Withholding tax is a tax that is generally paid by Polish companies (tax payers) in connection with the certain payments to foreign companies, including the payment of dividends (19%), interest (loan or credit) or remuneration for consultancy services (20%). Previous regulations allowed for the exemption of such payments from withholding tax in Poland or were subject to a reduced rate of withholding tax (e.g. 5% or 15%), provided certain legal requirements were met. From 01/07/2020 similar rules will apply, but with other important changes.
New rules for the split payment apply from 01/11/2019. This mechanism is based on the fact that the buyer can only transfer a net amount to the current account of the seller. The VAT is transferred to a special VAT bank account. The funds in the VAT bank account belong to the seller, but cannot be freely disposed. The funds may be used in particular to settle tax or other public law liabilities. A VAT bank account is automatically opened by the Tax Office, but this does not apply to foreign entities that do not have a bank account in Poland.
From 01/01/2020 VAT-tax payers are obliged to make transfers to the bank account indicated in the so-called white list if the invoice amount exceeds PLN 15,000 gross. Payment to an account not included in the list will have the following consequences:
On 01/01/2020, the European changes to the VAT law came into force (so-called Quick Fixes). The new rules concern the following areas:
- New requirements regarding the EU registration for VAT purposes when carrying out intra-Community supply
- New documentation requirements to prove intra-Community supplies
- Call-off-Stock warehouse
- Chain transactions
Procedure for WHT return in Poland – does it really have to be so difficult and complicated? Not necessarily. We explain this issue in our next infographic. We hope that it will be helpful for you. If you have any doubts, please contact us. We will be happy to answer your questions.
The procedure for obtaining an opinion on the WHT tax exemption in Poland is a very important and complicated issue. We explain this problem briefly in our next infographic . If you have more specific questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.
What is worth remembering about due diligence in the context of withholding tax in Poland? We have prepared another infographic infographic erstellt, in which we explain this complicated problem. If you have any questions, remember that you can contact us anytime.
WHT in Poland – how general rules from 01/07/2020 will look like? We explain this important issue in our infographic from the WHT series. We will be happy to answer your questions.