The Tax Penal Code provides for a number of situations where it is possible not to punish the offender or fiscal misdemeanour. The most famous is voluntary disclosure, and another option is voluntary submission to responsibility. What is this institution and what benefits it brings?
First of all, it is important to know the reasons for voluntary submission. According to Article 17 section 1 Act dated 10 September 1999 Tax Penal Code (i.e. Journal of Laws of 2022, item 859), the court may authorise voluntary submission of responsibility if the offender's fault and the circumstances of the offence fiscal criminal offence or fiscal misdemeanour There are no doubts. But in addition to the above, additional conditions must also be met, i.e.:
- • paid in full due public debt if due fiscal criminal offence or fiscal misdemeanour this debt has been reduced,
- • the offender has paid the amount corresponding to at least the lowest penalty of the fine threatening for the offence,
- the offender has agreed to the forfeiture of the items at least to the extent that the forfeiture is compulsory and, in the event of the impossibility of submitting the items, has paid them monetary equivalent; Article 16 section 2 sentence third and Article 31 section 3 point 2 [1] shall apply mutatis mutandis,
- paid at least a flat-rate equivalent of the costs of proceedings.
When, in turn, is it not possible (acceptable) to allow voluntary submission? Provision Article 17 section 2 The Tax Penal Code lists the following conditions:
- • fiscal criminal offence is at risk of imprisonment or imprisonment,
- • fiscal criminal offence fined only was committed under certain conditions under Article 37 section 1 [2] or Article 38 section 2 [3] ,
- • intervened on the subject of the offence, unless it was withdrawn by the intervener until the indictment was brought to court.
According to Article 18 section 1 The Tax Penal Code, the court, when authorising voluntary surrender, shall decide:
- • for fines, the amount paid by the offender,
- • the loss of items only within the limits within which the perpetrator agreed to it, and in the event that they could not be filed, he paid them monetary equivalent.
The most important advantage of voluntary submission of responsibility is that a final judgment of authorisation is not subject to registration in the National Criminal Registry.
Finally, it is worth noting that the payment of a certain amount for fines fiscal criminal offence by voluntary submission of responsibility does not constitute a condition for tax recidivism specified under Article 37(1)(4) Tax Penal Code (‘the court applies an extraordinary severity of the penalty if the perpetrator: (...) convicted for intent fiscal criminal offence for imprisonment or a restriction of liberty or a fine, within the time limits 5 years after at least 6 the months of imprisonment, or 6 months' restriction of liberty or after payment of a fine of at least 120 daily rates are deliberately committed fiscal criminal offence the same type).
[1] The forfeiture of items shall also not be ruled if: (...) the public liability relating to objects at risk of forfeiture has been paid, unless that liability is disproportionately low to the amount of the monetary equivalent of the forfeiture of objects or the forfeiture concerns certain items under Article 29(4) or who have been specially prepared to commit a prohibited act.
[2] The provision mentions situations where the court applies an exceptional penalty. These include situations where the perpetrator commits intentionally fiscal criminal offence, resulting in the reduction of high-value public debt or intentionally commits fiscal criminal offence, and the value of the object of the prohibited act is high, or when the perpetrator has made himself a permanent source of income from the commission of tax offences.
[3] Who also treats an extraordinary punishment.