Example

Assumptions: a person after university, aged 27, has worked since 1 March solely on a contract of mandate at a company employing a dozen or so people. When signing the contract she applied for sickness insurance. For the previous two years she was not insured anywhere. She fell ill on 15 May for two weeks.

From 1 March the principal pays pension, disability, accident and voluntary sickness contributions. 90 days of sickness insurance pass on 29 May, so no benefit is payable for the illness that began on 15 May; the waiting period is still running. Had she fallen ill in June, the benefit would have been paid by ZUS (the payer registers fewer than 21 people) at 80% of the assessment basis. The whole period of the mandate counts towards her pension and, from 2026, towards length of service. She will get days off in summer only if the contract provides for them; the Labour Code gives her no leave.

Documents and deadlines

What	Deadline or meaning
Registration of the contractor with ZUS	7 days from the insurance obligation arising (Article 36(4) of the Social Insurance System Act)
Application for voluntary sickness insurance	submitted to the principal; insurance from registration (Article 11(2) of the Social Insurance System Act)
Waiting period for sickness benefit	90 days of uninterrupted voluntary sickness insurance (Article 4(1)(2) of the Sickness Benefits Act)
Break that does not reset the waiting period	up to 30 days (Article 4(2) of the Sickness Benefits Act)
Information to ZUS on a contract for specific work	7 days from conclusion of the contract (Article 36(17) of the Social Insurance System Act)
Minimum hourly rate	PLN 31.40 in 2026, PLN 32.30 from 1.01.2027
ZUS certificate for length of service	electronic application via your ZUS profile (Article 302(2) of the Labour Code)

Frequently asked questions

Can I join sickness insurance during the mandate?

Yes. Sickness insurance is voluntary and takes place on application (Article 11(2) of the Social Insurance System Act). You submit it to the principal. Remember that the 90-day waiting period is counted from the day you are covered by the insurance.

Can the principal refuse to register me for sickness insurance?

The provision makes coverage by voluntary sickness insurance dependent on the application of the insured person, and registration is made by the payer. If the principal refuses, you can ask ZUS to clarify the matter.

Does a mandate count towards leave in a new job on an employment contract?

From 2026, yes, if during the mandate you were covered by pension and disability insurance (Article 302(1) § 2 of the Labour Code). You need a certificate from ZUS, which you pass on to the employer. Details and deadlines in the guide Mandate contracts and self-employment in length of service.

Useful tools

Questionnaire: mandate or employment

Related guides

Sources (documents in Polish)

Sources checked on 16 October 2026. Law as at 16 October 2026.

Change history

16 October 2026: First publication.

Have a question about this topic? Write to the editors Report an error or outdated information

This guide is for information only. The current legal provisions and the information of the National Labour Inspectorate apply. An independent information website. We are not the National Labour Inspectorate (Państwowa Inspekcja Pracy).