New changes to PIT coming soon...
The Polish Deal was implemented into Polish law at the beginning of 2022. The new regulations, despite only being in force for a month, have already provoked many concerns among taxpayers.
In response to the numerous interpretation problems, on January 7, 2022, the Minister of Finance decided to issue a regulation extending the deadlines for some remitters to collect and remit advance payments of PIT. However, taking into account certain reservations as to the validity of the changes introduced by the regulation, the legislator has ultimately decided to amend the PIT Act.
The amendment to the Act, i.e. the Act amending the Act on Personal Income Tax, the Act on Vocational and Social Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities and the Act on Tax on Extraction of Certain Minerals, was adopted by the Sejm (the lower house of the Polish parliament) on January 27, 2022.
One of the most important amendments provided for in this act is the extension the deadlines for the collection and remittance of advance personal income tax by remitters. Pursuant to the new regulations, in the case of employees and contractors whose monthly gross income does not exceed PLN 12,800, the advance income tax will be collected in an amount not higher than the amount of the advance calculated in accordance with the "old" principles (i.e. those applicable until December 31, 2021). This means that the remitter should calculate advance payments of income tax both according to the "old" rules and the "new" ones (currently in force since 1 January 2022), and then compare the amounts of such calculated advance payments. Where the advance calculated in accordance with the old principles is lower than the advance calculated in accordance with the new principles, the mechanism of extended deadline for the collection and remittance of advance payments will apply, consisting in a later collection of the surplus between the advance calculated in accordance with the new principles and the advance calculated in accordance with the old principles.
Furthermore, there will be amendments which will enable tax remitters to decrease the advance payment by 1/12 of the amount reducing the tax, i.e. by PLN 425. According to the amendment, the reduction will also be possible in the case where PIT-2 return is submitted during a tax year, not only before the payment of the first remuneration in a given tax year.
Currently, further legislative work is being carried out concerning the presented solutions, although it may be estimated that these requirements will be incorporated into the legal system in the near future.
Natalia Szymocha, Tax Consultant, ATA Tax Sp. z o.o.
Interested in the topic?