Amendments to Tax Code announced: preliminary remarks to bill
Last week, preliminary remarks to the bill amending the Tax Code were released. The bill aims at adjusting the principles of third-party liability for tax arrears of companies to the requirements of EU law stemming from CJEU's judgments (in cases C-277/24, Adjak and C-278/24, Genzyński). According to the bill:
- persons who are to be held liable for tax debts of a company gain right to challenge the findings of a tax office relating to the company and access to case files and documents in the company's tax proceedings;
- the rules on how to assign liability for tax arrears to members of the board and other entities managing company affairs are to be determined.
The bill is expected to be passed by the Council of Ministers in Q1/Q2 2026.
Założenia do projektu ustawy o zmianie ustawy - Ordynacja podatkowa
Amendments to transfer pricing regulations announced: preliminary remarks to bill
Last week, preliminary remarks to the bill amending the PIT Act and the CIT Act were released. The bill provides for, inter alia, relaxing the rules of signing the TPR Information, which can now be signed under rules stipulated by the Tax Code (meaning that it can now be submitted by designated holders of the power of attorney), making the declaration and the local file a single document, and removing the obligation to indicate financial ratios assessing the entity's health in the TPR Information submitted by micro and small businesses. In addition, the bill clarifies the provision on transfer pricing adjustments (so-called compensatory adjustments) between domestic entities and abolishes sanctions consisting in not recognizing as tax-deductible costs payments made as part of transactions with an active VAT taxpayer to an account other than that included in the list of entities referred to in Article 96b(1) of the VAT Act, or bypassing the split payment mechanism. The bill is expected to be passed by the Council of Ministers in Q1/Q2 2026.
NBP interest rates to remain unchanged
During the meeting held on 13-14 January 2026, the Monetary Policy Council decided to keep the NBP interest rates unchanged, i.e.:
- reference rate at 4.00% annually;
- lombard loan interest rate at 4.50% annually;
- deposit rate at 3.50% annually;
- rediscount rate at 4.05% annually;
- discount rate on bills of exchange at 4.10% annually.
As a result, interest on tax arrears continues to amount to 11% on an annual basis.
Komunikat prasowy z posiedzenia Rady Polityki Pieniężnej w dniach 13-14 października 2026 r.
Opinion on top-up taxation: conditions for recognizing relief as eligible refundable relief
On 13 January 2026, an opinion on top-up taxation was released (ref. no. 0111-KDGB.480.3.2025.2.KKU), pertaining to the possibility of recognizing the R&D relief as an eligible refundable relief under the Act on top-up taxation of members of multinational enterprise groups and large-scale domestic groups (the GLOBE Act). According to the authority, for the analysed tax relief to qualify as an “eligible refundable relief,” it must be refunded (or deducted) within four years from the date on which the entity acquired the right to use it. Thus, if a given relief is refundable (or deductible) over a period longer than 4 taxable years (counting from the moment of acquiring the right to use the relief), it does not meet the definition of a qualified refundable relief under Article 64(3) of the GLOBE Act. The CIT Act provides that the legislator allows the deduction of eligible costs under the R&D relief in the year in which they are incurred, as well as over the six consecutive taxable years immediately following the year in which the taxpayer exercised, or was entitled to exercise, the deduction. As a result, the analysed relief does not meet the refund/deduction deadline condition under the GLOBE Act and cannot be treated as eligible refundable relief.
Clearance opinion on redemption of shares in public limited company (S.A.) without remuneration denied
On 14 January 2026, it was announced that the Head of the National Revenue Administration denied clearance opinion on redemption of shares in a public limited company (S.A.) without remuneration (ref. no. DKP16.8082.7.2025). The opinion concerned a sequence of transactions, including, among other things, re-registration of a limited partnership as a private limited company (z o.o.), buyback of shares (acquired by the private limited company before re-registration) without remuneration by a public limited company for voluntary redemption and opting for the Estonian CIT scheme by the private limited company and the public limited company. The Head of the National Revenue Administration found that in the analysed case, tax benefits cab be identified, in the form of, inter alia, postponing the emergence of CIT liability and non-occurrence of other liabilities related to CIT, PIT and the tax on civil law transactions. Furthermore, in the opinion of the Head of the National Revenue Administration, the primary purpose of the transaction was to provide tax-free remuneration to the public limited company at the expense of the transforming limited partnership. The selection of the described activities, rather than a donation, which would have been more appropriate to achieve this objective, was considered artificial and, in the view of the Head of the National Revenue Administration, resulted in the attainment of a tax advantage that, in the circumstances of the case, is contrary to the purpose of the CIT Act. Consequently, Article 119a(1) of the Tax Code was found to have application to the tax benefits presented by the applicant and a clearance opinion was denied.
