What can an employer deduct from your wages and how much must it leave you?

Who this applies to

The rules apply to employees on an employment contract (umowa o pracę) and their employers. Articles 87-91 of the Labour Code calculate the limits from wages after deducting:

• social insurance contributions,
• the income tax advance,
• payments to the employee capital plan (PPK), if the employee has not opted out.

In this guide we call this amount "wages subject to deductions".

What to do

1. Check what was deducted. Ask for a payslip or for access to the documents on the basis of which your wages were calculated (Article 85 § 5 of the Labour Code).
2. Identify the type of deduction. Without the employee's consent, the employer may deduct only the amounts listed in Article 87 § 1 of the Labour Code, in this order:

3. Check the combined limits. Deductions under items 2 and 3 together may not exceed half of wages. Together with maintenance, all deductions under items 1-3 may not exceed 3/5 of wages (Article 87 § 4 of the Labour Code). Financial penalties are calculated separately: a single penalty may not exceed one day's wages, and all penalties together may not exceed 1/10 of the wages payable after the deductions under items 1-3 (Article 108 § 3 of the Labour Code).
4. Establish the protected amount. The protected amount is the minimum wage for full-time work after deducting contributions, the tax advance and PPK payments (Article 87(1) § 1 of the Labour Code). In 2026 the minimum wage is PLN 4,806 gross. We do not give the net amount, because it depends on contributions, tax and PPK participation. Calculate it as follows:
   • take PLN 4,806 gross,
   • subtract the social insurance contributions financed by the employee,
   • subtract the income tax advance,
   • subtract the employee's PPK payment, if they participate in it.

   For part-time work, the protected amount is reduced in proportion to working hours (Article 87(1) § 2 of the Labour Code). From 1 January 2027 the minimum wage will be PLN 4,950 gross, so the protected amounts will increase.

5. Check consent for other deductions. Any other amount (e.g. a loan from the employer, an instalment for equipment, a charge in favour of another company) may be deducted only with your consent given in writing (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code). Even then, a protected amount applies (Article 91 § 2 of the Labour Code):
   • 100% of the net minimum wage when the deduction is in favour of the employer,
   • 80% of the net minimum wage when the deduction is in favour of someone else.
6. React to an incorrect deduction. First ask the employer in writing for the basis of the deduction. Unjustified deductions are a petty offence under Article 282 § 1(1) of the Labour Code (a fine from PLN 2,000 to PLN 60,000). You can file a complaint to the PIP, because the National Labour Inspectorate (Państwowa Inspekcja Pracy, PIP) inspects compliance with the rules on remuneration (Article 10(1)(1) of the Act on the National Labour Inspectorate). You can also sue the employer in the labour court for repayment of the deducted amount. See PIP, ZUS or labour court: who should you turn to with a problem at work?

Deduction for a mistake, damaged equipment or a cash shortage

An employer who believes you caused it damage has a claim for compensation. This is not an amount under Article 87 § 1 of the Labour Code, so it cannot be deducted from your pay without your written consent (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code). First it must be established whether you are liable at all and up to what amount.

1. Damage caused unintentionally (e.g. a mistake, damaged equipment). An employee's financial liability is described in Articles 114-122 of the Labour Code:

• you are liable only if the damage resulted from your culpable failure to perform or improper performance of your duties (Article 114 of the Labour Code),
• only for the actual loss and the normal consequences of your act or omission, not for lost profits (Article 115 of the Labour Code),
• it is the employer who must prove the circumstances justifying your liability and the amount of the damage (Article 116 of the Labour Code),
• you are not liable to the extent that the employer or another person contributed to the damage, and you do not bear the risk of the employer's business, including damage within the limits of acceptable risk (Article 117 of the Labour Code),
• where there are several perpetrators, each is liable for their own share (Article 118 of the Labour Code),
• compensation may not exceed three months' pay to which you were entitled on the day the damage was caused (Article 119 of the Labour Code).

If you caused the damage intentionally, you are liable in full (Article 122 of the Labour Code). If, while performing your duties, you caused damage to a third party (e.g. a customer), only the employer must remedy it, and it may then seek reimbursement from you on the same terms (Article 120 of the Labour Code).

