Hiring a Physiotherapist - Contract and Qualifications
Ewa is growing her practice and can no longer keep up with the number of patients. She decides to hire a second physiotherapist.
Ewa is growing her practice and can no longer keep up with the number of patients. She decides to hire a second physiotherapist. She has found a candidate who presents himself well, but she realises she doesn't actually know what to check: how does she verify he genuinely holds the right to practise? What kind of contract should she offer? Is she liable for his mistakes? And what about the new employee's access to patient data?
Hiring your first physiotherapist is the moment your practice becomes a real business with employer obligations. This article walks you through verifying qualifications, choosing a contract, GDPR and liability, so you can do it safely.
Verifying qualifications - the essential first step
Before signing any contract, you must confirm the candidate has the right to practise. Physiotherapist is a regulated profession under the Act on the Physiotherapist Profession (Journal of Laws 2015, item 1994).
Check:
- Physiotherapist's Licence to Practise (PWZFz) - entry in the National Register of Physiotherapists kept by KIF (the National Chamber of Physiotherapists, Poland's professional self-governing body for physiotherapists)
- Qualifications/education - a diploma entitling the holder to practise
- KIF membership - mandatory for anyone practising the profession
- Professional liability insurance - who provides it (depends on the form of cooperation)
- Specialisations/courses, if the position requires them
Hiring someone without a valid PWZFz licence is a serious mistake - it can expose you to liability and call into question the legality of the services provided.
Types of contracts - which one to choose
You have three main cooperation models. Each carries different legal and tax consequences:
| Contract type | Nature | Who covers liability insurance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment contract (umowa o pracę) | Employment relationship (Labour Code) | Usually the employer, for the employee's actions | Full employer obligations |
| Contract of mandate (umowa zlecenie) | Civil-law contract | Depends on the agreement | Flexible, social security contributions |
| B2B contract | Business-to-business cooperation | The physiotherapist (own business) | Independent entity |
We cover the differences between a B2B contract and full-time employment in detail in a separate article - here we focus on the obligations tied to the hiring itself.
Employment contract (umowa o pracę)
This is the classic employment relationship: full subordination, employer obligations (social security contributions, leave, OSH, medical checks), stability for the employee. As a rule, the employer is liable for the employee's actions carried out within their duties.
Contract of mandate (umowa zlecenie)
More flexible, governed by civil law. Popular for part-time or occasional work. You need to make sure contributions and the scope of liability are properly settled.
B2B contract
The physiotherapist runs their own business and issues invoices. They are personally liable for their own professional insurance and settlements. Watch out for the risk of the cooperation being reclassified as disguised employment if the actual conditions in practice match a regular job.
Employer obligations
Under an employment contract, obligations arising from the Labour Code also apply:
- Registering the employee with social security (ZUS) and paying contributions
- Initial and periodic occupational health checks
- OSH (occupational safety and health) training
- Time-recording and leave management
- Safe and hygienic working conditions
Under a mandate or B2B contract, the scope of obligations is narrower, but it doesn't disappear entirely (e.g. safety at the place where services are provided).
GDPR - new employee's access to data
A new physiotherapist will process patient data - a special category of data under Article 9 GDPR. Before you give them access to patient records, you must:
- Grant a data processing authorisation
- Add them to the register of authorised persons
- Collect a signed confidentiality statement
- Train them on the practice's data protection rules
- Define the scope of access (which data, and for what purpose)
Without this, a new employee should not have access to patient data - this is a typical gap picked up during an inspection.
[SP] Example - Solo Practice: You hire your first physiotherapist on a mandate contract. Before they see any patients: you verify the PWZFz licence in the KIF register, sign the contract, grant GDPR authorisation and add them to the register of authorised persons, and they sign a confidentiality statement.
[GR] Example - Group Practice: A larger practice has a ready-made onboarding package: qualification verification, contract, GDPR authorisation, OSH and data-protection training, system access assignment. The manager keeps a complete set of documents for each employee in case of a KIF, Sanitary Inspectorate, or Labour Inspectorate check.
Liability for an employee
Under an employment contract, the employer is usually liable for damage caused to a patient by the employee within the scope of their duties (with limited recourse against the employee). Under a B2B arrangement, liability for one's own actions usually rests with the physiotherapist themselves, under their own professional liability insurance. That's why the scope and existence of that insurance needs to be settled already at the contract stage.
Most common mistakes
- Not verifying the PWZFz licence before hiring
- Giving access to patient data without GDPR authorisation
- A B2B contract where the actual conditions in practice match full-time employment (risk of reclassification)
- Not settling who provides professional liability insurance
- Skipping occupational health checks and OSH training under an employment contract
Expanding your business in the RPWDL register
Hiring an employee is often also the moment your healthcare activity changes in scale. If you have so far run a sole practitioner practice and are now hiring other physiotherapists, this may mean you need to operate as a healthcare entity (podmiot leczniczy) rather than an individual practice. Verifying the correct form of business and updating your entry in the RPWDL (Register of Healthcare Entities) is an obligation that's easy to forget in the rush of recruitment.
In practice, when hiring your first employee it's worth:
- Checking whether your form of business (practice vs. healthcare entity) still matches reality
- Updating your RPWDL data if the scope or structure changes
- Making sure your professional liability insurance covers operations with employed staff
- Checking whether your premises are sufficient for a larger number of people working at the same time
Sorting these matters out at the start saves you problems during a later KIF or Sanitary Inspectorate check.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check whether a physiotherapist has the right to practise?
Verify the entry in the National Register of Physiotherapists kept by KIF, and check the Physiotherapist's Licence to Practise (PWZFz) document. Also confirm KIF membership (mandatory) and qualifications based on the diploma. Hiring someone without a valid PWZFz licence is a serious legal risk.
What kind of contract should I offer a physiotherapist?
It depends on the cooperation model: an employment contract offers stability and full employer obligations, a mandate contract is flexible, and a B2B contract assumes an independent entity with its own professional liability insurance. With B2B, be careful that the conditions don't actually match full-time employment in practice, as that risks reclassification as an employment relationship.
Does a new employee need GDPR authorisation?
Yes. Before you give them access to patient data, you must grant a data processing authorisation, add them to the register of authorised persons, collect a signed confidentiality statement, and train them on data protection rules. This is a standard item checked during inspections.
Who is liable for a mistake made by an employed physiotherapist?
Under an employment contract, the employer is usually liable for damage caused to a patient within the scope of the employee's duties. Under B2B cooperation, liability usually rests with the physiotherapist themselves, under their own professional liability insurance. That's why the scope of that insurance needs to be settled already when the contract is signed.
CTA: Want a ready-made onboarding package for your new physiotherapist - GDPR authorisation, a register of authorised persons, a confidentiality statement and a qualification-verification checklist? The STANDARD package includes a full set of documents for a growing practice. See FizjoReady packages →
Related articles:
- Physiotherapist contract vs. full-time employment
- GDPR in a physiotherapy practice - a practical guide
- KIF inspection at your practice - what to expect