A private care home in Poland can operate legally only if it holds a permit from the voivode (the regional governor) and is entered in the register of facilities providing round-the-clock care. The register is public and anyone can check it free of charge in the Public Information Bulletin (BIP) of the voivodeship office. It takes a few minutes and is worth doing before your first visit, and certainly before you sign a contract.
In short
- A voivode's permit and a register entry are mandatory for every facility providing round-the-clock care to older, chronically ill or disabled people. This follows from Article 67 of the Polish Social Assistance Act.
- Running a facility without a permit carries a fine of PLN 10,000 to 30,000, and PLN 60,000 if it keeps operating. The voivode can also order the facility to suspend its activity.
- The entry confirms that minimum standards are met, for example rooms for no more than three people and at least three meals a day. It is not a rating of the quality of care.
Why the legal status of a facility matters
A licensed facility is supervised by the voivode. Officials can inspect it, issue recommendations and, in extreme cases, withdraw the permit and remove it from the register. A home operating outside the register stays outside that supervision until someone reports it. Nobody has checked the number of carers there, the size of the rooms or whether the building is suitable at all for dependent people living in it day and night.
There is a purely practical reason too. If the voivode orders an illegal facility to stop operating, the family has to find a new place overnight. For a person with dementia or after a stroke, a sudden move is a heavy burden that one check can prevent.
How to look up a care home in the voivode's register
Each of the sixteen voivodes keeps a separate register, so you search in the office of the voivodeship where the facility has its address, not where you live.
- Establish the exact name of the facility, its address and the name of the company or person running it. You will find them on the facility's website or in the draft contract.
- Open the BIP page of the relevant voivodeship office and search for „rejestr placówek zapewniających całodobową opiekę osobom niepełnosprawnym, przewlekle chorym lub osobom w podeszłym wieku”. It is usually a PDF or a spreadsheet kept by the social policy department.
- Find the facility by address. Trade names change, addresses rarely do.
- Compare the details: the operating entity, the number of places and the period for which the permit was issued. Permits are sometimes issued for a fixed term.
- Ask the facility for its entry number and check that it matches the register. A legal home must display a board on the building with information about the permit and the entry number.
If the facility is not on the list, do not assume bad faith straight away. The register is sometimes updated with a delay, and a new facility may be waiting for a decision. Call the social policy department of the voivodeship office and ask directly. Officials answer such questions, because the register is public by design.
What exactly the register contains
The Act lists what an entry must include: the facility's number in the register, its name, address and telephone number, the name of the operating entity, the purpose of the facility, the number of places, the period for which the permit was issued, and the number and date of the decision. The number of places is the most useful item. If the register shows 20 places and you count 30 residents during your visit, the facility is operating beyond its permit and it is worth asking why.
Which standards the permit confirms
The permit is not a formality. The voivode issues it only when the facility meets the conditions in Articles 68 and 68a of the Act. Rooms may hold no more than three people, and four only when all the occupants are bedridden. A single room must be at least 9 sq m, and a shared room must give each person at least 6 sq m. One bathroom may serve no more than five people and one toilet no more than four.
The facility must serve at least three meals a day, including dietary meals as prescribed by a doctor, provide access to drinks and snacks between meals, and serve the last meal no earlier than 6 p.m. The building must be free of architectural barriers, and no more than 100 people may live in one building. The Act also sets minimum staffing: qualified carers must work at least one third of a full-time post for each resident.
These are minimum requirements. A good facility usually exceeds them, and we describe how to assess the rest in our guide on how to choose a care home for a parent.
Care home, DPS, ZOL: each has a different register
Names such as "senior home", "care home" or "residence" are not protected, so the name alone says nothing about legal status. Private care homes usually operate as round-the-clock care facilities from the voivode's register. Social welfare homes (DPS) have a separate register, also kept by the voivode. Care and treatment facilities (ZOL) and nursing and care facilities (ZPO) are healthcare entities, and you will find them in the Register of Entities Performing Medical Activity. We explain the differences between these types in our article on types of long-term care facilities.
Status has financial consequences too. Which register a facility is in determines, for example, the right to some benefits, which we cover in the article on the support benefit for seniors.
Warning signs
The most common way of getting around the rules is pretending that the facility does not provide care but only rents rooms, runs a guesthouse or offers "farm stays for seniors". Other things that should make you cautious: a refusal to give the entry number, no written contract, cash-only payments without an invoice, more residents than places in the register, and reluctance to show you all the rooms. None of these signs settles the matter on its own, but each is a reason to ask one more question.
What to do when a facility operates without a permit
Reports are accepted by the social policy department of the voivodeship office. The voivode can inspect the facility and impose a fine: PLN 10,000 when up to 10 people live there, PLN 20,000 for 11-20 people and PLN 30,000 for more than 20. If the facility keeps operating after the decision becomes final, the fine is PLN 60,000. When the life or health of residents is at risk, the voivode can order an immediate suspension of activity.
If your relative already lives in such a place, start by calmly looking for an alternative and only then report the case, so that you are not left without a place overnight. You can describe your situation in our form and we will send you suggestions of facilities matched to your needs and budget. On profiles in Planeta Seniora we show the voivode's register entry number wherever the facility has provided it. Treat it as a pointer and confirm it in the BIP, because the office's register is the deciding source.
Frequently asked questions
Does every private care home in Poland need a voivode's permit?
Yes. Every facility that provides round-the-clock care to older, chronically ill or disabled people needs a voivode's permit, regardless of the number of residents and of what it calls itself.
Where can I find the register of care homes?
In the Public Information Bulletin of the voivodeship office responsible for the facility's address. The register is public, free and kept up to date.
Does a register entry guarantee good care?
No. The entry confirms that minimum requirements for the building, rooms, meals and staff are met. You need to judge the quality of everyday care yourself during a visit and by talking to residents' families.
What is the penalty for running a care home without a permit?
A fine of PLN 10,000 to 30,000 depending on the number of residents, and PLN 60,000 if the facility keeps operating. The voivode can also order it to suspend its activity.
Sources
- Act of 12 March 2004 on Social Assistance, Articles 67, 68, 68a and 130 (in Polish)
- Register of Entities Performing Medical Activity (in Polish)