2. Cash shortage or shortage in entrusted property. If money, securities, valuables, tools, work clothing or other property were entrusted to you with a duty to return them or account for them, you are liable in full for damage to that property (Article 124 § 1-2 of the Labour Code). You can be released from this liability if you prove that the damage arose for reasons beyond your control, in particular because the employer did not provide conditions for securing the property (Article 124 § 3 of the Labour Code). Examples: several people sharing access to one till, no safe, no possibility of counting cash when handing over a shift. Joint liability of several employees for property entrusted to them jointly may be established only in a written joint liability agreement, concluded in writing on pain of invalidity (Article 125 § 1 of the Labour Code).

3. How the employer can recover the money.

• Settlement. The employer and the employee may conclude a settlement. The amount of compensation may be reduced in it, taking into account, among other things, the degree of fault and the employee's attitude to their duties (Article 121 § 1 of the Labour Code, for entrusted property in conjunction with Article 127 of the Labour Code). If the employee does not perform it, the labour court may give it an enforcement clause, unless it is contrary to the law or the principles of community life (Article 121(1) of the Labour Code).
• Written consent to a deduction. If you agree to repay the damage from your pay, the consent must be in writing (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code). Even then, you must be left with the full net minimum wage, because the deduction is in favour of the employer (Article 91 § 2(1) of the Labour Code). Before signing, check what amount is entered and for what. Do not sign consent under pressure or "just in case".
• Labour court. Without a settlement or consent, the employer must claim compensation in the labour court. The court may reduce the compensation in view of the circumstances of the case (Article 121 § 2 of the Labour Code). An enforcement title is a writ of execution (e.g. a judgment or settlement) bearing an enforcement clause (Article 776 of the Code of Civil Procedure, KPC). Enforcement against wages is then subject to the limits in Article 87 of the Labour Code (half of wages) and the protected amount in Article 87(1) § 1(1) of the Labour Code.

4. Disciplinary penalties are not compensation. A financial penalty under Article 108 of the Labour Code may concern only the breaches listed there, including breaches of health and safety and fire regulations, leaving work without justification or alcohol at work (Article 108 § 2 of the Labour Code). It is not used to cover damage for a mistake, destroyed equipment or a stock shortage. Applying penalties other than those provided for in the provisions on disciplinary liability is a petty offence (Article 281 § 1(4) of the Labour Code).

5. What to do if the employer made a deduction on its own.

1. Write to the employer that you did not give written consent to the deduction and demand repayment of the amount by a set date. The demand for payment generator will help. An employee cannot waive the right to remuneration (Article 84 of the Labour Code).
2. File a complaint to the PIP. Unjustified deductions are a petty offence under Article 282 § 1(1) of the Labour Code (a fine from PLN 2,000 to PLN 60,000).
3. Sue the employer in the labour court for payment of the deducted amount. A claim for remuneration becomes time-barred 3 years from the due date (Article 291 § 1 of the Labour Code).
4. If the employer believes you caused damage, the court will decide the dispute about liability and its amount. Until then, a deduction without your consent is not allowed.

Exceptions and caveats

• Deductions for absence. If, on the previous pay date, the employer paid wages for a period of absence for which the employee is not entitled to wages, it deducts them in full (Article 87 § 7 of the Labour Code). This does not require the employee's consent (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code excludes amounts under Article 87 § 7 from the consent requirement). The protected amounts under Article 87(1) of the Labour Code, as worded, refer to deductions under Article 87 § 1, not to this deduction.
• Maintenance without a bailiff. The employer also deducts maintenance without enforcement proceedings, at the request of a creditor who presents an enforcement title. Exceptions: several maintenance creditors when the amount is not enough for all of them, or wages already attached in enforcement proceedings (Article 88 of the Labour Code).
• Components paid less often than monthly. When components for periods longer than a month are paid in a given month, deductions are made from the total amount (Article 87 § 8 of the Labour Code). A bonus from the company bonus fund, the "thirteenth salary" and a share in profit are subject to maintenance enforcement in full (Article 87 § 5 of the Labour Code).
• Matters not regulated. In matters not regulated by Articles 87 and 88 of the Labour Code, the Code of Civil Procedure (KPC) and the rules on administrative enforcement apply accordingly (Article 90 of the Labour Code). In the case of attachment by a bailiff, it is worth contacting the bailiff handling the case.
• Employers: consent under Article 91 of the Labour Code must be in writing. Keep it in your records. Where several enforcement titles coincide or there are doubts about the order, seek legal advice. In the case of damage, it is you who must prove the employee's fault and the amount of the damage (Article 116 of the Labour Code), and for entrusted property also the entrustment itself with a duty to return or account.
• Contract of mandate. The rules on financial liability in Articles 114-127 of the Labour Code apply to employees. For civil-law contracts, the Civil Code (KC) applies. If a contract of mandate (umowa zlecenia) has the features of a regular job, see Contract of mandate or employment contract? How to check what really binds the parties.
• When to see a lawyer. When the employer demands repayment of a large amount, when it concerns a shortage under the joint liability of several people, or when you are asked to sign a settlement or an acknowledgement of debt. The PIP also gives free advice, see How do you get free legal advice from the PIP?

