B2B Contracts at Your Company. Review Them Before an Inspection Does. What Changes Under the PIP Act Amendment on 8 July 2026?

From 8 July 2026, a labour inspector will be able to issue an administrative decision declaring the existence of an employment relationship — including in place of a B2B contract. Find out what the PIP Act amendment changes and how to prepare.

From 8 July 2026, a regional labour inspector will be able to issue an administrative decision declaring that a person cooperating with your company under a B2B or civil-law contract is in fact an employee. Until now, only a court could make such a ruling. This follows the entry into force of the Act of 11 March 2026 amending the State Labour Inspectorate Act and certain other statutes (Journal of Laws 2026, item 473).

What Is the New Power of the Labour Inspectorate?

Under the newly added Article 11(1)(7a) of the PIP Act, an inspector will declare the existence of an employment relationship by decision where a civil-law contract has been concluded — or where a person is in fact performing paid work — under conditions that, pursuant to Article 22 § 1 of the Labour Code, require an employment contract.

The decision does not come without warning: it may only be issued after a prior order to remedy the violations (Article 11(2) of the PIP Act) has been ignored, and only after the parties have had an opportunity to present their position. The company will first receive a chance to put its arrangements in order. Only if that order is disregarded can the inspector proceed to a formal decision.

The decision will specify the parties and type of employment contract, the date of conclusion, the type and place of work, working time, and remuneration (Article 34(2b) of the PIP Act). Where the evidence does not allow these elements to be established, the statute provides default substitutes: an open-ended contract, place of work at the employer's registered office, full-time hours, and minimum wage.

What Happens After the Decision Is Issued?

The decision takes legal effect from the date of issue under labour law, tax law, and social and health insurance law. The date of conclusion of the employment contract is, as a rule, the date of the decision — it therefore operates prospectively, not retroactively. It becomes enforceable only the day after the appeal period expires without result, on the date of a final court ruling, or on the date it is granted immediate enforceability (Article 34(2k)).

An appeal does not go to an administrative court but to a labour court: it must be filed in writing, through the regional labour inspector, within one month of service of the decision. The new procedure introduces a rule of evidence preclusion — arguments and evidence must in principle be raised in the appeal and in the response to it. The mere initiation of proceedings by the inspector interrupts the limitation period for employee claims (Article 33a(8)), and for the duration of the dispute, the limitation period for related tax and contribution liabilities is suspended.

The Traps That Get the Least Attention

• The new rules apply to existing contracts. The transitional provision (Article 14 of the amending act) expressly states that the amended rules apply to civil-law contracts concluded before the act's entry into force that are still in effect on that date. A contract signed in 2024 is therefore not out of reach.
• Terminating a contract after an inspection begins does not close the matter. If the company terminates or gives notice under the contract between the start of the inspection and the expiry of the appeal period, the date of conclusion of the employment contract will be the date the inspection began (Article 34(2g)).
• Gaps in documentation work against the company. Where the terms of cooperation cannot be established, the decision will specify an open-ended contract, full-time hours and at least minimum wage, and the burden of proving otherwise will fall on the employer.
• Penalties are going up. Fines for offences under Articles 281–283 of the Labour Code have been doubled (generally PLN 2,000–60,000, up to PLN 90,000 for repeat offences), and an inspector's on-the-spot fine can reach PLN 5,000.
• PIP, ZUS and KAS share data. The new provisions formalise the exchange of findings and joint risk analysis between these authorities.

Individual Ruling from the Chief Labour Inspector — a New Tool Worth Knowing

A mechanism well known from tax law has been transplanted into labour law. Under the new Article 14b of the PIP Act, an employing entity may apply to the Chief Labour Inspector for an individual ruling on whether the described legal relationship constitutes an employment relationship within the meaning of Article 22 § 1 of the Labour Code.

Key parameters:

• the application fee is PLN 40 per separate factual situation; the Chief Labour Inspector issues the ruling without undue delay and no later than 30 days after receiving a complete application,
• the ruling takes the form of a decision subject to appeal,
• it is binding on PIP authorities and may be amended or revoked only if the circumstances change,
• acting in accordance with it provides protection: the entity cannot be subject to administrative, financial or criminal penalties,
• every ruling is forwarded to ZUS and KAS and, once anonymised, will be published in the Public Information Bulletin.

One caveat is of particular practical importance: the ruling protects the factual situation described in the application, not the name of the contract. Issuing a ruling does not preclude assessment of the actual nature of the legal relationship during an inspection, if the facts established differ from those described in the application.

What to Do Before 8 July?

Review active B2B contracts and civil-law agreements against the characteristics of an employment relationship under Article 22 § 1 of the Labour Code: subordination, work performed under the direction of the hiring party, at a place and time set by the hiring party, for remuneration and at the hiring party's risk. What determines classification is how the contract is actually performed, not what it is called.

The act also provides a limited amnesty window: anyone who, within 12 months of the act's entry into force, voluntarily brings their arrangements into compliance by concluding an employment contract will not be liable for the offence under Article 281 § 1(1) of the Labour Code (Article 16 of the amending act). It is also worth considering applying for an individual ruling — when the factual situation is accurately described, it is a relatively inexpensive tool that genuinely reduces the risk of a dispute with PIP, ZUS and the tax authorities simultaneously.