Karol Nawrocki will decide on the widow’s pension. Thousands of seniors are waiting for a change

There is a petition on President Karol Nawrocki’s desk that may change the rules for granting widow’s pension. The document of August 27, 2025 calls for an urgent correction of Art. 95a of the Act on pensions and disability pensions from FUS. The applicant – a single mother of five children, whose husband died at the age of 47 – indicates that the current age criterion deprives her of the right to the benefit despite meeting the other conditions. In her opinion, the regulation is “discriminatory” because it denies support to people whose spouses died “too early.”

Widow’s pension

The regulations in force today provide that a widow’s pension allows the survivor’s pension of a deceased spouse to be combined with one’s own retirement or disability benefit. Persons entitled to a survivor’s pension and their own pension (ZUS, KRUS, uniformed pension) or a disability pension are eligible. The applicant must remain married at the time of the spouse’s death and not enter into a new relationship. The key barrier is the requirement to acquire the right to a survivor’s pension no earlier than 5 years before reaching retirement age. In practice, this means that a widow can apply for the benefit only after turning 55, and a widower – after turning 60. If your spouse dies before reaching these thresholds, you are not entitled to a survivor’s pension.

The rules for combining benefits provide for two variants: 100 percent. survivor’s pension plus 15 percent own benefit or 100 percent own benefit and 15 percent survivor’s pension. From January 2027, the amount of the “second” benefit is to increase from 15%. up to 25 percent At the same time, the total amount of payments cannot exceed three times the minimum pension (currently approximately PLN 5,636-5,637 per month). After exceeding the limit, ZUS reduces the amount of benefits accordingly.

Application to ZUS

To receive a widow’s pension, you must submit an ERWD application to ZUS – available online and at branches. The benefit is due from the month of submitting a complete application. The problem is that many interested parties do not meet the age requirement, although they meet the other criteria. It is this element – according to the author of the petition – that excludes thousands of people from due support after the death of their spouse.

The petition was officially registered at the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland and its content was made publicly available. The applicant appeals to President Karol Nawrocki for a legislative initiative abolishing or modifying the age criterion. The change would restore access to the benefit to people in a difficult financial situation after the loss of a spouse. Supporters of the correction emphasize that correcting the regulations could actually provide relief to thousands of widows and widowers who today – despite meeting many conditions – cannot benefit from survivor’s pension due to the age limit.