The national e-invoicing system is a digital platform implemented by the government to streamline the invoicing process for companies and individuals across the country. It aims to replace traditional paper invoices with electronic versions. Under this system, invoices are generated, sent, received and processed electronically in a standardized format.

One of the key advantages of the national e-Invoice system is the ability for companies to eliminate manual data entry tasks. By automatically populating electronic invoices with relevant information, such as supplier data, item descriptions, quantities, prices and tax calculations, individuals no longer need to manually enter this information into their accounting systems. This not only saves time, but also reduces the number of human errors that can occur during data entry.

The National Register of e-Invoices is still a voluntary solution in 2023 (it has been so since its introduction on January 1, 2022). However, it should be remembered that already in 2024 it is planned to make the use of KSeF mandatory (for entrepreneurs – active VAT taxpayers). In turn, starting in January 2025, the obligation to use KSeF will also apply to companies run by taxpayers exempt from VAT.

It is important to remember that July 1, 2024 is the effective date of the mandatory KseF. However, this does not apply to all entrepreneurs. As of July 1, 2024, the use of KSeF will become necessary for active taxpayers, while for taxpayers who are exempt from VAT and subject to VAT, it will be January 1, 2025.

Who must use the National e-Invoicing System? According to the current legislation, entrepreneurs can, and in the future will have to, use the National e-Invoice System service:

• have been registered as active VAT taxpayers,
• are exempt from VAT (whether subject or object VAT exemption),
• are accounted for under the special EU OSS procedure.

Entrepreneurs can count on such KSeF benefits as:

• Reduction of the deadline for VAT refunds from 60 to 40 days,
• security of documentation – thanks to KSeF you do not have to worry about destruction or loss of files,
• no obligation to prepare a JPK_FA structure.

How are KSeF-compliant structured invoices issued?

Structured invoices that comply with the KSeF structure can be issued in two ways:

• the accounting program you use on a daily basis (as long as it is equipped with such functionality),
• the digital platform that has been made available to all entrepreneurs by the Ministry of Finance.

KSeF structured invoices are processed in .xml format.

The structure of KSeF files is published through an online system, that is, the Central Repository of Electronic Document Templates. They are available on the ePUAP electronic platform (ePUAP is the Electronic Platform for Public Administration Services).

Through the National e-Invoice System, it is possible to issue corrections. However, on the other hand, there is no provision – or at least, it has not been done so far – for functionality in the form of the possibility to make correction notes in the National e-Invoice System. The situation is similar when it comes to pro forms.

The general obligation to use KSeF is fast approaching. Therefore, it is worthwhile to start preparing now for the implementation of the National e-Invoice Register in your enterprise.

In addition to the VAT changes, there are other noteworthy things in the package. The amendment introduced a number of simplifications designed to help the taxpayer in everyday life, but also the entrepreneur in running a business. The first issue is the arrangements for inheritance and gift tax. Thanks to them, one can count on a higher tax-free amount. Belonging to tax group I, determines a tax-free amount of PLN 36 120, in group II PLN 27090, while in group III PLN 5 733. It is worth noting that the amount will be higher in the case where the taxpayer belongs to a close family.

There has also been a change to the flat rate on income from private rental, and more specifically to its taxation. This will benefit spouses, who will be able to apply the 12.5% rate. After exceeding PLN 200 000.

The amendment also introduced reforms regarding reliefs. The first of these is the rehabilitation relief. It can be used if a taxpayer has a disabled family member as a dependent. It allows for the deduction of expenses incurred. The second one is the relief for children (with disabilities). Previously, there was an income limit for parents with a disabled only child. Slim VAT 3 abolishes this establishment.

Changes can also be seen in terms of PIT. As a self-employed taxpayer, from now on

business, from now on, does not have to worry about accounting for income, as this is made possible by the e-PIT service.

The deadlines for electronic bookkeeping for JPK_PIT and JPK_CIT, which have been postponed by a year, allow the entrepreneur to prepare adequately for this obligation.

It can therefore be seen that the Slim VAT 3 package contains quite significant changes that are of importance to the taxpayer.

What are the benefits of Slim VAT 3?

