From July 8, 2026, new regulations expanding the powers of the National Labour Inspectorate (PIP) will come into force. The biggest concern among companies using the B2B model is the possibility of reclassification of cooperation as an employment relationship and the new authority of inspectors to issue decisions in this regard.
Do the new rules mean the end of B2B contracts? When does the risk of reclassification actually arise? Which organisations are most exposed to inspections, and what can already be done today to reduce risk?
We discuss this with Dariusz Zimnicki from ZL Legal Advisors.
Table of Contents
New PIP powers: what changes from July 8, 2026?
Bartek: From July 8, 2026, new regulations concerning the National Labour Inspectorate will come into force. What is the most important change?
Dariusz: On July 8, 2026, an act comes into force granting new powers to the State Labour Inspection authorities. The essence of the reform is to strengthen the role of PIP in enforcing labour law provisions. The key change is the granting of authority to labour inspectors to issue decisions confirming the existence of an employment relationship in situations where cooperation based on civil law contracts (including B2B contracts), in reality, has characteristics that fall within the definition of an employment relationship set out in the Labour Code. This is a revolutionary change, as until now such determinations required a court ruling.
B2B reclassification: what will the procedure look like?
Bartek: What will the inspector’s procedure look like after finding that B2B cooperation may have features of an employment relationship?
Dariusz: Under the new regulations, if a labour inspector, as a result of an inspection, determines that a given legal relationship has the characteristics of an employment relationship, they will first issue an order to remove the violations, e.g. setting a deadline to conclude an employment contract or adjust the actual terms of cooperation to comply with the law. Only if such an order is not complied with will administrative proceedings be initiated, leading to a decision reclassifying the civil law contract as an employment contract. Such a decision may be challenged by both parties before a labour court. The enforceability of the decision will then be suspended until a final court judgment is issued. The draft also provides for the possibility of interim protection during court proceedings, aimed at reducing the risk of termination of cooperation solely due to its legal classification being challenged.
Does the PIP reform change the definition of employment?
Bartek: Does the reform change the definition of employment or the criteria for assessing B2B cooperation?
Dariusz: It should be emphasised that the criteria for employment under the Labour Code remain unchanged. According to the Code, an employment relationship exists when an employee undertakes to perform work of a specified type for an employer, under their direction, and at a place and time designated by the employer, while the employer undertakes to employ the worker for remuneration. The key features are subordination (employer’s direction) and working at a designated place and time. These are the main elements distinguishing employment from B2B cooperation, where the contractor should maintain organisational independence, bear economic risk, and decide on the manner, place, and time of providing services. At the same time, only one of these elements-subordination-is exclusive to employment. The others may also appear in civil law relationships, which shows that in practice the specific circumstances of work performance are crucial.
Which companies are most exposed to B2B reclassification risk?
Bartek: Which companies will be most exposed to the risk of reclassification of B2B cooperation into employment contracts?
Dariusz: Although formally this should not matter, from a practical point of view, the risk of reclassification will primarily affect companies with organisational units located in the Republic of Poland.
Conducting proceedings against entities registered abroad may require determining jurisdiction, serving documents internationally, and using international cooperation mechanisms, including enforcement of decisions, which complicates and prolongs the process.
In light of the solutions introduced by the PIP reform, practical doubts may still arise in situations where a contractor provides services directly to a foreign entity without a branch or subsidiary in Poland. In this context, it is worth noting a systemic change: the introduction of enhanced information exchange mechanisms between the Labour Inspectorate, the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS), and the Head of the National Revenue Administration. Entities operating in Poland provide a wide range of data to ZUS and tax authorities, which in practice may form the basis for selecting entities for inspection by PIP. As a result, this intensive data exchange between these authorities may significantly determine which entities are inspected, increasing risk for domestic companies compared to foreign ones.
At the same time, it should be emphasised that establishing the existence of an employment relationship does not automatically make it easy to enforce all its consequences against foreign entities.
Consequences of B2B reclassification for companies and contractors
Bartek: What consequences of reclassification may be felt by companies and contractors themselves?
Dariusz: Significant consequences of reclassifying a civil law contract into an employment contract will be felt both by companies working with B2B contractors and by the contractors themselves.
The price of gaining employee rights under the law—including protection against dismissal in certain situations, paid vacation, sick pay, and working time regulations—will be a reduction in financial benefits resulting from the need to apply the employment tax and social security regime, particularly regarding different rules of taxation and contributions.
In practice, this means switching to a system where remuneration is subject to income tax advances collected by the payer and full social and health insurance contributions under employment rules.
A change in legal qualification may also lead to disputes between parties regarding the level of remuneration due under an employment relationship.
How to reduce the risk of B2B reclassification?
Bartek: What can organisations do today to reduce the risk related to the new PIP powers?
Dariusz: When assessing the risk of reclassification into an employment relationship, a company using the B2B model should consider several factors and structure cooperation in a way that does not resemble employment.
Risk mitigation measures include:
- ensuring real independence of the contractor (no detailed instructions on how services are performed and freedom in organising work),
- avoiding fixed working hours and a designated workplace, especially in a manner similar to employment,
- introducing elements of economic risk on the contractor’s side, including responsibility for results,
- defining services in a project-based or task-based manner rather than as ongoing duties,
- refraining from granting employee-like benefits.
What should companies do after the PIP reform?
Bartek: What is the most important conclusion for companies using the B2B model?
Dariusz: The new powers of labour inspectors significantly increase the legal risk borne by organisations and individuals providing services under non-employment forms of cooperation. Supervisory authorities will examine much more closely the boundary between flexible forms of cooperation and the circumvention of labour law.
Ultimately, only a real, consistent, and well-structured distinction between B2B and employment can reduce the risk of reclassification.
The future of B2B: Building teams that work
From the perspective of the IT market, I do not expect the end of the B2B model.
What I do expect is the end of cooperation models that for years functioned like employment contracts, just under a different name.
B2B remains attractive for both companies and specialists. It provides flexibility, speed of action, and the ability to build cooperation based on specific competencies and results. However, the new regulations clearly show that the legislator will examine much more carefully situations in which the form of cooperation does not reflect its actual nature.
Therefore, in the second half of 2026, the key issue will not be what we call the cooperation, but how we actually organise it.
Companies that consciously build contractor relationships and can demonstrate the contractor’s independence will still be able to benefit from B2B. However, the risk will increase for organisations that use B2B contracts to carry out work that in practice has the characteristics of an employment relationship.
Therefore, the most important question today is not:
“Will B2B survive?”
but rather:
“Is our cooperation model truly B2B?”
If you want to align your recruitment strategy with these new market realities and discover how to effectively attract top B2B talent:
