Start a sole proprietorship (JDG) step by step

JDG (jednoosobowa działalność gospodarcza) is a sole proprietorship in Poland, that is, your own small business.

We wrote this guide for people who are starting their first business, looking for work after a break, working from home because of illness, or who do not feel confident online.

Status as of 8 November 2026. Every piece of information links to the official Polish website it comes from. We checked all of these pages on 8 November 2026. The official sources are in Polish.

Two labels:

• [to be checked with the office] – the official website does not say this. Ask your local office.
• ASZ Labs tip – practical advice from us, not an official requirement. It has no official source.

This is information, not legal or tax advice.

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First, 3 important changes (autumn 2026)

1. From 1 November 2026 you can start a business only online. At the city or municipal office, the application can now only be filed electronically. Exception: a minor. (gov.pl – MRiT, biznes.gov.pl)
2. From 1 October 2026 a business has an e-Delivery (e-Doręczenia) address. It is a mailbox for letters from public offices. The address is created when you register the business, and you then activate it with a link sent by e-mail. The mailbox must be checked regularly. (gov.pl – MRiT)
3. A new business chooses PKD 2025 codes. (biznes.gov.pl – PKD codes)

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What to prepare before you sit down at the computer

You will enter this information in the application (biznes.gov.pl – CEIDG registration):

• ID card, passport or mDowód (mobile ID),
• PESEL number,
• your parents' first names, your date and place of birth,
• your home address and other addresses related to the business,
• an e-mail address, if you have one,
• the business name – it must include your first name and surname,
• PKD codes (Step 2),
• the business start date,
• the tax office for your place of residence,
• the business bank account number, if you already have one,
• a way to sign: trusted profile (profil zaufany), personal signature (podpis osobisty) or qualified electronic signature.

ASZ Labs tip: set up a separate e-mail address for the business (Step 8).

The trusted profile is free. You can set it up at gov.pl – trusted profile. With a trusted profile you can also open a PUE ZUS account online (biznes.gov.pl).

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Step 1. Before you start a business

1a. Do you need to start a business at all?

Maybe not. There is unregistered activity (działalność nierejestrowana): you do not register a business, but you can earn a little.

Conditions in 2026 (biznes.gov.pl – unregistered activity):

• Revenue per quarter may not exceed PLN 10,813.50.
• That is 225% of the minimum wage (minimum wage 2026: PLN 4,806).
• From 2026 the limit is counted per quarter, not per month.
• You have not run a business in the last 60 months.

What you gain (biznes.gov.pl):

• you do not register in CEIDG,
• you do not pay social security (ZUS) or health contributions for this activity,
• you do not pay tax advances during the year,
• you only keep a simplified sales record.

Note (biznes.gov.pl):

• If you exceed the limit, you have 7 days to register a business.
• If you provide services under a contract, it is a contract of mandate (umowa zlecenia). In that case the client pays the ZUS contributions.
• Registered as unemployed? To keep that status, your revenue may not exceed PLN 2,403 per month and you may only sell goods. Contracts of mandate or specific-work contracts take the status away.
• The 2027 limit: PLN 11,137.50 per quarter. The limit is 225% of the minimum wage in force in a given year (biznes.gov.pl), and from 1 January 2027 the minimum wage will be PLN 4,950 (Journal of Laws 2026 item 1213). 225% × PLN 4,950 = PLN 11,137.50. This is our calculation from these two sources; for now biznes.gov.pl only gives the 2026 amount.

1b. Unemployed? Apply for a grant from the labour office first

Your district labour office (powiatowy urząd pracy) can give you money to start a business (biznes.gov.pl – start-up funding):

• You apply BEFORE you start the business.
• The grant is available to: an unemployed person; a carer of a person with a disability who is registered as a jobseeker, not employed and not doing other paid work; a graduate of a social integration centre or club (CIS or KIS).
• The grant is at most 6 times the average salary in force on the day you sign the agreement with the office. The office may grant less.
• Condition: in the last 12 months you have not run a business in Poland or had one suspended.
• You must run the business for at least 12 months. During that time you may not suspend it for more than 6 months in total or take up employment.
• You must account for the money and return any unused amount.

