Poland 2015/16 - student fees and grants

National student fee

Financial support is granted to students in the following forms: a needs-based grant available for students with a low personal/family income, a needs-based grant available for students with disability, emergency grant/ allowance and merit-based grant for best students. The income threshold to be eligible for need-based grants for students with low family income is PLN 592.80-850.20 per person per year (from 1 November 2012).

The average amount of the need-based grant is PLN 2 783 (2011). The average amount of the merit-based grant is PLN 1 035 with a maximum of PLN 14 000.

Students from the EU and EFTA countries and some other defined categories of students (e.g. students with refugee status) study according to the same rules as Polish citizens. Fees for international students other than these are decided by the HEIs.

Student grants

Need-based grants are available for students with a low personal/family income, and for students with disabilities, the income threshold to be eligible for need-based grants for students with low family income is PLN 592.8-895.7 per person per month (the exact level of the threshold from this range depends on the decision of a higher education institution). The average amount is PLN 4 302.3 per year (2013).

Merit-based grants are allocated to the best-performing students. The average amount of the merit-based grant is PLN 4 213.9 (2013) per year.

The total monthly amount of the needs-based grant and the merit-based grant may not be more than 90 % of the lowest basic pay of an assistant (the lowest academic position at higher education institutions) as regulated by the legislation on the remuneration of academic staff (PLN 2245 in 2014).

Loans

Loans of PLN 6 000/year may be taken out in any cycle for those students whose personal income is below net PLN 2 300/month (in 2013). The state guarantees part of the loans for low income students: students with family income of PLN 600/month per person have been granted a 100 % guarantee of their loan and students with a family
income of PLN 1 000/month a 70 % guarantee.

Tax benefit for student's parents

Tax benefits for parents/guardians of students in the form of tax relief of PLN 1 112.04 per child per year in 2011, if families receive a care allowance or other social benefits and/or the student did not earn a taxable income (including capital gains) exceeding PLN 3 089/year.

Tax benefits exist for parents/guardians of students up to 25 years of age in the form of tax relief of PLN 1 112.04 per child per year (2014) provided income did not exceed a specified level, and if the student did not earn a taxable income (including capital gains) exceeding PLN 3 089/year.

Family allowances

Family allowances are based on low income of parents or disability of a student.