A physiotherapist who wants to see patients on their own account needs two entries: in CEIDG (business activity) and in the register of entities performing medical activity, kept for physiotherapists by the National Council of Physiotherapists. On top of this come mandatory liability insurance, the choice of a form of taxation and determining whether the services are VAT-exempt. Below we set out these steps in the order in which they are best taken in 2026.
Three forms of practice — which to choose
The Act on Medical Activity provides, for a physiotherapist running a sole proprietorship, three types of individual practice:
- individual physiotherapy practice — own treatment room; a space meeting sanitary requirements and equipped with equipment appropriate to the scope of services is required,
- practice solely at the place of call — home visits; instead of a treatment room, equipment and medical products are required, with the address of the registered office, the place of receiving calls and the place of storing documentation,
- practice solely at a medical establishment on the basis of a contract with a medical entity — typical cooperation with a clinic or rehabilitation centre on contract; no own premises needed.
Two or more persons may run a group physiotherapy practice in the form of a civil-law partnership, general partnership or professional partnership — services may be provided only by physiotherapists who are partners. Employing other physiotherapists already requires forming a medical entity, with different requirements and a higher registration fee.
Requirements and registration step by step
- Right to practise the profession. The physiotherapist must not be suspended from the right to practise or barred from the profession.
- Entry in CEIDG. On the CEIDG-1 application, subclass 86.95.Z of PKD 2025 — "Physiotherapy activities" — is selected, together with the form of taxation and the manner of paying ZUS. PKD codes from both classifications may be used in parallel until the end of 2026, but a new firm should give PKD 2025 codes straight away.
- Liability insurance contract. A civil-liability policy covering damage caused when providing services is a condition of entry, not an add-on.
- Application to the register of entities performing medical activity. Filed electronically in the RPWDL system. The application contains, among others, the number of the right to practise the profession, the form of practice, the scope of services, the address where services are provided and the NIP.
- Fee. For entry of a professional practice, 2% of the amount announced by the President of GUS as the average monthly salary (business sector, excluding profit distributions) for the previous year is paid. A change of entry costs half of this amount.
- Waiting for the entry. The authority has 30 days to make the entry. If there is no entry and 40 days have passed since the complete application was filed, activity may begin after notifying the authority in writing.
Providing health services before obtaining a register entry is not allowed, even when the firm is already registered in CEIDG. Therefore the business start date in CEIDG should be set so as not to pay contributions for a period in which patients cannot yet be seen.
VAT: when a physiotherapist's services are exempt
The VAT Act (Article 43 § 1 point 19) exempts from tax medical services performed by persons practising medical professions, provided their aim is to prevent disease, maintain, restore or improve health. A physiotherapist belongs to this group. The exemption is objective, so it does not depend on the PLN 240,000 limit and applies also at higher revenues.
The purpose of the procedure is key. Post-injury therapy, post-operative rehabilitation or treatment of back pain fall within the exemption. A relaxing massage, a hotel "wellness" package or movement classes without a health purpose do not — such sales benefit at most from the turnover-based exemption up to PLN 240,000 per year, and above that limit are taxed. A physiotherapist offering both groups of services should separate them in the price list and records.
Income tax and ZUS
Three forms of taxation are most often considered:
| Form | Rate | For whom |
|---|---|---|
| Ryczałt | 14% of revenue from health care services (PKWiU section 86) | low costs, e.g. working on contract in someone else's practice |
| Tax scale | 12% and 32% of income, tax-free amount PLN 30,000 | startup, high equipment costs, family reliefs |
| Flat tax (podatek liniowy) | 19% of income | high income and substantial costs |
Non-medical services, e.g. relaxing massage, may have a different ryczałt rate than health care services; records must then be kept so that it is clear which revenue is subject to which rate. Watch the trap: anyone moving from employment at a clinic to a contract with the same clinic for the same activities may not settle this revenue under ryczałt in the current or following year.
ZUS contributions in the first years may be lower thanks to start-up relief (6 months with no social contributions) and the preferential base (24 months from 30% of the minimum wage, in 2026 PLN 1,441.80). The health contribution depends on the form of taxation. The details are described in our article on ZUS in Poland.
Cash register and documentation
Physiotherapy is not on the list of services recorded on a cash register regardless of turnover (medical care provided by doctors and dentists is listed there). A physiotherapist may therefore use the exemption up to PLN 20,000 of annual sales to private individuals, counted proportionally in the first year of activity. Once the limit is exceeded, a cash register is mandatory. Regardless of the cash register, a practice keeps patient medical records, and when activity ends the place of their storage must be indicated.
Example: from employment to own practice
A physiotherapist works at a clinic on an employment contract and plans her own treatment room in rented premises and, in the first months, additional home visits. Order of actions:
- she rents the premises and checks that they meet the requirements for rooms in which services are provided,
- she registers JDG with code 86.95.Z and a start date in about 6 weeks, choosing the tax scale because of the cost of equipment,
- she concludes a liability insurance contract,
- she files an RPWDL application for entry of an individual practice (treatment room); if home visits are to be a permanent part of her work, before filing she agrees with the National Council of Physiotherapists how to include them in the entry,
- after the entry she starts seeing patients and monitors sales to private individuals against the PLN 20,000 limit.
How Good Balance can help
As part of support for sole proprietorships, we register JDG with the correct PKD codes, select the form of taxation and keep records split between VAT-exempt and taxed services. If you plan a joint practice or a practice with employed physiotherapists, we will help compare a civil-law partnership with registration of a capital company.