NEWSLETTER

No. 12, November 2021

Malinowski & Associates. Legal Advisors. Partnership

Table of contents

The bailiff will be able to seize more of your salary and amounts in your bank account

Currently, the so-called. the amount free from execution seizure, i.e., the amount that a bailiff cannot collect through execution, is an amount equal to the minimum wage. This means that every time payroll is deducted for enforcement proceedings, the employer must leave the equivalent amount to the employee. In the case of enforcement against bank accounts, 75% of the minimum wage each month remains out of the bailiff’s reach. On October 6, 2021, a bill appeared in the Diet amending, among other things. Labor Code and the Banking Law, which amends the provisions on the seizure-free amount.

Thus, if the bill enters into force, 85% of the minimum wage will remain free of deductions in wage enforcement, while 50% of the minimum wage will remain free of deductions in bank account enforcement each month.

VAT reduction

At the end of October, the Sejm received several drafts, assuming a reduction in the VAT rate.

The topic of lowering the “episodically” raised VAT to 23% to 20% and repealing the regulation on this temporary increase in the tax rate has returned to the Diet.

One bill calls for a 0% tax rate on certain food products, such as meat, eggs, dairy products, honey, vegetables and roots and tubers, fruits and nuts, and traditional products.

There was also a proposal to reduce the VAT rate for electricity to 8%.

Simplified legalization of employment of foreigners

The government has proposed simplifying the simplified procedure for granting temporary residence and work permits to foreigners.

Currently, legalization of employment of citizens of Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Moldova can be done by registering with the District Labor Office a statement on entrusting work to a foreigner. The period of work on this basis can be no more than 6 months in any consecutive 12-month period – after this period, a work permit or a temporary residence and work permit must be applied for. The amendment calls for extending the permissible period of work based on a statement to 24 months.

In addition, the statement of assignment will be registered only if the employer provides the employee with a salary that is not lower than that of employees performing similar work.

For those applying for temporary residence and work permits, the drafters propose to drop the requirement that the foreigner have a source of stable and regular income and a place of residence in the territory of the Republic of Poland. The requirement to achieve a salary no lower than that of employees performing work of a comparable type or in a comparable position at the same time is still maintained. The amount of remuneration will not be allowed to be lower than the minimum wage regardless of the duration of work and the type of legal relationship, which is the basis for the performance of work by a foreigner.

End of Sunday trading by “postal outlets” that are not post offices

On February 1, 2022, an amendment to the Law on Restriction of Trade on Sundays and Holidays and on Certain Other Days will come into force.

The legislator noted that some retail establishments take advantage of the exemption from the ban on trading on Sundays and holidays by providing postal services, and said that this is inconsistent with the principles of fair competition and defeats the purpose of the regulation.

Accordingly, a rule has been introduced that postal activities are to be the predominant activity of an entrepreneur in order to enjoy the exemption from the aforementioned. prohibition. The predominant activity will be referred to when this activity accounts for at least 40% of monthly sales revenue. The legislature is also introducing a tool to control whether a retail outlet meets this requirement, by requiring it to keep records of monthly sales revenue broken down into revenue from postal activities and revenue from other activities. Failure to keep records will be sanctioned by a fine from PLN 1,000 to PLN 100,000.

e-Invoices

A bill amending the VAT law, introducing the so-called “VAT Act,” is awaiting the President’s signature. e-Invoices. If signed into law, the bill will go into effect on January 1, 2022.

A National e-Invoice System will be created, a tool that allows the issuance of electronic invoices, called “structured invoices” in the law. Each invoice will have an individual identification number.

Changes regarding adjustments

There will no longer be an obligation to issue a corrective invoice when price reductions in the form of early payment discounts and discounts and price reductions are granted after the sale. The decision whether or not to issue a correction will be at the discretion of the taxpayer.

The taxpayer will issue a correction if the tax base or the amount of tax indicated on the invoice has changed.

The correcting invoice will not be required to indicate the reason for the correction, but the possibility will remain.