How much your office will grant, whether it still has funds and when it accepts applications: [to be checked with the office]. Biznes.gov.pl tells you to check additional conditions and the availability of funds at your labour office (biznes.gov.pl). Call your district labour office.

1c. Do you have a disability certificate?

PFRON (the State Fund for Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons) has programmes for people with disabilities who run a business: business funding and reimbursement of ZUS contributions (pfron.gov.pl).

Rules for start-up funds (niepelnosprawni.gov.pl):

• You must be registered at the labour office as unemployed or as a jobseeker who is not employed.
• You apply to the district head (starosta) through your labour office. You will get the form there.
• Up to 6 times the average salary if you run the business for at least 12 months.
• From 6 to 15 times if you run the business for at least 24 months.
• You negotiate the amount with the district head and sign an agreement.
• If you do not meet the terms of the agreement, the funds must be returned.

Questions: PFRON helpline 22 581 84 10, working days 9:00–15:00 (pfron.gov.pl).

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Step 2. Choose a PKD code

PKD is the code that says what your business does.

Which classification?

PKD 2025. When registering a new business, you choose PKD 2025 codes (biznes.gov.pl – PKD codes). Until 31 December 2026 there is a transition period for businesses that still have PKD 2007 codes. From 1 January 2027 only PKD 2025 codes apply (zus.pl – PKD 2025).

How to find a code

1. Read biznes.gov.pl – How to choose a PKD code.
2. For each code, read the description: what it includes and what it excludes (Journal of Laws 2024 item 1936).
3. Choose one main code: the activity that will bring the largest part of your revenue. At the start, it is the activity you intend to run as your main one (biznes.gov.pl).
4. You may add additional codes. Choose those that match the activity you actually carry out (biznes.gov.pl).
5. Enter the code in full, 5 characters, e.g. 62.10.B (biznes.gov.pl).

ASZ Labs tip: you can also find a code in the GUS classification search. Type what you do, e.g. "korepetycje" (tutoring).

Changing the scope of your work? You have 7 days to change the codes in CEIDG (biznes.gov.pl).

Examples of PKD 2025 codes

Codes and names come from the official PKD 2025 text (Journal of Laws 2024 item 1936); the names below are our translation. Matching an occupation to a code is an ASZ Labs tip. Always read the code description.

Careful with online shops. In PKD 2025, code 47.91.Z means intermediation in non-specialised retail sale. Do not copy it automatically from the old classification (biznes.gov.pl).

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Step 3. Register the business in CEIDG

CEIDG is the register of sole proprietorships. Registration is free of charge (biznes.gov.pl).

How to file the application

From 1 November 2026, online only (gov.pl – MRiT). There are 3 ways (biznes.gov.pl):

Way 1: biznes.gov.pl (the most options)

1. Go to biznes.gov.pl.
2. Choose "Zarejestruj działalność gospodarczą" (Register a business).
3. Log in through login.gov.pl.
4. Answer the wizard's questions.
5. Sign the application with a trusted profile, a qualified signature or a personal signature.

Way 2: the mObywatel app

1. Open mObywatel and go to the "Firma" (Business) service.
2. On the "Załóż firmę" (Start a business) page, choose "Złóż wniosek" (File an application).
3. Sign with a trusted profile.

You cannot do everything in mObywatel. You cannot register for VAT or for ZUS insurance there. For that, use biznes.gov.pl (biznes.gov.pl).

Way 3: through a bank or an accounting office
Some banks and accounting offices offer this service. The list is on biznes.gov.pl. This way you register only the business. ZUS and VAT are handled separately: at the office or online through eZUS and the Tax Portal (Portal Podatkowy) (biznes.gov.pl).

