This year's "Good Start", popularly known as 300 plus, starts on 1 July. However, although the service has been operating for years, in 2025 its implementation is forecast to be different from before. Rigorous deadlines, electronic bureaucracy and uncertainty about the future of the programme may make any families not supported.
Only the fast will get the full amount
Social Insurance Institution will start accepting applications by 300 plus 1 July and will service them until 30 November 2025. But the key date is 30 September – only applications submitted by that date guarantee payment with compensation from the beginning of the month.
Parents who miss that deadline, will receive a benefit only from the minute of the application, which in practice means losing part of the money. For a household with respective children, this may mean losses of respective 100 zlotys.
300 PLN per kid – not for everyone?
Good Start includes pupils in primary schools, advanced schools, technicians and professional schools, until they were 20 (or 24 in the case of children with a disability ruling). Each kid is entitled to a one-time benefit of PLN 300.
Although the rules have not changed formally, in practice the program becomes increasingly demanding administrative. Applications may be submitted only by electronic means – via the app mZUSplatform PUE ZUS or Electronic banking.
This solution was expected to accelerate the process, but parents remember that in erstwhile years the strategy was overloaded, a formal errors resulted in delays of up to a fewer weeks.
One mistake and weeks of waiting
ZUS informs that each application shall be verified. A letter in the child's name, address non-compliance or no attachment may prevent payment. In practice, improving errors means contact infoline or visit to the facility, which can affect queues and long waiting times on a large scale of the program.
Experts stress that The most common causes of problems are:
- wrongly entered PESEL number,
- no current contact details,
- wrong choice of school,
- incorrectly attached kid recognition paper (e.g. illegible or incomplete scan).
ZUS calls for carefully check the data before sending the form and usage the instructions on the authoritative pages.
Record recruitment and expanding uncertainty
Everything indicates that the recruitment of applications in 2025 may be the largest in the past of the programme. The reason is not only the number of children supported, but besides increasing uncertainty about the future 300 plus.
In public space they appear unofficial signals about possible changes in the rules for granting the benefit. Among the scenarios most frequently mentioned are:
- Introduction income criterion,
- limitation of support to the first kid in the family,
- merger with another programmes, for example, family-care provision.
Although the government has not announced any authoritative improvement plans, changes in another social programmes – specified as 800 plus or nursery benefit – make The families fear cuts besides in Good Start.
ZUS on standby
Social Insurance Institution Preparation for a wave of proposals. The IT strategy passes overload testsand officials strengthen the teams liable for processing applications.
ZUS recalls that the full handling of applications – from submission to payment – takes place without the request to visit the facilityif the papers are correct. At the same time, officials call for do not wait until the last days of Septemberbecause the summit may mean delays in approving payments.
Parents mobilize online
On forums and social media intensive exchange of information. Parents share experiences from erstwhile years, print mZUS application manuals, inform against the most common errors.
Many make local mobilization groups, supporting the appropriate implementation of applications. You can see the large determination to make the request before 30 September and get the means without delay.
300 plus – what next?
Although this year's edition does not formally disagree from erstwhile rules, its social and political context gives it exceptional importance. On the 1 hand, the programme remains important support for families with children, especially in the face of rising school expedition costs. On the another hand – The question of his future is becoming clearer.
If in 2026 there is simply a benefit reform, the current edition may be last in its current shape. It is an additional impulse for families to usage it full-time now – and do not make mistakes that may cost them the failure of the benefit.
More here:
New rules 300 plus. 1 mistake and you're wasting money on a baby.
