The Prime Minister announced that the government was working on a solution to ease the burden on borrowers, focusing in particular on those who lost their mortgaged homes as a result of the flood. These borrowers will be eligible for support with loan repayment.

“Flood victims with a home loan will be able to take advantage of the Borrower Support Fund. Subsidies will be available to borrowers, who are unable to use their homes or apartments, even temporarily. The Support Fund will pay off their mortgage instalments for 12 months, no matter the amount. This support will be non-refundable,”

the Minister of Finance informed during the crisis centre meeting in Wrocław.

Work is underway to introduce solutions that will help with repaying other loans as well - not just mortgages.

“We are currently working on introducing a solution that would enable deferring repayment of other loans, not just mortgages, but also cash loans and loans taken out by small and medium-sized enterprises,”

Andrzej Domański explained.

Additionally, entrepreneurs affected by the floods can defer their Social Security contributions, as long as they declare that they have been affected by the flood.

“Entrepreneurs can pay contributions for the period from 1 August to 31 December 2024 until 15 September 2025. No interest will be charged as long as the contributions have been paid by this date. Entrepreneurs paying their own contributions may also request them to be waived,”

he pointed out.

The Social Insurance Institution has set up a special helpline for entrepreneurs, which offers information about Social Security contributions and the new changes. The numbers are +48 33 825 31 34 and +48 76 876 45 76.

The government is working on a regulation that will extend payment deadlines for VAT, PIT and CIT taxes for entrepreneurs affected by the floods.

“Today the draft regulation will be submitted for quick consultation. I expect it to be ready tomorrow. In the case of VAT, the deferral will apply until 25 January 2025. As far as PIT and CIT are concerned, the deferral will apply to tax advances payable from September (for August, from August to December this year), which can be included in the annual tax return,”

Domański explained.

Deputy Minister Wiesław Szczepański will be responsible for coordinating the cooperation of institutions and the governments with regards to disaster relief.

“If anybody wants to make sure that their help goes quickly and to the right place, please contact the Ministry of the Interior, in particular Deputy Minister Szczepański. We will work to ensure that the aid gets to where it needs to get as quickly and as efficiently as possible,”

said Tomasz Siemioniak, Minister of the Interior and Administration.

Companies donating funds, products and services to flood victims can now take advantage of a 0% VAT rate.

Yesterday, the government earmarked an additional 1 billion PLN for aid and restoring infrastructure, bringing the grand total to 2 billion PLN from the state budget.

The extent of the damage is beyond the pale. This necessitates immediate support, followed by infrastructure reconstruction. The government is working to develop a reconstruction programme.

“The state will assume responsibility for fixing a significant part of this damage, as well as for the rebuilding. Yesterday, we talked about launching work on a reconstruction programme. We are aware that the available funding, including the EU funds, will exceed what the Minister of Finance has managed to earmark for that programme for the time being,”

Prime Minister Donald Tusk noted.

People in the affected areas report soaring prices for essential products. Should the need arise, greed will be curbed with the relevant legal measures.

“Consider this a warning to those who are trying to cash in on the floods and suffering. The state of emergency grants us certain powers that we can and will use to ensure that the prices return to their previous levels. We are going to use these powers with no exceptions - no one will profit off disaster victims,”

the Prime Minister warned.

He also announced further talks on EU funding to support flood relief.

The authorities, local government officials, the media, politicians and any other entities disseminating information should verify their veracity.

“Let me reiterate - I want you to inform the populace in a balanced and collected manner, especially in areas at risk. It would be best to provide nothing but fully verified information,”

the Prime Minister urged during the meeting.

The authorities, mainly the police, should prevent disinformation by verifying false reports and fake news.

“We need to combat disinformation and offer the truth. Of course, I consider it very important to act on new information as quickly as possible, but everything needs to be verified first,”

Donald Tusk noted.

Unverified information can cause chaos and panic, and individuals who encounter fake news concerning themselves should report it to the police.

“If you have heard the rumours that something had happened while you are fine, I urge you to report it and inform that everything is OK. This will facilitate search and rescue operations, enabling us to respond more effectively,”

the Prime Minister asked.

He also announced a meeting with the Wrocław branch of the Internal Security Agency concerning combating organised disinformation efforts.