Poland’s President vetoes a bill extending legal status and benefits for Ukrainian citizens, drawing sharp criticism from opposition politicians.
President Refuses to Extend Legal Status for Ukrainians
Veto of Three Bills Including Ukrainian Aid Law
President Andrzej Duda announced on Monday that he had vetoed three bills, one of which was an amendment to the law on aid for Ukrainian citizens. The amendment aimed to extend the period until March 4 of next year during which Ukrainian residents arriving in Poland due to the war would be considered legally present and granted access to the labor market, education, healthcare, family benefits, and social services.
“The law on aid for Ukrainian citizens does not include the correction debated publicly, that the 800+ allowance should be given to Ukrainians who take on work obligations,” explained Karol Nawrocki. Portal Demagog.org.pl previously reported that in December 2024, Poland paid the 800+ allowance to 292,200 Ukrainian children. “This accounts for 4.3% of all children who received 800+ (6.84 million total),” the report states.
Żukowska Condemns Giertych’s Remarks
“A million Ukrainians fighting the war must leave Poland by October 1, as Russia has installed its own people in the President’s Office,” commented KO MP Roman Giertych on X. In response, Anna-Maria Żukowska, MP for Nowa Lewica, reacted: “Silence, you idiot. Nawrocki is implementing Tusk’s total program.”
Donald Tusk Supports the Proposal in January
Żukowska referenced Rafał Trzaskowski’s promise during the presidential campaign. “I propose a fundamental change: 800+ benefits should only be granted to migrants, including Ukrainians, who actually live, work, and pay taxes in our country,” said one of KO’s candidates during a meeting. In January, Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated on X that the government would “urgently consider” the idea of paying 800+ only to Ukrainians who work, reside, and pay taxes in Poland. “I am in favor,” he added.
MSWiA Notes Rising Tax Contributions by Ukrainians
In March of this year, Maciej Duszczyk, Deputy Minister of Family and Social Policy, noted in response to a parliamentary inquiry that “the absence of Ukrainian workers would deepen current labor shortages.” He emphasized that “Ukrainian citizens’ presence on the Polish labor market mitigates staffing gaps in the face of declining domestic labor resources.”
Since 2022, tax payments from Ukrainians have increased from 12.56 billion zł (7.87 billion to ZUS; 2.22 billion to NFZ; 2.47 billion from income tax) in 2022 to 17.31 billion zł (10.54 billion to ZUS; 3.04 billion to NFZ; 3.73 billion income tax) in 2023, and 18.94 billion zł (12.67 billion to ZUS; 3.78 billion to NFZ; 2.49 billion income tax) in 2024. Duszczyk noted that the 2024 tax data collection process was not yet completed, so MF did not have final figures for that year.
Source: Gazeta, Demagog.org.pl, Ministry of Family and Social Policy (MSWiA), President of Poland’s Office, CO’s political statements on X.