What about the municipal office? Neither biznes.gov.pl nor the MRiT announcement says whether an official will help you fill in the online application on site (biznes.gov.pl, gov.pl – MRiT). [to be checked with the office] – call your office before you go.

Online, you cannot file the application through a proxy. You sign it yourself (biznes.gov.pl).

What to enter in the application (CEIDG-1)

Instructions for filling in the application (PDF) are on biznes.gov.pl – CEIDG registration.

How long it takes

• The entry appears no later than the next working day (biznes.gov.pl).
• You get your NIP (tax ID) and REGON (statistical number) automatically (biznes.gov.pl).
• CEIDG passes the data to the tax office, which assigns the NIP and informs GUS and ZUS (biznes.gov.pl).

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Step 4. Form of taxation – differences only

There is no recommendation here. The choice depends on your costs, income and family. Ask an accountant, a tax adviser or the tax office.

There are three forms (biznes.gov.pl – which income tax for a business):

Source of the table: biznes.gov.pl.

Important (biznes.gov.pl):

• If you choose nothing, you are on the tax scale.
• You choose flat tax or lump sum by the 20th day of the month following the month of your first revenue. If your first revenue is in December, by the end of the year.
• How: in the CEIDG application, by changing your CEIDG entry, or at the tax office.
• Lump sum is not available for some types of activity. Flat tax and lump sum are excluded if you work for a former or current employer in the same scope as in your employment.

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Step 5. ZUS (social insurance)

Which contributions

• Social security contributions: pension, disability, accident and sickness (sickness is voluntary) (ZUS guide 2026).
• Health contribution: you pay it also during the start-up relief (zus.pl).

The start-up relief exempts you only from social security contributions (zus.pl).

Reliefs in order – for a new business

1. Start-up relief (ulga na start) – up to 6 months without social security contributions (ZUS guide 2026)

• You pay only the health contribution.
• Condition: you are starting a business for the first time, or at least 60 months have passed since you suspended or closed the previous one.
• Condition: you do not work for a former employer for whom you did the same work as an employee this year or last year.
• Starting on the 1st day of a month? That month counts. Starting mid-month? That month does not count.
• During this time you are not covered by social insurance, either compulsorily or voluntarily.
• You register with ZUS on form ZUS ZZA (health insurance only).

2. Preferential contributions – 24 months (ZUS guide 2026)

• They start after the start-up relief, or immediately if you do not use it.
• Basis: at least 30% of the minimum wage.
• Conditions: no business in the last 60 months, not for a former employer.

3. Mały ZUS Plus (small ZUS plus) – from the second year at the earliest (biznes.gov.pl, zus.pl)

• Contributions depend on income from the previous year.
• Condition: revenue in the previous year up to PLN 120,000.
• Condition: in the previous year the business operated for at least 60 days.
• From 2026, at most 36 months of relief in every 60 months of running a business.
• Notification by 31 January on form ZUS ZUA (or ZUS ZZA) with a code starting with 05 90 or 05 92.

How much you pay in 2026 – social security contributions

Monthly amounts for January–December 2026 (zus.pl – contribution amounts):

How much you pay in 2026 – health contribution

Starting a business in November or December 2026? From January 2027 the contribution bases will change:

• Preferential base in 2027: PLN 1,485. This is 30% of the minimum wage (zus.pl), and the minimum wage in 2027 will be PLN 4,950 (Journal of Laws 2026 item 1213).
• Full base in 2027: PLN 6,019.80. This is 60% of the forecast average salary (zus.pl), which for 2027 is PLN 10,033 (Monitor Polski 2026 item 1098).
• Both amounts are our calculation from these sources. The contribution amounts payable in 2027 (social and health): [to be checked with the office] – ZUS has not published them yet. Check zus.pl or ask ZUS.

