Taxes in Poland in 2021 – part II

In 2021, the tax system in Poland has undergone a reform. A number of changes entered into force on January 1, 2021. The Polish government, which had previously announced that it would not allow tax increases, has nevertheless introduced several measures since 2021, which resulted in an increase in the tax burden on the business and population. These “maneuvers” will not directly lead to an increase in taxes, but may negatively affect the people living and running their own business in Poland.

Who, when and for what will pay more with the onset of the new year – we will consider in the document below, in the table and in the comments to it.

Now let’s briefly comment on these changes.

“Estonian” CIT

From 1 January 2021, some companies will be able to use the so-called Estonian Income Tax. The essence of this solution is to postpone the time for collecting CIT taxes until the enterprise declares the dividends. The entrepreneur will be able to choose whether he wants to use a new type of taxation or prefers to settle according to the old rules. According to the Law, taxation under the new rules will be available for limited liability companies or joint stock companies in which only individuals are shareholders. The threshold below which the company will be eligible for this decision is no more than PLN 100 million income per year. The basic assumption of the so-called Estonian CIT is postponing the payment of tax until the declaration of profits by the capital company. Until the profit received by the company is not transferred to shareholders (for example, in the form of dividends).

Slim VAT

From January 2021, rules will come into force that simplify and modernize the calculation of VAT by taxpayers.

These changes include:

1. Easier billing
2. Relief for exporters
3. Generally accepted reasonable conversion of exchange rates into VAT and personal income tax / CIT
4. A package of financial benefits for entrepreneurs.

9% Income tax

From January 1, 2021, the revenue limit from currently pegged 1.2 million euros to 2 million euros will be increased. gives the right to apply the 9% rate for taxation of income received by CIT taxpayers. At the moment, this rate will be available to small taxpayers and taxpayers who start their activities in the year of commencement of this activity (the limit for determining the status of a small taxpayer remains unchanged – 2 million euros in revenue together with the amount of goods and services tax in the previous tax year). Please note that the 9% rate can be used to tax income other than capital gains.

Personal income tax on construction income

Due to the ongoing state of the epidemic, the legislator decided to extend the period during which the exemption from tax on income from construction, regulated by Art. 24b of the Income Tax Act and Art. 30g of the Personal Income Tax Law.

Discount on robotization

The update of the National Development Program (hereinafter – NDP) announces the introduction of new support for entrepreneurs in the form of tax incentives related to the costs incurred for the automation and robotization of business activities of taxpayers (unemployment benefits). According to the Ministry of Finance, the robotization benefit will be in effect from the second quarter of 2021.

Work exemption must be a tax credit available to all income tax payers. At the same time, the right to take advantage of benefits should not depend on the industry in which the entrepreneur operates or on the size of his business, which proves that the proposed solution is generally available. The new benefit is a function in the form of benefits for research and development – R & D, i.e. this will give taxpayers the opportunity to deduct from the tax base the so-called eligible costs, that is, those indicated in the closed catalog of costs. The discount on works provides for the possibility of deducting 50% of the above amount. acceptable costs.

The planned solution is to introduce timeliness and application of tax incentives. According to reports, the exemption applies to the costs incurred for robotization and automation of activities in 2021-2025. However, the deduction can be made both in the years indicated above, and in the next 6 years. This means that the last moment to deduct eligible costs will be 2031.

Contributions to ZUS

From January 2021, the total social charges may increase by 195 PLN. The projected growth is not the largest in comparison with previous years, but this time it coincides with the termination of some provisions of the Anti-Crisis Shields. And this, in turn, can significantly increase the burden on business in Poland.

Sugar tax

Opłata cukrowa is the name of the special duty imposed on beverages containing sugar. This list includes the vast majority of drinks containing sugar, even beer. A duty, called the sugar tax, will be levied on entrepreneurs selling products that contain sugar (including alcohol) and active ingredients. Entrepreneurs will pay tax when products are put up for sale. Under the law amending certain laws to promote healthy consumer choices, companies will pay tax on drinks:

– with the addition of an active ingredient – caffeine or taurine,

– with sugar or sweetener, including alcoholic beverages in packages less than 300 ml.

The amount collected will depend on the amount of sweetener in the beverage.

Trade tax

From January 2021, there will also be a trade tax applicable to retailers.

The new tax will have two rates:

– 0.8% rate will be applied to monthly income from retail sales that do not exceed PLN 170 million tax base,

– 1.4% rate if monthly income exceeds 170 million PLN

The tax base will be a monthly surplus of income from sales of more than 17 million PLN.

Property tax

Property tax rates may increase:

– up to 0.85 PLN per 1 sq. m of usable area – tax on residential buildings;

– up to PLN 0.99 per 1 sq. m of area – land tax related to doing business, regardless of how it is classified in the land and building register;

– up to 24.84 PLN per 1 sq. m of usable area – tax on buildings related to the conduct of business, and on residential buildings or their parts used for business purposes.

Real estate agency

This is a new type of company. Until now, Polish tax legislation did not regulate the activities of real estate companies. The real estate company is defined in art. 4a, paragraph 35 of the Corporate Income Tax Act. According to the new rules, the obligation to pay income tax on the sale of shares of the so-called real estate companies from the seller to the real estate company are intended to improve the efficiency of income tax collection. The settlement of the obligation will be based on the imposition of the obligation of the withholding tax payer on the real estate company.

Rain tax

It’s not a joke. In Poland, there is indeed a collection called Podatek od deszczu.

The more a building occupies in area, the more water accumulates on its roof, the more it needs to be drained accordingly, proportionally increasing the load on the storm sewer and related systems. This is what Podatek od deszczu is charged for.

Previously, these funds were collected only from buildings with an area of 3.5 thousand square meters, now they plan to reduce this value to 600 square meters. This means that the owners of some private houses and the majority of apartment buildings will now be subject to the new tax.

Plastic tax

This is a fee which implies a fee of 80 EUR per kilogram of unrefined plastic waste. The tax was introduced in connection with the desire of the European Union to limit the production of single-use plastic. The new regulations were adopted at the meeting of the Council of Europe on July 17-21, 2020. The tribute proceeds are intended to support the budget of the Multi-Year Financial Framework and the Coronavirus Reconstruction Fund (the so-called next-generation EU). The highest tax on plastic will be paid by countries that do not collect and recycle well. In accordance with the adopted agreements, the new tariff will be applied from January 1, 2021.