Starting in May 2026, the Polish Social Insurance Institution will apply new life expectancy data from GUS, resulting in an average 0.9 percent decrease in monthly pension benefits.
Why pensions will decrease from May 2026
Every year, Statistics Poland (GUS) publishes life expectancy tables, which serve as a critical parameter in the pension system. ZUS calculates benefits by dividing accumulated pension capital by the predicted number of months a person will live. Because people are statistically living longer, the capital is spread over a larger number of months, resulting in lower monthly payouts.
Calculated impact on monthly benefits
While an average reduction of 0.9 percent may appear minor, the cumulative loss is significant. For instance, a 60-year-old with 800,000 PLN in capital would see a monthly decrease of 28 PLN. A 65-year-old with the same capital would see a monthly decrease of 31 PLN.
Who is affected by the ZUS changes
The change does not affect all seniors. It applies exclusively to individuals who transition to retirement from May 2026 onwards and have their benefits calculated using the new GUS tables. Current retirees and those who were granted benefits previously will see no change to their payments.
Strategies to mitigate pension losses
Delaying retirement can help avoid these reductions through a dual mechanism: increasing accumulated capital via contributions and indexation while reducing the predicted life expectancy divisor. In many cases, working longer can result in a benefit that is significantly higher.
The impact of longer life expectancy
Increased life expectancy is driven by factors such as improved medical care, higher quality of life, and health prevention. While these are positive developments, they increase the burden on the pension system, requiring ZUS to distribute funds over a longer duration through the new statistical tables.
