Skip to content
analfabeta.pl

Wezwanie do zapłaty from ZUS (payment demand): what it means and what to do

By when7 days from delivery

Updated:

In short

A wezwanie do zapłaty or upomnienie from ZUS (the Polish social insurance institution) means ZUS says you owe overdue contributions plus interest, and the word upomnienie marks the last formal step before enforcement. You have 7 days from delivery: the day you received the letter does not count, and if the last day falls on a weekend or public holiday it moves to the next working day. Check the months and amounts in eZUS, then pay the full sum to the contribution account number in the letter or apply for instalments (form RSR); analfabeta.pl explains the letter in your language and works out the exact date.

What this letter is

ZUS (Zakład Ubezpieczeń Społecznych, the Polish social insurance institution) says you owe it money. The letter is called wezwanie do zapłaty (demand for payment) or upomnienie (formal reminder). Both say the same thing: according to ZUS, social insurance contributions (składki) for one or more months were not paid, paid late or paid short, and late-payment interest (odsetki za zwłokę) has been added.

The letter lists the months, the amounts per type of insurance, the interest and usually a flat fee for the reminder itself (koszty upomnienia). It also gives the account to pay into: your individual contribution account number (numer rachunku składkowego, NRS).

The word "upomnienie" matters. Under the Polish administrative enforcement rules (art. 15 u.p.e.a.) it is the last formal step before ZUS can collect the debt by force. If your letter says upomnienie, treat it as the final warning.

Why people receive it

The reasons are usually mundane:

  • You run a one-person business (jednoosobowa działalność gospodarcza, JDG) and missed a monthly payment, or paid the wrong amount after your contribution base changed.
  • You stopped working but never closed or suspended the business in the CEIDG register, so ZUS keeps charging contributions every month. The most common trap: a business registered for a residence permit or one contract, then forgotten.
  • You employ people and their contributions went out late, or you did not deregister an employee or family member (form ZUS ZWUA), so ZUS still expects contributions for them.
  • You paid to the wrong account or with a wrong reference, so the money was not matched to you.
  • ZUS made a mistake, or a payment is still in transit. It happens, so check before you pay.

Typical deadlines

The standard deadline in an upomnienie is 7 days from delivery. The day you received the letter does not count; day one is the next day. If the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, the deadline moves to the next working day.

"Delivery" has its own rules. If the postman left a notice (awizo) and you did not collect the registered letter, a second notice follows after 7 days, and after another 7 days the letter counts as delivered even if you never opened it. The 7 days then run from that day. If ZUS writes to you electronically in PUE ZUS, now called eZUS (as of 2026-08), the letter counts as delivered when you open it or 14 days after sending, whichever comes first.

Purely informational letters (such as "informacja o stanie konta", an account statement) and reminders by email or SMS do not start enforcement. The word upomnienie in the header does.

What happens if you ignore it

Nothing good, and it gets more expensive each week:

  • After the 7 days, ZUS issues an enforcement title (tytuł wykonawczy) and starts administrative enforcement (egzekucja administracyjna). No court is involved: ZUS acts as its own enforcement body or hands the case to the tax office.
  • Usually the bank account goes first (zajęcie rachunku bankowego): the bank blocks the amount owed. Wage seizure through your employer (zajęcie wynagrodzenia) and seizure of tax refunds follow.
  • Enforcement costs (koszty egzekucyjne) are added, and interest keeps growing every day until you pay. ZUS can also register a compulsory mortgage (hipoteka przymusowa) on your property.
  • If you run a business, unpaid contributions can cost you sickness and maternity benefits: ZUS may refuse to pay a benefit while your debt exceeds 1 percent of the minimum wage (as of 2026-08), and a long-standing debt can mean losing the right to it altogether.
  • A ZUS debt also surfaces when you need a certificate of no arrears (zaświadczenie o niezaleganiu), for example for a loan, a tender or a residence permit.

