EMBASSY EVENTS 2009

Embassy Reaches Out on Totalization

16 March 2009

Totalization Explained

On Tuesday, March 10, representatives of the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw’s Federal Benefits Unit traveled to Bialystok to provide information and take applications from Polish citizens who qualify for U.S. Social Security benefits.  The representatives set up an office in the Hotel Gołębiewski, where for three days they fielded questions and assisted in the application process for more than 300 Polish citizens.

"Reaching out to Polish beneficiaries of the new Totalization Agreement really paid off," said U.S. Ambassador to Poland Victor Ashe.  "In a short period we helped hundreds of people claim the benefits due them from their own past work and that of their parents or spouses." U.S. Embassy Consul General Phillip A. Min was in Bialystok on Wednesday, March 11 to meet with members of the press to discuss the details of the Agreement.  "We could not be more happy with the way this outreach effort has come out.  There's a palpable sense of how this Agreement is going to help people immediately." Future travel of the FBU staff to other Polish cities will be announced on this website and in local media.

Polish citizens who have worked in the United States or have a spouse or parent who worked in the United States may qualify to reinstate their benefits or count credits earned in the United States toward their Polish retirement pursuant to the U.S.-Poland Totalization Agreement, which will allow individuals who have worked in both the U.S. and Poland to combine ZUS/KRUS and U.S. Social Security coverage when determining eligibility for social security benefits.  This Agreement, which went into effect March 1, 2009, is a great success for both American and Polish workers who work in both countries.

The main provisions of the Agreement are:  1)  Coordination of Social Security taxation - The Totalization Agreement eliminates the requirement to pay Social Security taxes to both countries on the same earnings.  Workers in both countries will now pay into only one system.  2)  Payment to Dependents and Survivors – The Agreement eliminates the requirement that Polish dependent and survivor beneficiaries of U.S. Social Security reside in the United States for one out of every six months or previously for five years.  Now hundreds if not thousands of beneficiaries will be able to collect their benefits while residing in Poland.  And 3)    Transferable Benefit Eligibility – The Agreement allows each country to count worker’s social security credits in the other country when determining eligibility for benefits. [photo gallery]