For many years, Polish entrepreneurs heard about family foundations primarily in the context of foreign jurisdictions – Switzerland, Liechtenstein or Austria. The structures there allowed assets to be kept within the family, control to be separated from day-to-day management, and a sustainable ownership structure to be established. The problem was that they were “somewhere else”, in a foreign legal system, with all its tax and regulatory complexities.
 
In 2023, a domestic solution emerged – the Polish family foundation. Three years have passed. From the perspective of a succession advisor, one thing can be said: the family foundation has ceased to be an abstract concept from conferences and articles, and has become a real tool whose importance for Polish family businesses cannot be overstated.

A scale that surprised even the bill’s supporters

When the Family Foundation Act came into force, the market viewed it with curiosity but also caution. Many business owners asked the question outright: “Is this for me, or is it just another fad?”. Today, the answer is clear – the demand was enormous.

In less than three years:

• several thousand applications for the registration of family foundations have been submitted,
• over three thousand registered foundations were established,
• the number of registration applications grew year on year, with 2025 setting a record in this respect.

Importantly, the decline in the number of foundations actually entered in the register in 2025 was not the result of ‘fatigue’ or waning interest, but simply a ‘bottleneck’ – the registry court could not keep up with the growing number of cases. The average time taken to process an application reached around 14 months. That is a long time, but despite this, entrepreneurs did not abandon the idea of setting up a foundation. On the contrary – they were prepared to wait.
 
From an advisory perspective, this is a very important signal: a family foundation is not a ‘product’ that needs to be aggressively promoted. It is a response to a real gap long felt by the market – the lack of a domestic, flexible and tax-coherent tool for succession and family wealth management.

Who is the Polish founder? Not a “retired elder statesman”, but a leader at the peak of their career

Intuition suggests to many people the image of a 70-year-old owner who, after years of putting off the decision, finally decides: “I’m sorting everything out, it’s time for a foundation”. Meanwhile, the statistics paint a completely different picture.
 
Around 60% of founders are aged between 40 and 59. The average age of a founder is 52. We are therefore primarily dealing with people who are still in a phase of intensive business development, possessing full agency, authority and readiness to make strategic decisions. Contrary to appearances, this is the ideal moment to calmly plan succession – in advance, rather than under the pressure of a random situation.
 
It is worth noting the geographical distribution. Over a third of foundations are based in the Mazowieckie Voivodeship. This is not merely a result of capital concentration around Warsaw. It is also an expression of a conscious decision by many founders to locate such a sensitive institution in a large, more anonymous centre, with an extensive advisory ecosystem (legal, tax, banking). Increasingly, a foundation is no longer ‘attached to the company’ in a local town, but becomes an institutional ownership centre situated in the country’s main decision-making hubs.
 
As for gender, the vast majority of founders are men (around 80 per cent or more). This largely reflects the current ownership structure in Polish business, particularly in the segment of larger companies. In advisory practice, however, a growing role for women is evident – both as founders and as individuals who take on key roles within the foundation from the perspective of family governance, the education of the next generation or oversight.

From a ‘blank canvas’ to a living institution

The first family foundations were often established in a minimalist manner: a basic charter, minimal capital (PLN 100,000), entry in the register – and “we’ll see what happens next”. This approach was, in a sense, natural – a new institution, new risks, and a lack of established practice.
 
What deserves attention today is the scale of changes taking place in established foundations. Over the course of two years, the number of applications to amend foundation details – primarily statutory amendments – increased several-fold, and then more than ten-fold. In practice, this means that:

• founders are reviewing their original assumptions,
• they are adapting the statutes to the evolving family and business situation,
• they are adding lists of reserved matters, they are clarifying the rules governing benefits,
• they are strengthening the roles of supervisory boards or beneficiary assemblies.

At the same time, as many as 95% of foundations start with minimal initial capital. Consequently, ‘test’ structures predominate: the foundation serves as a framework into which key assets are contributed only over time. On the one hand, this increases the founder’s security – in the event of design flaws, it is easier to make changes when the contributed capital is nominal. On the other hand, it requires discipline and a realistic plan to ‘replenish’ the foundation’s assets in subsequent years.
 
From an advisor’s perspective: the foundation’s deed of incorporation itself is the beginning of the work, not the end. True quality is only revealed in whether and how the foundation will function – whether its governing bodies will actually work, whether an investment policy and a grant policy will be established, whether beneficiaries will have clearly defined rights and obligations, and whether a development path will emerge for the next generation.