The amended law is aimed at numerous tax modifications for Polish citizens, which are designed to make the process of settling accounts with the authorities faster and easier. This will increase business liquidity. Slim VAT 3 also brings with it many other benefits that taxpayers can take advantage of. These include:

• fewer adjustments and less problematic VAT settlement – the use of the conversion rate for correcting invoices is more clarified. In addition, under certain conditions, the adjustment can be waived;
• reduced formalities in international trade – no need for a VAT invoice;
• simpler invoicing – the conditions for issuing an invoice are adapted to the e-paragon;
• improved liquidity for companies – from now on, the sales limit is raised to 2 million euros. Moreover, there are more possibilities to dispose of funds from the VAT account.
• Simpler access to tax knowledge – information from now on is issued by a single competent authority designated for this purpose, which will definitely facilitate access to all kinds of tax knowledge;

The new solutions brought by the SLIM VAT 3 package will come into effect as early as July 1, 2023.

Probationary contract

Concluded for a maximum of three months subject to:

(a) for a maximum of 1 month – where the intention is to conclude a fixed-term contract of less than 6 months;

b) for a maximum of 2 months – in the event of an intention to conclude a fixed-term employment contract of at least 6 months and less than 12 months;

• the parties may extend once in a contract of employment for a probationary period the periods indicated in points 1 and 2 by no more than 1 month, however, if this is justified by the nature of the work,
• the parties may agree in a contract of employment for a probationary period that the contract is extended by the period of holidays, as well as by the period of other excused absence from work of the employee, if such absences occur,
• it will only be possible to renew the contract if the employee was to be employed to perform a different type of work.

Fixed-term contract

• the obligation to provide reasons for the employer’s termination of the contract,
• the obligation to consult the trade union representing the employee about the intention to terminate the contract.

Information on the terms and conditions of employment

• communicated no later than 7 days from the date of the employee’s admission to work,
• provided on paper or electronically; the information may be provided by the employer to the employee electronically, if it is accessible to the employee with the possibility of printing it out and storing it, and the employer retains evidence of its provision or receipt by the employee,
• a significantly extended scope of the content of the information (art. 29 par. 3 of the Code of Labour Procedure),
• no later than within 30 days from the date of the employee’s admission to work, the employer shall inform about the name of the social security institutions to which social security contributions related to the employment relationship are paid and information about the social security protection provided by the employer; this does not apply in the case where the employee chooses the social security institution.

Information when working abroad, including business trips

• Before an employee goes to work or to perform a business task outside the country for a period exceeding four consecutive weeks, the employer shall provide the employee, in addition to the information in Article 29 of the Labour Code, with information in paper or electronic form on, inter alia, the time of work in another country and the working conditions (detailed in Article 29(1) of the Labour Code).

Carer’s leave

• an employee is entitled to five days of care leave per calendar year to provide personal care or support to a family member or person living in the same household who requires care or support for serious medical reasons,
• this leave shall be unpaid,
• granted at the request of the employee made on paper or electronically at least one day in advance,
• the period of care leave shall be counted as part of the period on which the employee’s entitlement is dependent.

Leave on grounds of force majeure

• an employee is entitled to two days or 16 hours of leave from work during a calendar year for reasons of force majeure in urgent family matters caused by illness or accident, if the employee’s immediate presence is required,
• during the period of such leave, the employee shall retain the right to half pay,
• the choice of the use of the exemption shall be made by the employee in the first application for such exemption made in a calendar year, the choice shall be binding for the year,
• the request is made by the employee no later than the day on which the exemption is taken.

Working time

• Increase in the number of work breaks from Article 134 of the Labour Code.

If the daily working time of an employee:

(a) is at least 6 hours – the employee is entitled to a break at work lasting at least 15 minutes;

(b) is longer than 9 hours – the employee is entitled to an additional break of at least 15 minutes;

(c) is longer than 16 hours – the employee is entitled to a further break of at least 15 minutes;

• according to the new Article 94(13) of the Labour Code, if the employer’s obligation to carry out training of employees necessary for the performance of a specific type of work or work in a specific position results from the provisions of a collective agreement or another collective agreement, or from the regulations, or from the law, or from the employment contract, and in the case of training carried out by an employee on the basis of a supervisor’s order, such training shall take place at the employer’s expense and, as far as possible, during the employee’s working hours; the time of training carried out outside the employee’s normal working hours shall be included in the working time,
• an employee raising a child up to the age of 8 years may not be employed without his/her consent for overtime, night work, intermittent working hours or posted outside his/her permanent place of work.