Entities authorized to use the National e-Invoice System

Among those eligible to use the National e-Invoicing System are:

1. Taxpayer
2. Entities designated by the taxpayer
3. Enforcement authorities and bailiffs and individuals designated by them
4. Individuals indicated in the notice of granting or revoking rights to use the System, to whom the taxpayer has granted rights to use the System.

Functions of the National e-Invoice System

The system includes an e-Invoice document template. The software will be made available on a website, the address of which will be listed in the Public Information Bulletin.

The National e-Invoicing System will enable, among other things:

1. Activities related to user authentication, granting and revoking rights
2. Issuing e-Invoices
3. Access to e-Invoices
4. Receiving e-Invoices
5. Storage of e-Invoices
6. Marking e-Invoices with an identifying number
7. Analyze and control the accuracy of e-Invoice data.

E-Invoices will be stored in the System for 10 years counting from the end of the year in which they were issued. After this period, the taxpayer will be obliged to keep e-Invoices out of the System until the expiration of the statute of limitations on the tax liability.

Date of issuance and receipt of e-Invoice

The day the e-Invoice is issued will be the day it is uploaded to the National e-Invoice System. The system will allow (with the consent of the recipient) to receive such invoices. The date of receipt will be the date of assignment of the e-Invoice identification number in the System.

Reduced tax refund time for taxpayers issuing e-invoices

Taxpayers using the National e-Invoicing System will receive tax refunds within 40 days of the date of filing the return, if the following conditions are met together:

1. The taxpayer only issued e-Invoices to:
   1. Sales
   2. Delivery
   3. Provision of services
   4. Intra-Community supply of goods
   5. Sales, supplies and services if the taxpayer has received all or part of the payment prior to the performance of these activities,
2. The amount of input tax or tax difference not settled in previous periods and shown in the return does not exceed PLN 3,000,
3. The taxpayer for the 12 months preceding the accounting period for which the refund is claimed:
   1. He was an active VAT payer
   2. He filed returns for each accounting period
   3. Held a checking account or named account with an SKOK.

End of construction permits for small single-family houses

On January 3, 2022, an amendment to the Construction Law will go into effect.

A building permit will not be required for buildings that are simultaneous:

1. Freestanding
2. No more than bi-conditional
3. Residential
4. Single-family
5. They have no more than ^70m2
6. Their area of influence is entirely within the plot or plots on which they are designed
7. Their construction is carried out to meet the investor’s own housing needs.

Instead of a building permit, the necessity to report construction to an architectural and construction administration body has been introduced, to which – in addition to the standard documents – will be attached a statement by the investor that the construction is carried out to meet his own housing needs, submitted under penalty of criminal liability for making a false statement.

The developer will also attach to the application a statement that he accepts responsibility for managing the construction if a construction manager is not appointed, and that the attached documentation is complete.

The architectural and construction administration authority will not check the application for compliance of the project with the provisions of the Local Development Plan and regulations, nor the completeness of the project. There will also be no opportunity for the aforementioned to object. authority, and therefore it will be possible to proceed with the execution of works immediately after serving the notification to the architectural-construction administration authority.

At the construction site – despite the absence of the obligation to establish a manager – the necessity to place an information board and an announcement on the site will be maintained. occupational safety and health.

The building may be used after the construction supervision authority has been notified of the completion of construction, if the authority does not object within 14 days from the date of service of the notification. The notice does not need to be accompanied by the original construction log and technical design. The investor will instead include a statement about:

1. making measurements of the usable area of the building and individual residential units in a manner consistent with the provisions of the Decree of the Minister of Development on the detailed scope and form of the construction project and o
2. Compliance of the construction of the building with the construction project and technical and construction regulations.

Construction for which a construction permit decision or notification was issued before January 3, 2022 will be subject to the current regulations. Similarly, in the case of proceedings for the issuance of a construction permit decision or notification, initiated and not completed before the above-mentioned. day.