Changes for entrepreneurs since the new year

In the New Year, there will be a law on the reduction of payment congestion and the right to error for start-ups.

Greater protection of smaller companies against payment congestion, the right to error for start-ups, facilitation for crafts - such will be some of the effects of laws that will enter into force 1 January 2020.

In turn 1 February Next year the so-called small ZUS Plus, i.e. lower contributions to ZUS for the smallest entrepreneurs, will apply.

Like every year, we have good news for business. Now. 1 January The Act will come into force, which is intended to reduce payment congestion and a large part of the Friendly Law Package, i.e. the right to error for start-ups and facilitate crafts. A — from 1 February – Little ZUS Plus. And in the plans for the next months we have further facilitations for Polish companies – says Minister Jadwiga Emilewicz.

And Deputy Minister Marek Nieżak emphasises: - Changes that will enter into force 2020 We have prepared for and in consultation with entrepreneurs. The same will be the case for our next initiatives – including a pro-investment package or a family foundation bill.

1 January the Act will become applicable, which is intended to reduce payment congestion. Its aim is to strengthen the position of creditors, including in particular the improvement of the position of smaller companies

Reduction of payment bottlenecks

1 January the Act will become applicable, which is intended to reduce payment congestion. Its aim is to strengthen the position of creditors, including notably the improvement of the position of smaller companies. Today, according to estimates, the lack of payment within the deadline affects from 80 to 90% companies in Poland. In addition, in practice we are dealing with imposing even 180-day payment deadlines.

Key solutions to the new law

Reduction to the maximum 30 days from the date of delivery of the invoice — time limits for payment in commercial transactions in which the debtor is a public entity (excluding public entities that are medicinal agents).
Reduction to the maximum 60 days – the date of payment in transactions where the creditor is a micro-, small or medium-sized entrepreneur and the debtor is a large entrepreneur (so-called asymmetric transaction).
The largest corporate tax payers (capital groups and CIT taxpayers whose income exceeds annually 50,000,000 EUR) report annually to the Minister for Economic Affairs (MR) on their payment deadlines. These reports will be publicly available, which will allow you to learn how big partners carry out their obligations and assess the risk of entering into business relations with them. first payment practices reports to be published In 2021 (will provide information on 2020).
The President of the Office for Competition and Consumer Protection will impose fines on the companies that most delay the regulation of their obligations. First, the President of the UOKiK – either ex officio or on request – will assess whether there has been an excessive delay, and if so, the penalty will take into account the value of unpaid invoices and the length of delays in payments. However, there will be no fined debtor who does not pay because they do not pay him either.
Transfer from the creditor to the debtor of the burden of proof that the contractual deadline for payment is grossly unfair and that it is possible to request such determination within 3 years from the date on which payment was or was to take place.
The blockages affected will be entitled to relief for bad debts in the PIT and CIT, as in the VAT mechanism. This means that a creditor who will not be paid within the time 90 the days after the expiry of the period specified in the contract or on the invoice, will be able to reduce the tax base by the amount of the claim (in turn the debtor will be required to raise the tax base by the amount he has not paid).
The statutory interest for delays in commercial transactions will increase by 2 percentage points, i.e. up to 11.5% The point is that lending at the expense of companies by delaying remuneration is more expensive than obtaining money from, for example, commercial credit. Only in transactions where the debtor is a public entity that is a medicinal entity, interest will remain at its current level, i.e. 9.5%
Simplification of the safeguard procedure before civil courts in cases of cash claims for commercial transactions where the value of remuneration does not exceed 75,000 PLN. This means that there will be no need to demonstrate a legal interest in the granting of a security by the court – it is sufficient that the reason for a similar claim and the fact that the claim has not been settled by at least 3 months after the expiry of the payment deadline specified in the invoice or contract. As a result, once the security is secured, the plaintiff will have a greater guarantee of recovery in the event of a favourable judgment of the court.
Differentiation of compensation for recovery costs (now such compensation is 40 EUR on any unpaid claim or part thereof). After the changes they will be designated three thresholds:
40 EUR – where the cash benefit does not exceed 5,000 PLN;
70 EUR – where the cash benefit is higher than 5,000 PLN, but lower than 50,000 PLN;
100 EUR – where the cash benefit is equal to or greater than 50,000 PLN.
Complementation of the catalogue of unfair competition acts (in the anti-unfair competition Act) with an action consisting of an unjustified extension of the time limits for payment for the products or services supplied.