A foundation for a single successor? More often than not – for many

In popular discourse, a family foundation is often reduced to the role of a vehicle “for that one chosen child who will take the reins of the company”. The data shows that the reality is far more complex.
 
Over half of foundations have at least three beneficiaries, and nearly a third have four or more. This is a typical picture of a family in which:

• one person may be involved in the business on an operational level,
• others fulfil important family roles, but not necessarily managerial ones,
• various needs arise: educational, housing, health and philanthropic.

In such a situation, a foundation allows for the separation of:

• the right to benefits (payments, use of assets),
• the right to co-decision-making (a role on the governing bodies of the foundation or companies),
• the right to operational management (roles on company boards).

From a business perspective, this means protecting the company from decision-making paralysis. From a family perspective, it means a fairer and more ‘tailor-made’ approach to individual family members. Today’s family foundation market is predominantly a market of multi-beneficiary structures, geared not towards simple ‘father-to-son’ succession, but towards managing a complex mosaic of family roles.

What assets are transferred to foundations? From SMEs to large corporations

A family foundation is not a structure reserved exclusively for companies with revenues in the billions. An analysis of the links between foundations and their founders’ main companies shows that:

• a large proportion of foundations are linked to companies with annual revenues of less than PLN 50 million (typical SMEs),
• at the same time, there is a significant group of foundations linked to companies with revenues exceeding PLN 500 million, including those exceeding PLN 1 billion.

From an advisory perspective, this is very important. The assertion that “we’re not at that scale yet” is often one of the most common excuses for postponing succession decisions. The data shows that there is no basis for this. A foundation is a tool that works well both:

• in a family-run business growing to the size of a medium-sized company,
• and in a complex capital group involved in investment projects, international expansion or M&A transactions.

The key factor is not how large the company is today, but whether the family assets already require structured, multi-generational management.

Why a foundation? The real motivations of the founders

The decision to set up a foundation is rarely driven by a single simple statement. More often, it stems from a set of questions that begin to ‘weigh on’ the business owner after 15–30 years of intensive growth:

• What will happen to the company if I am no longer here?
• How should the assets be divided when the children have different talents, needs and ambitions?
• What about a child who requires constant care?
• How can we avoid a situation where a single family conflict blocks decisions within the company?
• How can we prepare the next generation to be owners, not just beneficiaries?

In practice, the following motivations predominate:

1. Protection against the fragmentation of assets

Standard inheritance “divides assets like a restaurant bill” – often without considering what constitutes key business infrastructure and what can be divided. A foundation allows strategic assets (such as shares in the operating company or key properties) to be retained within a single entity, whilst beneficiaries benefit from the fruits of their labour through benefits rather than direct shares.

2. Organising the entire estate, not just the business

When working on setting up a foundation, it very often turns out that the family’s assets are highly dispersed: companies, properties, loans, overseas assets, financial investments, collections. The foundation necessitates the creation of an ‘asset map’ – identifying strategic, liquid, risky and sentimental assets – and rethinking how to manage them within a single, coherent model.

3. Business continuity despite family turmoil

Nothing is more destructive to a family business than a ‘period of limbo’, when the patriarch ponders to whom and how he will hand over the reins, and strategic decisions are put on hold. The Foundation creates a mechanism whereby the business can operate independently of the heirs’ current readiness – thanks to clear rules governing the exercise of ownership rights, supervision and decision-making on dividends or investments.

4. Preparing the next generation for responsibility

More and more founders are realising that transferring assets without preparation leads to entitlement, conflict and wasted potential. A foundation can serve as a ‘school of ownership’: providing financial and legal education, allowing the younger generation to attend meetings as observers, involving them in philanthropic or investment projects, and only subsequently entrusting them with formal roles on governing bodies.

5. Introducing oversight

The ‘everything goes through the owner’ model works up to a point. After that, it becomes a hindrance. A foundation provides a natural framework for establishing a supervisory board, a board of trustees, investment committees or family committees – with the participation of external, independent individuals. After three years of the ‘ ’, it is clear that where such oversight is real, rather than merely ‘on paper’, the foundation becomes a significant reinforcement of corporate governance.

6. Protecting beneficiaries

A foundation allows for the design of a long-term support system for minors, dependants, the sick or those with disabilities. It is possible to specify in advance: the types of benefits (care, health, housing, education), the rules for granting them, as well as oversight mechanisms (a trustee, the foundation’s board, specific procedures). As a result, the assets function as ‘long-term care’ rather than a one-off payment.

