In general, all non-farmers working in Poland are covered by ZUS. Prior to January
1, 1999, the ZUS program consisted of a defined benefits system administered by ZUS.
On January 1, 1999, ZUS introduced an additional two-tier system. The first tier is
a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) with theoretical defined contributions. The second tier is
fully-funded, privately-managed individual account-defined contribution program administered
by ZUS.