UoP vs B2B in Poland: How to Compare Two Job Offers (2026)

Disclaimer: This article is general information for job seekers, not tax, legal or financial advice. Polish contribution and tax rules change every year — check the official sources linked below or talk to an accountant (księgowy) before you choose.

TL;DR

The two numbers in a Polish job ad measure different things. The umowa o pracę (UoP) figure is usually gross salary; the B2B figure is usually the net amount you invoice, before VAT. Neither is what lands in your account.
UoP includes things by law that B2B doesn't: paid holiday, sick pay, notice periods and an employer-funded PPK pension contribution. On B2B, you get only what you negotiate into the contract.
B2B moves costs onto you: ZUS contributions, the health contribution, income tax, an accountant, every unpaid day off — and your retirement saving. Compare offers only after you've priced those in.

This guide picks up where the job search ends: you have an offer — maybe two — and a contract type to choose. If you're still at the application stage, start with how to write a CV for European employers.

Why the two salaries in the ad aren't comparable

Tech and professional job ads in Poland often list two ranges side by side: one for "UoP" and one for "B2B". It's tempting to read the higher B2B number as the better deal. It isn't that simple, because the two figures sit at different points on the way to your bank account.

UoP (umowa o pracę) is an employment contract. The salary in the ad is normally gross (brutto). Your employer deducts your social contributions, the health contribution and income tax (PIT) before paying you, and pays its own contributions on top — so the job costs the company more than the ad shows, and you receive less.
B2B means you run your own sole-trader business (jednoosobowa działalność gospodarcza, JDG) and invoice the company. The figure in the ad is normally net of VAT (netto + VAT). Out of it you pay ZUS, the health contribution, income tax and your running costs. If you're VAT-registered, the VAT on top isn't yours — it goes to the tax office.

So the question isn't "which number is bigger?" but "what is each offer worth once everything it includes — and everything it leaves to me — is on the table?"

What an employment contract gives you by law

A UoP falls under the Polish Labour Code (Kodeks pracy). Beyond the salary line, that gets you:

Paid annual leave. Your holiday is paid by law, not by goodwill.
Sick pay. When you're ill, you still receive sick pay.
Notice periods. Ending the contract requires notice set by the Labour Code, on both sides.
PPK. Employers enroll employees in PPK (Pracownicze Plany Kapitałowe), the workplace pension scheme, and pay a contribution on top of your salary. You can opt out, but if you stay in, it's part of your pay.

A B2B contract is an agreement between two businesses, so none of this applies automatically. Anything you want — paid days off, a notice period, a rate review — has to be written into the contract. Many companies do offer paid days off on B2B; ask how many, and get it in writing.

What comes out of a B2B rate

When you invoice, the rate is revenue for your business, not your salary. Before it becomes money you can spend, you pay:

Social contributions (ZUS). Pension, disability and accident insurance are mandatory for a business owner. Sickness insurance is voluntary — skip it, and there's no sickness benefit when you're ill (biznes.gov.pl).
The health contribution (składka zdrowotna). How it's calculated depends on the tax form you pick.
Income tax. A business owner chooses a tax form — the progressive scale, the flat rate (podatek liniowy) or the lump sum (ryczałt) — and each has its own rules and trade-offs.
Running costs. Most B2B contractors pay an accountant, plus their own equipment, software and training unless the client covers them.
Unpaid time. Every holiday or sick day that isn't in your contract is a day you don't invoice.

New businesses can pay reduced social contributions at the start (ulga na start, then preferential ZUS), which makes B2B look especially good in year one. Price the offer on full contributions too — the relief ends, the contract may not.

The line nobody puts in the offer: your retirement

This is where UoP vs B2B comparisons most often go wrong. On UoP, PPK adds an employer contribution to your retirement savings every month without you doing anything. PPK is set up for employed persons — employees and some other contract types (mojeppk.pl) — and a B2B contractor invoicing a client isn't one of them. On B2B that money simply isn't there: any retirement saving is yours to fund from the rate.

Poland does give business owners a tool for this. The IKZE retirement account has a higher annual contribution limit for people who run a business than for employees (gov.pl), and contributions reduce your taxable income if you're taxed on the scale or the flat rate. Account and trading fees differ between providers and add up over the years, so compare before you open one: Broksy's broker ranking in Poland shows what each account actually costs in PLN, with a source for every figure.

Questions to ask before you choose

Before you accept either version, get answers to these — in writing where you can:

UoP: is the figure gross (brutto) and monthly? Is there a bonus, and how is it paid?
B2B: is the rate net of VAT, and is it monthly, daily or hourly? An hourly rate with no guaranteed hours is a different offer from a fixed monthly one.
B2B: how many paid days off per year, and what happens when you're sick?
B2B: what's the notice period — for both sides?
Who pays for equipment, software and training?
Can you switch between UoP and B2B later? Some companies allow it; ask whether and when.

Then run the numbers for both offers on the same assumptions: the same working days, the same tax form, full ZUS, and your own retirement saving included on the B2B side.

Weighing more than one offer?

Keep each offer, its contract type and your notes on one card per job.

Open the tracker

Frequently asked questions

Is B2B always better paid than UoP in Poland?

Not necessarily. The B2B figure is usually higher because it's a different kind of number: net of VAT, before your own ZUS, health contribution, tax and costs, and without paid leave, sick pay or employer PPK unless the contract adds them. Compare what each offer leaves you with over a full year, not the headline figures.

Do I get PPK on a B2B contract?

No. PPK is run by employers for employed persons, and a B2B contractor invoicing a client isn't one. On B2B, retirement saving is up to you — an IKZE account has a higher contribution limit for people who run a business.

Do I get paid holiday on B2B?

Only if your contract says so. The Labour Code's paid-leave rules apply to employment contracts, not to agreements between businesses. Many employers offer paid days off to B2B contractors — ask how many and get the number into the contract.

What should I put as salary expectations when a Polish ad lists both?

Say which contract you mean: a gross monthly figure for UoP, or a net-of-VAT rate (monthly, daily or hourly) for B2B. A bare number lets the employer read it whichever way suits them.