When and how to pay

• Register with ZUS within 7 days of starting the business. You can do it right away in the CEIDG application (biznes.gov.pl).
• You file your first declaration and pay your first contributions in the month after registration. If you registered the business on the 1st day of a month, you also file a declaration for that month (biznes.gov.pl – ZUS DRA).
• You pay by the 20th day of the following month (biznes.gov.pl).
• A deadline falling on a Sunday or public holiday moves to the next working day. The money must reach ZUS on the deadline (biznes.gov.pl).
• You file the ZUS DRA declaration even when you use a relief (biznes.gov.pl).

Your ZUS account number (NRS)

Source: biznes.gov.pl – how to pay contributions.

• You pay all contributions in one transfer to your individual contribution account number (NRS).
• The NRS contains the ZUS number 60000002026 and your NIP.
• ZUS will send you your NRS by post. You can also find it in the contribution account number search tool, at a ZUS branch or by calling 22 560 16 00.
• In the transfer title you do not enter your NIP, REGON, PESEL or the month.

PUE / eZUS – ZUS online

• You can open a PUE ZUS account online with a trusted profile or a qualified signature, or at a ZUS branch (biznes.gov.pl). Log in: zus.pl – eZUS.
• ZUS Customer Contact Centre: 22 560 16 00 (biznes.gov.pl).

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Step 6. VAT

Do you have to pay VAT?

At the start you can use the small business VAT exemption (zwolnienie podmiotowe) if you meet the conditions (podatki.gov.pl):

• Limit in 2026: PLN 240,000 of sales per year. In 2025 it was PLN 200,000 (biznes.gov.pl – who must pay VAT).
• Starting mid-year? The limit is pro rata. Example: start on 2 May 2026 = limit PLN 160,438.36 (biznes.gov.pl).
• Some goods and services always require VAT, regardless of the amount, e.g. legal services. The list is in Article 113(13) of the VAT Act (podatki.gov.pl).
• The exemption ends with the sale by which you exceed the limit (podatki.gov.pl).

When to file VAT-R

VAT-R is the VAT registration form. You file it (biznes.gov.pl):

• before your first sale, if you are not entitled to the exemption,
• before the day you lose the exemption (e.g. you exceed PLN 240,000),
• when you want to give up the exemption and pay VAT voluntarily.

You can attach VAT-R to the CEIDG application or file it separately. A NIP is required (biznes.gov.pl).

If you are a VAT payer

• Every month you send the JPK_V7M file and pay VAT by the 25th day of the following month (biznes.gov.pl).
• For the first 12 months after registering as an active VAT payer you cannot settle quarterly (biznes.gov.pl).
• Even with no sales, you send a "zero" JPK (biznes.gov.pl).

Invoices in KSeF (briefly)

• From 1 April 2026, invoices to businesses are issued in KSeF (the National e-Invoice System), also if you are VAT-exempt (biznes.gov.pl – KSeF).
• Exception until the end of 2026: if your invoiced sales in a month are at most PLN 10,000 gross (ksef.podatki.gov.pl).
• You receive invoices from suppliers in KSeF from 1 February 2026 (ksef.podatki.gov.pl).
• Invoices to private individuals do not have to be issued in KSeF (ksef.podatki.gov.pl).

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Step 7. Bank account and the white list

Business account

• Report your business account number in CEIDG. You must report every business account (biznes.gov.pl).
• Online, you report it by changing your CEIDG entry on biznes.gov.pl (biznes.gov.pl – white list).
• ASZ Labs tip: before choosing a bank, compare account and transfer fees.

Payments above PLN 15,000

Source: biznes.gov.pl – payments.

• When you pay another business more than PLN 15,000 gross for a single transaction, you must pay from a payment account, not in cash.
• What counts is the value of the whole transaction, not of one instalment.

The white list of VAT payers

Source: biznes.gov.pl – white list.

• It is a public register of VAT payers and their bank accounts.
• You can search for a business by NIP, REGON, account number or name. Search: podatki.gov.pl – VAT payer register.
• Paying a VAT payer more than PLN 15,000? Before the transfer, check their account on the white list (biznes.gov.pl).
• If you pay to an account not on the list, you cannot include that amount in your costs and you may be jointly liable for the supplier's VAT. You are protected if you notify the tax office within 7 days of the transfer.
• The bank itself passes the account number to the tax system. If your business account reported in CEIDG does not appear in the register, ask your bank.

