From January 01, 2017, the limit of cash transactions between enterprises referred to in art. 22 paragraph 1 of the Freedom of Business Activity Act to 15.000,00 PLN.
The new rules apply for transactions concluded from January 01, 2017.
Requirement to make a payment through a payment account
According to the amended art. 22 of the Act on freedom of business activity, making or receiving payments related to the business activity occurs via a payment account whenever:
- the party to the transaction from which the payment results is another domestic or foreign entrepreneur,
- the one-off transaction value, irrespective of the number of payments resulting therefrom, exceeds the equivalent of PLN 15.000,00 - transactions in foreign currencies are translated at the average exchange rate of foreign currencies announced by the National Bank of Poland on the last business day preceding transaction date.
Payment account
In accordance with art. 2 points 25 of the Payment Services Act, the payment account is kept for one or more users for performing payment transactions. The payment account is a bank account and an account of a member of the cooperative savings and credit union if these accounts are used to perform payment transactions.
Payments that take place using payment instruments related to payment accounts and via intermediary payment systems (i.e. payment kits, PayPal, PayU) meet the definition of a payment account.
Tax consequences of not complying with the cash transaction limit
- Transaction value over PLN 15.000,00 fully paid in cash:
Transactions between enterprises concluded from January 01, 2017whose value exceeds PLN 15.000,00, paid in full in cash, will not be recognized as tax deductible costs.
- Transaction value over PLN 15.000,00 partly paid in cash and via a payment account:
Taxpayers will not be able to count as tax deductible costs in the part where the payment for transactions with a value above PLN 15.000,00 will be made without a payment account.
- If the value of the transaction above PLN 15.000,00 in cash has been fully recognized as tax deductible costs, and then fully or partially paid in cash, the taxpayer adjusts costs by reducing tax deductible costs or increasing revenues - if it is not possible to reduce costs earning income - in the month in which the payment is made without the intermediation of the payment account.
WARNING!
The new regulations refer to the regulation of transactions only through making payment. Thus, the tax consequences of not complying with the cash transaction limit they do not apply to other forms of settlement of liabilities which do not constitute payments, i.e. offsetting.
It is worth noting that the tax consequences of not complying with the cash transaction limit refer only to the buyer. A seller who has received payment for a transaction in excess of PLN 15.000,00 in cash does not make any adjustment to tax revenues.