A tale of two numbers: how many Ukrainians actually get social payments in Poland?
Recent figures from Poland's Office for Foreigners show that just around 2,300 of the estimated 960,000–980,000 Ukrainian refugees in the country receive social assistance. That marks a sixfold drop compared with the start of the year. Of those receiving aid, 55% are men and 45% are women.
About 1,300 refugees living in reception centers get money for accommodation, food, and medical care. Meanwhile, roughly 1,000 Ukrainians staying outside such centers receive monthly cash benefits to cover housing and meals.
Benefits for children
In the first half of 2026, the Rodzina 800+ benefit was granted to 50,500 Ukrainian children. The number of recipients has, however, fallen sixfold since the beginning of 2026. This is a result of stricter requirements for Ukrainian citizens with PESEL UKR status, which came into force on 1 February 2026.
From 2026 onwards, a Ukrainian family can receive the 800-zloty per-child allowance only if all three of these conditions are met at the same time:
- A parent submitting the application must be working legally in Poland, whether under an employment contract (umowa o pracę), a mandate contract (umowa zlecenia), or as a registered business owner.
- The child must attend a Polish school or kindergarten. If the child is studying remotely at a Ukrainian online school, the benefit payments are canceled.
- Every month, ZUS automatically reviews records from the Polish Border Guard. This can stop payments even for parents whose children were born in Poland and have never left the country.
Overall, the tougher rules mean that many Ukrainian refugee families miss out on essential support, and the scale of that shortfall is becoming a growing concern.
These figures draw attention to the serious struggles of Ukrainians displaced by the war. The drop in benefit recipients suggests that the new criteria introduced by the Polish government are adding difficulties for many families. That could, in turn, undermine broader support and integration for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.
As the situation unfolds, the impact of tightened regulations on social assistance for Ukrainian refugees in Poland raises significant questions. To understand the broader implications and how these changes affect families, it's essential to explore the current landscape of social support for Ukrainians in the country.