Strengths of the Polish structure – and its weak points

From a legal and tax perspective, the Polish family foundation is a competitive tool within Europe:

• it combines succession, holding and benefit functions in a single vehicle,
• it allows for the effective accumulation of profits (no current corporation tax on permitted activities; tax is only payable at the stage of distributions),
• it is relatively accessible in terms of capital (low minimum fund),
• it offers considerable freedom in shaping the articles of association and governing bodies.

At the same time, practice has revealed clear challenges:

• a lack of full clarity regarding the boundary between an ‘authorised holding company’ and ‘unauthorised operational activities’ – this gives rise to the risk of tax disputes,
• long registration times, which require systemic improvement,
• regulatory uncertainty – draft amendments, discussions on ‘tightening’ regulations, including regarding the rapid sale of assets contributed to the foundation,
• the issue of transparency – the register of family foundations is now widely accessible, which raises legitimate concerns about the privacy and data security of families,
• varying standards applied by financial institutions to foundations (scope of required information, documents, beneficiary data).

Put simply: the instrument is well designed, but the practical environment – in terms of case law, registration and banking – requires further refinement. From the perspective of a founder , it is crucial to manage this risk consciously, rather than abandoning the foundation out of fear of ‘changing laws’.

2026–2029: from owning a foundation to knowing how to use it

The first three years of the Act’s implementation answered the question of whether a family foundation was needed in Poland. The market’s answer is unequivocal: yes. The next three years will provide the answer to another question: whether we are able to make use of it.

In practice, this means a shift in focus:

• from the number of foundations established – to the quality of their operations,
• from the technical ‘transfer of assets’ – to the establishment of ownership and family governance,
• from a one-off legal and tax project – to a long-term, multi-year relationship with the foundation as a family institution.

From the perspective of a succession advisor, the recommendations for 2026–2029 are as follows:

1. Operationalising the foundation

If a foundation exists only in the National Court Register (KRS) and in a notarial deed, rather than in day-to-day decisions, it is a formal construct. It is worth ensuring that the foundation actually:

• has an adopted and applied investment policy,
• reports regularly to the founder and beneficiaries,
• implements a benefits policy in accordance with the adopted principles,
• carries out periodic reviews of its governance and statutes.

2. Strengthening family and ownership governance

It is good practice to draw up – alongside the articles of association – a family constitution or similar document that sets out the family’s values, communication principles, criteria for joining and leaving the business, rules for remunerating family members, and conflict resolution procedures. It is precisely this level of ‘soft’ governance that determines whether the foundation will be a place of cooperation or merely a breeding ground for further disputes.

3. The foundation as an investment platform

As the market matures, foundations are increasingly becoming not only a ‘safe’ for shares in the company, but also a platform for portfolio investments, private equity, alternative assets or philanthropic activities. It is crucial to define an investment strategy that takes into account:

• a multi-generational horizon,
• an acceptable level of risk,
• family values (e.g. ESG, responsible investment),
• expected cash flows for beneficiaries.

4. Systematic preparation of the next generation

Instead of a one-off ‘bringing in’ of the next generation to the governing bodies, it is worth planning a path to maturity: education – observation – project responsibility – participation in committees – formal mandate. Such a model builds competencies, not just titles.

5. Regulatory and reputational risk management

In an era of growing interest from regulators and the media in asset structures, transparency and compliance with the law are becoming a competitive advantage rather than a burden. It is worth:

• monitor regulatory changes,
• ensure consistency between the foundation’s stated objectives and its actual operations,
• carefully select advisers, avoiding ‘quick fixes’,
• consciously shape the foundation’s image (particularly where it is involved in philanthropic or social activities).

The foundation as a project for the future, not just a “closure of the past”

A family foundation is not a simple cure-all for all succession challenges. It is a tool. It can work brilliantly – or very averagely. The difference depends on three factors:

• the quality of the project (statutes, governance model, internal policies),
• the maturity of the family (willingness to discuss, ability to compromise, awareness of roles),
• consistency in implementing the adopted principles.

To sum up the first three years of the family foundation regulations, it must be clearly and unequivocally stated that the Polish market has been given a very good tool. Now everything depends on whether we treat it as a legal structure or as an institution responsible for the company, the family and future generations.
 
A foundation established reactively – at the last minute, ‘because we have to’ – has limited potential. A foundation designed consciously, in advance, as part of a larger puzzle (wills, partnership agreements, marriage contracts, insurance policies, family office) can become one of the most important pillars of the longevity of Polish family businesses.
 
Author: Rafał Trzeciakowski – Senior associate at SKP Ślusarek Kubiak Pieczyk.