B2B vs employment contract in Poland 2026: which pays more
See how much you keep from the same amount on an employment contract and on a B2B contract, and what you need to invoice to come out even.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy
For the same amount of money, employment and B2B leave different take-home pay, and the break-even point depends on the tax regime. An employment contract (umowa o pracę) paying PLN 15,000 gross gives an average of PLN 10,017 a month net in 2026, once the 32 % bracket later in the year is included. On B2B with full ZUS, no voluntary sickness insurance and no business costs, matching that requires invoices of about PLN 14,792 a month on the 19 % flat tax (liniowy) or PLN 14,077 on the 12 % lump-sum tax (ryczałt) used for software work. The gap comes from the fixed social contributions a self-employed person pays (PLN 1,788.29 a month) and the separate health contribution rules for each regime. In exchange, B2B gives you no paid holiday, no sick pay and none of the Labour Code's protection against dismissal. The calculator shows both sides for the amount you enter, and the tables below give break-even invoices for five salary levels.
B2B or employment for the same amount
Net on employment
PLN 10,556
| B2B flat tax | PLN 10,177 |
| B2B lump sum 12 % | PLN 10,829 |
| B2B tax scale | PLN 10,095 |
B2B: full ZUS without sickness cover, no business costs, no paid leave.
The same amount on a payslip and on an invoice
The first table treats the employment gross and the monthly invoice revenue (excluding VAT) as the same number. Employment net is the average of twelve months, because higher salaries are taxed at 32 % in the later part of the year, and pension and disability contributions stop once gross pay passes PLN 282,600.
| Gross = revenue | Employment (average) | B2B flat tax | B2B lump sum 12 % | B2B tax scale |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLN 8,000 | PLN 5,784 | PLN 4,681 | PLN 4,669 | PLN 5,207 |
| PLN 12,000 | PLN 8,489 | PLN 7,866 | PLN 8,189 | PLN 8,325 |
| PLN 15,000 | PLN 10,017 | PLN 10,177 | PLN 10,829 | PLN 10,095 |
| PLN 20,000 | PLN 12,562 | PLN 14,029 | PLN 15,229 | PLN 13,045 |
| PLN 30,000 | PLN 18,082 | PLN 21,692 | PLN 23,404 | PLN 18,945 |
At PLN 8,000, B2B loses clearly under every regime. The self-employed person's social contributions are a fixed amount and the lump-sum health contribution at that revenue is PLN 831, so together they eat a large share of a modest invoice. As the amount grows, those fixed costs weigh less and the advantage of the lump sum and the flat tax builds quickly.
How much you need to invoice to break even
The second table turns the question round: for each employment gross it finds the B2B revenue at which average net from invoicing equals average net from the job. The same engine as the calculator does the work, by successive approximation.
| Employment gross | Employment net (average) | Revenue needed: flat tax | Lump sum 12 % | Tax scale |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLN 8,000 | PLN 5,784 | PLN 9,361 | PLN 9,267 | PLN 8,730 |
| PLN 12,000 | PLN 8,489 | PLN 12,808 | PLN 12,341 | PLN 12,278 |
| PLN 15,000 | PLN 10,017 | PLN 14,792 | PLN 14,077 | PLN 14,867 |
| PLN 20,000 | PLN 12,562 | PLN 18,096 | PLN 16,969 | PLN 19,182 |
| PLN 30,000 | PLN 18,082 | PLN 25,262 | PLN 23,242 | PLN 28,537 |
At low amounts the revenue needed is well above the salary: replacing an PLN 8,000 job takes PLN 9,267 of invoices on the lump sum. At high amounts the relationship flips and B2B delivers the same net from revenue below the employment gross. What the table cannot price is holiday, sick pay and job security.
What B2B will not pay for
Part of the value of an employment contract never shows up in the net column. Paid annual leave belongs to employees only; on B2B a day off is a day without an invoice, unless your contract provides for a paid break. An employee who falls ill receives 80 % of pay from the first day, while a self-employed person gets something only if they pay the voluntary sickness contribution. Employees are also protected by notice periods and the Labour Code rules on ending a contract; on B2B only what the parties wrote into the contract applies.
Add to that overtime supplements, employer payments into PPK and accident insurance funded by the company. A contractor also handles bookkeeping, pays ZUS and the tax office (urząd skarbowy) on time, and carries the risk of a client paying late.
Where to start the rate negotiation
A company that moves an employee to B2B stops paying its own contributions. A PLN 15,000 gross salary costs it PLN 18,072 a month, and that figure, not the gross, is a sensible opening for an invoice discussion. Invoicing PLN 18,072 leaves you PLN 12,543 on the flat tax and PLN 13,532 on the 12 % lump sum, which is more than the job paid and makes up for some of the lost benefits. Run your own numbers in the employer cost calculator.
Assumptions behind the comparison
Employment: one employer, PIT-2 filed, work costs of PLN 250, no PPK, no under-26 relief. B2B: full ZUS (base PLN 5,652) without voluntary sickness insurance, no business costs, lump sum at 12 %. The calculator ignores the start-up relief and preferential ZUS for new businesses, which noticeably improve the B2B result early on. Business costs such as equipment, office and accounting reduce tax on the flat tax and the tax scale, but not on the lump sum. For an exact invoice net with costs, use the B2B calculator.
Take-home at other lump-sum rates
The lump-sum rate depends on the kind of service you provide. Check how net pay changes if your work does not qualify for 12 %.
What is left on the lump-sum tax
Take-home per month
PLN 10,829
| ZUS | PLN 1,788 |
| Health contribution | PLN 831 |
| Lump-sum tax | PLN 1,552 |