Poland plans pension reform for uniformed services, benefiting customs officers

Poland is set to reform retirement regulations for its uniformed services, with a particular focus on rectifying what is described as a long-standing injustice affecting customs and fiscal-customs officers. The proposed changes aim to ensure that officers who transitioned from customs roles to the military are no longer treated less favorably than their counterparts in other services.

Currently, the rules for military pensions differ based on the start date of service. Soldiers who joined before January 1, 2013, can retire after 15 years, with periods in other uniformed services often counted. However, those who joined after this date generally need 25 years of service, with exceptions for many services if their career began before 2013. Customs officers, despite their service being considered equivalent for pension calculations, were notably excluded from these more lenient retirement pathways.

The new amendment to the law on the retirement benefits of professional soldiers seeks to correct this disparity. It proposes including customs structures in the list of formations covered by pension regulations. This will enable individuals who served in customs before January 1, 2013, to have that service period recognized for their military pension, similar to how police, border guards, and firefighters benefit.

Consequently, some professional soldiers will be eligible for military retirement after accumulating 15 years of combined service in both customs and the military. The project's authors highlight that this reform is a response to earlier changes in the pension system for uniformed services and a 2015 Constitutional Tribunal ruling. The ruling emphasized that customs officers perform duties comparable to other uniformed services and should receive similar retirement benefits. The proposed regulations will also apply to individuals who have already completed their military service, provided they submit an appropriate application.