Has the government found a way to give extra money to scientists? A trick like last year's?

• The science and higher education budget in 2026 remains frozen at just above 1% of GDP.
• The National Science Centre Council warns that without an additional PLN 400 million annually, it will be necessary to limit the number of grant competitions, which will reduce the innovativeness of research and the chances of Polish scientists in competing for European funds.
• However, the government plans to support science through state treasury bonds, the CIS has learned.

Back in February, Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Minister Andrzej Domański argued that financing innovation was crucial for Poland's development. Meanwhile, the science and higher education budget for 2026 has been frozen at just over 1% of GDP. In absolute terms, this represents less than a billion złoty more than in 2025.

This draft budget disappointed the scientific community. However, in mid-September, Finance Minister Andrzej Domański declared that, together with Science Minister Marcin Kulasek, he would work in the coming weeks on solutions for science that would ensure that funding "in real terms will be at a higher level."

On September 21, the National Science Centre (NCN) Council adopted a resolution stating that without increasing the agency's budget by PLN 400 million annually, it will be necessary to limit the frequency of competition announcements and even consider reducing the number of competitions for researchers. The Council argues that the fewer projects funded, the more "the innovativeness of scientific research conducted in Poland and the quality of education at universities declines."

Council members emphasized that additional funding for grant competitions will not only strengthen the national research system but also increase the chances of Polish scientists obtaining European funding. At the same time, the body notes that the advantage of countries such as the United States and China in the field of key innovations – both civilizational and defense – stems primarily from their consistent support for scientific research, including fundamental research.

Will treasury bonds once again save the education budget?

As a senior politician from the Left has unofficially informed the CIS, the solution is to be Treasury bonds . The amount and recipients are still being determined, but our source argued that this could include both universities and the National Science Centre. This is a state grant agency that funds basic research. Its budget will not increase at all in 2026. The NCN received the bond package in December of last year. However, discussions between the ministries of science and finance regarding whether and under what conditions the Centre could use them continued for eight months.

The Ministry of Science and Higher Education implemented exactly the same mechanism last year. Treasury bonds worth PLN 1.5 billion were allocated to 71 public universities. Then-Minister of Science Dariusz Wieczorek announced at the time that the funds would be divided according to a special algorithm and allocated to investments, research equipment, and improving the quality of education.