Consumer bankruptcy in Poland: draft rules on automatic debt discharge

Source version: Polish original.

Status: 6 November 2026. We discuss the proposals in Sejm print no. 3085 (druk sejmowy nr 3085).

What would change after the repayment plan is completed

Currently, art. 491²¹ ust. 1 of the Bankruptcy Law (Prawo upadłościowe) provides for a court decision confirming that the repayment plan has been performed and discharging the remaining debts covered by the discharge. Paying the last instalment does not replace that decision.

The draft proposes a different mechanism: the discharge would take effect three months after the end of the plan period. The condition is that the plan has not been amended or revoked by a final decision following an appropriate application filed in time. The date of the discharge would be announced in the National Register of Debtors (Krajowy Rejestr Zadłużonych).

Creditors will have to monitor payments

The Ministry of Justice (Ministerstwo Sprawiedliwości) justifies the reform by the need to relieve the courts. The plan would be reviewed at the request of interested parties instead of under routine supervision by the court of its own motion. Creditors should therefore regularly compare the amounts received with the schedule.

For debtors, the simplified procedure is no invitation to skip instalments. It is worth keeping transfer confirmations and documents on income: they may decide a dispute over whether obligations were performed. Filing an application within the statutory time limit also matters when the court examines it later.

What about plans that have already been set

Art. 5 of the draft provides that, in cases where the decision setting the plan was issued before the amendment enters into force, the existing rules would in principle continue to apply, subject to listed exceptions. You should therefore not assume that every plan currently being performed will end with an automatic discharge.

In practice, this matters more than the headline about the reform. Before assessing your situation, establish the date of the decision and check the final transitional provisions.

Not every debt can be discharged

Art. 491²¹ ust. 2 contains exceptions. They include, among others, maintenance payments, certain compensation annuities, court fines and specified obligations to redress damage. Protection also covers claims that were deliberately not disclosed, if the creditor did not take part in the proceedings. Bankruptcy therefore does not erase every debt.

The trustee and ending repayments early

The draft also changes how the trustee (syndyk) is paid: the basis would be one average monthly salary in the enterprise sector, excluding profit bonuses, for the third quarter of the previous year. Exceptions are provided depending on the course and complexity of the case.

Settling the plan amounts earlier would make it possible to apply for a shorter plan. The draft limits such shortening to half and requires additional conditions. It would not be an automatic result of an early transfer.

What this means for you

• Keep performing your current plan; the announced reform does not change your court decision.
• Gather the schedule, payment confirmations and the date on which the plan was set.
• Separate the debts covered by the discharge from the statutory exceptions.
• As a creditor, document arrears and watch the deadlines for reacting.
• Do not treat the government's adoption of the draft as the law entering into force.

Legal basis and sources

• Sejm of the Republic of Poland — draft amendment, print no. 3085, in particular art. 1 and art. 5 (in Polish).
• Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) — Bankruptcy Law, consolidated text: Dz.U. 2026 poz. 913, art. 491²¹ (in Polish).
• Ministry of Justice — aims of the reform and adoption of the draft by the government (in Polish).

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• All news in the “Administrative matters” category
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Before you decide

The starting point for assessing a debt discharge is the documentation of the specific case. A headline about automatic discharge is not enough to determine when and to what extent your debts will expire.

Informational material prepared with AI support on the basis of the official sources listed. It is not an assessment of an individual case.