Government announcement regarding an important benefit. Good news for seniors
Over 4 thousand seniors receive an honorary benefit – a message from the Ministry of Family. Its amount has recently increased to almost PLN 7,000. zloty.
January marked one year since the Act on granting honorary benefits came into force. It replaced the non-statutory mechanism for granting this allowance, which had been operating for almost 55 years. The key condition that must be met to receive the benefit remains unchanged – you must be 100 years old.
Honorary service. That’s how many people receive
It would seem that due to the age criterion, only few people in Poland receive honorary benefits. However, this is not the case, as confirmed by the latest announcement of the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy.
– Did you know that over 4,000 centenarians receive an honorary benefit from ZUS? Thanks to the regulations prepared by the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy, the benefit for people who are over 100 years old is already paid ex officio – we read in the ministry’s announcement.
It is worth noting that in 2018, less than 2,000 seniors were entitled to the benefit. Forecasts indicate that in the next 15 years the number of 100-year-olds in Poland will exceed 20,000.
The Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy also points out that the current amount of the benefit is almost PLN 7,000. PLN per month (PLN 6,938.92 to be exact). Due to the above-mentioned act, it is indexed every year (previously, the amount granted once to a senior was valid for the rest of his life) on the same principles as pensions.
In the vast majority of cases, ZUS grants the benefit ex officio. This applies in particular to people who already receive a pension from ZUS or KRUS. However, the application must be submitted by those who do not receive a pension or disability pension, are not covered by the insurance system (e.g. they have worked all their lives without formal employment), and do not receive benefits from ZUS or KRUS. These people must complete the ESH form and submit it to ZUS. It will be necessary to attach a document confirming the date of birth (e.g. a copy of the birth certificate). Only after submitting the application and verifying the documents will the benefit be granted by ZUS.