Example

Assumptions: an employee works full time. His wages subject to deductions (after deducting contributions, the tax advance and the PPK payment) are PLN 4,000. We denote the net minimum wage by the letter K. The employer establishes its value according to step 4.

Variant A: maintenance only. The limit is 3/5 of wages: PLN 4,000 × 3/5 = PLN 2,400. The law does not provide for a protected amount for maintenance. The employer may deduct at most PLN 2,400, and the employee is left with at least PLN 1,600.

Variant B: only an attachment by a bailiff other than maintenance. The employer applies two limits and chooses the lower result:

• half of wages: PLN 4,000 × 1/2 = PLN 2,000,
• the excess over the protected amount: PLN 4,000 - K.

Deduction = the lower of these two amounts. If K is equal to or higher than PLN 4,000, the deduction is PLN 0.

Variant C: repayment of an advance. The limit is half of wages (PLN 2,000), and the protected amount is 75% of K. Deduction = the lower of: PLN 2,000 or PLN 4,000 - 0.75 × K.

Variant D: a loan from the employer, written consent. The protected amount is 100% of K. The deduction may not result in the employee receiving less than K.

Variant E: damaged equipment. Additional assumptions: the employee unintentionally damaged a company laptop, the repair cost PLN 2,500, and his three months' pay is higher than that amount. The employee did not sign consent to a deduction. The employer cannot deduct PLN 2,500 from his pay. It can propose a settlement or sue the employee. In the dispute it must prove fault and the amount of the damage (Article 116 of the Labour Code). The court may also reduce the compensation (Article 121 § 2 of the Labour Code). If the damage were higher, the compensation still could not exceed three months' pay (Article 119 of the Labour Code), unless the damage was caused intentionally.

Documents and deadlines

Frequently asked questions

Can the employer deduct the cost of damaged equipment?

This is not an amount under Article 87 § 1 of the Labour Code. Without your written consent, the employer cannot deduct it from your wages (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code). A dispute over compensation is decided by a court. For damage caused unintentionally, compensation may not exceed three months' pay (Article 119 of the Labour Code). We describe the details above in the section on deductions for a mistake, equipment and a cash shortage.

I signed a statement that I would repay a stock shortage from my pay. Is it binding?

Written consent allows the employer to make a deduction (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code), but only while leaving a protected amount equal to the net minimum wage (Article 91 § 2(1) of the Labour Code). If you believe you are not liable for the shortage or that the consent was forced, consult a lawyer or the PIP before the employer starts deducting.

Is the protected amount lower for half-time work?

Yes. The protected amounts under Article 87(1) § 1 of the Labour Code are reduced in proportion to working hours (Article 87(1) § 2 of the Labour Code).

Does the protected amount protect against maintenance deductions?

No. The Code does not provide for a protected amount when maintenance is deducted. Only the upper limit of 3/5 of wages applies.

Useful tools

• PIP complaint generator
• Unpaid wages demand generator

Related guides

• Your employer did not pay your wages on time. What can you do?
• How do you file a complaint to the National Labour Inspectorate?
• PIP, ZUS or labour court: who should you turn to with a problem at work?
• How do you prepare a demand for payment of outstanding wages?

Sources (documents in Polish)

• Kodeks pracy, tekst jednolity Dz.U. 2026 poz. 1245 (art. 84, 85, 87, 87(1), 88, 90, 91, 108, 114-122, 124-127, 281, 282, 291)
• Rozporządzenie RM z 11.09.2025 w sprawie minimalnego wynagrodzenia za pracę w 2026 r., Dz.U. 2025 poz. 1242
• Rozporządzenie RM w sprawie minimalnego wynagrodzenia za pracę w 2027 r., Dz.U. 2026 poz. 1213
• Kodeks postępowania cywilnego, tekst jednolity Dz.U. 2026 poz. 468 (art. 776)
• Ustawa o Państwowej Inspekcji Pracy, tekst ujednolicony ISAP (art. 10)

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

Change history

• 15 October 2026: First publication.
• 15 October 2026: Added: deductions for a mistake, damaged equipment and a cash shortage.