Warsaw (Puls Biznesu) – Many entrepreneurs may lose the opportunity to pay the taxes in the 19-percent flat rate.
The Ministry of Finance wants to stop the wave of employees launching their own business activity and paying 19-percent flat rate PIT. It has already outlined a bill.
“The rules of the draft endanger the self-employed businessmen”, Jerzy Bielwany, the deputy CEO of the Institute of Tax Studies said.
Miroslaw Barszcz, the deputy Minister of Finance, explains the changes with EU law.
“The changes are necessary for Poland to be in line with the VI EU directive. It may be so that people who changed into self-employed entrepreneurs although in fact they do the same job from 8 till 4 pm, in the same place and for the same company, will not be viewed as businessmen for tax purposes”, Miroslaw Barszcz said.
There is a provision explaining which activities are not business activities. They include the situation when the person ordering the job is responsible against third parties, decides about the place and time, and manages the job, and when he or she covers the costs of the job and the self-employed person does not have any risk.
“With this definition, the majority of business activities cannot be viewed as those. Such persons could not use the 19-percent flat rate and would have to pay PIT in the 19, 30 and 40 percent rates”, Justyna Bauta-Szostak, tax advisor from MDDP lawyers office said.
Another advantage of self-employment are lower social insurance fees. In 2004, 200,000 taxpayers used the 19-percent flat rate tax.