How to check the solvency of a client in Poland

How to check the solvency of a client in Poland

This issue concerns primarily the so-called commercial security and is a prerequisite for the smooth operation of any business. Analysis of the counterparty’s solvency will help protect your company and business from material losses and reputational costs.

A financial assessment of a counterparty is required in the following cases:

When concluding a cooperation agreement

When signing contracts with prepayment or deferred payment

And also at all stages of cooperation

If you do not check the counterparty in advance and blindly trust him, you can undermine the stability of your business and face serious risks:

  • The risk of large financial losses, which can also include delays and non-repayment of borrowed funds
  • Risk of bankruptcy and liquidation of the debtor
  • Risk of audits and claims by tax authorities
  • Risk of penalties and refusal of VAT refunds
  • Risk of prosecution by judicial authorities, etc.

 

How to conduct a counterparty stability analysis

So, the analysis of the client’s palatability consists in collecting information about the client from various sources. This information includes the study of the company’s constituent documents – the charter and registration documents are the main documents from which it is necessary to begin the analysis of the counterparty’s solvency, then we check the information about the company’s management and controlling persons – fraudsters can register the company on front persons or using stolen passports. You can request the necessary information directly from the counterparty, as well as turn to the help of the Internet and read reviews about the company.

The main sources of verification include information from open sources – these are the sites of the state regulatory authorities of Poland. These sources always have accurate, reliable and up-to-date information about any company. Let’s consider them in more detail.

National Court Register – KRS (government website)

KRS (Krajowy Rejestr Sądowy) is the nationwide state court register. All subjects of entrepreneurial activity are registered in it – partnerships, societies, professional and public organizations, entrepreneurs, as well as insolvent debtors.

This register contains up-to-date and detailed information, as well as the legal status of the registered subject. From this register, we can take the following information about the partner:

  • REGON number (statistic number)
  • NIP number (tax number)
  • KRS number (registration number)
  • who owns the company and who is authorized to represent it
  • legal address of company registration
  • PKD (activity code classification) and will they correspond to the area of ​​cooperation
  • information about whether the company’s activities have been suspended and whether bankruptcy proceedings are underway
  • whether the company is included in the register of insolvent debtors.

Tax office and social security institutions (government website)

These institutions, upon request, issue certificates on whether the company has arrears in the payment of tax liabilities and social security contributions. Information that the company is in arrears on financial obligations makes it clear that it is an unreliable counterparty.

Certificates from these institutions are issued at the request of only the company that made an inquiry about themselves, but you can always ask your future counterparty to provide such a certificate.

Payers whitelist (government website)

On September 1, 2019, the “White List of VAT Payers” began to operate in Poland. It is a register with information about VAT taxpayers. This resource is a tool for quickly and efficiently checking your potential contractors and counterparties and allows you to:

  • check if your contractor is an active VAT payer
  • whether your contractor has been denied registration, whether he has been excluded from the register, or re-registered as a VAT payer
  • whether the contractor’s bank account has been verified.

In this list you will find:

  • the name of the company or the surname of the entrepreneur
  • company registration number
  • object status, registered as “active VAT payer” or “exempt VAT payer”
  • REGON number
  • number in KRS
  • legal address of company registration
  • names and surnames of board members and their identification numbers
  • date of registration, refusal of registration or deletion from the register
  • legal basis for refusal of registration
  • numbers of current accounts in the bank.

IMPORTANT! All payments over 15,000 PLN for Polish counterparties must be made only for counterparties on the White List, otherwise the company will not be able to charge this payment.

Economic security offices – BIG

In order to check the solvency of a client in Poland, you can turn to paid services. They are just represented by these organizations. Each BIG has its own database. The information that can be obtained is as follows:

  • National Debt Registry
  • Big informatory
  • Management of economic information ERIF.

There are specialized companies in Poland that are engaged in economic intelligence. They can also be entrusted with checking the reliability of your future counterparty.

IMPORTANT! If the activity carried out by the counterparty requires compulsory licensing, it is necessary to find out if such a license is available and whether it has expired. For each type of activity in Poland there is a licensing authority to which you can send this request.

And remember – the financial stability of debtors and their integrity are the keys to the success of your business!

For detailed information write on office@progressholding.pl