Engaging Contractors In Poland: What Are The Risks?

Self-employment is becoming increasingly popular in Poland. Service contracts with sole proprietors who provide a high level of skills and/or expert knowledge in a freelance capacity are already widespread. Job adverts recruiting in the IT sector, or for other jobs in the gig economy, often require performance of duties to be based on business-to-business contracts with candidates.

Crucially, it is the nature of the relationship, rather than the name given to that relationship, that establishes whether it will be a Labour Code based contract. Where the relationship is characterised by a) performance of work of a specified type for the benefit of an employer and under his supervision and b) in a place and time specified by the employer, there is a higher risk of the contract being reclassified into a Labour Code based employment relationship.