SLIM VAT 3 – proposal of new changes to VAT
On 31 January 2022 the Ministry of Finance commenced pre-consultations regarding the bill on SLIM-VAT-3 – another set of simplifications concerning VAT. This time, more than 20 new solutions were proposed.
Presented below is a brief outline of the planned changes:
Changes to ICS:
The changes apply to the moment of recognizing ICS with 0% rate if the documents confirming supply are received after the required deadline. According to the current regulations, the taxpayer has the right to show ICS transactions in the return for the period in which the supply was made. Reference to the moment of supply raises a number of practical and legal doubts. Therefore, the proposed Art. 42(12a) of the VAT Act requires that a transaction be declared for the account period in which the tax obligation arose (tax point).
Changes to ICA:
SLIM VAT-3 provides for waiver of the requirement to have the invoice documenting ICA when the input VAT is deducted. The invoice will no longer constitute a formal condition for deduction. This will mean that the input and output VAT on account of ICA will always be settled exactly in the same account period, and consequently VAT on ICA will be entirely neutral for the taxpayer.
Amendment to regulations on prepayment invoices
According to the current regulations, the taxpayer is obliged to issue a prepayment invoice referred to in Art. 106b(1)(4) of the VAT Act. The proposed wording of Art. 106b(1a) of the VAT Act provides for possible waiver of the obligation to issue a separate invoice to document a prepayment (advance payment) if the taxpayer receives the total or part of payment in advance in the same account period in which the tax obligation arose, with respect to a transaction for which such payment was received.
Amendment concerning the status of a “small taxpayer”
There are plans to increase the limit on the values of sales (including tax) which makes the taxpayer eligible to have the status of a “small taxpayer” from EUR 1,200,000 to EUR 2,000,000.
Changes to currency conversion in case of corrective invoices
The planned Art. 31b of the VAT Act provides for more specific rules of application of the conversion rate for correction invoices if the original invoice was issued in a foreign currency. The planned changes provide for 4 new situations, where:
- For negative correction invoices – an average exchange rate for a given foreign currency is used, as adopted for the taxable base that has been reduced.
- For positive correction invoices – an average exchange rate for a given foreign currency is used as announced by the National Bank of Poland (NBP) as at the last working day preceding the date on which the cause for the increase of the taxable base occurred (the taxpayer will also be entitled to choose the manner of conversion of the amounts to PLN according to the most recent exchange rate published by the European Central Bank as at the date preceding the occurrence of the cause of the taxable base increase).
- For correction invoices issued before the tax obligation arises – if a positive correction invoice is issued, to convert it, the taxpayer will use the exchange rate originally applied to the invoice documenting the transaction
- For a collective correction invoice issued due to a discount or price reduction – the average exchange rate will be used for a given foreign currency, as announced by the National Bank of Poland (the European Central Bank, as appropriate) as at the last working day preceding the date of the correction invoice – in this case a single collective exchange rate will be used for all transactions.
The planned provisions of Art. 31b (1)-(4) will not apply in case of adjustments made by taxpayers who make conversion according to the rules applicable to income tax (current Art. 31a (2a) – (2d) of the VAT Act). The taxpayer who follows the rules applicable to income tax should also use them to determine the conversion rate used for correction.
Calculation of the proportion under Art. 90(10)(1) and Art. 90 (12) and the new Art. 91(1a)
According to the current regulations it can be stated that the proportion indicated by the taxpayer is 100% provided that it exceeds 98% and the amount of the non-deductible input tax resulting from application of this proportion was lower than PLN 500 over the year.
The changed Art. 90(10)(1) provides for an increase of the amount which allows for recognizing that the proportion specified by the taxpayer is 100%, from the current PLN 500 to PLN 10,000. The proposal is that the increased amount should be applicable from the beginning of 2022.
Changed rates of sanctions – amendment to Art. 112
The planned change applies to reduction of sanctions concerning VAT, as follows:
- Under Article 112b (2) of the VAT Act – reduction to 10%,
- Under Article 112b (2a) of the VAT Act – reduction to 5%.
Implementation of the ECJ judgment in case C-935/19 Grupa Warzywna Sp. z o.o.
Further to the ECJ judgment in case C-935/19 Grupa Warzywna sp. z o.o., concerning compliance of the Polish regulations on additional tax liability with the EU law, there was a need to implement a change which would adjust the VAT sanction to the rules resulting from said judgment.
As a result of the regulations, the tax authorities will have the right to waive assessment of the VAT sanctions if special circumstances occur, whereby it can be concluded that the taxpayer acted with due diligence that can be expected of him in the situation, and provided that the non-compliance did not and may not lead to reduction of the tax liability. After the changes, when the additional tax liability is established, the head of the tax office or the head of the customs and fiscal office can waive the assessment thereof.
Changes to banking law – VAT groups
The change consists of implementation of regulations governing the transfer of funds between VAT accounts within a VAT group. Due to the fact that it is the representative of the VAT group that is liable for payment of taxes to the tax office, there is a need to implement the possibility to transfer the funds from the VAT accounts of individual members of the group to the VAT account of the representative.
Consolidation of binding information and procedures for their issuance
The bill provides for two changes in the area of issuance of binding information:
- consolidation of issuance of binding information by appointment of the Director of the National Fiscal Information [Krajowa Informacja Skarboa – KIS], hereinafter “KIS Director” as the body competent to issue the binding tariff information, binding origin information and binding excise information as the 1st instance, and to handle appeals as the 2nd instance, so as to make it easier for entrepreneurs to obtain said binding information from a single source, and to ensure consistency of the information throughout Poland;
- consolidation of the tax system with respect to issuance of binding rate information and binding excise information.
The pre-consultations announced by the Ministry of Finance are planned to end on 14 February 2022. By this date, the parties concerned may file requests and opinions regarding the planned changes.
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