7000 zł dla Stulatków: Nowe Świadczenie ZUS – Kiedy i Jak Otrzymać?

Wouldn’t a monthly benefit of 7,000 zł, granted without additional requirements, work history, or employment, be a desirable privilege for everyone?

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7000 zł without 61.08 zł and without a single day of work from ZUS. When and for whom?

Many are wondering how it’s possible to be eligible for 7000 zł without 61.08 zł (therefore exactly 6938.92 zł) and without a work history, without a single day of work from ZUS. When and for whom? As early as 2024, the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy prepared new regulations, which came into effect on January 1, 2025, enabling the payment of a so-called honorary benefit for centenarians. This refers to the Act of October 18, 2024, on the honorary benefit for reaching the age of 100 (Journal of Laws of 2024, item 1674, hereinafter referred to as: the Act). The Act replaced the previous extra-legal and provisional mechanism for granting benefits, which had been in operation for over 50 years – through a special benefit.

How much is the benefit for 100-year-olds in 2026?

In 2026, the so-called benefit for 100-year-olds, the honorary benefit, amounts to: 6938.92 zł. In 2025, when the honorary benefit came into force, it was 6589.67 zł. It has therefore increased by almost 350 zł. An advance on personal income tax and a health insurance contribution are deducted from the honorary benefit.

Since 2025, when the Act came into force, the pension has been indexed. Article 4, paragraph 2 of the Act states: The honorary benefit shall be indexed in accordance with the principles and deadlines applicable to the indexing of benefits referred to in Articles 88–94 of the Act of December 17, 1998, on pensions and disability benefits from the Social Insurance Fund. 3. The President of the Social Insurance Institution shall announce, in the form of a communication in the Journal of Laws of the Republic of Poland “Monitor Polski”, at least 7 working days before the next indexation date, the amount of the honorary benefit.

ZUS gives 7000 zł without 61.08 zł and without a work history, without a single day of work, without an application. Why was it introduced by law and not continued as an exceptional benefit?

For over half a century, individuals who reached the age of 100 could count on a special bonus granted as an exception. This benefit had been awarded since 1972 and had a fixed amount corresponding to the base amount in effect on the day of the jubilee’s hundredth birthday. In practice, this led to significant differences in the amount of benefits paid, as the amount once determined remained unchanged throughout the beneficiary’s life, not subject to indexation – informed Krystyna Michałek, regional press spokesperson for ZUS in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship. How have the rules changed in 2025 and for 2026?

Who pays the honorary benefit?

Decisions regarding the honorary benefit are issued and paid by the Social Insurance Institution within the payment deadline specified in the decision. The party has the right to submit a request for reconsideration of the case to the body that issued the decision, in accordance with the rules applicable to decisions issued in the first instance by the minister. The competent pension or disability insurance body (ZUS, KRUS, WBE, ZER MSWiA, BESW or a justice administration unit) makes the decision.

Further material below the video

Who is entitled to the honorary benefit?

The right to the benefit belongs to a person who meets the above conditions. ZUS states that the benefit is due if you have Polish citizenship, you have turned 100 years old, and on the last day of the month preceding the month in which you turned 100 years old, you are entitled to a benefit referred to in the Act on the honorary benefit for reaching the age of 100, namely:

• a pension, a disability benefit, a family pension, as indicated in the Act on pensions and disability benefits from the Social Insurance Fund;
• a disability benefit, a family pension, a family pension after a pensioner receiving a benefit due to an accident at work or from work, whose death occurred after the entry into force of the Act, as a result of such an accident, a family pension after a pensioner receiving a benefit due to an accident in special circumstances or due to an occupational disease related to special circumstances, whose death occurred after the entry into force of the Act, as a result of such an accident or occupational disease, as indicated in the Act on social insurance due to accidents at work and occupational diseases;
• a disability benefit or a family pension, as indicated in the Act on benefits for the disabled as a result of war or military service;
• a social pension, as indicated in the Act on social pensions;
• a parental supplementary benefit, as indicated in the Act on parental supplementary benefit;
• a disability pension or a family pension, as indicated in the Act on benefits for war veterans and certain persons who were victims of war repressions and the post-war period;
• a pension, a disability benefit, a family pension, an exceptional pension, a disability benefit in an exceptional manner, a family pension in an exceptional manner, as indicated in the Act on war veterans and certain persons who were victims of war repressions and the post-war period;
• a cash benefit, as indicated in the Act on cash benefits for civilian blind victims of war operations;
• a military pension, a military disability pension or a military family pension, as indicated in the Act on the pension provision of professional soldiers and their families;
• a police pension, a police disability pension or a police family pension, as indicated in the Act on the pension provision of Police officers, the Internal Security Agency, the Intelligence Agency, the Military Counterintelligence Service, the Military Intelligence Service, the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau, the Border Guard, the Marshal’s Guard, the State Protection Service, the State Fire Service, the Customs and Tax Service and the Prison Service and their families [11];;
• a cash benefit, as indicated in the Act on cash benefits due to family members of officers or professional soldiers whose death was related to service or undertaking rescue activities to save human life or property outside of service;
• an agricultural pension, an agricultural disability pension, an agricultural training pension, a family pension, a pension or benefits from social insurance for individual farmers and their families, as indicated in the Act on social insurance for farmers;
• a judge’s retirement pay and family allowance, as indicated in the Act – the Law on the Organization of Common Courts;
• a military judge’s retirement pay and family allowance, as indicated in the Act – the Law on the Organization of Military Courts;
• a Supreme Court judge’s retirement pay, as indicated in the Act on the Supreme Court;
• a prosecutor’s retirement pay and family allowance, as indicated in the Act – the Law on the Prosecutor’s Office.

Only one honorary benefit

Importantly, if a person is receiving more than one pension benefit when they turn 100, such as a pension and a disability benefit due to an occupational disease, they will receive only one honorary benefit.

For how many people almost 7000 zł?

As interia.pl reports: “Last year, the number of people receiving an honorary pension from ZUS reached almost 4000. In August, the office reported that money from this benefit is sent to over 3.8 thousand people each month. The number of beneficiaries of the honorary pension is growing as we live longer. The numbers show this best – 8 years ago, in 2018, ZUS sent an honorary pension to 1.9 thousand people. This was twice as many compared to the current 3.8 thousand beneficiaries.”