In the Ministry of Development, work is ongoing on amendments to the law on the Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises. Agnieszka Majewska, who has held this position since mid-2024, emphasizes that the Ombudsman needs legislative initiative and not only the possibility to comment on bills under consideration. Additionally, she would like to focus on farmers’ rights and mediation between entrepreneurs.
“The SME sector is the foundation of our economy, as it encompasses over 2 million entrepreneurs, who account for nearly 50 percent of the GDP. Nevertheless, I believe their voice is still insufficiently heard,” says Agnieszka Majewska, the Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises.
The Ombudsman for SMEs acts to protect the rights of micro, small, and medium-sized entrepreneurs. The office monitors legal regulations and cooperates with public administration, striving to remove obstacles in running a business. It also undertakes systemic actions concerning all entrepreneurs, such as requesting legal clarifications for particularly complex regulations or resolving discrepancies in jurisprudence. Its competencies include individual cases, such as joining administrative proceedings, including tax-related ones, or filing a complaint with the administrative court. Today, the Ombudsman for SMEs primarily reviews draft laws that directly impact the sector. Work is ongoing at the Ministry of Development to amend the law and afford the Ombudsman legislative authority, similar to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, which can prepare and present legislative proposals regarding competition and consumer protection to the Council of Ministers.
“I would like the Ombudsman to have legislative initiative, similar to that of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, this would make it easier for us to put forward draft laws. Another thing not included in our law is that the Ombudsman is exempt from court costs. This is important as we are currently involved in over 200 legal cases regarding the Small ZUS Plus program, and unfortunately courts impose costs on the Ombudsman. This is a major problem. The Ombudsman for Civil Rights, Child Rights, and Financial Rights are exempt from costs,” emphasizes Agnieszka Majewska. “I would also like the name to be changed from Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises to Ombudsman for Entrepreneurs.”
The amendment to the law would enable the Ombudsman to address the problems of not only small and medium-sized entrepreneurs but also larger businesses. Based on reported issues, the Office would initiate specific legislative changes.
“The project is currently in the Ministry of Development, undergoing internal verification, and I hope that it will soon be sent to individual departments for consultation. We need changes to the law on the Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises. Over the last six years, a large group of farmers have been seeking support from the Ombudsman, but they were not included in any institution’s assistance. So, I would also like to take this group under my care and offer them support,” says the Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises. “The changes will definitely mean more work for the Ombudsman, but will also ensure that all entrepreneurs can seek our support: farmers, micro, small, medium, and also large enterprises. A large enterprise typically has its law firm, it will not come to us for individual intervention cases, but it can report matters related to legislative changes, and we will gladly accept any input.”
In 2023, the Ombudsman for SMEs accepted over 4,500 cases. The Intervention and Litigation Department at the Warsaw Office continued working on 197 cases initiated between 2019–2022, and received 352 new requests. The employees joined 146 proceedings, and in total were involved in 558 cases in 2023.
“In the coming months, I have set myself the goal to primarily focus on intervention cases, which are increasing as entrepreneurs face more and more problems, but also on legislative challenges. We receive a lot of draft laws to review, we try to examine each one and submit opinions, participate in parliamentary committees. This also involves dialogue with individual ministers,” points out Agnieszka Majewska.
An example can be drawn from the dispute ongoing for over a year between the Ombudsman for SMEs, entrepreneurs, and the Social Insurance Institution. The dispute centres around the interpretation of the regulations concerning premium preferences for the Small ZUS Plus, which entrepreneurs can take advantage of for three years. Uncertain interpretations arose regarding the break period after which an entrepreneur can opt for this solution again. According to the Ombudsman and entrepreneurs, the lawmaker’s intention was to introduce a two-year break. However, the Social Insurance Institution argues for a three-year break. District Courts throughout Poland, as first-instance courts, have shared the Ombudsman and entrepreneurs’ interpretation in more than 60 rulings.
Currently, the law on the Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises provides for the ability to “aid in the organization of mediation”. The previous Ombudsman had proposed to expand this competence to “conduct mediation”.
“Mediations are absolutely necessary. In common courts, resolutions can take two, sometimes three years, in administrative courts it takes a year at the regional administrative court stage, but once the case reaches the Supreme Administrative Court, unfortunately, this period extends to three years. Therefore, we will pursue mediation and entrepreneur training in mediation, to demonstrate that it’s a good solution, not least because there are no litigation costs, cases are settled quicker and mutual agreements can be reached, allowing for continued joint business, maintaining relationships and friendly relations,” explains the Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises.