What to do now

  1. Check the amounts and months against your payment confirmations and your account in eZUS (formerly PUE ZUS). Look for an unmatched payment, or for months after you actually stopped the business.
  2. If the debt is real and you can pay, pay it in full, interest included, to the account number from the letter within the 7 days, and keep the confirmation.
  3. If you cannot pay at once, apply for instalments (układ ratalny, form RSR in eZUS) or, for contributions not yet due, for a deferral (odroczenie, form RSO). Once an instalment agreement is signed, enforcement stops and interest is replaced by a lower extension fee (opłata prolongacyjna). Every ZUS branch has a free adviser for payment relief (doradca do spraw ulg i umorzeń).
  4. If you think the amount is wrong, write to ZUS: which months, which payments, confirmations attached, and ask for a statement of account (stan rozliczeń). Any formal letter to ZUS must be in Polish. A disputed amount still accrues interest, so consider paying the part you do not dispute.
  5. If the cause is a business you no longer run, deregister it in CEIDG now. That stops new contributions but does not erase the old ones.
  6. Do not ignore calls or messages from ZUS in eZUS. They are usually the earlier, cheaper version of this letter.

How analfabeta.pl helps

Paste the letter's text or photograph it, and analfabeta.pl tells you in your language what it is, whether it is already the formal upomnienie, how much ZUS claims and for which months, and the exact date by which you must react, counted from the day the letter reached you. If you need to write back, to dispute the amount or ask for instalments, you can order a formal reply in Polish with a mirror translation in your language, ready as a PDF.

Frequently asked questions

What is a wezwanie do zapłaty from ZUS, and is it the same as an upomnienie?

Both letters say that, according to ZUS, your social insurance contributions (składki) for one or more months were not paid, paid late or paid short, and late-payment interest plus a flat reminder fee (koszty upomnienia) have been added. The word upomnienie matters: under Polish administrative enforcement rules it is the last formal step before ZUS can collect the debt by force. An account statement (informacja o stanie konta) or a reminder by email or SMS does not start enforcement; an upomnienie does.

How many days do I have to pay after a ZUS upomnienie, and from when do they count?

The standard deadline is 7 days from delivery. The day the letter reached you does not count; day one is the next day, and if the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Polish public holiday, you have until the next working day. A letter sent to your eZUS account (formerly PUE ZUS) counts as delivered when you open it or 14 days after sending, whichever comes first.

What happens if I ignore a payment demand from ZUS?

After the 7 days ZUS issues an enforcement title (tytuł wykonawczy) and starts administrative enforcement without a court: usually your bank account is blocked first, then wages are seized through your employer and tax refunds are taken. Enforcement costs are added and interest grows every day until you pay. If you run a business, the debt can also cost you sickness or maternity benefit and will block a certificate of no arrears (zaświadczenie o niezaleganiu).

I never collected the registered letter from ZUS, does the deadline still run?

Yes. If the postman left a notice (awizo) and you did not pick up the letter, a second notice follows after 7 days, and after another 7 days the letter counts as delivered even though nobody opened it. The 7 days to pay run from that day, so an uncollected letter does not stop the clock, it only eats into your time. Collect it and check your account in eZUS straight away.

Can I reply to ZUS in English, or does it have to be in Polish?

Any formal letter to ZUS, such as disputing the amount or applying for instalments, must be in Polish. If you think the amount is wrong, write which months and which payments you dispute, attach your payment confirmations and ask for a statement of account (stan rozliczeń). If you cannot pay at once, apply for an instalment plan (układ ratalny, form RSR in eZUS); once it is signed, enforcement stops and interest is replaced by a lower extension fee. Every ZUS branch has a free adviser for payment relief who can help you with the forms.

Will a ZUS debt affect my karta pobytu or other residence paperwork?

It can surface at the worst moment: a ZUS debt shows up whenever you need a certificate of no arrears (zaświadczenie o niezaleganiu), for example for a residence permit, a loan or a tender. A common trap for foreigners is a one-person business (JDG) opened for a residence permit or a single contract and never closed, so ZUS keeps charging contributions every month. If that is your case, deregister the business in CEIDG now; it stops new contributions but does not erase the old ones, which you still need to pay or spread into instalments.