The purpose of this article is to define the essence and function of a periodic penalty payment. The specific nature of a penalty defined by the legislator as a periodic penalty payment is demonstrated by its name and the specific procedure for issuing an administrative decision concerning it. These differences justify a systemic view of its construction: from the perspective of the provisions of Section IVa of the Code of Administrative Procedure, the Environmental Protection Act (P.O.P.), and other legal regulations containing penalty structures similar to those related to running penalties. The key question seems to be whether, and if so, to what extent, the provisions of Section IVa of the Code of Administrative Procedure modify the construction of a periodic penalty payment specified in the P.O.P. provisions. Furthermore, by analyzing the construction of administrative fines, I will attempt to demonstrate that the procedure for applying administrative fines in P.O.P.s, of which the periodic penalty payment is one of the key elements, is overly complex and therefore ineffective.