• a change in the manner of application in parental leave – instead of written applications, applications in paper or electronic form (concerns an application for the resignation of a part of maternity leave by an employee on the basis of 180 par. 4 and 6 of the Labour Code and for granting part of the maternity leave to the employee – the father or another member of the immediate family in cases specified in art. 180 par. 4 para. 1, para. 5, par. 6 para. 1 and para. 7, para. 10 item 1 and par. 11-13 and 15 of the Labour Code, an application for leave on maternity leave conditions, for parental leave or part thereof, for combining parental leave with work; for paternity leave; for parental leave, withdrawal of an application for such leave, an application for reduction of working hours of an employee entitled to parental leave;
• paternity leave – an employee – father raising a child will be entitled to paternity leave of up to two weeks, but no longer than:

(a) the child’s completion of 12 months of age (hitherto up to the age of 24 months), or

(b) the expiry of 12 months (hitherto up to the expiry of 24 months) from the date on which the decision declaring the adoption of the child becomes final, and no longer than until the child is 14 years old.

Parental leave

• the repeal of Article 179(1) of the Labour Code, which provides the basis for submitting the so-called long application for parental leave within 21 days after childbirth,
• the abandonment of the limitation of the possibility to take parental leave to those cases where maternity leave has been taken,
• parental leave for the father of a child will not be made conditional on the child’s mother being in employment or sickness insurance at the time of the birth,
• the introduction of a non-transferable nine-week period of leave to the other parent (extension of parental leave by nine weeks),
• changing the maximum leave entitlement due to combination with work,
• setting higher dimensions of parental leave for parents of a child with a certificate referred to in Article 4(3) of the Act of 4 November 2016 on support for pregnant women and families “Za życie” (65 and 67 weeks),
• significant changes to the application for leave and parts thereof.

Protection against dismissal

• during pregnancy and maternity leave, and from the date of the employee’s application for maternity leave or part thereof, leave on maternity leave conditions or part thereof, paternity leave or part thereof, parental leave or part thereof – until the date of the end of that leave – the employer may not:

(a) make arrangements to terminate or terminate without notice the employment relationship with that employee or that employee;

(b) terminate or dissolve the employment relationship with that female or male employee, unless there are reasons justifying termination without notice through their fault and the trade union organisation representing the female or male employee has agreed to the termination;

• in the event that the employee submits a request earlier than the deadlines specified in art. 180 par. 9 k.p., art. 182(1d) par. 1 of the Labour Code or in Art. 182(3) par. 2 k.p.p. these prohibitions take effect on:

(a) 14 days before the start of maternity leave and part of maternity leave;

(b) 21 days before the start of parental leave or part thereof;

(c) 7 days before the start of paternity leave or part thereof;

– This protection extends to probationary employment regardless of the duration of the contract.

• Flexible work organisation includes: remote working, intermittent working time system, weekend working system, shortened working week system, mobile (variable) working time schedules from Article 140(1) of the Labour Code, individual working time schedules, reduction of working time;

• an employee raising a child up to the age of 8 is entitled to request flexible working arrangements,
• the request shall be made on paper or electronically, no less than 21 days before the flexible working arrangement is intended to be used,
• the employer shall consider the application, taking into account: the needs of the employee, the date and reason for the need to use flexible working arrangements, the needs and possibilities of the employer, including the need to ensure the normal course of work, the organisation of work or the type of work performed by the employee,
• the employer shall be obliged to inform the employee, in paper or electronic form, of the granting of the application or of the reason for refusing to grant the application, or of a different possible date for the use of flexible working arrangements than the one indicated in the application, within 7 days from the date of receipt of the application.

Legal basis:

• Act of 9 March 2023 amending the Act – Labour Code and certain other acts (Journal of Laws, item 641)

A business trip is the performance of a business task at the behest of the employer outside the town where the employer’s registered office is located or outside the regular place of work. Employees are entitled to:

• per diems: for domestic travel – the equivalent of the increased cost of food, and for travel abroad – the equivalent of the cost of food and other minor expenses,
• reimbursement of costs of: travel by means of local transport, travel, accommodation, other necessary documented expenses, determined or recognised by the employer in accordance with justified needs.

allowances for domestic travel

The minimum national allowance is PLN 45 per day of travel.

1. If the trip lasts:

• less than 8 hours – no allowance is payable
• between 8 and 12 hours – a 50% allowance is payable
• more than 12 hours – full allowance is payable.

Where an employee is provided with free board, the allowance is reduced. This also applies to hotel accommodation with board. For breakfast, 25% of the allowance is added, for lunch 50% of the allowance and for dinner 25% of the allowance.

2. Overnight accommodation

An employee is entitled to reimbursement for hotel accommodation, documented by a receipt. However, the amount for one night cannot exceed 20 times the per diem (PLN 900).

