Polish Teachers Face Aug 31 Deadline for Compensation Benefit

Poland’s teacher compensation benefit – a bridge‑pension paid directly from the state budget – currently supports about 9,000 teachers with an average monthly payment of roughly 4,400 zł. To receive the benefit, teachers must have at least 30 years of overall service, including 20 years of teaching, work at least half‑time, and meet the age threshold of 56 years for women or 61 years for men. The scheme was introduced after the war in Ukraine to allow teachers of Ukrainian pupils to keep the benefit while returning to work. The temporary provisions expire on 31 August 2026, after which teachers must decide whether to continue employment without the compensation. ZUS (the Social Insurance Institution) reports that the average amount has risen from about 2,800 zł in 2022 to over 4,400 zł in 2026, while the number of recipients has fallen from more than 13,000 to under 10,000 in the same period.