The economic activity of Ukrainians accounted for 2.7% of Poland’s gross domestic product in 2024, the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported on 24 August. The employment rate among adult Ukrainian citizens residing in the country stood at 78%, whilst around 966 thousand Ukrainians are officially employed.
Briefly about the main points
- The contribution of Ukrainians to Poland’s GDP was estimated at 2.7%.
- This figure does not imply an acceleration in economic growth of 2.7 percentage points.
- Among Ukrainians living in Poland prior to the invasion, the employment rate stood at around 93%.
- Ukrainian citizens have paid around 13 billion zlotys in contributions to ZUS.
- Healthcare contributions from insured Ukrainians exceeded the cost of their healthcare.
The estimate describes the share of GDP generated
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has published statistics on Ukraine’s Independence Day. The same estimate was previously cited by Deloitte and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in a study on the presence of Ukrainian refugees in Poland.
This refers to the estimated share of Ukrainians’ economic activity in the GDP generated by the country over the course of a year. This figure does not mean that the growth rate of the Polish economy has increased by 2.7 percentage points.
Different studies take different groups of Ukrainians into account
The National Bank of Poland calculated the figure of 78% for all adult Ukrainian citizens residing in the country. Among those who were living in Poland even before the start of the full-scale war, the employment rate was higher — around 93%.
Deloitte used a different sample: it estimated the employment rate of Ukrainian refugees of working age at 69%. For Polish citizens, the corresponding figure was 75%; therefore, these figures should not be directly equated with the National Bank’s estimate.
Ukrainians account for around 5% of all workers in Poland
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, around 966,000 Ukrainian citizens are officially employed in Poland. In early August, the Marshal of the Sejm Włodzimierz Chazasty estimated their share to be approximately 5% of the country’s total workforce.
Ukrainians are employed in industry, construction, logistics, retail, the hospitality sector and the service sector. At the same time, the Polish labour market is facing demographic challenges and a shortage of workers in a number of sectors.
Tax and healthcare payments exceeded welfare expenditure
According to figures cited by Chazhasty on 10 August, Ukrainian citizens paid around 5 billion zlotys in PIT in 2024, around 13 billion zlotys in contributions to ZUS and around 3.8 billion zlotys in health insurance contributions to the NFZ.
The Polish Ministry of Health confirmed the total amount of medical contributions received from insured Ukrainians. At the same time, medical care for Ukrainian citizens, including funding from a special assistance fund, cost approximately 2.2 billion zlotys.
Integration has increased the labour supply, but not all skills are being utilised
According to Deloitte’s findings, the integration of Ukrainian refugees has rapidly increased the labour supply and may have helped to sustain the productivity of Polish companies. The authors of the study did not observe any significant rise in unemployment amongst Poles or a fall in real wages as a result of the influx of Ukrainian workers.
At the same time, some Ukrainian citizens are employed in roles that are below their level of education and professional experience. Making better use of these skills could increase their economic contribution.