Friendly Law Package

1 January a large part of the Friendly Law Package will also enter into force.

The most important PPP solutions are:

The right to make a mistake - the entrepreneur, when he makes a mistake (for which a penalty or a penalty is being imposed), will not receive a penalty, but only a instruction and will be obliged to remove the infringements and their consequences within the time limit set by the authority. The right to error will include entrepreneurs registered in CEIDG. It will apply for one year from the date of taking up business for the time being first or again, after at least 36 months after the last suspension or termination of operations. Certain restrictions are provided for, including: the re-infringement of infringements or cases of gross or indelible infringements (loads shown by the relevant authority). The solution may concern ok. 300,000 entrepreneurs. It is modelled on the experiences of France and Lithuania.
Expand the definition of craftsman. Until now, only a natural person could perform the craft (entry into CEIDG). From 1 January 2020 It will also be possible to carry out the craft by a public company, a limited partnership, a limited partnership or a single-member capital company. The condition is that at least one the partners had professional qualifications and the other partners were married or relatives in a straight line (married, child or parent). It's an offer for over 211,000 artisans with a master's diploma or apprentice's certificate. Similar solutions are in Belgium and Austria.
At the beginning of the year there will also be an increase in the opportunities for foreign scientists who already work in Poland to undertake and perform business activity in Poland. This is to stop the qualified and specialised experts our economy needs.
Food workers will be able to 1 January 2020 be tested - in sanitary and epidemiological terms - at your own request. Until now, this study has only been carried out at the request of the employer. In addition, if the employee has an up-to-date medical certificate, the worker will not be subject to health and epidemiological re-examination when changing his employer.
Entrepreneurs will be given a clear confirmation of the security of their living during their bailout execution. To 1 January 2020 there will be a definitive exclusion from the execution of the amounts necessary for the entrepreneur and his family to be maintained by two weeks.
Subsequent facilitations of the succession of undertakings: the principle of acquisition of concessions, permits, licences and permits in the event of a change of the owner of the undertaking of a person entered into CEIDG; the possibility of appointing a temporary representative after the death of the spouse of the entrepreneur (when the company belongs to the entrepreneur and the spouse); the extension of the catalogue of collection records with the general rights and obligations of the partner of the partnership, while respecting the rules governing the change of the partner in the partnership with Ksh.
Other solutions:
Introduction of a simplified and silent settlement procedure (in 14 proceedings),
Digitalisation of certain reporting obligations (ORE Information System for Liquid Fuels),
Abolition of the obligation to attach documents held by the institution or containing information which it may establish (in 8 proceedings),
Reduction of required copies of documents accompanying applications (in 4 proceedings),
Reduction in the frequency of quarterly reports per year or six months (for 3 types of reports).

Small ZUS Plus

In turn 1 February Next year the bill will enter into force, which will introduce the Little ZUS Plus. The Sejm passed it unanimously – “for” was 433 Members. The Senate did not submit any amendments to it, and the President signed it last Friday.

Allowed to use the Little ZUS in the existing formula should report their willingness to use this relief to 8 January 2020. Then - from 1 February - will be able to pay contributions under the Small ZUS Plus, which will enter into force that day.

The new contribution base will be indicated in the monthly roll-over reports or settlement declarations submitted for February. On the other hand, entrepreneurs, whose Small ZUS Plus will only just embrace, will be able to report their willingness to benefit from this relief by the end of February.

Small ZUS Plus is an extension of the existing Little ZUS, which from the beginning 2019 allowed the smallest entrepreneurs to pay lower social security contributions, proportionally to their income in the previous year (reported above 186,000).

Small ZUS Plus is even more advantageous – it will include ok. 320,000 persons whose contributions will be calculated in proportion to the income. In total, their savings are estimated at ok. 1,300,000,000 PLN A year. This means on average several hundred PLN per month in the pocket of entrepreneurs. The income threshold will increase, which allows for relief. To date, this amount corresponds to 30-times the minimum wage in force in December last year (63,000 PLN) Now it's gonna be 120,000 PLN.

The deadline for submitting to the Small ZUS Plus will also be extended. We want entrepreneurs to have time to do this. 30 days.

On the other hand, the temporary reduction of the benefit is maintained – the right to pay the Small Social Security plus will be granted to entrepreneurs by 3 years in subsequent years 5 years.

IP box

In 2020 entrepreneurs will be able to for a time first take advantage of the tax credit (in PIT and CIT) IP box, which gives them the right to settle revenue earned In 2019 of commercialisation of manufactured or developed and improved intellectual property rights at preferential tax rate 5%.

The IP box relief is a complement of the applicable from 2016 R & D relief, which guarantees entrepreneurs an additional deduction from the tax base of costs incurred for R & D.

The list of R & D and IP box credits in Poland creates the most friendly tax structure in Europe for investment in R & D, and, therefore, for companies to be at risk of developing innovative projects.

Preserved right to a bonus

The practice shows that by the end of this year not all the so-far rural users - who acquired land ownership 1 January 2019 under the Act on the conversion of the right to use perpetual land built for residential purposes into ownership of these land - they will receive certificates which confirm the transformation.

Persons to whom the certificate will be served 2020 and in subsequent years they will be able to benefit from the preferential discount on the one-off charges applicable in the year of conversion.

To this end, they should notify their intention to pay a single fee within the time limit 2 months from the date of receipt of that certificate.

In order to benefit from the highest discount, a one-off fee should be paid which takes into account this discount within the time limit 2 months from the date on which the authority received information on the amount of the single fee, including the amount of the discount granted.

This solution eliminates - unfavourable to new owners - the effects of tardiness of organs in the process of widespread expropriation on residential land.

After 31 December 2019 the authorities will continue to be required to confirm the transformation and issued in 2020 and in the years following the certificates will have full legal effect.