Opinions of the Anti-Tax Avoidance Council on structures relying on closed-end investment funds
Last week, Resolution no. 12/2025 of the Anti-Tax Avoidance Council, dated 9 December 2025, was published. The Council assessed a sequence of transactions, including, inter alia, the sale by a closed-end investment fund (CEIF) of shares in a Luxembourg company to Polish companies, the acquisition by the CEIF of bonds issued by Polish companies in exchange for shares in the Luxembourg company, and the conclusion of a mutual set-off agreement between the CEIF and the Polish companies. The Council indicated that a tax benefit arose in the form of the absence of a CIT liability at the level of the CEIF as a result of the reclassification of income sources, namely a shift from revenue derived from participation in a partnership, which has been subject to taxation since 1 January 2017, to income in the form of bond interest, which is exempt from CIT. At the same time, in the Council’s view, the main, or one of the main, objectives of the actions undertaken was to obtain a tax advantage, and the taxpayer’s actions were of an artificial nature. Furthermore, the Council concluded that the tax benefit obtained is contrary to the subject matter or purpose of the tax law or the relevant provision thereof, within the meaning of Article 17(1)(57)(a) of the CIT Act. As a result, the Council found that Article 119a et seq. of the Polish Tax Code apply to the analysed sequence of transactions.
Uchwała nr 12/2025 Rady do Spraw Przeciwdziałania Unikaniu Opodatkowania
SAC: no right to deduct input tax for invoices documenting delivery of overstated quantity of goods
Last week, the Supreme Administrative Court delivered a judgment in case I FSK 211/23, holding that where an invoice, from the outset, documents the supply of an overstated quantity of goods, the right to deduct input VAT does not arise in respect of the portion of the invoice relating to the overstated quantity. The Court emphasized that such an invoice, from the outset, fails to meet the requirements to be regarded as an actual invoice to the extent that it documented the delivery of an overstated quantity of goods. Therefore, according to the Court, it is impossible to correct such an invoice on an ongoing basis.
SAC: correcting note cannot be used to change party to transaction
According to the judgment enter5ed by the Supreme Administrative court last week in case I FSK 307/23, the possibility for a purchaser to correct an invoice by issuing a corrective note applies solely to errors in the purchaser’s details, such as mistakes in the surname, first name, business name, address, or identification number, or in the designation of the goods or services. At the same time, the Supreme Administrative Court emphasized that the issuance of a corrective note may not result in a change of the entity that is a party to the relevant transaction.
SAC: organizing lottery without promoting alcoholic beverage trademarks does not constitute advertising of alcoholic beverages
Last week, the Supreme Administrative Court entered a judgment (case file I FSK 1971/22) stating that if a company's activities are limited to organizing a lottery in which the company does not promote the trademarks of alcoholic beverages, the company cannot be considered as advertising alcoholic beverages. The Court emphasized that the mere fact of designing and maintaining a website accessible to lottery participants does not fall within the concept of advertising under Article 2(1)(3) of the Act on Upbringing in Sobriety and Counteracting Alcoholism. Consequently, the company is not obliged to pay fees amounting to 10% of the VAT-taxable base resulting from this service and to prepare a collective monthly return.
Expenses documented by invoice issued outside KSeF may be included in tax-deductible costs
In January, rulings by the Director of the National Revenue Administration Information Centre were published, according to which expenses documented by an invoice issued outside the KSeF system, contrary to the statutory obligation, may be included in tax-deductible costs if the invoice reflects actual commercial transactions and the expense was incurred in order to generate income (or to maintain or secure its source). At the same time, the Ministry emphasizes that if a contractor is known to issue invoices outside the KSeF system, the purchaser should carefully review the circumstances of the cooperation and, in particular, verify whether the transactions are properly and reliably documented.