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Step 8. Gmail and Google Calendar for your business

This whole step is an ASZ Labs tip: an arrangement that makes life easier, not a legal requirement. The links lead to Google Help.

Create a separate Gmail account for the business

1. Open Google Help: create a Gmail account and click "Create account".
2. Choose a simple address, e.g. firstname.surname.business@gmail.com.
3. Store the password in a safe place.
4. Enter this address in the CEIDG application. The link to activate e-Delivery will be sent to your e-mail address (gov.pl – MRiT).

Put the deadlines in Google Calendar

1. Open Google Calendar on the same account.
2. Create a recurring event (Google Help).
3. Set a notification, e.g. 3 days before (Google Help).

You will find the deadlines in Step 9. Also add a weekly check of your e-Delivery mailbox (gov.pl – MRiT: the mailbox "must be checked regularly").

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Step 9. Fixed deadlines in the year

Every month

You pay tax to your individual tax micro-account (mikrorachunek podatkowy) (biznes.gov.pl – lump sum, biznes.gov.pl – PIT-36). You can generate the number at podatki.gov.pl – micro-account generator.

Businesses that are just starting and small taxpayers can pay tax advances quarterly, by the 20th day after the end of the quarter (biznes.gov.pl – flat tax). Lump-sum tax can also be paid quarterly, e.g. when you are just starting a business on the lump sum (biznes.gov.pl – lump sum).

Once a year

One-off dates

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Where to get help

• ZUS – Customer Contact Centre: 22 560 16 00 (biznes.gov.pl).
• PFRON – helpline: 22 581 84 10, working days 9:00–15:00 (pfron.gov.pl).
• Biznes.gov.pl – question form. Answer within 7 calendar days, or 14 days if other offices need to be consulted (biznes.gov.pl).
• ASZ Labs tip: ask about grants and unemployed status at your district labour office, and about taxes and VAT at your tax office.

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Disclaimer

This is information, not legal or tax advice. The rules change. Before you decide, check the current rules on the official websites or ask an accountant, a tax adviser or the office. You choose your form of taxation and reliefs yourself.

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List of points [to be checked with the office]

1. ZUS contribution amounts payable in 2027 (social and health) – at ZUS.
2. Whether the municipal office helps on site with the electronic application (after 1 November 2026) – at the municipal office.
3. How much a specific labour office will grant, whether it has funds and when it accepts grant applications – at the district labour office.

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Sources

All sources checked on: 8 November 2026. The official sources are in Polish.

Registration and 2026 changes

• biznes.gov.pl – Register a business in CEIDG: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/ou736
• gov.pl (MRiT) – From 1 November 2026 you can start a business only online: https://www.gov.pl/web/rozwoj-technologia/od-1-listopada-2026-r-firme-zalozysz-wylacznie-online
• gov.pl (MRiT) – Autumn 2026: digital changes for businesses: https://www.gov.pl/web/rozwoj-technologia/jesien-2026-pod-znakiem-cyfrowych-zmian-dla-przedsiebiorcow--wiecej-spraw-zalatwisz-online
• gov.pl – Trusted profile: https://www.gov.pl/web/gov/zaloz-profil-zaufany

