/Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, meets with
Ambassador Robert Kupiecki at the Polish Embassy in Washington, D.C. to
discuss the new Social Security agreement./
United States and Poland Enter into Social Security Agreement
The Social Security Administration announced an agreement with Poland,
effective March 1, that removes from Americans working for U.S.
companies in Poland the burden of paying social security taxes to both
countries. The agreement also removes the double taxation requirement
for Poles working for Polish employers in the United States.
The agreement will improve social security protection for people who
work in both countries. It also will help many people who, without the
agreement, would not be eligible for benefits under the social security
system of one or both countries. Approximately 1,400 U.S. and Polish
workers will get immediate tax relief, while an estimated 45,000 people
may qualify for U.S. and Polish benefits over the first seven years of
the agreement.
Until now, U.S. companies that employed U.S. citizens in Poland were
required to pay social security taxes to both the U.S. and Poland on the
same earnings, as well as contributions for U.S. Medicare. Polish
employers with Polish personnel in the United States also had to pay
duplicate contributions. The combined U.S. and Polish contributions
payable by an employer and employee were nearly 65 percent of a worker's
salary. Effective immediately, U.S. and Polish employers and their
employees will contribute to either U.S. Social Security and Medicare or
Polish Social Security, but not both.
The agreement, which will be administered in the United States by the
Social Security Administration, also will help fill gaps in social
security benefit protection for people who have spent time working in
both countries. At present, some workers who have divided their careers
between the United States and Poland fail to qualify for social security
benefits from one or both countries because they have not worked long
enough in either system to meet minimum eligibility requirements.
Under the agreement it will be possible for workers and their family
members to qualify for partial U.S. or Polish benefits based on combined
credits from both countries. When eligibility for a benefit is based on
combined credits, the benefit amount will be proportional to the amount
of work completed in the paying country.
U.S. and Polish officials signed the accord in Warsaw, Poland on April
2, 2008. The United States has similar social security agreements in
effect with 23 other countries, including Australia, Canada, Chile, the
Czech Republic, Japan, South Korea, and nearly all countries in Western
Europe.
# # #
*Thanks,*
**
*BRIAN SIMPSON*
*SSA Public Affairs Specialist | Wage Reporting Liaison*
**
*m: SSA | 4701 Old Wake Forest Rd | Raleigh | 27609-4919*
*p: 919-790-2877 x 3041*
*f: 919-790-2860*
*e: brian.simp...@ssa.gov <mailto:brian.simp...@ssa.gov>*
*w: www.socialsecurity.gov <http://www.socialsecurity.gov/>*
*Webinar: **www.socialsecurity.gov/webinars*
<http://www.socialsecurity.gov/webinars>
*Podcast: **www.socialsecurity.gov/podcasts*
<http://www.socialsecurity.gov/podcasts>
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