If the employer has not provided the employee with accommodation and the employee does not present a bill for the night, the employee will be entitled to a lump sum of 150% of the per diem, i.e. PLN 67.50.

1. Per diems when travelling abroad.

In companies that do not have internal regulations on the calculation of foreign allowances (e.g. in the form of remuneration regulations), the rates set out in the Regulation of the Minister of the Family and Social Policy of 25 October 2022 amending the Regulation on entitlements to be paid to an employee working in a state or local government unit of the budgetary sphere on account of business travel (Journal of Laws, item 2302) apply for the calculation of allowances.

The amount of per diem for a foreign trip depends on the country to which it is delegated.

The employer may set different limits than those specified in the legislation. It is important that the minimum amount of per diem for foreign travel is not less favourable than the per diem for domestic business travel. This means that the per diem rate for domestic business travel set out in the regulation is the minimum rate.

IMPORTANT: If the employer determines and pays the employee a per diem higher than the limit set out in the above-mentioned regulation, the excess will constitute income for the employee on which he or she will pay tax.

If the trip lasts:

• up to 8 hours – the employee is entitled to 1/3 of the allowance,
• over 8 to 12 hours – the employee is entitled to 50% of the allowance,
• over 12 hours – the employee is entitled to the full allowance.

International travel time is accrued:

• air travel – from the moment an aircraft takes off on its way abroad from the last airport in the country to the moment the aircraft lands on its way back to the first airport in the country,
• overland journey – from the moment of crossing the state border on the way abroad to the moment of crossing it on the way back home
• sea journey – from the moment a ship (ferry) departs from the last Polish port until the moment it enters the first Polish port on the way back.

2. Overnight accommodation

An employee is entitled to reimbursement for overnight accommodation during a trip abroad in the amount evidenced by a receipt, but up to the limit set out in the Ordinance of the Minister of Family and Social Policy of 30 June 2022 amending the Ordinance on the entitlements to be paid to an employee employed in a state or local government unit of the budgetary sphere for a business trip.

Dla każdego kraju ustalony jest odrębny limit.

3. Travel

At the destination abroad (including where the employee has spent the night), the employee is entitled to a lump sum of one per diem to cover travel expenses to and from the railway station, bus station, airport or seaport. In the case of a one-way journey, the lump sum is 50% of the daily allowance.

IMPORTANT: The lump sum is not payable if the employee travels in a company or private vehicle or is provided with free travel.

Legal basis:

Ordinance of the Minister of Infrastructure of 25 March 2002 on the conditions for determining and the manner of reimbursing the costs of use for business purposes of passenger cars, motorbikes and mopeds not owned by the employer.

Ordinance of the Minister of Family and Social Policy of 25 October 2022 amending the Ordinance on countries to whose nationals certain provisions concerning the seasonal work permit and provisions concerning the declaration on the assignment of work to a foreigner apply.

• Until the end of 2023, the limit for cash payments between entrepreneurs for a single transaction is PLN 15,000.
• From 1 January 2024, the cash payment limit for transactions between entrepreneurs for a single transaction is to be PLN 8,000.
• When the value of the transaction exceeds the limit, the payment must be made using a payment account.

A payment account is understood to mean:

• bank account,
• SKOK,
• indirect mechanisms such as card payment or online platforms.

IMPORTANT: The limit applies to the total value of the transaction, regardless of the number of payments made as part of that transaction.

The one-off transaction value is:

• the whole value of a claim or liability,
• expressed in money,
• resulting from the delivery of goods or the provision of services against payment,
• specified in a contract concluded between traders.

Consequences of exceeding the cash payment limit

Failure to comply with the cash payment limit will result in the entrepreneur not being able to recognise the payment as a deductible expense to the extent that it was made without the intermediation of a payment account (Article 22p(1) of the PIT Act and 15d of the CIT Act, respectively).

Limit on business-to-consumer (B2C) cash transactions

• Until the end of 2023, consumers are not affected by the cash transaction limit.
• From 1 January 2024, the cash transaction limit will also start to apply to business-to-consumer transactions and is expected to be PLN 20,000.
• The limit will apply to the value of the total transaction, regardless of the number of payments made in the transaction.

Consequences of exceeding the cash payment limit

If, in 2024, an entrepreneur accepts a cash payment from a consumer in excess of PLN 20,000, the entire amount accepted without the intermediation of a payment account will constitute business income for the entrepreneur (Article 14(2)(22) of the PIT Act and Article 12(1)(16) of the CIT Act, respectively).