Before you start

• biznes.gov.pl – Unregistered activity: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00115
• biznes.gov.pl – Where to find start-up funding: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/001008
• pfron.gov.pl – Business funding: https://www.pfron.gov.pl/osoby-niepelnosprawne/dofinansowanie-dzialalnosci-gospodarczej/
• niepelnosprawni.gov.pl – Funds for starting a business: https://niepelnosprawni.gov.pl/baza-wiedzy/zatrudnienie-osob-niepelnosprawnych/osoby-niepelnosprawne-podejmujace-i-prowadzace-dzialalnosc-gospodarcza-lub-rolnicza/przyznanie-srodkow-na-podjecie-dzialalnosci-gospodarczej-rolniczej-albo-wniesienie-wkladu-do-spoldzielni-socjalnej/
• Journal of Laws 2026 item 1213 – minimum wage in 2027: https://dziennikustaw.gov.pl/D2026000121301.pdf
• Monitor Polski 2026 item 1098 – forecast average salary for 2027 (PLN 10,033): https://monitorpolski.gov.pl/M2026000109801.pdf

PKD

• biznes.gov.pl – How to choose and change a PKD code: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00119
• zus.pl – PKD 2025, check whether your code is current: https://www.zus.pl/-/pkd-2025-sprawd%C5%BA-czy-tw%C3%B3j-kod-jest-aktualny
• Journal of Laws 2024 item 1936 – Council of Ministers regulation on PKD: https://dziennikustaw.gov.pl/D2024000193601.pdf (the same act in ISAP: https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20240001936)
• GUS – Classification search: https://klasyfikacje.stat.gov.pl/

Taxes

• biznes.gov.pl – Which income tax for a business: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00172
• biznes.gov.pl – Flat tax: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00253
• biznes.gov.pl – Lump-sum tax on recorded revenue: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00263
• biznes.gov.pl – PIT-36 and PIT-36L settlement: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/opisy-procedur/-/proc/893
• biznes.gov.pl – File the PIT-28 return: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/ou894
• podatki.gov.pl – Tax micro-account generator: https://www.podatki.gov.pl/generator-mikrorachunku-podatkowego

ZUS

• zus.pl – Contribution amounts for self-employed persons (2 February 2026): https://www.zus.pl/baza-wiedzy/skladki-wskazniki-odsetki/skladki/wysokosc-skladek-na-ubezpieczenia-spoleczne
• zus.pl – Guide to insurance for self-employed persons, legal status as of 1 January 2026: https://www.zus.pl/documents/10182/167567/Poradnik_pozarolnicza_dzialalnosc.pdf/253af031-8550-40d2-b261-29e5fe81769c
• zus.pl – "Mały ZUS plus" – new rules from 2026: https://www.zus.pl/-/%E2%80%9Ema%C5%82y-zus-plus-nowe-zasady-od-2026-r.
• zus.pl – eZUS: https://www.zus.pl/portal/logowanie.npi
• biznes.gov.pl – How to pay ZUS contributions: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00277
• biznes.gov.pl – ZUS DRA, RCA, RSA: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00287
• biznes.gov.pl – Mały ZUS Plus: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00284

VAT and invoices

• biznes.gov.pl – Who must pay VAT: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00246
• podatki.gov.pl – Small business VAT exemption: https://podatki.gov.pl/podatki-firmowe/vat/poradniki-i-informatory/zwolnienie-podmiotowe-od-podatku-vat
• biznes.gov.pl – How to settle VAT correctly: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00232
• biznes.gov.pl – How to file JPK_VAT with a declaration: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00237
• biznes.gov.pl – National e-Invoice System: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/004651
• ksef.podatki.gov.pl – Scope of mandatory KSeF: https://ksef.podatki.gov.pl/informacje-ogolne-ksef-20/zakres-obowiazkowego-ksef/

Bank and payments

• biznes.gov.pl – White list of VAT payers: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/00226
• biznes.gov.pl – How businesses and consumers can pay for transactions: https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/portal/001266
• podatki.gov.pl – VAT payer register: https://www.podatki.gov.pl/wykaz-podatnikow-vat-wyszukiwarka

Gmail and Calendar (Google Help)

• Create a Google Account for Gmail: https://support.google.com/mail/answer/56256?hl=en
• Create a recurring event: https://support.google.com/calendar/answer/37115?hl=en
• Change Google Calendar notifications: https://support.google.com/calendar/answer/37242?hl=en